All Forum Posts by: Ethan Cooke

@Andrew Wong - Good point about target market. The home is close to SF State, so during the school year I could target a visiting/new Professor's family, a family looking for corporate housing (e.g. for jobs in SSF biotech) or a group of international students who prefer the convenience of a furnished rental. The summer brings all kinds of options--tourists, interns, visiting professionals, etc. 

Hello BP Community - 

What has been your experience with full-time furnished/vacation rentals in San Francisco vs. a regular long-term rental? What tips do you have about doing this effectively? Finding tenants? (corporate housing, etc.) Marketing? Extra fees? (pets, extra people, etc.) 

@J. Martin

@Al Williamson

@Andrew Wong

I own a couple of SFR's in SF that are on annual leases. These are 4BR homes on the south end of town (Oceanview/Excelsior area). I am considering converting one to a furnished rental for 1-12 month stays. This avoids short-term rental restrictions and makes property management reasonable. I have started speaking with folks who do rentals >30 days in the East Bay and South Bay, and they are generally getting returns well above long-term unfurnished rentals. For purposes of feedback, let's assume the property is:

- 4BR/2BA single family residence

- 2-car tandem garage

- near SF state and public transportation

- big back yard/patio

Thank you for your feedback!

@J. Martin - I am really looking forward to the Forum and excited to get more involved in furnished rentals. Thank you for the introductions and for sharing your insight and experience when we spoke--good stuff! 

Al and Andrew - I look forward to meeting you. Meantime, I would love your feedback on a furnished rental option in San Francisco. Please check out this thread: https://www.biggerpockets.com/topics/new?forum_id=...

@Al Williamson

@Andrew Wong

@Eli Altman - Finally seeing your post. What did you decide to do? If you're still researching, I would definitely consider a tiny home. I have been checking out listings and have seen a couple of nice used 10'x16' ones for $20K on tinyhouses.com. The water from showers and sinks can be used to irrigate your garden using a simple, inexpensive (even homemade) "greywater system". I recently went to a class on greywater systems in the Oakland library and they are legal in many places including Oakland. I have also heard that composting toilets have gotten fairly advanced and easy to deal with.

This can be lucrative in a desirable location. I have a neighbor in SF with a simple, 10'x10' bedroom in their back yard that fetches about $80 nightly for short-term rentals. Most tiny home S-T rentals in the Bay Area are about $100-$120 nightly and seem to have high occupancy rates based on calendar availability. Good luck!

@Matt Kauffman -  I agree that a waterfall is unique and will appeal to nature lovers.  Imagine listening to the waterfall from a hot tub! :-) 

Two more suggestions: 

1. Check out www.airdna.co (not .com).  It's a great company that provides in-depth analytics  on profitability of Airbnb rentals in many different geographic areas for a fee.  Given  that you are fairly certain about your location, it's probably worth the fee. 

2. Contact short-term rental owners through Airbnb, VRBO.com and other STR websites. Many of them will be happy to speak with you about their occupancy rates, rental rates, gross income from short-term rentals, etc.

@Michael Greenberg I got your PM. Thank you!

@Matt Kauffman - I think your plan makes a lot of sense. A few considerations:

- a "tiny house" can be a flexible and very economical way to get a second unit on your property. Many people are intrigued by these new units and willing to pay to stay in them. Many tiny houses come mounted on a trailer so they can be moved in the future. And they typically cost way less than building a second unit.

- If you go the route you're proposing, check out the local regulations and zoning restrictions on "in-law" units (also called Accessory Dwelling Units or ADU's). You probably need a permit.

- consider adding a hot tub or other "wow" feature that will make your place stand out from others in the area.

Best of luck!

@Brett Shoemaker - Like Michael, I have two investment properties, both with conventional loans, and the second one at a higher interest rate. I have found it challenging to get financing for a third property based on the amounts of my current loans. It's strange because other factors don't seem to matter, e.g. my real estate equity, income, credit score, etc.

@Michael Greenberg - How did you arrange the financing from your 401k? Did you incur a withdrawal penalty? What are the terms of the "loan" you are taking from the 401k? Sounds like an interesting option. Please PM me if you're open to a quick conversation. Thanks.

I'm in!

@J. Martin 

@Jay Hinrichs

@Johnson H.

I'm looking forward to speaking with you guys and other veterans at the Summit who have a lot of REI experience. I want to expand from the San Francisco SFH long-term rental space into better cash flow opportunities, e.g. short-term rentals or out-of-town MFH's. I hope to learn from your experience and advice, thanks!

@J. Martin

@Jay Hinrichs

@Amit M. Thanks for the clarification, very helpful. My 2-year journey as a San Francisco landlord has been good so far, but I still have a lot to learn. Looking forward to the upcoming Oct 7-8 Real Estate Summit in Oakland hosted by J. Martin. Would love to meet you to pick your brain. Will you be there?