All Forum Posts by: Denise H.

So I just received word that San Bernardino County is opening STR for immediate household only as of today. Good news!

The thing that makes me the craziest in all of this is how there is little rhyme or reason to so many of the decisions being made here in California. You can go to the beach but not park near the beach, sunlight and heat is supposed to kill the virus but you can't sit on the beach alone you must keep moving, you can shop at Target but not HomeGoods, you can stay at a hotel but not a small cabin suitable for only 1 family, liquor stores can remain open but our local candy store can not. I would have so much more respect for the leadership if their decisions were based in science and not fear and politics.

We are still have a moratorium on str at our Lake Arrowhead, CA cabin through at least the end of the month. My summer bookings are at about 50% but I'm not counting on it as our Governor has put some unattainable metrics as a requirement for opening back up. I am keeping my fingers crossed though. 

San Bernardino county where our Lake Arrowhead STR is has banned them.

I own a STR in Lake Arrowhead, Ca., they require the owner or agent be within a 1 hour drive.

We bought a fully-furnished, luxury, existing STR and have the previous manager/owner manage it for us now so we were able to hit the ground running. We are in a really good location, very easy walk to village and lake. One of the keys as well is our manager owns a couple of docks stocked with kayaks and SUPs and includes their use for summer rentals. With all that being said and as well as it's doing revenue wise we are still only making a small return on our investment. Our goal is more to have a place to use every now and then now and once we retire spend more time up there.

Hi Dan, I have a vacation home in Lake Arrowhead so I will assume the utilities will be comparable. Our gas averages around 175-200, people like the fire going constantly, electric is slightly less but our cabin is only about 1200 square feet. Our insurance is around 3700 per year, we are in a high fire area and there are no companies that will currently write insurance in Lake Arrowhead so we have had to go with California Fair Plan and a wrap around policy, Big Bear may not have the same limitations. Even if you can get insurance through another source it is going to be very expensive and you really need the STR coverage. My cable/internet is around 200, I know I am over paying but haven't gotten around to shopping it, however I have found people want cable in their rental. The good news is that our cabin is rented all the time, it will gross around 80k this year but we do opt to use a management company that takes a big chunk. Good luck!

@Paul SandhuThe real problem is PG&E not maintaining and updating their equipment. They have been blamed for 1500 fires since 2014, with the Paradise fire last year I guess they just don't feel they can take any chances when the winds pick up. It really is crazy the amount of horrific fires we've had the last few years. 

@Paul Sandhu, it's definitely getting nuttier by the day! 

Our property has a nest system which operates thermostat along with interior and exterior cameras. Our renters unplug the interior one in when they get there but we have never had a complaint with the exterior, really only shows the parking area so we know when people are arriving and leaving. We also have a touchpad lock.  Let me know if you guys are having an issue with fire insurance, ours has absolutely skyrocketed in Lake Arrowhead, was wondering if Big Bear was experiencing the same thing. Good luck!