I'm curious if anyone has any insight or thoughts on purchasing an investment property to leverage as an Airbnb or STR, but...
HERE IS THE CAVEAT: I'm particularly intrigued by this shift in travelers/STR interest in "remote" or "off-the-grid" type locations that are NOT in an established/developed destination town.
I've discovered some highly successful remote examples that all seem to have similar qualities:
- Located within 1-2 hr of a large metropolis area on a very secluded lot
- Attractive Architectural Design Elements (Think a "Trendy" Scandinavian A-Frames)
- Strong Social Media Presence & Strong Market Plan
I understand this idea a little more Conceptual compared to other Airbnb models, so I'm curious if anyone has any insight here.
I also recognize a need for a full Marketing component to help get a remote property 'On the Radar' of Airbnb'ers and STR folks (pun intended).
Paul is a good example of Michael being early. People are still in disbelief of STRs being here to stay. Check out Robuilt on YouTube, Kristie Wolfe & BoxHop on Instagram. Plenty of wild success stories with people on Airbnb getting returns those on BP would never believe. Create an experience, build a social presence around it but most importantly have multiple exit strategies. With our STR builds we always have another exit in mind if STR won't work or it becomes banned/another pandemic happens that shuts travel down completely. Timing is good right now. Supply was slaughtered over the past year and demand will come back.
Thanks for your thoughts, John. In the particular market I'm looking in there is only 1 proven concept, but that property is owned/operated by a (small, but well established) Philadelphia Hospitality Group.
The area you’re describing sounds like our cabin in the Smokey Mountains. Close by all the hubbub, near a city, huge college, and sits on a large secluded private lot with a view. I agree with John.
Hey @Michael O'Hanlon, what would be the draw? Just sitting around a trendy designed home in the middle of no where?
Look at yourself for instance. Is that a place you would visit for a week. Remote, nothing to do but look at the coolest pillows ever.
We get quite a few repeat guests. They come for the lake, the town and the bike trail. Plus all the other things that are around our home within an hour.
@Michael O'Hanlon on the more practical side, if there's no infrastructure for STRs, who's going to be your boots on the ground to clean/maintain it? And how are people going to know it's there? I know you mentioned a marketing plan, think about what kind of time/money investment that will take vs. just starting in an established area. I do zero marketing and have 90%+ occupancy.
Paul is a good example of Michael being early. People are still in disbelief of STRs being here to stay. Check out Robuilt on YouTube, Kristie Wolfe & BoxHop on Instagram. Plenty of wild success stories with people on Airbnb getting returns those on BP would never believe. Create an experience, build a social presence around it but most importantly have multiple exit strategies. With our STR builds we always have another exit in mind if STR won't work or it becomes banned/another pandemic happens that shuts travel down completely. Timing is good right now. Supply was slaughtered over the past year and demand will come back.
@Michael O'Hanlon : I have the exact idea too. I researched autonomous self-sustaining homes, prefab homes, zoning, etc. The risk seems to be high but I feel if we can pull it off, we can scale it to other locations relatively easily.
Julie has a good point about boots on the ground. I want my STRs to be managed by someone and it would be hard to turnover rentals without ample options on the ground.
@Michael O'Hanlon. I’ve had just about enough of Airbnb after doing this for a living for many years. I’m even thinking about delisting and running Vrbo only for a while. A page from John underwood
The only example I’ve seen was here on BP and was an earthship. The draw could be to those who want to buy or build one or evaluate the sustainability. As to the management I have no idea how they do that. I believe the thread I read it in was about investing in Angel Fire NM.
Yes. I love the idea as I mentioned. What is the draw to Taos? It's not a lake city, beach city, or super close to skiing from what I know. Maybe I am way off.
@Jonathan Stone It's the southern most ski town in the rockies so that's a big part of the draw. The town is hip and artsy. It's at a high elevation so a lot of texans come in the summer to escape the heat. Historic native american structures. Lots of stuff! I think tourism is by the far the main industry in the town.