How to Choose a Holiday Home

There are many advantages to having a holiday home. If you visit your favourite part of the world frequently, it can be great to have your own home there instead of finding somewhere new to stay every time or paying to stay in a hotel. Having your own holiday home also means that you can decorate it however you choose to and feel as relaxed and “at home” there as you would in your main home.

However, it can be difficult to choose the right holiday home to buy. You don’t want to be financially and legally tied to a home that you do not end up visiting or that has more drawbacks than advantages. In this article, we will look at some of the things you need to know in order to choose the right “home away from home”.

It goes without saying that you should like the part of the country or the world that a home is situated in! If you have been visiting your preferred destination yearly or more for many years and have strong emotional connections to the area, this choice shouldn’t be too difficult. However, you should think to the future: do you anticipate visiting this destination regularly for many more years without getting tired of it? You don’t have to spend every single holiday there of course, but if you are only going to go there a couple more times or very infrequently, it is probably not worth getting a holiday home there.

On the other hand, you probably should not consider buying a holiday home somewhere that you have only visited once or twice. However amazing you think a place is, there is always the chance that the novelty may wear off or you may discover something that you don’t like about the area. Visit at least a few times before making such a commitment!

Once you have chosen the part of the world, you should take into account the immediate surroundings of the home. Do you need to be within walking distance of a supermarket or corner shop, for example? What about a local pub?

In terms of costs, tourist-friendly areas are also usually expensive. Sometimes choosing a home even just a block or two further away from the beach, for example, can be significantly cheaper! If you want to get a good deal but don’t know where you should start, check out this online guide to holiday lets.

Once you have found a property that looks great and is within your budget, it can be tempting to go ahead and buy. However, it is often worth checking out the other houses on the street (unless of course, you are in a very rural area and isolated). There are two reasons for this: there may be other houses very close that are preferable and cheaper, and there may also be potential issues with neighbours. For example, if you want a quiet, peaceful retreat to escape from the pressures of the world, choosing a property next door to a noisy student house known for loud parties would be an error.

If it is possible, try and spend some time in the holiday home before deciding to buy it. Often, first impressions can be deceiving and the experience of staying in a home can be different from simply having a quick look around it. You may even be able to book a night or two from the current owner and test it out for yourself before buying.