Investor · Marina Del Rey, CA · Member since 2015 · 297 posts · 87 votes
My husband and I are looking to invest in a vacation rental in either Big Bear or Lake Arrowhead. We have buy and holds but this will be our first vacation rental. I have heard a bit from investors with homes in Big Bear but none from Lake Arrowhead. I know I'm Lake Arrowhead we would need to buy a home with lake rights. Beyond that does anyone have any advice or opinions on which one may be a more successful vacation rental?
We live in Los Angeles and will be using the home on occasion. We have not yet decided if we will self manage or hire that out.
Any advice on running a vacation rental in these areas would be appreciated!
Rental Property Investor · Temecula, CA · Member since 2016 · 151 posts · 63 votes
9y
Hi Carrie Giordano , 100% go with Lake Arrowhead. So much closer to LA (that bit of a drive really makes a difference), and the clientele is way more put together (Big Bear attracts a lot of mountain people, skiers, kids).
Lake rights isn't necessary. You'd be surprised. My homes outside of Lake Rights do VERY well. We refer people to Lake Gregory and they have no issue with that. It can save you tens of thousands in your purchase...
Rental Property Investor · Temecula, CA · Member since 2016 · 151 posts · 63 votes
9y
Hi Carrie Giordano , 100% go with Lake Arrowhead. So much closer to LA (that bit of a drive really makes a difference), and the clientele is way more put together (Big Bear attracts a lot of mountain people, skiers, kids).
Lake rights isn't necessary. You'd be surprised. My homes outside of Lake Rights do VERY well. We refer people to Lake Gregory and they have no issue with that. It can save you tens of thousands in your purchase...
Investor · Marina Del Rey, CA · Member since 2015 · 297 posts · 87 votes
9y
Jonathan Safa thanks for the response! That's great to know, I assumed the property must have lake rights to do well. Do people swim in these lakes in the summer or are they too cold?
On average, how many nights per year is your place in Lake Arrowhead rented?
Thanks!!
Real Estate Coach · Venice Beach, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
9y
Hey Carrie! Would love to stay in touch with what you find out. My fam is possibly looking for the same thing. We are leaning towards Big Bear because while L.A. is a nicer quality and such, Big Bear has all the activities. I've been a million times snowboarding but haven't looked at properties. We may head up there in the next week or two and scout around. Happy to share info and/or resources we find.
Investor · Marina Del Rey, CA · Member since 2015 · 297 posts · 87 votes
9y
Ali Boone sounds good! I'm going to try and head up there early June to get a better feel for the areas. I have been told that in the next couple of months a lot of inventory will probably hit the market. That said the same person told me that prices remain pretty steady. I'll keep you posted as to what I find out.
Carlsbad, CA · Member since 2017 · 5 posts · 3 votes
9y
Hi all! Just purchased our first VR in Big Bear Lake...in escrow now. The property has been successful on VRBO in the past and would love to hear more about what you both are doing.
Investor · Valley Glen, CA · Member since 2013 · 247 posts · 111 votes
9y
Hi @Carrie Giordano- I bought my place in Big Bear in 2014 and now am managing 7 properties - a few I got from this board! Would gladly answer any questions. Big Bear does have a much better ROI than Arrrowhead due to ski slopes and Arrowhead is a private lake.
Investor · Valley Glen, CA · Member since 2013 · 247 posts · 111 votes
9y
I also take people up to Big Bear to work with myself and realtor where I show you properties and explain which ones rent out better based on area and the house itself and all my stats and rental history. I'm averaging 200 nights a year rented- with mine hitting 239 nights last year
Hey Carrie! Would love to stay in touch with what you find out. My fam is possibly looking for the same thing. We are leaning towards Big Bear because while L.A. is a nicer quality and such, Big Bear has all the activities. I've been a million times snowboarding but haven't looked at properties. We may head up there in the next week or two and scout around. Happy to share info and/or resources we find.
San Mateo, CA · Member since 2017 · 4 posts · 0 votes
8y
I'm looking at a property w lake rights in lake arrowhead. I want to rent or airbnb it out... Does anyone know of an investor I can speak w or someone who can tell me if the house is worth it? 6502455897
Investor · Riverside, CA · Member since 2011 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
8y
View from the deck of my house up near Lake Arrowhead - looking towards the Coachella Valley. I put it on AirBnB, but found a full time tenant and didn't want to deal with the turn over of nightly rentals.
