Would you quit your jobs?

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Without being too outing, someone close to us is buying a small holiday complex. We could possibly have the opportunity of living on site and running it for them. They will pay our wages. We think this could be a good opportunity to give up the slog of our day jobs. For reference we have three young children. I feel like I can't think straight as have never had such an opportunity. Does anyone have any experience in this field ? Would you do it ? Does anyone have any positives/negatives? Thankyou

I'm surprised you think this is going to be more relaxing, especially with three young children.
How young are the children? Are you expecting them to be able to tag along with you when you are working or will they be in childcare? Outside of the set hours for childcare, what will you do with them when there is a problem? Who is going to do the school run and those sorts of things? What happens if one of them needs to self isolate? What happens if all of you need to self isolate if one of you tests positive?
As a PP has asked, do you and your DH expect to both be able to take your annual leave at the same time? If so, how much of that will be in the school summer holidays? How much of it can be in the other school holidays? When you're on holiday, whilst I would expect you to be able to remain in your work accommodation (although double check!), will you be able to relax properly if you're still on site?
If there are facilities such as a pool or a playground on site, can your DC use them? Or are they for guests only? What about your visitors or your DC's friends?
How will your salary work? Will your salary be paid over 12 months? If not, what will you do in winter? Is it a permanent job rather than a temporary seasonal job?
Why do the people who have offered you this role think you can do it?

Who will look after your kids on change over day (usually a sat) because 10 properties is a lot to clean and get ready for guests.
Do you realise that you will have to pay tax on the properties you renovate & sell as they won't be your perm home?
Do youvhave any trade skills to renovate the properties? People expect high finishes in the smallest properties to get max £
Where are your kids in all this ? You will be working a lot at weekends who will care for them

You won't have a boss in the usual sense of the word so yes you might be able to squeeze it a gp app or a trip to the post office etc in between chores but it certainly won't be less stressful or more relaxing than regular employment. It will be a lot of cleaning, repairs, keeping customers happy, running errands, being in call at short notice if something breaks in the properties.
You will be flat out from March to October half term then again at Xmas.
If you fancy a change and you have an interest in customer service peoples expectations of a holiday home they've paid a premium rate for are extremely high then go for it but please don't think it will be easier than a 9-5 job.

It’s a lifestyle job. Not everything is about money. If you like it it could be perfect. I known that plenty of people have accommodation tied to the job. If you don’t like it then you can hand your notice in and go back to working your old jobs.
Just make sure that you like working with people and cleaning and mending.
I would always keep a house that you could live in.
Will you have set working hours or will one of you always have to be on site? What lifestyle do you have now? If you love going on day trips then it won’t be the job for you. However if you’re a homebody it might be better. I don’t think it’ll be easier just different from working and walking away from the job.

I would be wary of giving up two jobs and a house to do this. Could one of you start part-time to get a feel for how it will work.

You never know what a job will be like until you do it. So many people see other jobs/careers through rose tinted specs. I suspect that this will be relentless and pretty hard work. You need to be realistic. It's not going to be sitting in the office and flicking a duster around when someone leaves.

Have you ever done this kind of work before? If not, perhaps it would be worth seeing if any local hotels are looking for chambermaids (or whatever they are called these days) and doing a few shifts to see how you like it. It's hard work and long hours, and people on holiday can be incredibly demanding, sometimes unreasonably so. I wouldn't do it, even before you get to the part where it's a new business that might not work out and it's someone close to you, which always complicates business relationships.

Based on the information you have given her on what you know about running a holiday site, renting out your home and flipping a property, it’s a hard no.

You need to do a lot of independent and informed research on all of these things. If you are asking on social media you aren’t doing that.

First thing I would do is visit the facility and talk to the people doing the work there at the moment. Don’t tell them you know the buyers and find out the truth. If there are similar places nearby talk to the people running those sites. Get the real picture on actual pay and conditions from them. The new owners can promise the earth but when it comes down to it, won’t pay what they can’t afford.

What about your children’s education and future. It won’t be swallows and Amazons for them until they reach eighteen and head off to Oxford. Tourist areas might be wonderful for tourists and retirees. But they are often economically blighted for young adults. Find out what life for them will be like.

Renting out your property won’t be a definite profit making exercise. The opposite is closer to the truth. You are likely to break even and then pay CGT when you sell. Speak to other local landlords and research the costs and risks.

Flipping properties is not like homes under the hammer. They quote the profit based on listed prices and before taxes and fees. Factor that in and the profit disappears. And people don’t pay a developers premium for amateur finishes. Again you need to research the business opportunities for this by speaking to local developers and agents.

Bank shifts are not easily available in all parts of the country. And you may be hit with the problem of them being available in school holidays and at the weekend. Talk to the local employers about opportunities.

My good friends (a couple whose kids have grown up and left home) do this. I think there are more than ten properties so the complex is larger. They love it, but it is very hard work and the hours are irregular.

It’s not a lifestyle that’d suit everyone, but I for one would be very tempted to do this.

I never think it's a good idea for couples to work at the same company, especially a new business in a precarious industry.

I'd think about this long and hard. Also if it's the holiday industry and you have school age children, why would they agree to you being away for a long time during their busy period.

My issue would be if for example, and I know this is a crazy wacky thought, but just suppose there was a global pandemic, maybe starting in, oh I don't know, say China as a guess, and all the hospitality sector had to close down and you lost your jobs and had no money to pay bills etc.
Totally mad dystopia idea I know, but hey, just saying ....

That’s a point - if you move and there’s another pandemic wave, would you be eligible for furlough? Possibly not.

I daresay they be wanting you to do maintenance on the properties in the winter months.

