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CASE STUDY · NEWPORT CITY CENTRE · THREE FLATS
Crescent Apartments: the TV said £1,650 a month. Its best month took £7,563.
Three flats in Newport city centre, valued on Homes Under the Hammer at £500 to £550 a month each in rent. Run by Guesture as short-term and serviced stays, the building's best month took £7,563 in bookings: 4.6 times the forecast.
4.6×
the programme's rent forecast, taken in bookings in the building's best month
97%
of nights sold across the three flats that month
3.5×
the forecast, across the last twelve months of bookings
£246k
in bookings since the first flat opened to guests
Bookings are what guests paid for their stays, including cleaning, before channel commission and our management fee. Figures come from our booking records and the owner's monthly reports, shared with his agreement. The forecast is taken at the top of the agent's range, £550 a flat.
ON HOMES UNDER THE HAMMER
A blank canvas, valued as a rental
The building sold at auction for £145,000 and was refurbished over twelve weeks for £50,000. Afterwards the local agent valued it at £220,000 and called it a blank canvas. The presenter saw huge potential.
On rent, the agent priced it two ways: as three self-contained flats, or as a five-bedroom house share. Neither forecast imagined the building run as hospitality.
THE PROGRAMME'S RENT FORECAST
As three self-contained flats
£500–£550 a month each
For the whole building
£1,500–£1,650 a month
As a five-bedroom house share
£80–£85 a room a week
Its best month with Guesture
£7,563
THE OWNER AND THE BRIEF
One flat first, then the building
Owen of Keystone Real Estate Investment converted the building into three self-contained flats and let them on standard tenancies. He came to us wanting to see one thing: the monthly income the flats could really produce.
We started with the ground-floor flat while the two above stayed tenanted. Once the numbers held up, the second flat followed, then the third.
The building, Lower Dock Street, Newport city centre
THE NUMBERS
Each of its eight best months took about four times the forecast
Bookings in a month across the three flats, best months ranked. The dashed line is the monthly rent the programme forecast for the building.
TV rent forecast: £1,650 a month
Best month
2nd best
3rd best
4th best
5th best
6th best
7th best
8th best
£7,563 · 4.6×
£7,271 · 4.4×
£6,950 · 4.2×
£6,710 · 4.1×
£6,608 · 4.0×
£6,557 · 4.0×
£6,525 · 4.0×
£6,475 · 3.9×
The best months weren't a one-off: even the eighth best took £6,475. In its best month, the building earned the forecast's monthly rent in under seven days.
From our booking records and the owner's monthly reports. Each stay is counted in the months its nights fall in.
WHAT WE DID
Run as a small hospitality business, not three listings
In the building's best month, almost none of the nights came through Airbnb or Booking.com. They were direct and corporate stays, built up over time.
Priced every night
Our own price and competitor analysis around Newport's calendar: events, business demand and the quiet weeks.
A wider guest mix
Leisure guests, visiting professionals and corporate teams, through the big booking sites, agents and our own direct channel.
Regulars who book direct
Guests who come back book with us directly, so the owner pays no channel commission on those nights.
Presented properly
Professional photography, listing copy and captions, online check-in and a personalised guest area for each flat.
Run day to day
Cleaning, linen, maintenance, guest messages around the clock and a monthly report the owner can read in five minutes.
FROM THE OWNER
In Owen's words
“The Guesture team was there for us even when I needed urgent assistance, Pedro called me back from the top of a mountain while on a ski trip to Italy… Their commitment and professionalism are unmatched.”
Owen, Keystone Real Estate Investment · Crescent Apartments
“What stands out the most with Pedro is his unwavering passion for his hospitality work.”
Owen, from his LinkedIn recommendation
QUESTIONS OWNERS ASK
About this case study
Are these figures real?
Yes. They come from our booking records and the owner's monthly reports, and Owen has agreed to share them. Each stay is counted in the months its nights fall in.
What counts as bookings?
What guests paid for their stays, including cleaning, before channel commission and our management fee. It isn't the owner's take-home figure.
Is a rent forecast a fair comparison?
It's the figure owners are usually quoted, so it's where we start. A rent is close to what the owner keeps; short-term bookings carry running costs such as cleaning, laundry, bills and our fee. Every proposal we send shows both.
Can I start with one flat, as Owen did?
Yes. We set up one unit, report on it every month, and you decide on the rest once you've seen the numbers.