All Forum Posts by: Ben Scarborough

I agree with Theresa. Keep it simple and do 50/50. Don't overthink it. 

Hey Stacy, I live in Fairhope and although I have not worked with any pre-foreclosures or foreclosures, I would be happy to jump on a call and give you a lay of the land.

Hard to find better appreciation rates than in historically hot tourism destinations. For that reason, id say Gulf Shores. Im also biased though, but while most other hot markets have appreciated 30-40% over the past couple years, several Gulf Shores properties have appreciated even 100% or more, and there is still a ton of opportunity for it to keep growing rapidly.

If you go with smart locks, DO NOT get one that doesn't have a key hole. Put a lockbox for the keys somewhere hidden on the property if you don't want to deal with them, but what are you going to do if there is a power outage or if wifi isn't working? No way to get into the house if no keys.

I would recommend having a conversation over the phone with 3 or 4 STR friendly lenders about your current situation, interests, and goals and see what they recommend for you. There are several ways to get creative with it!

P.S. Be very careful with the insurance premiums in FL! Be sure to do your research before going under contract on something and then getting bummed out when you get quoted 15-30k for insurance depending on where you plan to invest at! 

I wouldn't beat yourself up over it. You should not be penalized for re-listing, but it should be easy to build back up your review score if you only have 5 reviews at the moment. Mainly, just depends whether or not you want to go through the effort of relisting and syncing all of your tech back up.

1) I am an engineer full time and an agent on the side and it is definitely a grind to build you pipeline outside of business hours
2) I think now is the best time to jump in. If you can perform in this market, you will cash in during a hot real estate market
3) The CE Shop is pretty reliable for getting licensed

Best of luck!

@Caleb Drake

As many know, the hurricanes along the gulf coast have been nothing short of relentless over the past few years. As a result of this sudden increase in frequency of large hurricanes, it has become clear how big of a hit insurance providers are taking on. A variety of factors are suspected to have contributed to the increase in strength and frequency of the storms, but the matter of the fact is that insurance companies are in a world of hurt right now. Insurance providers need some money back and their pockets, and they need to reduce the risk they are taking on. This, as many of us know first hand, has caused insurance premiums to skyrocket.

Once something starts significantly messing with our PITI, everything can begin to feel like it is on fire. Whether you are refinancing an existing BRRRR deal or are under contract on your next short term rental, chances are that something in the PITI is going to freak you out in today's market. However, I bring good news to let you know there are ways to save money on insurance (not by switching to Geico), but by buying strategically.

See below for my suggestions for navigating insurance on the gulf coast in today's market - some that could save you several thousand dollars...

- Shop around and compare prices
- Give yourself a generous due diligence period
- Increase deductibles
- Bundle policies
- Add security system to property
- Maintain a good credit score
- Review coverage needs regularly
- Invest in homes that have double-paned windows or storm shutters
- Look into the affordability of newer homes (built to current codes) in your market of interest
- Buy a property with Fortified certification if you are buying in Alabama

I would say ADR has dropped some, but not a significant amount by any means. I think what is most stressful is that booking lead times seem to have more than halved across all of our properties. This makes things more hands on to make sure you are staying higher in the search results, and more reason to think about the possibilities of hiring cohosts or VAs to help make sure your listing is staying towards the top of the search results. Additionally, this means it is very important to make sure you have a healthy direct booking platform you work off of as well.