Schaker Property - the perfect partner for serviced accommodation in London and the South-East
If serviced accommodation provides landlords with such significant return on their investment, why isn’t everyone doing it? The answer is simple: the model doesn’t work in every location — plus it takes huge amounts of effort and know-how to avoid wasting money and getting things wrong.
So what has Schaker Property learnt along the way? For anyone new to serviced accommodation, there are a number of challenges to overcome straight away.
Understanding what serviced accommodation means
It’s kind of a critical piece of the jigsaw and yet often misunderstood over the last few years. After all, it’s been a fairly recent phenomenon. Once a landlord understands the unique characteristics of the serviced apartment, then it’s time to assess the local market and get a handle on who the guests are likely to be. This is something that the Schaker Property team has plenty of experience with.
Marketing — who are your customers and where do they stay?
Unless you understand the product you’re selling and the type of guest you want to attract, you’re unlikely to get the results you’re after. For example, are your core customers going to be business people? Or tourists? Will this change according to the time of week? And what about average duration of stay? Is this likely to change throughout the year; perhaps it’s dependent upon specific events taking place in your town?
Once you have segmented your guests, you need to create a marketing plan, in order to engage with them. Perhaps that’s through digital marketing or traditional media. Or maybe both. Certain digital channels will resonate more with some of your potential market than with others. Where and how your offline media placement surfaces will also depend upon your target demographic. That’s why customer profile is so critical — and ultimately will have an impact on occupancy rates.
Lettings agents and online portals
Since there continue to be many market upheavals and new business models entering the property business, it’s hardly surprising that many agents and landlords took a while to decide how to market the new format. Would it fit into the traditional lettings model? How would that compare to the lower percentage charged by online portals as a booking fee. Things are improving, but there’s still some way to go.
The Schaker Property approach to serviced accommodation is to always focus on the quality of experience for the guest. This doesn’t have to mean top dollar in outlay, but Schaker works closely with it’s landlord clients to help make the necessary changes required, to switch to serviced accommodation.
Regulatory compliance
As you’d expect, there are local variations in policy relating to serviced accommodation. And it’s fair to say that what’s often considered to be part of the platform economy, is coming under increasing scrutiny by officialdom. Luckily for landlords, there is plenty of guidance to follow already and Schaker Property can provide assistance, through it’s nationwide network of experts.
As the landscape evolves, we will be there to guide, support and manage your property, so you get maximum return for the minimum hassle.
For more information, speak to the team at Schaker Property
