Urgent Help Needed: Turning Around a Struggling Disney Area Investment Property

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Urgent Help Needed: Turning Around a Struggling Disney Area Investment Property

Maxwell Banton
Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 17 posts · 4 votes

Hello everyone, I'm in need of some guidance. I bought a 5-bedroom, 3-bathroom property in Orlando near Disney World for short-term rentals. It's been a year, and contrary to my initial profit projections, I've been consistently losing money. Considering long-term rental as a better option, I listed the property, but after three months on the market and only receiving low offers, I'm reevaluating. This investment has increasingly felt like a financial burden. I'm contemplating making updates to the property but am uncertain about the return on investment (ROI) I would receive. I'd greatly appreciate any advice or insights from anyone who has navigated a similar situation. Below is my Airbnb link I am open to all recommendations!

https://www.airbnb.com.sg/rooms/792049658049677604?guests=1&...

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  • Travis TimmonsPro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Ellsworth, ME · Member since 2021 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    2y

    Maybe I did something wrong, but when I clicked the link, the currency shows in SGD rather than USD. I wouldn't book a place that did not have the local currency listed. I don't know the conversion rate - how much it's actually going to cost me - and it's feels sketchy.

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  • Jessie Dillon
    Investor · Hopedale, MA · Member since 2021 · 321 posts · 213 votes
    2y

    orlando is a super competitive STR market these days. you have to go over the top with design, in addition to managing it really really well. if it was me, i'd sell or invest in top tier design from someone like @itsbridgettebitch on IG (she designs at least some of @robuilt 's STRs).

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  • Alex F.
    Investor · Plymouth, MN · Member since 2020 · 157 posts · 102 votes
    2y

    @Maxwell Banton. The house looks very good.

    We have a 4 bedroom 3 bathroom house in Kissimmee

    https://bit.ly/41SAl0C

    How much lower is your current rev vs projections ?

    Is your current pm advertising in all channels and not just Airbnb ?

    Use a service such as rankbreeze and see where your listing is compare to others. Goal is to be within the first 3 pages of Airbnb else your listing is close to invisible.

    A few misc feedback on the listing:

    --Why the max 40 lbs dog policy ?

    --The fines for smoking and extra guests. I would remove from the listing and add to your right after booking email and not in the main listing.

    --With a 5 bedroom house and max 6 adults you are definitely losing bookings due to this policy. Competition is super high in the Disney area so for sure you are potential bookings with with let's say 3 couples and a couple kids / adult kids each that pass. With our 4 bedroom home we allow 10 or 12....forgot now. This is probably the main factor in lower than expected bookings.

    --Pet policy - yeah as I re read this is definitely hurting. Either don't allow dogs or allow dogs that are well behaved. Remove all else about dog requirements. One of our best performing properties is a 2 bedroom condo in Duluth, Minnesota. Performance last year was awesome and one of the main factors was us allowing any sized dogs and a photo of our Berniedoodle on the main photo.

    https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/53233221

    Your house is well decorated and looks very nice. It should be able to perform well.

    Oh the other item is are you self managing or with a property manager ? And if property manager how does your listing compare to their others ?

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  • Jonathan Leung
    Member since 2024 · 19 posts · 28 votes
    2y

    Former Airbnb super host here.

    1. you’ll likely need to update / improve interior design of the place in order to make it work.  You’ll also need to take better photos (hide wires, improve lighting, make sure bed sheets are ironed,etc) 

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  • Tyler GibsonBusiness Member
    Real Estate Agent · Orlando, FL · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    2y
    Quote from @Maxwell Banton:

    Hello everyone, I'm in need of some guidance. I bought a 5-bedroom, 3-bathroom property in Orlando near Disney World for short-term rentals. It's been a year, and contrary to my initial profit projections, I've been consistently losing money. Considering long-term rental as a better option, I listed the property, but after three months on the market and only receiving low offers, I'm reevaluating. This investment has increasingly felt like a financial burden. I'm contemplating making updates to the property but am uncertain about the return on investment (ROI) I would receive. I'd greatly appreciate any advice or insights from anyone who has navigated a similar situation. Below is my Airbnb link I am open to all recommendations!

    https://www.airbnb.com.sg/rooms/792049658049677604?guests=1&...


     If you want this property to perform at a higher level, you will need to definitely update the property. I don't know if the juice would be worth the squeeze. What community is this property located in? As somebody that has helped multiple investors purchase here in the Disney area, I always suggest that that investors buy in the top-tier resort style communities. The amenities that these communities have is additional marketing material for your listing and it can help drive a higher average nightly rate. You likely need to replace much of the furniture in the home to give it more of a modern feel. I always suggest to investors that they need to have consistent design throughout the home. Think Marriott hotel. In addition to That, a few of the bedrooms need to be themed out with some sort of theme from the local attractions. It's not enough just to put a Mickey mouse sticker on the wall or a frozen duvet on the single bed. Hosts need to do something more unique. Some people have custom-built bunk, bunk beds or LED track lighting or combination of all these things. You could spend upwards to $60,000 just on the theming and depending on what the highest nightly rate is for your neighborhood, it might not be worth it.

    [email protected]407-590-9858
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  • Matthew Tregoning
    Property Manager · Melbourne, FL · Member since 2019 · 373 posts · 157 votes
    2y

    The BEST ROI fixes to drive more traffic:

    Add in more family friendly amenities (Cribs, highchair, etc.). These will get you more traffic.

    Update accessibility portion on your listing. You'd be amazed how little hosts utilize this feature.

    Update design/decor where you can. Maybe some vibrant accent walls/wall art and pillows, accent blankets and bedding to match

    Consider re-theming the kids rooms.Whole accent wall and bedding to match.

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