All Forum Posts by: Chad McMahan

100% you need to do your own due diligence and run your own analyses. One thing that I recommend is to send 1 or 2 properties to the realtors - have them give you their analyses and explain how they would approach this deal. Oftentimes that's enough to filter out majority of the average realtors.

I'll second John. A realtor is occasionally useful in negotiating, and then helping with all of the loose ends in closing.  Unfortunately, more times than not, I have found realtors more of an impediment to the process than anything, although they are typically punctual at the closing when they receive their commission check.  

Realtors are salespeople. And that's OK. I've been a salesman my whole career.  But I'm not going to go to a car lot and ask the salesman how much experience he has, if he personally owns a car, what car he recommends, and if this is a good time to buy a car.  His opinion on all of these things is about as valid is my own.  

DYODD.  Do Your Own Due Diligence. 

 Appreciate the offer! I booked some time with you :)

Thanks for your response! 

Not sure why you are seeing a 5-night minimum. My account settings show 1 night and when I try to simulate booking in an incognito browser, it lets me book 1 night. I'm going to DM you about this - if you wouldn't mind sharing a screenshot, that would be great.

I intentionally have my calendar blocked after September. Demand starts to ramp up in September, peaking in October/November, so I'm hoping to get my first 3 bookings prior to high season since my launch rates are heavily discounted.

Hello fellow STR investors!

I would love to get your feedback regarding a short term rental I listed on south Euclid Ohio this March.

I notice the  estimated profit until end of July going to be significantly lower than what i was hoping to get.

I am not sure if its because I just launch it and its normal or maybe I am doing something wrong and missing opportunities ?

here are the facts:

1 The house is a 4 bedroom 2 bath in a good quite neighborhood in South Euclid Ohio about 15 min  away from Cleveland  clinic  

2 I invest around 60k to convert the house to short term rental  including finishing   basement turns into game room , new floors new paint new furniture's and appliances etc 

3 I hired a professional photographer and list the house on March 1 2025  On Furnished Finder ,VRBO, booking.com & Airbnb (see link below)

https://www.airbnb.ca/hosting/listings/editor/13675445304904...

4 Numbers:

* until end of July  I am expecting to earn a gross total of 13,300 or about 2600 per month. my monthly costs are about 1000$ not including financing.

* since listing I had two longer bookings of about 6 weeks (with a significant discount)

* I got 2 bookings via VRBO and total of total of 4 via AIRBNB 

* I got one good review on VRBO and one 5 star review on airbnb

* I am sending all the messages , communicate with guests immediately and encourage them to leave a review.

* On Airbnb  I notice 13 views on March 6 on April and only 4 On May.

Notes:

a )I am using pricelab for rates and offer weekly and monthly discounts so I believe my prices are in the right range for the area 

b ) my hope that nurses and other medical staff will be a significant portion didnt work so far. nurses almost always looking for one bedroom at $1200-1600 per month. my monthly price is around $3000

my question: 

given the fact  summer is the strongest part of the year  why numbers are not better?

is it just because its a new listing and will get better later on with more reviews  ? 

is there anything else i can do to increase views and booking? 

Thanks so much!

Itay

Thank you so much for sharing this insight, @Chad McMahan! I was hoping you'd respond to my post bc I saw you respond on a few other Sedona posts with great feedback. :-)

Based on what you shared, we would not be a good fit for Sedona real estate. Are there any other AZ markets you're familiar with that you would recommend? We were considering Page, Williams, Flagstaff and Cottonwood, but we can open it up to anywhere that makes sense.

If I purchase in Sedona, my budget would only allow for a 2-bedroom townhouse. Is that area too competitive and oversaturated now? 

If that's no longer a great market, where else would you recommend in Arizona? I'm thinking of Page, Williams, Cottonwood and Flagstaff, but I'm open to any area that is not Phoenix or Tuscon. Many thanks!

Hey @Michael Baum, really appreciate the insight, but wholeheartedly disagree. Yes I am in the space, yes I am doing well. That said, doing well compared to what?  I've spent a good amount of money on coaches across many different industries and time and time again I've felt that when I put myself in front of the right coach the growth has been really strong. I can workout at home, somewhat goal less, and do ok. I can set a goal, hire a coach to guide me and hold me accountable to that goal, and I'll hit it every time. No I don't want to pay some kid on youtube $10k to send me his prerecorded videos. Yes I do want to find that needle in a haystack coach looking to help someone grow their management business in the short term rental space. This business is strictly a fun 'few hours at night' deal for me and I'm looking for a coach to help me set a few goals and then hold me accountable on attaining them. Will I pay for that? You bet.

DSCR (Debt Service Coverage Ratio) loans are great for real estate investors, especially those buying rental properties. One big benefit is that these loans look at the property's income rather than the borrower's personal income, which can make qualifying easier for investors with multiple properties. It also allows investors to scale up their portfolio faster. However, the downsides are that DSCR loans often come with higher interest rates and require the property to have strong cash flow to meet the lender's standards. For new investors, DSCR loans can be a good option if the property generates enough rental income, but it's important to carefully check the numbers to ensure the deal is profitable.