Any luck with Furnished Finder?

[Claire McPherson]

My husband and I are looking to buy an investment property in Florida (open to other suggestions) but short term rentals are so hard to come by with HOA's. I saw a website for mid term rentals with fully furnished places for traveling nurses, business people, etc… how well do these sites do in terms of filling your property with potential tenants? Any experience with this?

[Ray Hage]

I haven't used the site myself but have heard good things from some of my investor friends. My advice, do not buy within a HOA if you are planning to go this route. Majority (at least in south florida) require a 12 month lease. Your best bet is to go with a SFH or duplex not within a HOA. You'll definitely want to buy in area with hospitals or large corporate offices. You could also aim for university areas.

[Jamie Banks]

I’ve had a great experience with Furnished Finder. However, it’s important to note that it’s not a direct booking site like Airbnb, VRBO, etc. Typically guests will inquire about your property or inquire about a property in an area and it’s up to the landlord / property manager to reach out and secure the tenant. There’s a direct booking inquiry feature but I haven’t seen it used very often. Go to Furnishedfinder.com/stats to figure out the demand in your area. My last guests (who were digital nomads) actually planned to live in St Pete for a few months after leaving my property so I’m sure there’s a good amount of demand!

[Rick Pozos]

Just like everything else, IT DEPENDS. We work it. There are lots of hospitals in San Antonio. We know how much people are getting paid for their 3 month stays. We research. We have units close to hospitals. It works good for us.

[Brandon Vanderford]

Probably 50% of my bookings come through Airbnb, 25% through Furnished Finder, and 25% through direct bookings. I would recommend trying Furnished Finder; it does not cost much to get started. But you are unlikely to get as much traction as you will on Airbnb. 

[Allen Duan]

Furnished Finder is the most popular MTR website currently available. We get almost all our bookings through them and Airbnb. But it does seem like some markets have less luck with Furnished Finder so you need to do some local research or ask others here who are in your market. The best way to find out is to give it a try. It sounds like part of your question is also asking how well a MTR will do in your market, regardless of which way you find leads. That's a broader question you can do research into. If there's demand, how to find that demand and get their eyes on your property is the next question =)

[Bonnie Low]

I use Furnished Finder exclusively to fill my MTR and it stays booked consistently but I think that has more to do with the property itself, the demand in my area and because my rates are reasonable. So far all of my guests have been in the medical field, but I've had inquiries from all kinds of different people: construction workers, relocations, divorcees, academics, people traveling for long term medical treatments and seasonal forest service employees. Unlike the OTAs (Airbnb, VRBO etc) Furnished Finder is only a lead gen funnel. You post your site, people can see it and inquire. Transactions take place off line. FF does offer some complementary tools and affiliate links like for background checks and state-specific leases but they don't provide booking or customer service for either party. I like that you are in charge of your own listing and arrangements with your guests. FF doesn't get in the middle and make decisions about your property like when to issue a refund or de-platforming you (except in the case of scammers). What I don't like about it is that the messaging feature is slow and wonky. I'll get a text notification that I have a new lead but it can take hours before that lead shows up in my dashboard on the website. And messaging between guests and hosts is slow. But it's a good tool for lead gen and I think it serves its purpose. Hope that helps!

[Adrian Castillo]

Quote from @Claire McPherson:

My husband and I are looking to buy an investment property in Florida (open to other suggestions) but short term rentals are so hard to come by with HOA's. I saw a website for mid term rentals with fully furnished places for traveling nurses, business people, etc… how well do these sites do in terms of filling your property with potential tenants? Any experience with this?

Coastal properties seemed to be in high demand therefore, at the moment you may want to focus on these areas. (Tampa, St Pete, and Sarasota) Hoa's are changing the bylaws constantly, you may also experience city limits bylaws. In my humble opinion research the community and city's guidelines to help you make that decision. 

Coastal properties seemed to be in high demand therefore at the moment you may want to focus on these areas. (Tampa, St Pete, and Sarasota) HOAs are changing the bylaws constantly and also you have now city limits bylaws, research the city’s and community guidelines to help you make that decision.

Coastal properties seemed to be in high demand therefore at the moment you may want to focus on these areas. (Tampa, St Pete, and Sarasota) HOAs are changing the bylaws constantly and also you have now city limits bylaws, research the city’s and community guidelines to help you make that decision.

[Raymond J. Rodrigues]

@Claire McPherson, if you're looking to do short-term rentals or mid-term in the Tampa Bay area, I recommend reaching out to @Josh Green. He assists most clients on the forums in this area and can be a very valuable asset for you and your real estate investment needs! 

[Jasmine Vida]

I've been using FF for about two years now and I would rate it about a 7/10. You have to keep renewing every year for $100 to keep your reviews otherwise you basically have to start your page over. They also don't really have customer service. The tenant I have now from FF is just renting a room in our house, and he's not a nurse so the good news is I think the platform is reaching a different pool of professionals besides just travel nurses. But my sis in law is a travel nurse and she still finds all her housing from FF and has been for the past year in different cities. I used Zillow for my other two rentals, one is furnished and they have a year lease and the other is unfurnished and I signed them on a 6 month.

[Nicole Heasley Beitenman]

Quote from @Ray Hage:

My advice, do not buy within a HOA if you are planning to go this route. Majority (at least in south florida) require a 12 month lease. Your best bet is to go with a SFH or duplex not within a HOA.

I would also avoid HOA's. It's a lot of control to give someone over your business. They can change the rules at any time. 

[Obed Calixte]

Location to the desired end user's place of work will be key to success of whatever site is used to find tenants. It all starts there. 

[Anthony Cortello]

I haven't had the greatest experience with FF.   Had an issue with listing the property, which shouldn't have been a bid deal however the customer service was unable to resolve the issue. it was very disappointing 

[Edgar Sanabia]

aggreged saint pete is greeting a little bit more strict on STR . but there are defiantly pockets with in the city that allow it.But they are definitely out there an investor that i works just closed on STR turn key in south Pasadena minutes from the beach.

[Claire McPherson]

Quote from @Edgar Sanabia:

aggreged saint pete is greeting a little bit more strict on STR . but there are defiantly pockets with in the city that allow it.But they are definitely out there an investor that i works just closed on STR turn key in south Pasadena minutes from the beach.

 Amazing I was looking in that area, do you know what the address is? Or name of the complex? 

[Edgar Sanabia]

Quote from @Claire McPherson:

Quote from @Edgar Sanabia:

aggreged saint pete is greeting a little bit more strict on STR . but there are defiantly pockets with in the city that allow it.But they are definitely out there an investor that i works just closed on STR turn key in south Pasadena minutes from the beach.

 Amazing I was looking in that area, do you know what the address is? Or name of the complex? 

 of course! so i wont share the address since he is still in the closing process. but it is in south pasadena . ill message you directly !

[Ericka Luddy]

I've used FF and have had great luck with it.  Be sure to have good tenant screening in place and your leases.  I like that it's a flat fee and tends to bring in more serious renters than airbnb.