Our First Steps into Serviced Accommodation
In early 2026, we expanded our property experience by exploring a new strategy: serviced accommodation.
Our first two serviced accommodation properties were launched in Leeds City Centre and Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, two locations we identified as offering strong demand from business travellers, contractors and city-break visitors.
Like many new ventures, the reality proved very different from the glossy social media posts often associated with serviced accommodation.
While the strategy offers exciting opportunities, it has also come with a steep learning curve and more than a few unexpected challenges.
Before either property even welcomed its first guests, there were hurdles to overcome. Setting up listings, arranging photography, furnishing the properties, coordinating cleaners, ensuring compliance requirements were met, and learning the various booking platforms all required far more time and effort than we initially anticipated.
Once the properties were live, the challenges didn’t stop.
The Leeds apartment launched without a fibre internet connection being installed, requiring us to quickly find alternative solutions to ensure guests had reliable Wi-Fi. Meanwhile, both properties required continual adjustments to pricing strategies, minimum stay requirements and operational processes as we refined our approach and learned what worked best.
While we work with specialist management partners to handle the day-to-day operation of the properties, we remain heavily involved in the performance of each unit. This includes reviewing pricing strategies, monitoring occupancy levels, analysing booking trends, and helping to resolve guest-related issues as they arise.
We quickly discovered that serviced accommodation is far from passive. Even with management support in place, there is still a significant amount of involvement required behind the scenes. From adjusting pricing to maximise occupancy and revenue, to dealing with unexpected guest situations and operational challenges, there is always something requiring attention.
There have also been a few situations that certainly weren’t covered in any training course.
At one point, we were dealing with a suspected brothel operating from one property, while within days of that incident, we received a call from the Metropolitan Police regarding a fugitive suspect believed to be staying at the other. Thankfully, both situations were identified quickly and handled appropriately through the systems and processes in place, but they certainly highlighted some of the realities of operating short-term accommodation.
Whilst these situations are thankfully rare, they reinforced the importance of having robust systems, thorough guest screening processes and the ability to respond quickly when issues arise.
Despite the rocky start, the experience has been incredibly valuable.
Operating serviced accommodation has given us a much deeper understanding of hospitality, customer service, marketing, revenue management and property operations. It has challenged us to think differently and develop skills beyond those typically associated with traditional buy-to-let investing.
Perhaps the biggest lesson has been that every property strategy comes with its own opportunities and challenges. What often looks simple from the outside can be far more complex behind the scenes.
Although we’re still early in our serviced accommodation journey, the experience has already taught us a huge amount. Every challenge has helped us improve our systems, strengthen our processes and gain a better understanding of what it takes to operate successful short-term rental properties.
The first few months haven’t always been straightforward, but they’ve certainly been rewarding. As with every property strategy we’ve explored, some of the most valuable lessons come from overcoming challenges and adapting along the way.
Leeds City Centre
Birmingham Jewellery Quater
