New research by estate agent comparison website GetAgent reveals that holiday lets are heating up.

The findings show that holiday lets account for up to seven percent of total homes across 15 of the most popular staycation spots in the nation.

By analysing data on holiday rentals across popular tourist destinations and comparing this to the total number of dwellings in each area, they were able to reveal what percentage of the market they account for.

The most popular holiday hotspots

According to GetAgent, there are 54,657 holiday lets and they account for 3.5% of the total number of properties in these areas. This total is 2.8% high compared to 2019.

Popular for its world-renowned beaches, Cornwall is the number one holiday let destination. The findings reveal that holiday rentals account for 7.4% of total homes in Cornwall. That is 1.2% higher compared to 2019.

Scarborough has the second highest percentage of holiday let housing stock. Since 2019 the let market share has increased by 2.3% and currently accounts for 7% of all homes. 

With a holiday let market share of 6.1%, Dorset is in third place. This is 1.6% higher compared to 2019. 

Co-founder and chief executive officer of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, explains: “Holiday lets are an understandably contentious subject and one that has really come to the forefront during the pandemic due to sky high demand for staycations while travel restrictions were in play.”

“At the same time, many traditional buy-to-let landlords have looked to holiday lets as a way of improving their financial returns, due to the far higher rental yield potential and following a sustained campaign by the Government to deter buy-to-let investment.”

“For many local residents, this upward trend will be unwelcome news, as the general consensus is that holiday lets put a further strangle hold on local housing availability, pushing the cost of both renting and buying out of reach.”

“Of course, the flipside is that these local economies rely heavily on tourism and a higher provision of holiday rentals helps to boost tourism spend which, in turn, has a positive influence on the wider local area.”