North Georgia Mountains - Airbnb

[Josephine Ramesh]

I am actively looking to buy a lake front property in Hiawassee, GA area. This would be our second home and also a short term rental. I have four long term rentals that I self manage. But this would be my first short term rental property. I would love to connect and hear from fellow Atlanta area investors, with properties in the North Georgia mountains. How is the demand for AirBnB? What should I watch out when buying a lake front property especially in the mountains? Thank you in advance for sharing your experiences.

[Collin Hays]

Make sure you know how to swim for sure!

[Michael Baum]

Hey @Josephine Ramesh, welcome to the fray! I am not invested in the area you are looking at, but I do own a lake front property in north Idaho.

Buying a lake house isn't much different than any other house. A couple of considerations that differ would be these off the top of my head:

• Take a look at the septic system. Some lake front properties on septic require some special things to keep the effluence leeching into the lake. So double check with the county on any of those requirements if any.
• Where does the water come from? Here in Idaho, there are many lake front homes that get their water directly from the lake. Those systems require much more maintenance than a well. There are pumps, filters and UV systems to keep going so keep that in mind.
• The location on the lake is also important. Lake Coeur d'Alene is a natural deep water mountain lake with an average depth of 125 feet. Chatuge Lake (where I assume you are looking) is a man made reservoir with an average depth of 30ft. That can mean you will find some areas that are quite shallow and might not be as waterfront as you would like in times of drought.
  
• Is there lake effect weather? Being in the south that might not be an issue. It isn't an issue at our house as we are up from the lake a bit, but some homes right near the waters edge can have trouble. Usually with ice formation due to winds blowing spray. The Great Lakes are an excellent example of lake affect ice. But if the area is prone to winds, you could get some spray up on the house which will create a need for more maintenance.
• You need to make sure you have proper coverage for lake front property. Access to a beach and dock for guests requires a special rider. Not really expensive, but just be aware you will need it along with your short term rental policy.

Those are just a couple of things I can think of. I will post more if I can remember others. 

[Josephine Ramesh]

@Michael Baum

Thanks Michael, this is extremely helpful.

[Paul Sandhu]

If any of the neighbors sit on the porch and play the banjo, I would avoid that area.

[Dylan H.]

@Josephine Ramesh Although I don't own a lake front Airbnb I've been looking into converting a long term rental of mine into an airbnb. Look up Airdna Airbnb calculator. You can type in the properties address and it pulls data from airbnb and other short term site to give you from what I've read a pretty accurate estimation of Occupancy rates and income. Basically it will tell you the demand, pretty cool tool. You have to pay for full reports, but you can look up an address for free for the basic info. Best of Luck!

[Donald Newell]

I live in ATL as well and am interested in getting a str up there, sevierville, or destin/pcb/30a area.

For those outside the southeast, this is a huge destination for Atlanta metro residents. I’ve stayed in Helen, hiawassee, elijay and they were all great. Definitely Oktoberfest in Helen was fun.

Best of luck! I’ll be following along...

[Josephine Ramesh]

@Dylan H.

Thanks Dylan - I checked out the site. Very useful.

[Josephine Ramesh]

@Donald Newell

Thanks Donald - will post updates if something works out. I am going up there this weekend to see some properties. Would love to have something setup before Summer begins.

[Mike Anderson]

I live in Atlanta and am about to sell my primary and move to the mountains of north GA or WNC and either get another rental there or a second in Sevierville. My cabin in the smokies is crushing it... I help a buddy of mine manage his property in Blairsville which sits on the Nottley river, he only uses VRBO and is basically booked solid. It comes down to expectations, I think you will defiantly break even. I think it will also cash flow pretty well but not as well as the Smokies. I would strongly encourage getting one with good internet, as a bunch of the tech crowd from Atlanta will rent it out in order to work remote. I think there are other other areas that will have more demand in North GA (Blue Ridge being the big one), but Hiawassee is pretty good too.

@Paul Sandhu You're close.... Actually one county over in Rabun is where the movie deliverance was filmed. Don't mention it to the locals though, even a proud rough neck like you might not be able to make it out of that one ;)

[Page Williams]

We own a home in Blue Ridge and it stays booked.  Though we get a good bit of Airbnb bookings we also get quite a bit from VRBO and direct. I would recommend diversifying your channel distribution.  Many of the lakes in North Georgia are controlled by the TVA and they drop the lake levels significantly in the winter.  So be careful where you buy as some of the coves may not have water during the winter months.  Lake Burton, Rabun, and Seed are Georgia Power lakes and the water levels don't change much.   All in all it's a great area and we too are looking to invest more in the area.

[Josephine Ramesh]

@Mike Anderson

Thanks Mike , it’s pretty encouraging to see your comments. We go up to the mountains quite often, so we have paid quite a bit of money to VRBO in the last twenty years. It will be nice to have our own place up there :)

[Josephine Ramesh]

@Page Williams

Thanks Page, that’s really valuable information. I will make sure to ask the sellers about the water levels. I have been looking in Blueridge too, but it’s impossible to find any waterfront properties in our budget.

[Salome D.]

Hi, how is the blue ridge STR doing? I read your post. Im planning to 1031 exchange and pick a STR in blue ridge? Is it profittable? Are there enought resources to find a cleaner or Prop manager? Are there lots of reguklation restrictions in Blue ridge? Hos is the occupancy rate? I am trying to start my STR in Ble Ridge, any input is appreciated. Thanks. Sally

[Ferry Vendy]

@Josephine Ramesh,

Any updates if you ever pull the trigger on getting a lake front property in Hiawassee?

[Kyle Fugatt]

Quote from @Salome D.:

Hi, how is the blue ridge STR doing? I read your post. Im planning to 1031 exchange and pick a STR in blue ridge? Is it profittable? Are there enought resources to find a cleaner or Prop manager? Are there lots of reguklation restrictions in Blue ridge? Hos is the occupancy rate? I am trying to start my STR in Ble Ridge, any input is appreciated. Thanks. Sally

 Hey!

I know this was a few years ago, but how did it pan out?

We manage about 25 STRs in Blue Ridge and would love to help in any way we can!

[William Jacques]

Quote from @Kyle Fugatt:

I know this was a few years ago, but how did it pan out?

We manage about 25 STRs in Blue Ridge and would love to help in any way we can!

Hey Kyle!  Just found your website from his post. We are starting the process of purchasing a 2nd home/STR in Blue Ridge.  Would love to connect with you once we get a little further down the road.  We love Blue Ridge!