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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

not to understand why people buy holiday homes

52 replies

azazello · 15/06/2010 16:27

I just don't get it. Pils have a holiday home which they use for 6 weekends a year and occasionally a summer holiday. Why not stay in a lovely hotel or hire a cottage or something.

At least then you're not pricing local people out of the market thereby destroying the life and soul which attracted you to it in the first place and without having to pay 2 mortgages. 2 lots of council tax, bills etc. Why do people do it?

OP posts:

mumblechum · 15/06/2010 16:29

Friends of ours have a chateau in France which they visit only occasionally but the plan is to spend half of the year there when they retire, so I guess then it'll be worth having.

But I wouldn't bother buying somewhere for just the odd weekend, as you say it's much easier to go to a nice rental cottage where someone else worries about the maintenance

Pootles2010 · 15/06/2010 16:30

Can't say i agree with it either, but then i'm a raving hypocrite because i'm not averse to free weekends at other people's holiday homes. They do ruin local communities as schools etc end up getting shut down.

Alouiseg · 15/06/2010 16:59

I think that the benefits of your own place are myriad. You use it when you want to, no booking ahead. You have your stuff there already and can fly with hand luggage only. You can take advantage of cheap flights and deals and it will probably give you a good return on your initial investment.

On the down side you have to deal with all the day to day shite that you have at home but I still wouldn't be averse to one.

sarah293 · 15/06/2010 17:04

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OrmRenewed · 15/06/2010 17:07

My dad had a holiday home in Mull. They were there perhaps 3 times a year - DB and i used it at other times too. When we weren't it was rented out for holidays or long-term lets in the winter. If they didn't want to go there they could always let it and go elsewhere.

It worked out that it paid it's way - just! They got free holidays - didn't make money for them over and above that. I agree though that the hassle isn't worth it.

Aeschylus · 15/06/2010 17:08

My parent have a house in Spain, and my moans about going, as they dont see it as a holiday, as it is your property, so you dont get that Holiday feel

sarah293 · 15/06/2010 17:10

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DanJARMouse · 15/06/2010 17:10

My aunt and uncle have a holiday home (shared with a couple they are life-long friends with) in Portugal. They have recently retired (December) sold their house and bought a new one, no mortgage on either property. They have just spent 3 weeks there, and this was their 3rd visit this year.

To be fair, they are loaded and can afford to go whenever they like, but I do think they just like being able to decide at short notice they will go away for 4/5 nights and get some sun!

Im hoping to take advantage of it once the kids are older, as it will mean hiring a car from the airport as it is "off the beaten track" apparently!!!

lisbey · 15/06/2010 17:11

No I don't get it at all, not for any moral reasons, I simply find running one house more than enough hassle. The idea of trying to maintain another fills me with dread - the whole point of a holiday is to get away from all the jobs waiting at home.

There is a lot of point from an investment point of view though (if a long term view is taken) All the wealthiest people I know made a bit of cash from a "normal" job, then started investing in property, often with a 2nd home as their first investment. Even with the downturn, they might not be as weathly as they were 2 years ago, but they're significantly better off than if they'd been paying in to a savings account over the last 20 years. Still too much like hard work for me though.

olderandwider · 15/06/2010 17:15

A lot of villages would be dead anyway. Rural unemployment is endemic and you can't live somewhere permanently if there is no work. Young people move to where the jobs are, old people stay put then are tempted to cash in, sell to second home owners, and move somewhere less remote. Not sure how you stop it happening unless you create a two-tier market, like Guernsey has or similar.

Lizcat · 15/06/2010 17:32

As a second home owner on the Isle of Wight I don't visit between April and October. Instead lots of lovely families get to visit and enjoy being in a holiday home that is set up for children with highchair, cot, toys, games and small cutlery. They spend their money benefiting the local economy. I employ local people to advertise and manage my property. Then between October and April my family go there and spend our money at a time when the local economy really struggles.

Original poster

azazello · 15/06/2010 17:50

I can see the point in that Lizcat. I think I have more difficulty with PILs scenario because noone else is allowed to use the house. Noone. Not at all.

Well, DH and I and the children might be allowed to if we ask really nicely but it isn't very child friendly so it is easier to book places which are IYSWIM, especially if they have handy meal order arrangements and a spa nearby .

I just find it really difficult to get my head round people who have one but don't use it very much or let it out.

OP posts:

minipie · 15/06/2010 18:02

Many people have holiday homes because they want to be able to set it up exactly the way they like it, have home comforts etc and don't like the unpredictability of hotels and rentals. Oh and it's cheaper if you go there a lot.

