Running a B&B can seem a particularly romantic business idea - especially if you are considering a B&B in a quiet countryside setting, far from the stress and hassles of city life. However, not only launching a B&B but making it a consistent money-spinner can incur various expenses that aren't for the faint-hearted. Here is an insight into the true cost of launching a successful B&B.

Location, location, location indeed

It might be a particularly alluring location which has inspired your idea to start a B&B. Certainly, it's easy to see why particular parts of the country, like the Lake District or rural Hampshire where Jane Austen grew up, could theoretically help you make money but also still enjoy the fairly quiet and peaceful life that you might crave as a B&B owner.

However, you might find that, as is a common issue with B&Bs, business is much more bustling at some times of year than others. For example, you might hardly find a break from work during summer, but find winter noticeably quieter. Nonetheless, whether you see this pattern can depend on the B&B's location; therefore, understand an area before choosing it, says This is MONEY.co.uk.

Considering setting up a home from home?

Choosing the right location could, therefore, help you attract the custom necessary to long sustain the B&B as a business. This is worth emphasising when you consider the costs of establishing a B&B in the first place. The purchase price of a B&B is, on average, £572,000 - according to Direct Line research mentioned by The Telegraph. Average turnover, meanwhile, is a much lower £127,000.

Nonetheless, you could significantly save money if you convert your existing home into a B&B rather than buy a whole separate building. Indeed, most people begin a B&B in this way, which incurs almost no capital cost if any. Only two guest rooms would be necessary for an income totalling £30,000, David Weston of the Bed and Breakfast Association has suggested.

More, more, more in a mortgage

Whether or not you will be using your home as a B&B, you might also have mortgage costs to consider. While you might already be paying for a residential mortgage, this might not cover use of the abode for B&B purposes. While some home mortgage policies might permit this provided that you do not allocate more than a couple of bedrooms to paying guests, a commercial mortgage would likely be necessary. Furthermore, obtaining one would require a solid business plan.

The necessity of mortgage repayments would give you another incentive to encourage consistent custom for your B&B - and reservation software could help you in this task.

There are various ways in which a hotel booking system could help give your B&B the edge in the marketplace. Such a system from eviivo, for example, could not only discourage people from abandoning attempts to make bookings but also help you promote the business across all of the leading travel websites. A free, mobile-friendly site would also feature in the package.