Gite business coming to an end ?

[SteveyGee]

I have read recently that the Gite business as a way of life is not all its cracked up to be. The word is that the market is saturated and once reliable levels of income have dived causing some Brits to pack up and go back to England.

Who is failing and what types of business are failing ? Have these people got the wrong formula ? As a rule of thumb what would a family of 3 expect to be able to live on £pcm assuming no mortgage or expensive cars ? 

Is the market saturated or does one have to upgrade accomodation and diversify?

What opportunities are there to diversify , are there opportunities to earn from gardening / looking after properties ?

 

 

 

[Val_2]

I am not a gîte owner but I am on the board of the local tourist office and we ourselves get a lot of work renovating properties for rental so I see a different perspective to most folk,including what sort of investments they are making in the beginning. I would honestly say that the gardening/property maintenance (not real building work) is actually a lot more saturated form of income than renting out property as many brits coming here with no skills or job prospects seem to turn to this way of life(look at all the ads in the magazines) usually without success unless they go down the route of getting properly registered as a fulltime business as they have the proper local french gardeners to contend with as well. People are still renting holiday cottages but currently bookings seem very slow and well down on last year and I live in an extremely popular tourist area. Friends who have a B&B about 20miles inland from here have not had more than about five bookings in the past two years for odd nights and are now seriously considering a move to Spain and out of the accomodation business,whereas the previous years were packed with visitors most weeks - obviously these people have now found their own properties which increases the number of rental properties as well. It now seems that holiday rental properties must be good value and extremely well equiped and furnished to a high standard and be able to offer extras like a pool,easy access to roads and airports and have a lot of local interests too to occupy visitors especially on wet days. If you take a look in publications like FPN you will see a huge increase now in properties for sale and especially ones which were used for rental as the owners are finding it more and more difficult to make the kind of living they thought would be easy. Living day to day in France is now expensive compared to say,five years ago. Everything has gone up since the Euro came in and wages are stagnant. Don't ever believe you can live here cheaper than the UK especially if you have no job or monthly income because there are many more payments to be made.

[GRT17]

Having a gite (singular) is O.K. as a "sideline" but I would be very worried if I had to make a living and keep a family on the income.

A gite complex must need a lot of investment and maintenance, and seriously. how many weeks of the year can one fill with bookings?

As Val2 says, doing changeovers and gardening seems to be a popular choice but there is probably a lot of competition.

It all sounds idyllic but do the research carefully.

Bonne chance

Gill

[paw862]

We have rented out our property for the last 5 years in the Dordogne. We usually have 12 weeks booked out. This year is very bad with only 5 weeks sold so far. I think the higher ferry costs earlier in the year may not have helped. I wouldn't want to make a living from the Gite.

[Russethouse]

Over the years the advice I have read here is that to really make a living you need 5 gites, and probably to have something extra (things to do, courses etc)to offer too.

In fact a friend in Normandy was telling me only on Sunday that some mutual friends had just made 1 gite with the idea of letting it and others had said it just wasn't worth the hassle.

[GRT17]

"Over the years the advice I have read here is that to really make a living you need 5 gites, and probably to have something extra (things to do, courses etc)to offer too."

Gay, it sounds alright doesn't it, five gites = more income. However I believe that the gite complexes would generally appeal to families with young children who require the company of others. Imagine if you are only able to let them during during the Summer, peak weeks, i.e. the school holidays. This would be approx. for 5 / 6 weeks, that means the rest of the year the gites would be sitting empty = no income and still all the maintenance costs to pay. Courses and activities might extend the season.

Those who choose to holiday off season are probably looking for a bit more independence and perhaps don't want to be holidaying next door to other holiday makers from their own country.

Re. one gite: I think if you lived in a large house and had a small property to let in the grounds then this would bring in some "extra euros" (although not enough for a "living" as such) so long as it didn't cost an arm and a leg to convert.

Gill

[Gastines]

To add to the subject.I think the ferry cost seems to be the biggest drawback on business/lettings from the UK. I wonder how many gite owners have tried advertising on European sites? Our B & B has 90%+ from mainland Europe and most UK visitors main complaint is the ferry fare.

Regarding B.Ferries,I make 2 phone calls and try the web site ,usually get 3 different prices, before I book.Recently quoted 314 euros for 3 day return,Cherbourg-Poole, same route back,when I pointed out that they were supposed to have a 3 day special,"Oh yes,154 euros"!!!

Regards.Nr.St.Malo.

[Lizzie15]

Hmmm...tricky one. In my experience it is some of the gite complexes that are feeling the pinch,although there are always exceptions .People expect a high standard of accommodation and pathetic little kitchens and poor furnishings just don't cut the mustard.We have an individual gite,and except for the next 2 weeks it is almost fully booked until mid October, with bookings beyond .The home must be furnished to a high standard and offer that certain "something".An individual pool, as opposed to a pool shared amongst other properties,is an asset,( in the warmer areas)an above-ground splash pool is not! In this uncertain World I certainly wouldn't look to it to provide my main income! It's hard work,almost a labour of love.I would not have done this if I thought my family's future depended on it! There will always be demand for a good quality product,as long as the price isn't inflated! It doesn't necessarily have to be "posh",but it does need "charm" and we all expect comfort,why would you want to go on holiday and have worse accommodation than you have at home? Some people were greedy ,however there are an awful lot of gite owners who work their socks off and provide a really top quality product and are flourishing   It is not easy and certainly not quick bucks!!