Pool or Views for vacation rentals

[Ankur Jain]

Hi - I am looking to purchase a property in the Smoky Mountains area and operate as a short term rental. Certain forums and podcasts I listed to mentioned that pools are a big trend currently though they tend to be in newer developments that do not necessarily have views. Or there are properties with reasonable views but don’t have a pool. Can you shed some light on what’s better for vacation rental overall return? Maybe from a. Cash yield and home price appreciation standpoint?

Most of the properties I am looking at are in pigeon forge area or Sevierville area and not exactly in Gatlinburg. Can you please also provide some insight if that changes occupancy and/or desirability? If I just go by AirDNA, the difference is not much in annual revenues.

Thanks,

Ankur

[Heather Cunningham]

If you are serious about the Smokies, hands down if you can find a place with a great view that is what I would go with.  We have 2 cabins in the smokies and the one with the amazing views does almost double the rental volume of the one that does not have the best views and they are both new build cabins with average amenities..no pools.  Our amazing view location is beating out pool cabins and we do not have the hassles of a pool in the smokies, especially an indoor pool...food for thought.  Pools are nice, though and people love them.  There are plenty of neighborhoods where you can still get access to a pool for your guests.  Just my experience.