[gavin davies]

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Re: can someone help or advise



Hi there I have taken over a new building for my business it also comes with ten stables and 12 acres of land perfect for grazing which is all fenced off and looks really nice as the previous owner had his own horses on there but I now have the whole lot and all I really require is the one barn for my business so I was looking at renting some stables out and the land for horses it is spilt into 2 large fields with secure gates I will be putting cctv up shortly so all the yard will be covered as I really have no experience of horses it would have to be looked after by the owners of the horse I could provide some jumps and things if people would use them but I was wondering if this sort of thing is ok to do and was wondering what i could charge per stable per week or per month yard has all electrics and running water thanks in advance and any info will be greatfully received  thanks

[Garvie]

depends where you are, but by us diy is about £20-25 a week not sure about part or full though just have a look at yards in your area though, even if it means phoning and asking what there prices are just dont mention you are opening a yard the British Horse Society have a lot of information  as well, but i would check out what your compation is in the area and what the demand is for a diy livery yard
hope this helps

[lachlanandmarcus]

Bear in mind you will have to pay business rates and probably water metered. Also under the recent welfare regs the owner/manager of the horse livery can be held responsible for the welfare of the animals if the owners don't take care of them, which is a particular issue for DIY liveries, ESP if you aren't a horsey person.


What might be worth considering on that basis is to rent the whole yard to a single individual to run as a yard. That way they would be responsible for dealing with all the owners, and also for any welfare considerations that might arise.


Because of the considerations above and the fairly slim profit margins for DIY (anything from £15-40 a week depending how close you are to major cities and places where land is hard to find), quite a few DIY yards have either closed or become part or full livery where the client is charged more and the owner does the basic care of the horse, thus ensuring welfare issues don't arise and also making a little more profit.

[Rosemary]

What might be worth considering on that basis is to rent the whole yard to a single individual to run as a yard. That way they would be responsible for dealing with all the owners, and also for any welfare considerations that might arise.

That's exactly what I thought when I read this. I've kept my pony on a couple of yards in the past and some folk  When we moved here, a friend asked if we would do livery - not on your nellie puff 

[lord flynn]

strongly agree that letting to individuals will be a nightmare that yo probably don't want. Possibly let to one person and if you allow them to sublet, have a very strict contract on how many, who is responsible for maintenance of the property, removal of muckheap etc etc.  12 acres is not enough for 10 horses unless its particularly well draining and very well managed. I would check that people that come in know how to maintain grazing, too many do not-its expensive and time consuming.


I rented yards for a number of years, some I shared 50:50, some I sublet and had my own liveries. I have just bought my own place and even if it was big enough, I wouldn't entertain the thought of liveries. I was in East Lothian which isn't the cheapest-we had a beautiful brick built yard with 5 stables, feed room and tack room (no hay storage or lorry/trailer parking) which was a pain, 2 loose boxes further away, 4 post and railed paddocks with very good field shelters, a sand and rubber floodlit arena, muck heap removal and access to very good off road hacking for £640pcm. we were not responsible for repairs/maintenance (unless it was one of our horses that did it) but were responsible for paddock maintenance. Although we had 11-12 acres, it couldn't support 6 horses out at grass 24/7 all year round because of the layout of the paddocks, even though the ground was mostly well draining and not clay. We had 4 horses and two ponies on it.