First time Florida investing and setting rent price

[Marco Egurvide]

Hello BP,

My family and I for years have been long term rental owners here in CA. We recently took a brief exit because of a bad tenant experience and CA landlord laws are not the most forgiving or easy to navigate.

That being said I feel like I will be taking my talents to south beach, or Tampa or Orlando for that matter! When investing from a distance I understand the team around you must be way more trustworthy and because of 3rd party management the deal in turn has to be that much better. All that being said I’m willing and eager.

The idea of STR makes me a little nervous because of the increased amount of upkeep. What is being done to manage this? What experiences do you have positive or negative too please. What are they doing for you what don't they do for you?

I’m much more familiar with the buy hold, gaining through cash flow and appreciation. What questions should be asked to qualify property managers?

Lastly being from outside of an area what resources do you all use to determine rents?

Thanks I’m advance looking forward to building the portfolio back up again!!

[Zachary Bliss]

@Marco Egurvide

Hello Marco,

I am a local Realtor/Investor in the Tampa market. It is a very hard market currently to achieve cash flow, but the appreciation will definitely be there over the next few years. I would recommend trying to the STR route, as it does take a little more on the management side, it gives you the opportunity to capture the cash flow and the appreciation from the Tampa market.

As for STR management, I know several investors who self-manage from out of the state. You just need to make sure you have a solid cleaning crew and handyman lined up. I would recommend checking out the book in the Biggerpockets bookstore titled "Short Term Rental, Long Term Wealth" by Avery Carl. She breaks down step by step how to manage STR properties from a distance. Hope that helps!