All Forum Posts by: Johnathan Osborne

Rhonda, I have not checked out hipcamp but will take a look, thanks for the info.

What I've found out from the county is that a property(which mine is)must be classified within an open USE zoning district and their definition of a short term rental is posted below.

The ordinance defines a short term rental as follows:

Vacation rental means no more than two single family homes with a combined total of no more than 9,000 square feet gross floor area which are rented for two (2) days or more to tourists, vacationers, or similar transients.

@Robert Ombres, I have never heard of such restrictions either at least in the county.  I know Asheville city limits has some tough regulations however there are multiple rentals advertised by the same owner. I have been in contact with the county to get the details we will see what they have to say.

@Mike Reynolds I agree with you! There are rentals in some remote areas that are renting consistently throughout the year. I like your thoughts build what I'd stay in.  Our local news reported a 160,000 visitors using airbnb in this area last year not sure how long the visits will last but I think for now it could be a sound business plan.

@ Chris I don't think I would want more than two rentals.  I'll have to do more research with the county.

@Jon A. I'm not sure about the legality of a composting toilet within the county.  I do know there are multiple properties outside city limits of Asheville currently renting that use them.  I'm not thrilled about disposing of guest's waste products but I might have to get over it before I dig a septic system if composting toilets are legit.

John, I'm in the county outside the city limits which allow STR. Thanks

I am interested in starting a short term vacation rental business using airbnb and would like some advice. I have purchased 10 acres just outside of Asheville NC and we are turning it into a homestead type place. We live on the land full-time. The land was part of a larger farm and was abandoned for about 15 years prior to us obtaining it. We have lots of work yet to do clearing/landscaping to get it back to beautiful. We currently have two barns (needing some rehab), chickens, and a garden. We would like to generate some income from the place and think short term rentals would be a viable option. My hesitation are start up cost. I do not want to rent space in my house so we are considering building a tiny house/tree house or possibly some type of glamping tents. Since we are not 100% sure we will enjoy this type of business we don't want to invest crazy amounts of money and then figure out this is not the route for us(although we would probably have a pretty cool guest house). I do realize you have to take some risk and the more unique the place is the more successful it will be. Some rentals in this area seem to be successful with minimal amenities i.e. composting toilets, solar panels, no running water bring your own cooler type of place. Has anyone out there started from ground up...please give advice?

Thanks!

Hattie, I should have worded my posting differently.  My short term goal is to generate cash for purchasing rental properties through flipping which I intend on holding long term.  I am waiting on comps to come back from my realtor.  The numbers I have generated are based on recent sales in the last 3-6 months from online sources such as Zillow, Realtor.com etc.  I am investing in rural areas of western NC and there are not many cookie cutter homes/developments so the 200K selling prices is based on a larger search area.  Recent home sales have been from 150k up to 350k+ for higher end home within a few miles from this property.  Homes selling for 150k are 2bed/2bath about 500 sq. feet less than the posted home built in the same time from with same lot size.  These homes have not been rehabbed/updated.  Down the road from this property within .5 miles is a very nice development with cheapest home selling for 350K and up very high end custom homes.  My goal in this post is to have other thoughts and opinions as this would be my first flip.  I am reading and reading all I can and maybe I am putting the cart before the horse, just trying to figure out what I could do with 50k in rehab and thought I could get another set of eyes with the pictures.  I hope in a few years I can look back at my post and laugh.  Thanks for you advice! 

I have never flipped a property but have been driving for dollars and I have found this potential flip.  My short term goals are to flip with long term buy and hold.  Here is a potential deal and would like some advice on rehab cost. 

ARV I think would be in the 200k range. House was built in 60s seem to be structurally sound but needs lots of cosmetic/updates. I think I could buy for around 90k. Here are a few pictures. 3/2, 1850 sq feet, well and septic. Water and power were on did not see any plumbing issues, foundation, or roofing( in attic) issues. It will need total kitchen, flooring, landscaping, garage doors, maybe new vinyl siding etc.

@Jim, Asheville has grown as we have been in the area for 9 years now. The growth I am seeing is in the beer industry with some very nice breweries setting up shop here. Other growth seems to be the food industry with large chain groceries stores/department stores coming to the area. I wish I could say more high paying job growth, but not sure that is the case. I spent several hours yesterday driving for dollars and have located some potential properties. One that was empty a year ago is still empty owners live out of town based on tax records and it is in a very hot area. Depending on rehab cost (it was built in 1940s) I think some nice $$ could be made with this home as ARV would be high. I am still educating myself on ARV, rehab cost, and the whole flipping process. Also I would need to secure funding, but have a small nest egg to work with and like I said we have W2 income with great credit, low debt/income ratio. I study at nights as much as I can (I work night shift) and will be driving for dollars on my days off. I'll keep you updated on the process and maybe I'll land a nugget that will get me on my way.

Jared, I think you are spot on about Asheville's job market.  I have worked here for nine years and have seen growth but not high wage jobs.  The market has broken records this year but I honestly don't know how people afford it.  I feel like I'm in a delima with where I live.  So do I take the blunge and find the best deal possible or attempt to manage a flip two hours away.  I'm not sure the latter is wise.  Also I was thinking of putting the word out on Facebook for folks to keep eyes open for empty houses and mail out letters to vacant home owners trying to find the diamond in the rough. First I have more learning to do and then pull the trigger on the best find.