Vacation Rental Cleaning & Maintenance

[Jay S.]

I want to purchase vacation rental property in Florida.  I have an understanding of how to manage the marketing of the property myself.  What I struggle with is how to manage the cleaning, laundry, and maintenance of the property.  I live in Chicago, so I will need to have local people/service companies that I can depend on.

I'm interested in learn from others about how they have solved this issue.  I know that there are local property management companies, is that who I should go to?  Or do I just find local cleaning companies? Can cleaning companies also do laundry of the towels and sheets? Will they change light bulbs, batteries, etc?   Who do I call if there is a problem with the HVAC or something like that while a guest is staying?  

I would really appreciate any advice on how to manage these things!  I realize that this is really the biggest part of managing a vacation rental and probably what sets the best apart from the rest.

[Erica Muller]

Hi @Jay S.! I have sold over 200 vacation rentals here in Orlando and here is what I can tell you on this. . . DON'T SELF MANAGE FROM AFAR!!! I'm not trying to be negative but this market is absolutely cut throat and people are not dependable. People in Florida are very flakey so if you're using an app like Handy for cleanings, for example, you can be certain that at least 8 out of the 10 times they won't show up and you'll be in panic mode because you have a guest coming in and the house is trashed. If you don't want to hire a management company to manage and book it, you can find what's called a "caretaker" who will do everything for you except for book it. I have clients who have done this but they are incredibly hands on and don't have any other job. If you buy the right property in the right location you can expect about a 6 cap WITH property management. That's not bad for a vacation rental. If you never use the place and keep it rented at least 48 weeks annually you can do better than that but I am conservative with numbers.