From ASTs to Shortlets: A Story of Property Management Success

After exclusively using ASTs (Assured Shorthold Tenancies) as the main letting strategy, one multiple property investor decided to explore the world of short-term letting. While his knowledge of ASTs gave him a strong foundation to make the switch, he still needed to expand his knowledge to maximise its earning potential.

This encouraged the multi-property investor to turn to a professional to help transition from ASTs to short-term letting. City Relay’s data-backed projections and appraisal helped him progress and succeed in short-term letting.

Challenge:

Before partnering with City Relay, the client was new to short-term letting. This presented three distinct challenges.

First, despite his vast knowledge and experience in managing ASTs, he realised that short lets operated differently. He needed to learn how to manage bookings, maintain high occupancy rates and deal with guest communications. This was on top of maintaining the property in between bookings.

Second, the client needed a proper pricing strategy to enjoy the higher rental income potential of shortlets. He needed experts to help him learn dynamic pricing strategies that could keep his properties profitable and competitive.

Third, the client felt overwhelmed by the frequent turnover. It raised concerns about maintaining high guest satisfaction. How could he ensure a positive guest experience so it would only lead to positive reviews and more bookings?

Solution:

By partnering with City Relay, we provided the client with a tailored short-term letting management solution. We offered a complete package of services that included marketing properties, setting competitive rental rates and providing housekeeping and maintenance.

City Relay focused on three things:

Optimised pricing strategy. We used our smart technology to implement dynamic pricing strategies that helped the properties reach nightly rates as high as £300 – 30% higher than the average nightly rate in London.
Seamless operations. City Relay took over the cleaning, check-ins and check-outs. This provided a hassle-free experience for the client and their guests.
Enhanced customer service. We’re known for our exceptional customer service and high trust rating. Our dedicated team ensured that the client’s questions and concerns were attended to immediately. Apart from that, we gave the client access to our property management technology where he had access to the performance data of all his properties.

As an expert in flexible letting, City Relay also introduced the idea of combining short-term, mid-term and long-term letting as a strategy that’ll increase the client’s rental revenue potential. It opened doors to increase occupancy rates and improve the annual rental yields of his multi-property portfolio.

Results:

The partnership between City Relay led to incredible wins for the client.

Higher occupancy rates with a steady stream of bookings – with some properties being booked for 2 to 3 months straight.
Increased rental income thanks to a higher night rate of up to £300 – a significant boost from what was previously earned through ASTs.
Stress-free property management thanks to City Relay’s competent team – from the efficient customer service to the housekeeping and maintenance staff.

Conclusion:

City Relay’s unique approach to short-term letting gave the client a chance to break into the flexible letting market. Instead of being limited to ASTs, the client enjoyed the higher rental income of short-term letting and the steady revenue from mid-term and long-term letting. Through City Relay’s dynamic pricing strategies, the client gained greater rental returns that significantly increased the worth of his multi-property portfolio.

The client also enjoyed a hassle-free experience as City Relay took over the marketing, maintenance and overall management of their properties. Thanks to the expert support, seamless operations and smart proprietary tech platform provided by City Relay, the client’s short-term letting business has been thriving and profitable.

Are you looking to unlock the earning potential of your rental properties? If you’d like to explore the benefits of flexible letting, consider partnering with City Relay. We’ll help maximise your returns and enjoy a stress-free property management experience.