Buying rental in the Adirondacks - Lake Placid, NY

[Chewie G.]

Hi All, Anyone have any advise or experience purchasing rentals in the Lake Placid, NY area. What can I expect if I invest in that market- pro/cons etc. Thank you!

[Maura Paler]

We own 5 in the southern ADK's, they do very well. 

Things to keep in mind: 

- good to have a "property mgt" type local to help with the brutal winters (snow removal, leaky roofs, icey steps), summer bugs (ant, mice infestations produce bad reviews), furniture, propane grill tank and linen replacements, and general fixes (guests break stuff)

- need someone to keep lawns mowed and watered, driveways plowed 

- reliable housekeeping is essential

- less guests = less trouble/damage. We rent to no more than 6 and avoid purchasing large houses for that reason 

- stay away from under 25 crowd, drinking produces damage, liability risk and trouble with neighbors. Snowmobilers are generally a drinky crowd, we avoid them (and we are snowmobilers ourselves...we see them first hand...all the more reason to keep them out of our houses)

- rates vary throughout the year, summer is highest. We hire housekeepers to work Mon and Fri (most rentals are Sat-Sat so housekeepers are all taken that day). That way we can offer a F-M 3 night rental and M-F 4 night midweek rental. This produces more income than a weekly rental (ie: weekly is $1850 for two, or $975 for 3 night weekend, $1150 for 4 night midweek). We charge $10 or $15 per night, per guest over 2, that way we encourage couples to rent our 3 bedroom homes which makes us less $ but is pretty much a guarantee of no damage/hassles and the housekeepers love it. 

- have a large storage area so you can store and replace broken dishes, linens, towels, coffee pots, wine glasses, all the things that WILL get ruined at some point. Guests will leave a bad review if they can't have their coffee in the AM :)  

- we have a running list of TO DO's for maintaining the houses in summer, winter, spring and fall. Lots of tasks to keep track of, and easy to forget 

- if you are renovating, think of all you can do to make the house guest friendly, like having the pipes on an INSIDE wall not an outside wall to prevent frozen pipes which can be a nightmare. Slipcovered furniture, cheap (but nice) indoor/outdoor reversible rugs, storage area for skiis, snowshoes, all that stuff.