All Forum Posts by: Daniel Bourdeau

You're definitely leaving money on the table using this strategy. Weekdays have significantly less demand than weekends - I charge about double for weekends that i do for weekdays, and have a bell curve for what my average rate is per month across the whole year

From a guest perspective, they often have no idea that I use variable rates. AirBnB in particular only shows guests the average per night, not the individual day prices, and I can round my rates such that they end in a 0 or 5.

Sure, as a guest I'd rather book a place that naively forgets to upcharge for christmas, but as a host I realize that people will pay more, and they do!

3 Votes

San Antonio, Texas

I develop, own and operate in Colorado and have been following this law closely.

It definitely would cause me to consider moving my development business to another state if it passes. That being said, I'm not sure it would harm my existing units THAT much, but time will tell.

My 2 Cents:

If it passes, I think a lot of Colorado STR owners would decide to close down and sell. This would reduce competition for owners that stick it out. On a per-unit basis, revenue would increase as a result, but maybe not enough to fully offset the tax increase.

It also would make new entrants (like my follow up units) more wary of investing in Colorado. So both a reduction in existing competition and a damper on future competition wouldn't be the worst thing for hosts who have enough profit margin to continue operating

0 Votes

Colorado Springs, Colorado

I invest mainly in one of the smallest markets in Colorado - one that doesnt jump off the page from an 'averages' standpoint, but my unique luxury units crush it.

My general philosophy is that there is not a wide discrepancy in expected returns between different markets. Sure, there's some variation, but the average strategy produces about the same result across almost the whole US since there are so many investors hunting outperforming markets - they tend to revert to the mean.

That being said, there ARE strategies that outperform in almost any market. My formula is to build ground up unique structures with rare and interesting amenities (Geodomes, huge hot tubs, fire pits, outdoor chill areas ect) in small under the radar markets. I think this strategy works in almost any market.

6 Votes

Quote from @Zachary Cain Humphrey:

Quote from @Daniel Bourdeau:

I recently finished documenting my build and design process for the Geodome I launched last year on AirBnb and wanted to share with the host community - I tried to build one of the most luxury Geodomes on the market, and it wasn't easy!

I couldn't find any quality guides on how to put it all together before I started, so I decided to make this so the next person trying wouldn't also underestimate by 100% :)

Building a geodome as an Airbnb rental can be a fantastic investment, boosting property value and attracting adventurous guests. Its also harder and more expensive than you probably would guess, unless you can do a lot of the work yourself. The total cost for my 27' luxury geodome was around $88,800 (excluding land) and consists of the following step and costs:

Zoning considerations
Geodome structure and accessories - $8,500
Site preparation - $3,000
Backfilling - $600
Foundation - $3,000
Decking material - $12,000
Decking labor - $8,000
Geodome construction labor - $4,200
Flooring - $5,000
Electrical wiring and labor - $5,000
Interior wood divider - $2,500
Hot tub - $13,000
Furnishings - $10,000
Miscellaneous costs and outdoor shower - $4,000

The total costs for a geodome will range from a bare min of $25k to a max of $100k, depending on size, amenities and other factors like labor and material costs.

Financing options include all cash, incorporating into a new house construction loan, SBA loans, or private money. A well-constructed geodome can rent for $150-$200+/night. I build mine alongside a cabin, so I was able to wrap the cost into the construction loan which converted into a 30 year mortgage.

I'd love to answer any questions or help in any way if anyone else is interested in building something similar!

When you said, "so I was able to wrap the cost into the construction loan which converted into a 30 year mortgage", what do you mean that you "wrapped" it in? Do you mean you paid for it with a cash refi once you converted from a construction loan to a 30 year?

My built cost on the whole project was $450k, and $50k of that construction budget for the house was earmarked for the Geodome. So i financed the geodome by building a house and calling the geodome a 'art studio'

1 Vote

Quote from @Matt Mertz:

Thanks for sharing!

Just curious, do you ever get single couples (or smaller groups) that just want to stay at the dome? Was wondering about your thought process of adding the geodome alongside an already very nice cabin.

Definitely. I get tons of inquiries from couples that just want the dome. During the low season and especially mid week, I lower the price that I get lots of 2 person groups.

The main reason why it's not just a geodome, is permitting. I built this in a residential sub-development, and a permanent structure is required in order to put up a temporary structure. Most non-commercial, residential plots will have a similar zoning restriction. So funny enough, I set out to build a geodome and ended up having to build a house AND a geodome

1 Vote

Quote from @Joel Oh:

I think this is a new tab?

Does anyone know how Airbnb decides to put your listing on the First-page search?

From my experience I am assuming super host status, price?

Not sure rating matters too much since I see a lot of low-none rating Airbnb on the first pages when I search.

This is guide a bit outdated, but much of it still applies

Basically its your pricing and guest rating as #1 factors

1 Vote

+1 to detailed comp analysis. Its about finding the competitors that have the closest match to 1.location 2. size 3. quality 4. amenities. The tough part is not all operators are made equal, and one operator could make significantly more with the same property as another operator. But by averaging the closest comps, youll get a good idea. From there, building a monthly forecast relative to the seasonality of the area can help to understand when you expect to cashflow and when you might just break even or lose money

1 Vote

Coastal NC, North Carolina

Quote from @John Underwood:

Quote from @Daniel Bourdeau:

I couldn't find any quality guides on how to put it all together before I started, so I decided to make this so the next person trying wouldn't also underestimate by 100% :)

Zoning considerations
Geodome structure and accessories - $8,500
Site preparation - $3,000
Backfilling - $600
Foundation - $3,000
Decking material - $12,000
Decking labor - $8,000
Geodome construction labor - $4,200
Flooring - $5,000
Electrical wiring and labor - $5,000
Interior wood divider - $2,500
Hot tub - $13,000
Furnishings - $10,000
Miscellaneous costs and outdoor shower - $4,000

The total costs for a geodome will range from a bare min of $25k to a max of $100k, depending on size, amenities and other factors like labor and material costs.

I'd love to answer any questions or help in any way if anyone else is interested in building something similar!

Like to see a picture of what this looks like.

There are a bunch of pics in the Airbnb listing that I linked!

0 Votes

Quote from @Joel Oh:

Quote from @Daniel Bourdeau:

Quote from @Joel Oh:

Can I see the final picture of the product?! This is so exciting

You can find the Airbnb link and all the pictures here.

What a beautiful property! Have you tried using your photo 18 as your main picture? Your house is beautiful but 18 is an eye catcher! Super cute! Thank you for sharing

Yeah I actually was using #18 for the longest time as my hero photo. I should probably go back to it, but I've been exploring a new collage

0 Votes

Quote from @Michael Baum:

Interesting. Not my cup of tea.

More tea for me then 😁. It's been a pretty wildly successful build, almost doubling the #2 airbnbs revenue in my small market

0 Votes

All Forum Posts by: Daniel Bourdeau

Daniel Bourdeau has started 3 posts and replied 26 times.

Post: Pricing or booking policies

Post: The Proposed Bill with a Massive Tax Hike on STRs

Post: Hidden Gem markets

Post: How to Build a Geodome for AirBnB

Post: How to Build a Geodome for AirBnB

Post: Have you guys checked this tab on Airbnb?

Post: STR or Long Term Rental

Post: How to Build a Geodome for AirBnB

Post: How to Build a Geodome for AirBnB

Post: How to Build a Geodome for AirBnB