All Forum Posts by: Dina Schmid

It's a poorly decorated, poorly photographed and underperforming STR in a location I love. It's also in an area with no building codes or inspectors and we have yet to find anything in the area without visible problems. These just happened to go beyond what we were able to visually see.

I'm honestly torn on this one and unless we can get a major financial concession, we are prepared to walk. I have a price point in my head (about 20% off list) at which I do think it would be a really good deal. I can't say I'm confident we'll get there though. We're not afraid to put in a little sweat equity either and are experienced DIYers so I'm confident that we could greatly increase the value. 

 Thanks Zachary. You presented a perspective I had completely overlooked.

Would you still recommend negotiating a lower purchase price vs cashier's check on closing given that we're in a higher income tax bracket and thus capital gains tax could come into play in the future? 

We're under contract for a SFH that is currently in use as a STR. Inspection revealed A LOT more problems than we ever imagined a house of this young age would have. We asked them to address 5 items that we saw as the most expensive and/or critical. Our realtor has informed us that they will address two lower cost items on the exterior of the home and want to provide us with a cashier's check at closing to address the other three. I believe part of their motivation is that they would have to cancel reservations to get the remaining work done.

We have quotes and know what the work will cost (we're talking tens of thousands of dollars). I haven't turned over our estimates as I told our realtor that the estimates won't cover the real cost to us, which is higher due to loss of use (no rental income while work is being done) and time that we'll have to invest in hiring and coordinating the work. 

We have 7 days left to reach agreement on this and I'm not hopeful at this point. I know we're in a good position because the sellers will now have to disclose some of the crap-ton of problems their place has and the foundation expert said that by refusing to fix the foundation they may end up having to be in a "sold AS IS" position which will drop the value significantly. 

Any recommendations or suggestions for ways to negotiate this (and not lose our earnest money)? Do I provide my own document for what we're asking for that includes loss of use (and compensation for my time)? Do we just ask for a gigantic reduction in price to cover everything? Or do we walk (something we are seriously considering). Our realtor wants us to accept an amount equal to the estimates.

For anyone who wants the details on the issues: 1) Deck is not securely attached to the house and the stairs are leaning. This is actually the easiest fix. 2) Foundation footer didn't go below the frost line and one corner of the house has sunk 2". Helical piers placed every 5' should fix this, but for a significant cost. 3) Due to a toilet becoming loose and failure to recognize that the toilet leaks every time it is flushed, the subfloor has "significant deterioration." Basically, the bathroom has to be gutted and subfloor replaced. This is not only expensive, but time consuming and it can't be rented during the renovation. Prior to finding this out, we agreed to honor all current bookings after taking ownership (we would get the income). But that means we have to push this out even further and the longer the issue isn't addressed, the more damage that is being done. At some point the subfloor under the bedroom may also be affected (it's a small bathroom and the toilet is right when you walk in) and the cost will go up even more. Adding that we won't honor those bookings is likely part of the negotiations, but again, loss of income.

I found this post as I was searching for more information about State Farm's coverage and hope someone who has posted on here can help clarify something for me.

Are you getting a homeowner's policy with an endorsement for use as a STR or a business policy? Is one better than the other.

Our agent provided quotes for both. The business policy is significantly more expensive. It includes loss of income and higher liability coverages but covers less on contents and sewer backup. 

The homeowner's policy requires us to rent it for a minimum of 30 days and stay in it a minimum 1 night/year which should not be a problem.

Both of these are a fraction of the ridiculous quote I got from Proper and much less than Steadily's quote so I am planning to go with State Farm. Just not sure which one is the best option from a STR standpoint.

If you plan to stay there, ask about the policies regarding owner stays. I found a PM that restricted the total number of days owners could stay. Another one I talked to requires owners to pay for housekeeping at the end of their stay and a third said you could save money by coming after a guest checks out and cleaning after them yourself. 

In addition to looking at their reviews, see who wins the SEO war if there are multiple PMs with direct booking sites.Google the lake name + cabin or rental house and see who pops to the top.

One other question I like is "What makes you different?" Then decide if the answer is something you consider to be a good thing or not. 

It's with South Central Bank. Or I should say "was" as the rate appears to have gone up a bit. 

For anyone interested - We are under contract and have inspection scheduled for Wednesday for the cabin I mentioned. Unfortunately, due to all the turmoil in domestically and around the world, interest rates went up about 0.25%. Still doable though.

Went and saw it this weekend and confirmed it's log siding. Financing shouldn't be an issue.

This hasn't been the only issue on listing information that's been incorrect/confusing. We don't think listing agent has even visited the property. No "for sale" sign posted out front to help find it. Told our agent that she's got four more showings today (a Monday?) when on speakerphone with me present. But then again, in that same conversation she mentioned the appeal of one-level living and the cabin being totally accessible - when there's a bunch of stairs between the street and the cabin!

I wouldn't do alcohol. A friend of mine still talks about the VRBO she rented leaving them a Christmas ornament with the town and year on it. I would go one step further and personalize with your cabin name - makes it easier to book for a return trip.