Southwest Florida Rental Purchase/Networking

[Alex Smith]

Apologies if this isn't the proper section

Hello everyone,

My Father is looking to purchase a rental property in Southwest Florida, somewhere around Naples and Ft Myers. He is looking to purchase a property to rent with the intention of eventually either moving into that property with in the next 5-10 years or moving into another property in the area. He is approved for 500k for the property and traveling to Florida in 30 days with the intent to buy if he finds the right deal. I have interest in real estate investing as well so I've hopped in the back seat of this venture to see how it all works.

He's looking for a 2-3 bedroom, 2 bath, condo, villa, or sfh. Either something he would slightly rehab to add value or a turn key property. I suggested that an area on the eastern coast may be better for rental income since Miami and the surrounding cities are more tourist oriented but Ft Myers area is more retirement focused. I also brought up that the Covid-19 pandemic would likely mean no rentals to older folks for the rest of this year, and I'm sure would still affect their willingness to travel into next year.

From your experiences, is an area such as this better for a tourist rental where it may only be rented during the busy season and slow for the rest or would he be better of buying a property with the intent of finding a tenant for a longer term?

Any recommended real estate agents or companies in the area you have had a positive experience with? Or individuals on here who are in the area/surrounding areas that could offer advice?

Any other general advice?

I'm going to search through this forum more and hit the books to provide my Father with more helpful info in addition to what you provide, but time is short and he's ready to buy.

[Stetson Miller]

@Alex Smith You're absolutely correct with the Naples and Fort Myers areas being more retirement focused. However, are you solely focused on vacation rentals over long term rentals, and if so, what is your reasoning behind that? It's absolutely still possible to run short term rentals in the area, there are several people in the area on BP that do it successfully, but we have a very strong long term rental market that I think you will find much more stability and consistency in.