Million dollar budget. Sevierville or Broken Bow?

[Phung Vo]

Trying to focus on one market! Who takes it?!??

[Ken Boone]

Quote from @Nancy Bender:

Pretty much for the most part I take care of my STR's from afar, but so many issues had arisen with my properties that I hadn't realized. I only learned about them by spending time there these past few weeks.Had I known I could have dealt with most of them earlier. The cleaners and handyman are just not going to substitute for yourself as ultimately they don't own those properties. Yes, we are real estate investors, I am always looking for the next deal too, I have a commercial property with a 10 year lease I spend maybe an hour a year on. It is so easy to deal with. But with STR's we are also very much in the hospitality business. Our next deals also depend on how much we are profiting from our STR's. There will most likely be more profits if our guests are having very good guest experiences!

I have to agree with you here @Nancy Bender People manage from afar all the time so can it be done absolutely. I am about 3.5 hrs away from my STRs in the smokies as well. Can I do it without visiting several times a year? Absolutely. Will it be in 100% tip top shape if I didn't? Absolutely not! Will it be in bad shape? No but there will be little things that need addressing without doubt. I want my properties to always be in the best shape they can be in. When a guest stays at my STR I want nothing negative to enter their minds. I want them to have the best time ever and think 5 star thoughts about my place.

I have fantastic cleaners and handymen.   I have had not so fantastic cleaners and handymen so I know the difference.  My cleaners rock.  However, they are people too and you have to understand that a cleaner's #1 job is to get the cabin ready for the next guest.  Smokies is a solid 10 month performer and quite honestly my Jan and Feb are not bad either, but for the peak peak times i.e. spring break, summer, fall leaves, etc..  The cleaners are going non stop, they do not have time to go and check every door knob to see if it is loose, every cabinet knob, to basically go over every nook and cranny of your place.  They need to clean, get it ready for the next guest and move on.

I have a number of people in my circle that have cabins up there and we all pretty much manage the same way.  The one thing that we all agree on, is that when we visit our places, there are ALWAYS things that need to be done.  Always.  So if you are not visiting your properties from time to time, there will always be little things that need to be addressed that have not been.  This is a personal opinion, but for my management style, I don't want to wait on resolving these issues, I want them resolved now so I know that my STRs are in the best shape they can be in for every guests to the best of my ability.

Now having said all that I am not afraid of purchasing an STR farther away. As in one I may be only able to visit once a year, however, this is what I would do.

I would hire an additional person simply for inspections. Maybe once a month or so, but I would want them to go through everything.  Check the doors, doorknobs, cabinets, go through all the cookware and tell me what is missing or needs to be replaced, check to make sure the sink drains are draining, check for leaks under the sinks, near tubs, showers, etc.  Check to make sure my pool safety equipment is working, test the pool alarm, check batteries in all the remotes.  Sit in every single chair and see if there is a wobble and if it needs to be tightened up, check the exterior of the cabin, are there signs of carpenter bees, check my windows, any leaks, etc. - you get the idea.  - Yes my cleaners let me know this stuff when they see it, but again, they are not always going to see this stuff.

That's my 2 cents for what it's worth.