Holiday Home

[coulditbeme2323]

Does anybody have any experience of having a hoiday home with young kids?

We have a part of the country we love, and a home in our favorite part has come up. The agent has said they don't often come up and whilst I appreciate agents don't always tell the truth - I haven't seen many of them.

We have 3 kids 12 and under so wouldn't be able to use during term time.

Here is info that might be relevant.

1. It's only 1hr20 from our home so could use it for as long weekend.
2. We wouldn't air bnb it or anything - but close friends and family could use.
3. We travel abroad a fair bit in summer holidays.

It feels a few years too sign, but in just over ten years we will have 3 kids at uni and could use it lots.

Thoughts?

We did but have recently sold it.
In some ways we miss it but don’t miss having two properties to maintain and upkeep plus if friends/ relatives use it who does the cleaning and changing the beds, buying essentials etc? All sounds like petty things but I was finding the first day down was spent sorting out and doing the garden.
it also limited where else we went on holiday as we always felt we should be at the holiday home and as the children got older they had other things they wanted to do at the weekends, parties, school things, sports etc,
Overall I’m glad it’s gone, we now have more freedom over our free time.

I understand and I honestly don't have any view on the morality or otherwise of second homes, I've got enough to worry about 😄

If it happens to be outwith London, and has two underground parking spaces and space for an exercise bike of sorts, it's stunning. Go for it and enjoy.

If that makes no sense to you, then just ignore me 😂

We have a small inherited holiday home in a quiet rural area. We very rarely go now as kids are just so busy at the weekend and we live outside the city so the perks of a quiet weekend are far fewer. In honesty the house is a pita to maintain and check in on not to mention the expense. Is there an option to think about where you currently live and what you are missing that makes a holiday home appealing and see if you can move your main residence to combine them. Like others have said I find the idea of second homes hard to justify with the housing crisis and the effects on communities and yes I'm aware that makes me a massive hypocrite.

We have a house in France. The kids love it. We tend to go there every summer (possibly with a road trip elsewhere one week) with various visitors popping in. We try to get there every couple of months for a weekend or sometimes for a half term or Christmas. We have a cleaner who goes in every month to ensure it is all fine, and a gardener who keeps the outside under control.

ETA: we lived there when the kids were little and may do so again once they finish school, or certainly plan to be there a lot more, so for us it us worth keeping

@coulditbeme2323 To be honest, at that price point you’re not going to be depriving the average family of a potential home. Anyone with that budget will have plenty of options. If you love it then go for it!

Thank you, according to this thread I am throwing orphans out on the street!

Had you wanted an average family house near a school etc then I can see why people would be against it, but once you’re looking at higher price points then I see no real reason why you can’t enjoy having a holiday home.

The only comment I would make is I would be bored out of my mind going to the same place all the time to get value for the investment. I know OP said they travel elsewhere also, but I'd still feel the obligation to use it to the max. Instead, I'd rent for the whole Summer in a different place every year. No pressure, no council tax, no maintenance, no bills!

I don't need nor want a holiday home, but I don't judge anyone who does. Their money, their choice and until disincentives are introduced by tax or other laws, it's a free country.

Go for it! Theres some real negative cranks on MN.

I was fortunate enough growing up that our family had two holiday homes, one in Cornwall and the other in Menorca.

We had so many lovely family breaks, and as a teen, my friends and I would go and stay for a week or two at a time and we loved every second it.

I bought a holiday home abroad a few years ago, and family/friends have all benefited from it too. Personally, I wouldn’t be inclined to buy in the UK because I love the guaranteed heat overseas, but if it’s a place you love and can see your family making wonderful memories, you should do it!

I could name any number of villages where doctor's surgeries are closing and the local school.have closed because 80% of the houses are empty in excess of 50% of the year and the owners school their children at their primary home.

Second homes kill communities. Sorry if the truth hurts.

It doesn't hurt.

So much jealousy on this thread!

OP have you done the maths to see how much each visit would cost you if you went monthly, fortnightly, weekly...? If you have a Times subscription, Giles Coren did a good column recently about his family's decision to sell their second home in the Cotswolds.

Says it all 😂

What does it say?

Does it say I want to invest in the local community.

So after working hard me, my husband, and 3 kids have a place we can go to relax that we can call home.

That my 71 year old mum and Dad with cancer can enjoy some time by the sea in the week.

Worse than Hitler me.

I think the property OP is looking at is not going to detrimentally impact the community in any significant way. It’s a £1.3 million apartment so pretty niche in the big picture.

A flat also won’t need gardening etc. Seems a fine idea, go for it OP.

We have a second home in a village in Devon. So many people post on the local Facebook group about second home owners ruining the community. It doesn't. We are always going down to our cottage and we spend a lot of money in the local establishments as do our now adult children and partners. All year round. There are a fair few properties for sale in the village, in the same price range as our cottage, but the locals never seem to snap them up. Part of the problem is that people want to rent a house to live in, but nobody wants to be a landlord anymore.

I agree, so many of the business owners we speak to are grateful for the second home owners.

I'd go for it OP, it sounds like you / family would get lots of use out of it and the idea of having a place to escape to sounds lovely.

Would also be nice for when your kids are older and have their own families!

They are generally not a great investment due to the CGT unless its a home you are going to move into when you retire thus turning into your principal residence.

We have toyed with it a few times.

DSis has a holiday home. She found that after the first summer it didn't feel particularly exciting going but they still feel like they have to go all the time to get the use out of it. It's not as nice as their actual home and often she would rather be at home. She says it causes problems when you have things going on at home for a few weeks eg kids activities/parties etc and you can't go and then when you do eventually get a weekend you find there is loads to do at the holiday cottage so it isn't as relaxing as it would be if you'd booked a hotel somewhere (although it sounds like yours wouldn't have a garden etc). She also gets really fed up of other people (friends and family) using it and the associated costs eg cleaning, restocking everything, washing bedding and towels, wear and tear etc. Because they have it and everyone knows they have it they don't really feel like they can say no.

I would absolutely go for it, especially as it is so close to you.
That sort of distance is nothing in the greater scheme of things and having it available, I think you will be surprised just how often you actually use it (either singularly or as a couple / family).
If you leave it, you may be priced out later or feel you cannot justify it.

The only thing I would hate though is it being used by friends but that is possibly a personal thing.
It would be an extension of my house and I would want to leave it ready for MY next visit, not having to tidy everything personal away in case the next visitor turned out to be a friend instead.

You must admit that you are doing a lot of drip-feeding on this thread. If the price of the apartment, which is obviously out of reach of the average family, had been included in the OP the thread would have been half as long.

I'm not jealous. Could probably afford a second home if I wanted one. But I think the morality of second homes shouldn't be ignored

I absolutely agree. For the interest well invested 1.3 million would accrue I'd rather rent each year somewhere for a couple of months and go to different places without the hassle of maintenance, security, issues etc.
Im assuming at that price point the service charge would be pretty high too.

Being occupied by holidaymakers isn't the same thing, OP. They don't make the same use of the local services - GP surgery, dentist, school, nursery, shops - so these end up closing. There are villages near me which are silent and dark in the evenings because of all the second homers owning housing which is needed by local families, and now there are problems with vandalism which didn't exist when the homes were inhabited. . Please reconsider. There are other ways of having regular access to your favourite part of the country, including recurring bookings at a lovely holiday cottage, or camping. Cheaper and less hassle in the long run.