Every owner asks the same first question, and the honest answer is a range rather than a number. Two identical two-bedroom flats can differ by thousands a year depending on view, floor, furnishing and how actively they are priced.
Rather than quote figures we cannot verify for your property, this article shows you the arithmetic so you can sanity-check any estimate — ours included.
The only formula that matters
Annual gross revenue = average nightly rate x nights available x occupancy rate. Everything else is a detail. Push any of the three up and revenue rises; the skill is pushing one without collapsing another.
- Raise the rate too far and occupancy falls faster than the rate rises.
- Chase occupancy with low prices and you work harder for less.
- Reduce nights available — owner use, long gaps between stays — and both the others stop mattering.
What moves the numbers in Gibraltar
- Location: waterfront developments such as Ocean Village and Queensway Quay command a premium over inland town-area flats.
- Bedroom count: one-bedroom units suit the steady business and contractor demand; two- and three-bedroom units capture families and groups at higher nightly rates but with more seasonal swing.
- Season: summer and the spring/autumn shoulder are strongest; midwinter demand is thinner and leans on business travel.
- Length of stay: Gibraltar sees a lot of week-plus and month-plus stays, which cut cleaning costs and gaps but usually carry a discounted nightly rate.
- Presentation: professional photos, fast Wi-Fi, a real desk and blackout blinds change the calibre of guest you attract.
A worked example
Assume a one-bedroom apartment achieving an average of £130 a night, available 340 nights a year, at 70% occupancy. Fill in your own numbers in the same order.
| Line | Calculation | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Gross booking revenue | £130 x 340 x 70% | £30,940 |
| Platform fees (approx. 3%) | - | -£928 |
| Net booking revenue | - | £30,012 |
| Management at 15% | - | -£4,502 |
| Utilities, Wi-Fi, consumables | estimate | -£2,400 |
| Owner net (before tax and mortgage) | - | ≈ £23,110 |
How to pressure-test an estimate
- Ask which comparable properties the estimate is based on and how recent they are.
- Check whether the occupancy assumption includes owner-blocked nights.
- Confirm whether the figure is gross booking revenue or your net payout — the gap is large.
- Ask for a low case as well as a base case.
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