All Forum Posts by: Carter F.

Three Disney rentals went from 95%+ booked to 0% until mid-April. Haven't got the will to look at the revenue change yet. All bookings got compulsory 100% refund.

I will survive (and maybe look for some buying opportunities :) but like others have said, my concerns are for people like my cleaning staff who have no work now. Also the small business owners in the Disney area, no tourists=huge revenue hit. Closed businesses can mean CLOSED businesses for some..

Disney neighbor, totally laid out. Three properties lost 100% of booking (at full refund) until mid-April. Went from 99% booked to 0% in two days :)

@Wayne Brooks that's my question. I've had two bad experiences in this area. So with the added wrinkle of a sight unseen property, I wondered if anyone was doing anything special? Or was I just unlucky in my circumstances and normally the inspection mechanism normally functions as it should.

@Russell Brazil that's great for the seller, but in some markets no one is looking at the properties prior to submitting offers. This technique wouldn't fly for long in those areas. 

Hey all, I'm in the process of making offers on out of town units for STR. The market I'm buying in is very hot and one has to jump quickly to get under contract. As such, I'm having to make offers even before my local agent has seen the property.

Do veteran buyers write in anything special to your purchase agreements to give you an out if the place is a lemon?

The standard FL Realtor's purchase agreement has an inspection period that says the buyer can cancel at buyer's discretion any time during the inspection period, but once the the inspection period closes the only other out is financing. That means there has to be some quick inspection and offer amendments if issues are discovered in order to stay within the inspection period. 

Any advice for protection without tainting an offer too much??

I think your 40% of gross is close/low once you include HOA, and don't forget your county tourist dev tax another 5 or 6%.

Some people price rents high and accept low occupancy. Some people price low and try to book out. Unfortunately trial and error is the best prescription I have found for finding the balance. No easy answers ;)

It sounds like you have your expectations set correctly. Breaking even is a win if you have financing. 

The "make your money and home and buy a Disney timeshare" is good advice. But I would amend that to just be, make your money at what you are best at and stay in a hotel of your choice whenever and wherever you want...

If you love real estate and taking care of your customers, then maybe a STR will work for you. It is def not for everyone.

Easy to do wrong. A good amount of work to do right. 

Disney is also growing and their only direction is west. There is plenty of geography for safe STR. Personally I think the closest properties are pretty picked over. The only deals seems to be the problem units.

The price point at new devs like Margaritaville are off the chart and are set up as more of a monetary investment that a STR property (e.g. you must buy their furniture package and must you them as your PM). They have rigged the game to maximize their return and use your money to do so.

I'd like to find some small multi-fam to be a part of but I don't know how much of that is out there. I've been focused on the TH and SFH space.

We have one STR very near Disney and are looking to add a second. The market is overpriced currently and there seems to be a flood of people that are thinking the same thing. Not a great time to buy unless you are getting a good deal.

Generally I think the STR market there is very strong even out to a 15 minute radius of Disney.

If you have financing, you may find that your cash flow is not much if you price to be booked. 

I have been watching Windsor Hills for more than a year. I think their HOA recently went up about $100/mo with the addition of the water park. That puts them above others in the area with comparable amenities and/or curb. Still a very nice development.