The Costs of Running a Holiday Let

Are you a new property owner and want to know more about the costs of running a holiday let in the Lake District?

There’s a lot to consider when setting up a new holiday home, so to make things easier we’ve put together a list of the main costs you will encounter when getting started.

Read on to find out what the true cost of running a holiday let…

Credit: Gorma Kuma

Skip to a specific section:

• Initial Set-Up Costs
• Ongoing Costs
• Running Costs
• Agency Costs

Initial Set-Up Costs

The initial costs of running a holiday let are usually the most expensive part of the process. Once the main things have been paid for, things tend to settle down into more manageable payments. Our list below gives you an idea of the initial costs involved.

Mortgage / Buying Costs

Whether you’re a cash buyer or plan to take out a mortgage, this is going to be the one of the biggest costs of running a holiday let. Make sure to set yourself a budget on what to spend and stick to that budget when viewing properties. It’s easy to get carried away looking for your ideal holiday home, but you need to keep in mind how much it’s going to cost you. According to Rightmove, the average sold price across all properties in the Lake District over the past year was £298,932.

If you’re looking to take out a mortgage, there are many building societies who cater for holiday let mortgages, we also recommend speaking to Holiday Cottage Mortgages, who specialise in holiday lets.

Credit: Billion Photos

Planning Permission Fees

If you require planning permission to extend, develop or erect additional buildings around your holiday let, this is another cost to consider. There’s not only the cost of the physical renovation work to consider, but also the cost of applying for planning permission. Remember the Lake District is a National Park and also a UNESCO World Heritage Site so any planning application may take a few years to get the go ahead.

Furnishing & Decorating

Once the sale of your holiday let has been finalised, it’s time to get it looking exactly how you want it! The cost of this can vary depending on how much work your property requires. New carpets, bathroom suites & kitchen units will rack up quite a bill, but if your holiday let just needs a lick of paint then the price will be a lot less, especially if you’re able to do the decorating yourself.

You will also need to consider furniture. It’s better to spend a little more money on high quality furniture that will stand up to wear and tear from guests, rather than going for the cheapest you can find. Cheaper furniture tends to break more often and will need replacing, meaning the overall cost could end up being more.

You might also want to consider putting a few luxuries in to improve your guests stay. Ideas could range from a coffee machine or Air Fryer to a hot tub on the patio.

Take a look on our blog for some ideas on how to make your holiday home stand out.

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Ongoing Costs

The ongoing costs of running a holiday let range from property insurance through to basic utility bills. Some of these are essential costs of running of a holiday let, but others such as broadband and TV subscriptions, are optional.

Council Tax

The cost of council tax depends on a few things – what area your property is in and which tax band it falls into. You can check your council tax band on Gov.uk then research which local council your property comes under to check the price. To give you an idea South Lakeland (Westmorland & Furness), including all precepts (council, adult social care, police, fire, and average parish/town council) can range from around £1,592 to £5,000 annually.

Insurance

Regular home insurance does not provide adequate cover for a holiday home. Instead, you need specialist Holiday Let Insurance along with Public Liability cover (minimum £2 million). A standard buildings and contents policy can start from around £150 annually, but with public liability for commercial holiday letting, premiums typically range from £300 to £600+ per year, averaging around £357 in 2026. Costs will vary depending on the property’s size, location, risk factors, and individual circumstances.
You can read more about insuring a holiday let here.

Pikl is a UK based holiday let insurance provider that specialises in cover for holiday home owners that rent their property out to guests. We’ve teamed up with our partners at Pikl Insurance to provide holiday let insurance covers for owners that need it.  Click here for Pikl top tips on insurance or get a Pikl quote here

Broadband

There’s now a huge range of broadband providers across the country, one to suit every budget. Try looking on comparison sites such as Moneysupermarket.com or Confused.com to find the best deals. These sites allow you to enter your property postcode and see which providers can cover that area, and what offers they currently have on.

On average, broadband can cost £26 per month, but some will do a cheaper deal for new customers so it’s best to shop around. Although it’s not necessary to provide WiFi in your holiday let, we highly recommend it. Properties that offer WiFi can receive up to 20% more income than properties that don’t, however as some areas of the Lake District are remote there may be no or limited service, something to bear in mind.

TV Licence & Subscriptions

To allow guests to watch or record live TV, your property must have a valid TV licence. As of April 2026, the annual fee is expected to increase to approximately £181–£182. If you choose to provide paid TV subscriptions for guests, these are typically billed monthly. For example, Sky TV bundles currently range from £15 to £59 per month, depending on the package, while Netflix plans in the UK cost £5.99 (with ads), £12.99 (standard), or £18.99 (Premium) per month.

