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Updated almost 3 years ago, 02/01/2022
Hot STR Markets in Tampa, FL
Hey all!
Starting to see some progress with my first deal I did earlier this year on a STR/Airbnb property I purchased in Nashville, TN back in April. Enjoying everything so far but im itching to land another deal in a different market. I know its typically good to find a solid market and take advantage of it while you can however I want a little diversity before I zone in on 1 location to hammer.
One of the top locations I had in mind was Florida specially Tampa area (Saint Petersburg, Palm Harbor, etc.) relatively close to the beach and wanted to see if anyone had any experience doing short term rentals & AirBnbs around there?
I can do the research and run the numbers on AirDNA but curious about any outside things that people ran into or recommend I take into consideration before I start to really get things together there.
Anything helps!
Corben
@Corben Briggs, I have a vacation rental in Palm Harbor (Crystal Beach to be exact) and a friend who has multiple rentals in Dunedin. What information are you wanting? Palm Harbor is unincorporated so you only need to deal with county and state regulations. Dunedin has additional regulations.
We have 24 municipalities in Pinellas County, plus the unincorporated areas. Each one has its own flavor and price points.
Rather than run them all down, it's easier to discuss your target price point and style.
The big rule here is Don't Chase Paper. There are plenty of good money-making options, but not all will be a good fit for you.
For example, you can get into a beach condo-tel (with tons of additional complexity) for $400k-ish in the more "happening" areas. You won't retire on that income stream, but you'll probably break even or slightly better, and you'll have a beach property you can visit a couple of times a year.
Or you can get an SFH/Duplex in a different beach community and make a solid profit, and still have a place to stay on the regular. It's less "sexy" than a beachfront condo-tel, but it's a much better option in my book.
Or you can be inland a bit where there is far less demand (naturally), but draws for small-town events can make up for it (Dunedin has the Highland Games - bagpipes, caber tossing, and haggis).
The Dunedin Causeway is beautiful, but it pales in comparison to what we locals consider an actual beach.
On the other hand, Clearwater Beach just to the south is in high-demand (with the price points to match), but we locals would never go there. Touristy, no parking, traffic is insane, and it's just an "okay" beach by our standards.
I usually recommend finding a lifestyle point that you enjoy. Outdoors (kayaking, fishing, etc.) has plenty of solid options. If you're into trains, we have that covered. If you like museums, we have a ton. Private pilot? We have homes near small airports for layovers.
That way, you can easily connect with and communicate to (market) a customer base you already understand. It makes the transition much easier, and you'll actually enjoy the process.
You can easily focus on one area and become an expert on the local STR scenarios.
But there is all the difference in the world between STR in Indian Rocks Beach (extremely friendly) and neighboring Belleair Beach (totally banned). Knowing how and where you want to be will help you avoid the inevitable rabbit holes that do nothing but waste your time and bandwidth.
Originally posted by @Kristin Arby:
@Corben Briggs, I have a vacation rental in Palm Harbor (Crystal Beach to be exact) and a friend who has multiple rentals in Dunedin. What information are you wanting? Palm Harbor is unincorporated so you only need to deal with county and state regulations. Dunedin has additional regulations.
Definitely would want to know more about the zoning regulations they have there for STRs and how difficult it may be to obtain a permit for one depending on which areas I end up focusing on. But this helps narrow things down!
Also - Another big question I had was with seasonality. Im assuming you would see an increase in nightly rates/demand for the winter months with all the travelers looking to escape the snow? How about the spring/summer time, or is there any really slow months you need to compensate for where your not seeing great returns naturally?
Originally posted by @Zach Kidd:
We have 24 municipalities in Pinellas County, plus the unincorporated areas. Each one has its own flavor and price points.
Rather than run them all down, it's easier to discuss your target price point and style.
The big rule here is Don't Chase Paper. There are plenty of good money-making options, but not all will be a good fit for you.
For example, you can get into a beach condo-tel (with tons of additional complexity) for $400k-ish in the more "happening" areas. You won't retire on that income stream, but you'll probably break even or slightly better, and you'll have a beach property you can visit a couple of times a year.
