Question about purchasing short term rental in Orlando by Disney.

[Candice Bernard]

Good evening, I have an opportunity to purchase a 2 bedroom/2.5 bath townhouse. Prime location 10 minutes away from Disney in Orlando, in a resort that offers pool/clubhouse/gym/restaurant. The property was built in 2014, is fully furnished, ready to be rented for short term guests. The price is 285,000. I would be putting 20% down, and my expenses would be approximately $2500 per month, including the mortgage, $474 for HOA fees, taxes, and property management fees.

My expected monthly income from AirBNB will be at least $3000 per month (I say this because my friend owns two units in that resort and that is what he brings in every month on average), leaving me with approximately $500 a month in profit.

Does this look like a worthwhile investment? It will be my first short term rental property!

Thanks!

[Valentina Naumenko]

Sure. We are discussing a townhouse. Here is what I gathered from the investors or my own observations/ experience 1) owners don’t pay utilities, sales and tourist taxes, routine maintenance (almost every check out, a touch up paint is needed as guests leave wall marks with their luggage; just a basic example), inventory ( sheets, towels, furniture, and etc) 2) in long term, tenants cover lots of maintenance; so another saving. 3) in long term, occupancy rate is higher and more stable. 4) long term rental rates are high today. 5) townhouses or condos have to compete with the hotels, and Orlando has more of these than any other city probably in the world. And quality will never be the same as hotels/ resorts would offer. Because of that, nightly rate is lower and occupancy rate is not the best. It’s clear that tourists like to stay in properties that have provide pools (something that hotels don’t offer) 6)  insurances are less expensive in long term 7) less licenses needed. 8) less admin work is required 9) long term has less headache. However, it depends on how you like to handle the whole rental situation. Even if you manage bookings yourself, you still need to be there for the guests. Takes time and special type personality.  And you need to pay someone on site who can inspect property, manage inventory, and etc. 

Also, I see that people who run some vacation rentals (again, we talk about condos, they use the property themselves time to time. This is a benefit they enjoy and this is why many keep renting it short term. Once they stop using it, often they shift to long term or sell.

Hopefully, it helps.

PS! Please note that I personally own long terms and short term rentals. So, I am absolutely not against vacation rentals. Every property/ community is different. It’s important to run an analysis and study all financial reports statements/tax return schedules. 

Good luck 🍀