Anyone else involved with vacation rentals here in SD?

Question

Hey guys.

I was curious if there were any other local members who are/have been involved with vacation rentals here in San Diego. I'm really looking for others with experience utilizing the VR sites like Airbnb, VRBO, home away, etc; but anyone with some form of involvement in the VR space here is more than welcome to chime in.

If you are, or know someone who is, leave a comment below or shoot me a colleague request/PM.  I'd love to connect and share our experiences/insight.

Hope to hear from some of you!

Jenifer Levini · Answer

This is a great question. I have been looking at some of the mobile homes along the beach in Encinitas, and condos in Mission Beach area, wondering if I could use them as VRs.

Where I live, in wine country, Sonoma County, in Northern Calif, there are neighborhoods who have complained so much that the planning commission made them vacation rental exclusion zones. Any thing like this going on in San Diego county?

Miriam Seidel · Answer

i believe it is nationwide. It's not income tax, but sales tax i am referring to. Being a vacation rental owner has it's pros n cons. I am not a "landlord", i am an "owner". They are not "tenants", they are "guests". So landlord-tenant laws do not always apply here in FL. Not sure how CA write their laws. But, here we are treated like hotels. Hotel tax here is 6.5% state + 6% county tourism = 12.5%, which the guest pays n is passed on to state & county monthly. If one doesn't charge & pass on these taxes, then landlord-tenant laws can be enforced. So, although can be a little more expensive, i can be assured that i won't have some of the "tenant" problems that long term landlords have.

Look up a hotel in SD n see what their tax rate is...will probably be the same for your rental.

Hope this helps!

Kevin Fox · Answer

Hey @Miriam Seidel

Very useful tips.

Do you know if the legal/income tax implications of charging state/local taxes is specific to Florida, or is this national?

Kevin Fox · Answer

Hey Jenifer,

I think you are very wise to be considering that purchase. Those are both definitely very viable options.

There has been some action against STVR's in a couple areas of San Diego and rumblings of it in a few others; but there are also neighborhoods (like Mission Beach, for example) where, at least for the foreseeable future, the landscape looks very safe for STVR's.

I'd be more than happy to help you compare some of your alternatives down here in SD.

Feel free to reach out!

Kevin Fox · Answer

Hey Rob. That's awesome. I'd love to get together to chat over coffee. Let me know if you're available!

Kevin Fox · Answer

Hey @Dan Heuschele

I had a few notifications draw my attention back here with the recent activity on this topic and I just now realized that I never hit the 'Post Reply' button. So, I guess the message below has just been sitting here unposted and unread for who knows how long.

Needless to say, I feel like a moron and am terribly sorry for my lack of a timely response....

(better late then never, though, right? Haha)

Thank you so much for your insight, Dan.  Great mix of informative and entertaining info.

While I am sure it wasn't very funny to you at the time, I'd bet that a story about the yard of your rental being dug up in order to facilitate a mud wrestling showdown has to be a crowd favorite at parties.

I am curious, though; did you make any attempt to recover the damages done to your property?

I'd assume that whoever was dumb enough to think that digging up a lawn is the best way to make a mud pit (whatever happened to the good ol' fashion inflatable pool arena like the one in Animal House?!) likely doesn't have enough to their name to make going after them worthwhile; but I've been wrong before...

Miriam Seidel · Answer

I have vacation rentals in Daytona Beach FL & use VRBO. The one thing to note is:

Where are the renters from? If they are from a neighboring area, they may not be

vacationers, but evicted renters or felons that cannot pass a background check

for a long term rental.

Use facebook, google & county arrest records to vet on your own.

Last minute bookings are also a warning. Most people plan their vacations in

advance.

Also note, vrbo & airbnb have up to 13% service fee added to the renter's

cost, and 3% service fee for credit card transactions to the owner's cost

(5% if renter is out of the U.S.)

And, in order to legally be a vacation rental property, must charge state &

local taxes to pass on. If you do not charge tax, you become a "long-term"

rental owner, and different laws apply for evictions & allowances.

Israel Belovserkovsky · Answer

Yes, Contact @PaulSpradling, he has managed my Vacation rentals and many of my friends he's been doing it for a long time.

Rob Brown · Answer

I have sold 20+ water front vacation rentals in Mission Beach to my investors, and own and operate properties in Mission Beach myself. Let me know if I can help! I use a great full service management co to handle the STVRs for my investors.

Edgar Claudio · Answer

will do!

Anyone else involved with vacation rentals here in SD?

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