Or you can get an SFH/Duplex in a different beach community and make a solid profit, and still have a place to stay on the regular. It's less "sexy" than a beachfront condo-tel, but it's a much better option in my book.
Or you can be inland a bit where there is far less demand (naturally), but draws for small-town events can make up for it (Dunedin has the Highland Games - bagpipes, caber tossing, and haggis).
The Dunedin Causeway is beautiful, but it pales in comparison to what we locals consider an actual beach.
On the other hand, Clearwater Beach just to the south is in high-demand (with the price points to match), but we locals would never go there. Touristy, no parking, traffic is insane, and it's just an "okay" beach by our standards.
I usually recommend finding a lifestyle point that you enjoy. Outdoors (kayaking, fishing, etc.) has plenty of solid options. If you're into trains, we have that covered. If you like museums, we have a ton. Private pilot? We have homes near small airports for layovers.
That way, you can easily connect with and communicate to (market) a customer base you already understand. It makes the transition much easier, and you'll actually enjoy the process.
You can easily focus on one area and become an expert on the local STR scenarios.
But there is all the difference in the world between STR in Indian Rocks Beach (extremely friendly) and neighboring Belleair Beach (totally banned). Knowing how and where you want to be will help you avoid the inevitable rabbit holes that do nothing but waste your time and bandwidth.
Wow! Great advice and definitely a good way to put things into perspective. When I was on the hunt for my STR in Nashville one thing I was trying to focus on was a newbuild property where I didnt need to worry about having a lot of focus on any rehab projects or calling a handman every other week. Naturally this brought my price range to about a 10minute drive outside of the downtown area which was perfect since it keeps things a bit more quiet as well with guests wanting to spend time downtown but relax when theyre back at the house.
But what you are saying is that a little bit away from the flashy beaches/nightlife the returns get higher? Im thinking that would be what I would want to look for again. Having parking, a bit quiter area thats a short drive to beaches/restuaraunts/down town where guests can head to have fun.
Also one thing we really excelled at was having a themed style with furnishing in our other STR. We decked this place out in a super cool and trendy nashville theme which has been a huge attraction for girl vacations and all the higher end bachelorette parties the city sees. That is something we would try to repeat as well however im not sure if there would be an obvious theme to focus on like that.
@Corben Briggs, I am a Broker in the Tampa market and own a STR property management company and there is a ton of opportunity in Tampa. I will dm you.
@Corben Briggs, the regulation would be based on the location of the property. You will need to check out the city regulations based on where you are looking to purchase. There are unincorporated areas of Pinellas and for those locations you will just need to follow the county rules, which are very minimal. Pinellas County Information; Pinellas County Short Term Rental Standards I'm assuming you already know the state requirements since you are looking in Florida, but just in case you don't here's the information, Florida Vacation Rental . The seasonal rate question will be based on the type of rental you decide to purchase. Although I definitely have super busy times such as Nov-Dec, March-April, June-July I would say that the majority of the time Florida is an all year vacation rental area. The slower months for me are August and January, but they are typically still booked quite a bit. It also depends on the type of renter you cater to. Smaller properties are different than one like mine that sleeps 14 guests.
@Corben Briggs I am interested in the Tampa area as well for an Airbnb would love to connect and brainstorm together on opportunities.
Originally posted by @Kristin Arby:
@Corben Briggs, the regulation would be based on the location of the property. You will need to check out the city regulations based on where you are looking to purchase. There are unincorporated areas of Pinellas and for those locations you will just need to follow the county rules, which are very minimal. Pinellas County Information; Pinellas County Short Term Rental Standards I'm assuming you already know the state requirements since you are looking in Florida, but just in case you don't here's the information, Florida Vacation Rental . The seasonal rate question will be based on the type of rental you decide to purchase. Although I definitely have super busy times such as Nov-Dec, March-April, June-July I would say that the majority of the time Florida is an all year vacation rental area. The slower months for me are August and January, but they are typically still booked quite a bit. It also depends on the type of renter you cater to. Smaller properties are different than one like mine that sleeps 14 guests.