Utility Bills

This includes water, electricity, gas and heating bills. Again, it can often be best to shop around and see which providers can offer the best deal for your property. If you have a log burner or open fire, don’t forget to factor in the cost of providing a fire starter pack for guests. This usually includes some firelighters, matches and a small supply of logs.

Hart Head Barn Ref. 1041027

EV Charging Point

Consider adding an EV charging point to your Lake District holiday let is a smart way to attract eco-conscious travellers and stand out in a competitive market. While installation costs typically range from £800 to £1,500 for a standard charger, this investment can pay off by increasing bookings and appealing to guests who value sustainability and convenience. To manage costs, consider applying for government grants or choosing a pay-per-use model, which allows guests to cover their charging expenses while you benefit from an additional revenue stream. For more information read our sister company Sykes Cottages blog on EV charging points for Holiday Lets

To help all our owners access the best EV charge point advice and guidance, along with Sykes Holiday Cottages, we have partnered with an experienced EV charge point supplier, Energy Park.  To make an enquiry and find out how Energy Park can help, contact them HERE.

Running Costs

Aside from the ongoing costs of insurance and bills, there are also the day-to-day costs of running a holiday let. Some of these include:

Cleaning & Laundry

After every changeover of guests, your holiday let will need to be thoroughly cleaned and the linen washed. When you come on board with Lakelovers, owners have the choice to opt in to our fully managed service. Our competitive cleaning costs range from £75 for a one bedroom property, to £245 or more for larger properties with 6+ bedrooms.

Property Maintenance

From time to time, your holiday let will require some maintenance. For example, tidying up the garden area, re-painting the walls, or a deep clean of the carpets. There may also be cases where something goes wrong, such as a burst pipe or leaking roof. The cost of this type of maintenance work may seem large at the time (depending on the scale of the problem), but these cases should be few & far between. Contact the team for more details of our list of holiday let management services or local tradesmen for specialised services.

Welcome Packs

Lakelovers ask every guest for their feedback, and the majority mention the Welcome Hamper. Guests love arriving at their holiday cottage to find a small welcome pack of tea, coffee, and biscuits. While not essential, we highly recommend providing a welcome pack—big or small—to enhance your guests’ experience. We can also supply a kitchen pack (sponge, cloth, dishwasher tablets etc) for guests. If you opt into our fully managed service, we’ll organise these on your behalf. Call our local team on 015394 88855 to find out more about the costs involved.

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Agency Costs

When you let your holiday home through Lakelovers there will be a few charges to consider. We understand that the overall costs of running a holiday let can be daunting to begin with. For this reason, we like to keep our costs simple to make sure you get great value for money along with excellent service!

Commission levels & fees

Lakelovers offer very competitive commission rates inclusive of VAT, which can be tailored to suit your personal circumstances. The cost also covers all marketing, booking management and administration, plus owners have their own dedicated Account Manager too. Please contact the local team in Windermere or Keswick for more in-depth information.

As we are part of the Sykes Cottages family we have a multi-million pound marketing budget so we can promote your property to the highest level, getting it in front of the right people & securing you bookings. We work with over 700 partner websites, plus we can feature properties on both Lakelovers and Sykes Cottages websites. This level of marketing would cost into the thousands of pounds if it was arranged individually, meaning you get extremely good value for money when you let with us!

Managed Services

If you’d like an extra helping hand with running your holiday let, our fully managed service could be the solution. We can arrange cleaners & maintenance, carry out periodical property inspections, and put together welcome packs for your guests.

Are you still looking for some more information about the costs of running a holiday let? Our friendly, local teams based in Keswick & Windermere are always happy to answer your questions. Call us on 015394 88855 or email newowners@lakelovers.co.uk and start your holiday letting journey today.

Alternatively, complete the form below to request contact from our team, including a copy of our FREE Owner Guide.

** This blog has been updated Jan 2026 based on original content written by Alice Wills Nov 2019

Please Note: The information contained in this article was accurate at the time of writing, based on our research. Rules, criteria and regulations change all the time, so please contact our prospective new owner team if you’d like to hear how. Nothing in this article constitutes the giving of financial, tax or legal advice to you; please consult your own professional advisor (accountant, lawyer etc). in this regard. If we have referred within the article to a third-party provider of unregulated holiday let mortgages, this is due to the fact that such mortgages aren’t currently regulated by the FCA. 

As a helpful reminder, your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on a mortgage, so again anything you decide to do in this particular area this is one on which you should take your own professional advice on too, as we aren’t providing and can’t provide you with this.