Many holiday homes are in locations where local buyers aren't interested in buying because there are no jobs or are too small/impractical/run down to appeal to the local market.

In many areas the main local industry is tourism which relies on second home owners.

Of course there can be down sides of second home ownership. But there are up sides too.

tvfriend · 15/06/2010 18:15

We have a 'holiday home' in a small town near a big city in Wales. Not pricing anyone out of the market as there are tons of houses for sale and it's not a particularly fashionable place so not v expensive. DH is originally from the area and his sister also has a house next door to us. We try and go at least once a month and for various weeks in the summer/Easter etc.
I like it because I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old and everything we need is there. The kitchen and garden are much better than at our main house, we have a view of the sea when we wake up, beautiful scenery and beaches very nearby etc etc. We do all our shopping down there.
However, I have said that there is no way that we are never going anywhere else ever again.
We could make a fair bit renting it out but we renovated it when we bought it so want to enjoy it while it's cleanish and new.
Having said all that, my parents live in Devon and I do agree that some villages are full of second homes and very dead during the week and down there locals are priced out of the market which I don't think is fair (although slightly hypocritical of me....)

TheCrackFox · 15/06/2010 18:32

We have friends who have a holiday home on a Scottish Island (not very exotic) who hadn't visited for 2 months. In the meantime they had a rat infestation causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.

It has put me off wanting the hassle of owing a holiday home for ever. Besides which, it must be quite boring visiting the same area all the time.

FortunateHamster · 15/06/2010 18:36

The in-laws had a holiday one-bed flat in Torquay that they planned to rent out but they never quite got around to it. Me and OH were the only people who used it more than once. I thought it was fab and was a bit sad (for utterly selfish reasons) when they sold it, but I understood why as it was just a money hole if they didn't have time to set up for renting.

5Foot5 · 15/06/2010 20:04

Well I wouldn't want one myself (as if I could ever afford it - hah!) because I agree with Riven that I wouldn't want to always go to the same place on my holiday.

However, I am sort of glad that some people buy them because our holidays are usually spent self-catering in other people's holiday cottages or gites.

Take the point though about local people being priced out of rural areas.

OrigamiYoda · 15/06/2010 20:21

I also think it would be very tedious to go to the same place every year. My PIL have a holiday home they visit twice a year. They like it because they "have all the same stuff in it that they have at home". It is also in a similar village to the one they live in for the rest of the year. Why not just stay at home then

expatinscotland · 15/06/2010 20:32

i'd love a holiday home. actually, i'd like to own a normal home, too.

mintyfresh · 15/06/2010 20:36

I also think it very selfish to own more than one home unless you absolutely have to. However the ever expanding size of the 'English Country Cottages' catalogue tells me there is no shortage of people who disagree with me though!

Living in a rural area with a massive housing problem I probably feel more heated than others about this topic as our local school may close, we have no community support for local projects etc.

I also agree with others that I would get very bored with going to the same place every year!

traceybath · 15/06/2010 20:37

They're tax deductible if used as part of your pension plan I think. Or at least thats what DH was advised by his accountants.

Not that we have one but is a reason why some people do I guess. Especially if they they get revenue by renting it out as well.

MrsChemist · 15/06/2010 20:42

My parents have one, but it's only about an hour and half's drive away, so they can go away for the weekend. They don't tend to stay there for long holidays. It's used most weekends though because they let it out to friends (my ILs love it, and go as often as they can)

It's just nice to go somewhere quiet for the weekend and do some walking and relax. At first I was a bit [cat's bum mouth] about them buying it because I thought second homes killed little villages, but this one has many businesses that thrive on the tourism.

Quattrocento · 15/06/2010 20:43

Even if you have a holiday home in a lovely area, you are not compelled to go there every holiday, you know.

Holiday homes are not tax deductible as part of pension plans AFAIK

I like it because it's a long term plan to spend time there when we retire (touch wood), we get to know a beautiful area well, we get to take lots of friends on holiday with us, or lend the place to friends and family. It's nice!

traceybath · 15/06/2010 20:45

Really Quattro - I was surprised but DH was adamant that this was what his company accountants told him at last review about a month ago.

Personally if I had loads of money I'd have one but only if I could have staff to make sure it was all clean and lovely when I got there.

Oh yes - I so do not live in the real world

expatinscotland · 15/06/2010 20:45

we rented a lodge once and got to talking to another couple who had sons similar ages to our daughters.

the lodge they were renting belonged to a mate of hers who used it as a bolthole as it was only 1.5 hours away from their city when she wasn't renting it out.

the site fees, though, were enormous - £3400/annum.

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