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Running a B&B

Running a B&B can earn you extra income

Make good money from turning your home into a B&B
Follow our step-by-step guide

If you live in a popular area and you have spare rooms in your house, running it as a Bed & Breakfast can be a good way to make money and still stay in the place you love. It's particularly good if your children have flown the nest and you have lots of empty rooms that need to be lived in. You could make anything from a few hundred quid a month to a few thousand a month, depending on where you live and how many rooms you have. However, it can be hard work and you have to like people to do it successfully!

How to do it

Think carefully before taking the plunge. Running a B&B can be a great way to work from home and have lots of free time too, but it can also tie you to your house and take away much of your freedom. Also, there are costs and legalities to deal with at the start so make sure you are happy about those before jumping in.

Step One: Do your research

Just because you have a big house with lots of rooms, it doesn't mean that everyone wants to stay there. Before you even think about setting up as a B&B you need to so some research to see if it's a viable proposition for you in your area. It's all about location.

First you need to think about the kind of people who might use your home as a B&B. Speak to your local tourist authority first to see if there is a demand for B&B accommodation in your area. Know the market - if you live in a dull town with poor transport where nothing happens there may not be enough passing trade to keep you going.

However, even if the town is dull, if you live near the exit of a motorway or not far from a college or industrial area then you might get visitors on their way to business events. Also, if there is a theatre in town there could be a need for putting up actors during play runs. Check out the competition too. What are other B&Bs offering in your area? What are they charging?

If you are in the middle of the countryside then you need to have attractive views and a comfortable home to get tourists to stay. Your visitors are more likely to be holiday-makers than businesspeople so your home will need to be the sort of place people would like to have a break in, rather than just rush through on their way somewhere else.

Do get as much practical help as you can from the start. Doing a bit of reading up before you take the plunge can save you thousands. So get the book by VisitBritain called How to Run a Quality Bed & Breakfast. It's short, easy to read and covers all the basic info you need. It talks about legislation, costs and practical advice - everything you would need to get started. Also, read Just Six Guests by Helen Jackman who runs her own B&B. This book gives help and practical tips from someone who is doing it herself and knows all about the nitty gritty. In fact, if you know anyone who runs a B&B then quiz them about their experience and get as many helpful hints and contacts as possible. Also, read Mary Morgan's story here. She runs a B&B in the Kent countryside and has learnt a lot along the way.

Step two: Do the figures

Setting up any sort of business involves cost. Don't forget to factor that in. For a start, you may need to put in extra bathrooms or at least shower rooms within the guest rooms. You may have to upgrade your boiler to create more hot water. It's highly likely that you will need to redecorate most or all of the guest rooms and put new furniture and accessories in them. If you do need to make structural changes to your home, make sure you speak to the local council first as some may need to be accepted by their building control department first.

When you start your business remember that you will have increased cleaning costs as well as extra electricity and gas charges with all the laundry and hot water. Also, you will have much higher food bills as B&Bs often build their reputation on the standard of their food. Some B&Bs make a point of sourcing their food locally and organically, too. If that is the route you want to take then make sure you get the best prices you can and make it a marketing point.

You will also have general business running costs like any other operation. You will have to do your books (or get a bookkeeper), you will have to deal with bills, have an accountant, possibly some legal help and probably some staffing costs here and there, unless you want to do all the cleaning, maintenance and cooking yourself.

You will also need extra insurance. Check out our Best Buys page for public liability insurance, professional indemnity insurance and home insurance.

You should also factor in advertising and marketing costs. To start with you should be able to market your home for next to nothing (see Step 3 for ideas on that) but you will need to create a website for your B&B and you may need to pay for some online and offline advertising to get the word out.

Step three: Get some visitors

There you are - just like that! Well all right, not quite. Getting the guests can be tough at the start, but there are a number of things you can do to market yourself for next to nothing:

Register your business with local tourist authorities to attract custom.
Aim to get into guidebooks but remember that competition is tough.
Contact your local theatre and make sure you’re on their list.
Contact local universities and colleges and ask them to put you on their list of places to stay for parents and visiting professors.
Contact large local businesses to get on their list of recommended places to stay.

You should also set up a website - or at least a single web page - for your business. You can do that for free yourself by using one of the many free website-creating packages on the market. Or pay a friend or local designer to do one for you.

You should have a page that has at least your contact details, the address of your B&B and a brief description of the house and its amenities. A bigger, more fulsome website will help you to get more visitors though. An attractive set of photos of the exterior and interior will definitely help, as will references from former guests (once you've had some).