Joshua Tree Mid-Term Rental

[Katherine Wegner]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $233,900
Cash invested: $72,000

This is our little brown house in the desert! We worked with an agent to purchase this single-family desert home off the MLS in November 2022 and put a 20% down payment with a traditional 30 year mortgage. We spent about $25,000 total for repairs and furnishing it for mid-term 30 day rentals. It has been live on Airbnb, VRBO and Furnished Finders for almost a month and we have had one guest so far, a digital nomad.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I had determined the "hot" half-mile radius of Joshua Tree we wanted to buy into due proximity to Joshua Tree National Park, the Joshua Tree downtown, and where other Airbnb/short-term rental investors were buying. We found this deal by working with a realtor and through constant tracking of Zillow listings. We saw this listing on a Saturday, made an offer on Sunday, and got accepted on Monday. It was timing because the seller had been trying to sell since Feb. 2022.

How did you add value to the deal?

We did some cosmetic updates to the property; it had been a rental property kept in very good clean condition. It just needed a few small things to update like new light fixtures, new appliances, updated heating system, and cleaning up the backyard a bit with some landscaping.

What was the outcome?

It is now furnished and being rented as a 30-day rental.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Some challenges for us was the timing and budgeting of repairs and furnishings. We closed on this November 23, and had a goal of being fully furnished the end of December. It wasn't ready until the end of February. Next time I acquire a mid-term property; the first visit I will: take detailed measurements & notes on each room & part of the exterior, I will take a detailed video walk thru. I will order things quickly! I will rent a large Uhaul and haul everything there at once.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Yes we worked with Katia De Los Reyes a Los Angeles-based Compass realtor, DRE 01406423. I would highly recommend her; she helped us every step of the way and made it fun! She also is a really good communicator and in my opinion, negotiator. She usually handles high-end luxury-type deals but she worked as hard at getting us our great deal as if it was a multi-million dollar home.