Michigan Vacation Rental

[Brett TerBeek]

Hey BP!

I've had what seems to be a great opportunity for purchasing a vacation rental fall into my lap. This rental property is a condo in Pentwater, MI with an included boat slip that has less than a 5-minute boat ride to Lake Michigan. Does anyone have experience in purchasing vacation properties along the Great Lakes? I'm curious as to what to expect for vacancy during the peak months (May-Oct) and I can only assume best case scenario would be to find short-term tenants for the duration of the cold winter months. We are a military family and currently live in Colorado Springs, CO but I'm originally from this area and we have family that would love to care for the property for us which would eliminate the need for property management and many of the worries of investing from afar. As I try to analyze the property I'm beginning to see the extensive variables that are added into the analysis when compared with an SFR. After pouring through the forums I've learned quite a few of these factors and have included these into our calculations to include: HOA fees, Property Taxes, Ins., Utilities, Trash, Cable, WIFI, Vacancy (I've seen as high as 50% included), CAPEX, Furnishing.... Anything that I'm missing? Thanks for the help!

[Bill S.]

@Brett TerBeek property management. I know you said that your family was going to do but you should figure market rate for this. Who knows they may get tired of doing it or you might want to pay them to keep peace at the holiday dinner table. If you don't figure it in and you need it then it's really painful.