Buyers looking for homes that can create an income - claim

Homeowners are increasingly looking to properties that can either boost income or to offer a better work/life balance – without the need to downsize, an agent claims.

Amanda Ake of Stacks Property Search says more buyers of all ages, from young families to the retired, are looking for properties that they can rent out on short term lets while they spend their time elsewhere.

She said: “This may be for a lifestyle choice, enabling extensive travel; while for others it’s about generating income.

“Working from home is changing the shape of working lives allowing many of those who used to be chained to a 9-5 office routine to work from pretty much anywhere that has decent wi-fi.

“Working from home doesn’t mean working from home, it means working from anywhere with functioning wi-fi. Digital nomads are a growing and happy tribe.”

She said the options for homeowners are wide ranging, adding: “Some choose to do home swaps, some to head off in campervans, while others may opt for an annexe in the garden that they move into when they have paying guests in the main house.

“For some it’s about financing more extensive and lavish holidays; they’ll rent their house out and take the whole family off for the months of July and August. Others whose children are at boarding school may want to keep the family home for the holiday months, but take off to warmer climes during term time, or pack themselves up into a campervan and explore the UK.”

Ake said age is no barrier either.

She added: “We’re talking to people both pre and post-family, and young, partially or fully retired. 

“There are lots of buyers who are moving out of London, wanting a dream country home, but with the advantage of making some serious extra income when they travel.

“Buyers who are looking for a property that’s going to give them this flexibility need to be forensic in terms of getting the property right. It needs to be robust and easy to run. Creaky and quirky properties are likely to be a headache if you’re on the other side of the world when the roof starts leaking or the boiler gives up.

“They should also ask themselves if they’re honestly the kind of person who won’t mind strangers in their home. It sounds obvious, but it’s not for everybody.”