Investor · San Diego, CA · Member since 2017 · 112 posts · 92 votes
8y
@Kara West We bought a vacation home in Arrowhead in 2011 for dirt cheap. It was the last house on the block that had lake rights - we slowly fixed it up over the years and over doubled our money when we sold in 2017. That was a unique situation to have that much equity growth . We didn't think it would make a good AirBnb since there were so many nicer homes closer to the lake to compete with. It probably doesn't make much difference if it has lake rights if you are strictly doing short term rentals but it will be more valuable when you go to sell. There are some neighborhoods closer to the Village that don't have lake rights but are close enough to the action -they probably rent well.
The lake is warm enough to swim in the summer. Since it's' a private lake, guests won't be able to bring their boat. There are a lot more restrictions and membership costs than Big Bear Lake. Annual boat registration was up to $500 when we left, plus membership fees, boating license, etc. Also, no dogs are allowed at the beach clubs. If we had the foresight in 2011 to buy a condo by the lake, we'd probably still own and be renting it out. The maintenance is tough up there - the elements are rough on the exterior, and you will need to do annual weed abatement. We did it ourselves which was labor intensive. Also, it's harder to find a flat lot up there. Be very careful about the parking situation. You can't park on the street in the winter due to snow plows so I would avoid properties that don't have off street parking or really steep driveways, lots of steep stairs, etc. Also, make sure you aren't too far out in the boonies or you might have a hard time getting fire insurance- try to be in a neighborhood with hydrants.
I'd say the rental market is most likely stronger in Big Bear - much more to do there. On the upside, Arrowhead is unincorporated, so it follows San Bernardino County STR rules which are less restrictive. Prices are high there now -not sure if the numbers would make sense. If you can find a deal on a fixer and add value/sweat equity- that would be the way to go. Like other's have said, make sure you can carry the monthly costs - renting it out is icing. The recession hit Arrowhead hard. We were fortunate to ride the wave up with it and see it fully recover. Will wait for the dip to buy again!!
Investor · Riverside, CA · Member since 2017 · 52 posts · 22 votes
5y
@Carrie Giordano@Matt R.@Mike R.@Aaron Mazzrillo@Alyssa Golden Hi all. Pulling this thread back from years ago and wanted to see how things have been faring for you all. Based on this old thread (started 3years ago) some of you have invested, in the middle of, or interested in investing out in Arrowhead/Big Bear. I've been interested lately in STR and wanted to know how your STR have been doing this year, amid Covid, and if you think its still a good time to invest in a STR out there. Thoughts? appreciate any feedback you guys may have :)
Investor · Valley Glen, CA · Member since 2013 · 247 posts · 111 votes
5y
I own 2 and manage 15 others in Big Bear. Once we opened back up in May we are renting all the time at 3 times normal rates. It's a little nuts. People can't travel like they used to so they are all visiting Big Bear.
Meanwhile- home prices in Big Bear have skyrocketed- what used to be a great ROI for a 3+1 900sq ft at 250k is now not so great ROI at 325-350k (Prices jumped that high that fast)
Flipper/Rehabber · Orange County, CA · Member since 2019 · 17 posts · 3 votes
5y
I was also looking at a rental property in Big Bear recently. It was next to a friend of mine that recently bought there's. Like @Mike R. mentioned, I ran the numbers and because the prices are so high right now, the cap rates for a vacation rental steered me away from it.
One tool that does a lot of work for you is https://www.airdna.co which does have a cost but it can help run the numbers. That house btw was a bit of a fixer and still was in contract in a week for more than asking so yes the market is very hot and I think vacay rentals in areas like this have also skyrocketed because people are happy to leave the cities for a pandemic break.
Investor · Valley Glen, CA · Member since 2013 · 247 posts · 111 votes
5y
Yeah that's the conundrum. Homes have gone way up in price but rentals are now three times more than they ever have been. How long does that keep up? And then suddenly you're stuck 5 years from now with a 30-year mortgage not making triple becuase travel has opened back up? That's the issue