Fuck that

No. I’d not work for family or friends.
You seem to have rose tinted glasses on if you think it’s going to be an easier life. I’m surprised that you’d be paid enough to give up two salaries to do it. What is your protection during lockdowns/ or next year when everyone buggers off abroad gleefully? Holiday parks may well be having a booming trade now but I think that’ll be short lived.
As a couple with kids, maybe. A couple with three kids, no. You won’t get holidays off as that’s when your bookings will surely be, what about holiday childcare? Will your dc be allowed to use the facilities? Who is the park aimed at? Families- nightmare. Older couples- probs won’t want kids whizzing around. Hen/stag - wouldn’t want my kids around that.
Negative reviews and bolshy customers. Anyone who has never done hospitality, retail or travel have no idea what the public can be like. Prices are peak at the moment in the UK but the expectations that come with paying top notch will also be high. I looked at a 2 week holiday in August in Cornwall in a nice lodge. 9k For 9k I’d save until I can go abroad.
If you’re unhappy in your current jobs, I’d look for something else. I can see this looks like the golden ticket, but it really isn’t.

I’d worry about the practicalities with children - you’re likely to be busiest on changeover days (Saturdays) and school holidays.

Why aren’t your friends wanting to do it themselves?

My husband and I worked in a job like this in Australia, running a campsite which was mostly small cabins with long term residents, miners working in the local goldmines but also tourists passing through.

We both loved that job at the time but we were 25 year old backpackers on a 6 month contract living abroad, it was a beautiful setting surrounded by wildlife and there was a bar on-site and it was always great craic in the evenings! I personally wouldn't want to be still doing a job like that because I'm in a really fulfilling career now that I love. Also we both earn a lot more now than a job like that would pay.

But, if it suits you and you'll be able to return to your old jobs easily if things go tits up then why not give it a go?

Ask yourself this: if doing these jobs represents so much easier and less stressful a life than the one you lead now, why are your relatives looking for someone else to do them, rather than doing it themselves?

This will be a 24/7, thankless job where you can never please everyone. Your children will be woken at night, you’ll never be able to have holidays during school or national holidays and you’ll have no privacy. It sounds utterly mad to me. Unless you’ve always wanted to be a chambermaid/complaints manager/joiner/plumber/social worker/live in nanny/emergency responder/whipping post.

I wouldn’t do it. I’ve been involved in the rental and management of self catering holiday accommodation. People have become exceptionally demanding in the last few years, and some are extremely unreasonable.

Changeovers are hard hard graft, the cleaning is to a much higher standard than domestic cleaning. Think hoovering every drawer and cupboard including cutlery drawers. Glass doors and windows gleaming with no smudges or smears. Cleaning up after kids have scribbled on the walls or ground weetabix into the soft furnishings. Never mind the yellow stains sun tan lotion leaves on sheets and towels

It should look as if they’re the first people to ever set foot in the place.

And if you’re on site you’ll be at everyone’s beck and call 24 hours a day. When they lock themselves out, want a bulb changed, the fridge or washing machine breaks down. It can be an absolute nightmare

Children are only young for a few short years. Do you want to spend the next few years being run ragged with the holiday park, never spending time with them at weekends and school holidays? Tbh this suits people who either have no dcs or have dcs in their 20s and want a different way of life, living in a scenic area and working harder than a normal job

It’s a risk of course and scary but if you want to try it why not. I would leave my job and I love it most of the time but I remember the times it’s shit and that’s why I’d have no trouble resigning and moving on

Ooh, what an opportunity. I'd go with it myself, sounds great. However, you won't get an 'easier' life, as you'll be running the business 24/7 in high season. However, it may well be a nicer life, you need to think which you'd like to have....

You need a dose of reality. This fantasy of flipping properties in Winter is a pipe dream. Bad idea to work for friends or family, especially both of you. Tied accommodation can work, but only if you have somewhere to go quick and you won't if you're letting out your house (which you'll also need to continue to maintain as well as see if your lender will allow you to switch to a mortgage that permits you to let), licenses, registrations, insurance, agents/property manager fees, etc.

A friend of mine does this, runs a small holiday complex, very small, with his wife, but they're in their 60s and retired from public service jobs, have grown children/grandchildren and love it but it's not very relaxing. You have to really thrive on it. He is also very handy which helps as yes, you get called up in the middle of the night.

I can think of a whole load of negatives and not many positives.

• What will you do with your DC over the busy periods - eg. school holidays, weekends and bank holidays when childcare isn't readily available?

• What if there's an emergency at 3am and you're both needed at a property ASAP?

• Hours will be long (early starts, late finishes) and you'll be expected to drop what you're doing immediately to help the customers.

• "Off season" won't mean no work. If you're in a tourist area you'll be fully booked all year round, including over Christmas and New Year, which means you'll need to be available in case there's an issue.

• Do they have maintenance staff, cleaners and gardeners or are you expected to do it all? What about about food? Will you need to be up at 5/6am everyday to do breakfast and if so, who will look after your DC?

• What will happen re. school runs, early finishes, INSET days, school plays, parents evenings?

And most importantly, what if hospitality shuts again and you're left with no income and no house?

I would not give up your jobs to do this job. As other posters have said here you will be expected to be available 24/7 to deal with all manner of issues. Then you have people on holidays who will be drinking, possibly taking drugs and next thing you're dealing with fights and domestics between couples.
You have 3 young children so you won't be able to get time off during the school holidays. Saturdays will be taken up with the change of customers for the house's. This industry came to a standstill with covid as well. It could boom this year but next year when people can go abroad as may not be as busy.
I know that the whole covid situation has made people look at their own situations and made them think of what they want in the future.
I feel that you and your husband may not be happy with your jobs but with 3 young children you need a decent income to pay the bills. It might be a time to consider changing jobs or doing some courses in order to get a better job.