Perfect! Just shot you a DM about your listing but I would most likely be looking into 3-4 bedroom property that would sleep around 10-12 like my current Airbnb. Right now I designate 1 room to bunk beds so we can advertise for larger groups and our guests are typically only staying for weekend trips so they arent as picky about sleeping arrangements. Do you find this to be the same in your rentals? Also Would you prefer a higher end condo/apartment rather than single family? I noticed that varies between markets too! Condos/apartments are much more popular in TN than single families
@Corben Briggs, Per regulation it's 2 guests per bedroom and 2 in an open area for sleeping arrangements, therefore the regulation sets the maximum guest count. My rental is not booked just for weekends, I typically have a 3-5 day minimum depending on the time of year. I personally don't invest in condos for STRs. I highly recommend doing research about the area and HOA especially if you are interested in Condo rentals. There's always the risk for a change in the HOA regulations. My rental caters to families for vacations sleeping 14 comfortably.
Originally posted by @Kristin Arby:
@Corben Briggs, Per regulation it's 2 guests per bedroom and 2 in an open area for sleeping arrangements, therefore the regulation sets the maximum guest count. My rental is not booked just for weekends, I typically have a 3-5 day minimum depending on the time of year. I personally don't invest in condos for STRs. I highly recommend doing research about the area and HOA especially if you are interested in Condo rentals. There's always the risk for a change in the HOA regulations. My rental caters to families for vacations sleeping 14 comfortably.
Thank you - Such a big help learning about this market and how its an entirely different STR dynamic than my other STR investment markets
Hi Corben,
STRs are red hot in the Tampa Bay area.
You need to stay inside the city of Tampa limits if you choose Tampa, which has no restrictions currently. Within Hillsborough county, they have restrictions on stays under 30 days. Pinellas County has over 20 municipalities with different restrictions.
In parts of South Tampa and near the river in Seminole Heights, I would calculate flood insurance into your decision. I would recommend looking in up and coming areas such as the Marina District in SOG (South of Gandy), Ybor, Midtown and Seminole Heights.
Little but about me, I have personally owned, designed, renovated 16 homes in Tampa in the last 3 years. I have worked with the City of Tampa planning and building dept to get plans approved and permits expedited and ran the construction site myself. My spouse and I own two SFRs near midtown and Ybor that we did with the BRRRR process and now Airbnb them. On the client retail side, I had the privilege to serve 26 investors and families this year alone.
Looking forward to connecting.
Kristina Kuba
Keller Williams Tampa Central
Hi Corben!
I reside in Coconut Grove, Fl but work all around South Florida. Feel free to pick my brain if you have any STR real estate and investing questions. Our brokerage offers more comprehensive data than AirDna, and can confidently say that Broward County yields one of the highest returns in the entire state. Proximity to the beach and properties with pools are two of the most valuable variables.
- Enzo Di Palma
- [email protected]
- 7863468724
Originally posted by @Corben Briggs:
Hey all!
Starting to see some progress with my first deal I did earlier this year on a STR/Airbnb property I purchased in Nashville, TN back in April. Enjoying everything so far but im itching to land another deal in a different market. I know its typically good to find a solid market and take advantage of it while you can however I want a little diversity before I zone in on 1 location to hammer.
One of the top locations I had in mind was Florida specially Tampa area (Saint Petersburg, Palm Harbor, etc.) relatively close to the beach and wanted to see if anyone had any experience doing short term rentals & AirBnbs around there?
I can do the research and run the numbers on AirDNA but curious about any outside things that people ran into or recommend I take into consideration before I start to really get things together there.
Anything helps!
Corben
Hi Corben.
I'll be the first to admit I have horse blinders on, as I 99% focus on the Sedona market- but my clients are getting 25%-60% cash on cash returns, huge appreciation and have local market security. If you have questions, just holler.
- Chad McMahan
- [email protected]
- (928) 300-9449