Arguably a very popular form of letting in Ghana, short lets have grown to become a very lucrative form of renting in the country. Whether you’re an extensively experienced agent or agency with many exclusive properties or just an ordinary landlord with spare space, Short term lettings can be very profitable.

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Real estate marketplaces like meqasa.com have played a major role in raising the popularity and interest in short lets as they’ve provided the platform that makes it easy and convenient for anybody to list property for short lets, thereby, making the most out of them and getting their space back at the end of the short rent period.

Wondering What Short Lets Are?

Short lets are, essentially, what their name suggests: rental contracts with tenants spanning a relatively much shorter period than traditional rent. They mostly fall within any period less than six (6) months and can be as short as a week, or even a day. In the short let space, tenants are usually referred to as guests and homeowners as hosts.

This is because short lets don’t only apply to a secluded space for rent, but they can be a two-bedroom apartment for rent where there’s a live-in host (landlord) who wants to make money off a spare room. Short lets are usually ideal for travellers who prefer something other than a hotel; or people who desire a temporary place to stay.

Why You Should Consider Putting Up Your Property for Short Lets.

• For starters, it’s an easier way for landlords and agents to make money off spare rooms at any point in time during the year.
• The charges are usually higher than the regular long term lettings, making it possible for the homeowner, agent, or developer to earn much higher than they usually would.
• In hindsight, if you realise you let your space to a reckless individual, the worst case is they stay for the ‘brief period’ agreed upon, and you get your space back.

Important Points to Help Make the Most Out of Short Lets

• Short lets are usually expected to be fully furnished with all the necessary equipment. As the owner of such property, you should be willing to furnish the space with appliances and furniture you may reasonably expect a tenant walking in from the street to need during their stay. Remember, the happier your guest, the more likely you are to end up with a recommendation by way of word of mouth.

• “A picture is worth a thousand words”, but in short letting, high-resolution images from the right angles can be the most significant marketing tool to drive serious bookings. In this case, your property pictures are worth much more than a thousand words.

• When venturing into the short let space, prepare to provide the highest standard possible for the space you’re letting. This is because short lets are usually much more expensive than the regular lettings mainly due to the furnishings and appliances equipped to enable tenants live comfortably once they move in without much or any luggage. As a property owner in this space, you will mostly be catering to people in transit, like holidaymakers, who take trips with anticipation to experience the best out of everything.

Disadvantages of Short Lets

• Short lets don’t always provide the monetary ‘assurance’ long term lettings usually do. This is because there will be ‘fruitless periods’ where you shall be very unlikely to get short let seekers, hence, very little chances of getting monetary value for that period.
• Maintenance costs are usually high with short lets due to the higher guest turnouts. As human as we are, we all utilise gadgets and accessories differently, and as and when many different people frequent the space with these devices, the likelihood of wear and tear is highly probable and frequent. As a host, you must always be ready to undertake a thorough cleaning of a checked-out room, an apartment, or house, to make it ready for the next person. This can be daunting and expensive.
• If you’re someone who gets irritated easily by unfamiliar or unusual personality tics, short lets might not be right for you, as you will be receiving different kinds of people frequently.
• For short lets, many costs are generally covered by the host, such as waste management, water bills, internet service (if available), electricity bills, amongst others. So before you dive in head first, make sure you’re bound to make profit after all the costs are covered. 

Contract Agreements for Short Lets

Kindly note that websites like meqasa.com are advertising platforms that only help market listings and are not liable for the enforcement of any rights of hosts (landlords and agents) or guests. 

Ideally, it would only be beneficial to the host to have legal advice on a rightly structured tenancy agreement. But due to financial constraints, you can simply draw out a contract that entails needed constituents like a penalty for damages, and house rules. Better still, you can read extensively on How to Write a Tenancy Agreement in Ghana on meqasa.com.  

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Venturing into short lets in Ghana with all the slim uncertainties can be risky. Nonetheless, if done right, the returns can be very rewarding for the property owner and tenant both.