All Forum Posts by: Brian Barch

1) understand financing options and most likely option for you

2) will you self manage or hire a PM?

3) do you want personal use out of it, or is this purely for investment's sake?

4) what is your budget and target area?

5) use free tools like AirDNA rentilizer, awning.com, etc to estimate revenue potential.  Aim for 15% of purchase price in yearly revenue

6) if you don't purchase turn-key, come up with a furnishing plan

7) get pro-photos, find a good cleaner, either via Turno or preferably by talking to locals

8) a lot of youtube videos will overcomplicate the start (launch of 5 platforms, build a direct booking site, get the worlds best smart lock, automate all sorts of messages, connect to dynamic pricing, etc.)  Not saying these aren't good ideas, but they can also be overwhelming.  I actually suggest you just start on Airbnb, price low but not too low so you get bookings but not trash bookings, and spend a few months learning the flow and working with cleaner.  You'll know when it's time to add on from there.

We got quotes from $160-180 to clean our small, all wood cabin.  When we found someone hourly, they agreed to $30/hr.  We usually pay $80-90 total.  It's also nice, because there have been times when a stain needed to be professionally laundered, or we need supplies from the store, and the cleaner does it and just charges her time.  It's never been excessive.

I think looking at the smokies for STR is a bit like looking at cyclical markets (coastal California, Vegas, FL, etc) for primary homes. It's a bit more boom and bust than the rest of the country.

throwing out a number here, but I’d be willing to bet 75%+ of STR owners either bought well, bought with a long term view, or enjoy personal use and this don’t really care about the next few years.

I mean, pick your asset class, shame on anyone who tried to get rich quick on a short term time horizon. It’s investing 101

Occupancy is the same for us but we did have to decrease prices by about 10-15% in order to hold occupancy.

that said, we are still doing great in NE GA mountains. We bought a place with a great view and amenities and not overly trendy (on purpose). We also get a lot of personal use out of it, so I’m mildly agnostic to 5-10% fluctuations. I bought for the long term.

people also overestimate how quickly giant, mature markets shift. Upswings and downswings often take years of slight changes, not one giant cliff like the news would have you believe.

If history is anything, people will continue to vacation well into the future. I’m not worried. Perhaps I’m optimistic even, that the shiny new object crowd is phasing out

90%?

What’s funny is prior owners were booked well in VRBO only!

Quote from @Mark S.:

@Matthew Paul As an owner, that would make me suspicious and be a no-go. Why would anyone care if there was a camera at the door if they weren’t bringing in pets, extra guests, etc.? I own a number of STRs and need the WiFi connected to monitor things like the HVAC (occasionally guests need help with settings), propane tank levels, etc. And the WiFi doesn’t need to be disconnected to not turn on the TV.

And no, I don’t ’check up’ on guests with the camera unless I have a reason to believe there is an issue.

But I agree with others - I wouldn’t have a camera at the back ‘hang out’ area.

Agree with you here. I too had a guest disconnect the internet which caused me to reach out and make sure everything was okay. In general that’s a little suspicious to me. 

and yes, camera in the back is a no go. Entrance is fine

We do, and frankly guests expect it. 

I know you already stated this, but answers are dependent on too many factors that I can’t see how the responses would be helpful to you.

I’d recommend typing some prospective addresses into awning.com and airdna and triangulating the results, combined with looking at some competing calendars on Airbnb 

Southern Appalachians - strong demand still, Dec is 86% occupancy

In the crudest of ways, I almost equate STRs to stocks and LTRs to bonds.

One has more potential, but also more risk, and is more of a discretionary spend for customers vs necessity.

that said, it’s more nuanced. Personal use, time, using a PM vs not, market, time horizon.

STRs are certainly going through a bit of a shakeup, and are more beholden to zoning laws