Sykes Owner Stories - Tithe Barn

Set in the picturesque Isle of Anglesey lies a grade II listed building, that has come back from the brink of no repair.

Tithe Barn dates back to 1737 and for some years this former Tithe Building was a place where local residents came to pay their taxes in the 1700s, handing 10% of their salary over to the church parish, and has been sat in Capel Mawr, near to Malltreath, as a stone shell open to the elements before the loving restoration work began.

Richard, one of the owners of the property spoke to us about this spectacular and unique holiday home and how it became one of the luxury retreats in Anglesey.

My name is Richard Francis, I am a building contractor and landlord.

The Tithe Barn is the original use of the property. It was used for drying grain, and it belonged to the owner of the main house and the estate.

What makes your property stand out?

I think what makes our property stand out is the fact that it’s a very unique building. There’s a large amount of accommodation with regards to dining space and sitting space, its one big open planned area, so its great for large parties.

The nice thing about the Tithe Barn is that the other things in the local area are the beaches, Rhosneigr and Aberffraw, which are very popular with guests and then also some guests like to go over to Snowdon and see Llanberis.

There’s a large amount of accommodation with regards to dining space and sitting space, its one big open planned area, so its great for large parties.

What attracted you to this property?

I think what attracted us to this property was the challenge of converting an old barn, I could see an opportunity to add a substantial value to the property and also save the property from ruin really. It was on the endangered properties list, so in another 4-5 years’ time, the property would have probably fallen down and it just needed some care and attention really.

It was on the endangered properties list, so in another 4-5 years’ time, the property would have probably fallen down and it just needed some care and attention really.

What was your motivation to get into holiday letting?

Our motivation for getting into holiday letting was that we could see that we could add value to certain properties and also then create a building we could also use ourselves. We had some experience with holiday letting previously, I’m a landlord, so I knew about letting properties and then I am a building contractor as well, so we knew about the building side, so it was more about getting the money together and making sure it was financially viable.

What were the challenges you faced?

The challenges we faced with the building was the fact that its grade II listed, and we had to go back to conservation to get the planning permission changed to make it a 4 – bed property, and then the fact that the building has got slatted windows, so the windows had to be designed specifically to open inwards to deal with the window reveals.

The most significant parts of the build were when we got the roof trusses delivered and put in place. You can see that there very large piece of structural timber, so when those turned up on the lorry and we were craning them in, it was quite a unique moment.

What do you think are the unique features of the property?

The unique features of the building are the windows and the stone building, which has to be lime mortar, so we had to go back to conservation to deal with how we were going to rebuild it.

The unique features of the building are the windows and the stone building

What was it like welcoming your first guests to the property?

It’s satisfying to welcome the first guests but it’s also a nervous time, because you don’t really know what people are going to think of it.

We decided to go for short-term holiday lets because we could see that the market was there and it just made financial sense, you can make more money out of people coming for a week than you can from a long-term let.

Do you have any tips for people looking at holiday letting themselves?

I think tips for people that want to get into holiday letting, is that they need to do their homework first and find a property they can manage themselves and know they have the money to spend on it to bring it up to standard. I think a lot of people think it’s an easy way to make money and you do have to spend more than you think to get it up to standard.

I think you’ve got to be very organised in furniture choice and design and making sure everything is available when you want it. You need to start probably four months before you are going to get your first guests because often things are not available when you want them.

I think a lot of people think it’s an easy way to make money but you do have to spend more than you think to get it up to standard.

What has been your experience working with Sykes Holiday Cottages

My experience with using Sykes has been very good, we’ve had good feedback from them, and it’s been an enjoyable experience. We’d definitely recommend Sykes to other people, I think they definitely get more guest visits than other holiday letting companies and the exposure online is really good.

I think my favourite thing about letting this property out is to see people enjoy it, making memories and having a good time, people then come back. So, we’ve had a number of guests who have visited the property two or three times, which is quite satisfying.

So, we’ve had a number of guests who have visited the property two or three times, which is quite satisfying.

View full version of the Tithe Barn case study on the Sykes Holiday Cottages YouTube Channel