All Forum Posts by: Bo A Vanecko

@Luke Carl 
Absolutely allowed.. there is likely 60% of the units as STRs ;) LOL...

thanks for the response and get better man..  sick is no fun!!  

my question is really centered on the best way to handle being able to collect the small fees like replacement cards for keyless entry or smaller items ...  does insurance handle that or does the security deposit handle that?  the people i spoke with seem to have put you must have one or the other but did their deposit at 1500 sorta pushing people to take the insurance.

so if i got insurance would i still be able to get back my replacement fee?  would i file a claim against the person and then have the insurance cover the charge?

just throwing this out there as i begin to fill out my listings this week.  i have the whole thing ready to go just need to post it :)

Bo

So i was speaking to some people who are doing STR in our complex and they were stating that they offer up insurance or deposit (they actually ask for 1500 deposit which seems high). this got me thinking a bit about items like "if you lose the door key card its a 75 dollar replacement fee". if they choose insurance and not the deposit, would i go through VRBO insurance to get a refund? am i able to charge the card on file? i can see if i have the deposit i would simply release the deposit minus the replacement fee.

i guess the question to a newb is how do i enforce replacement costs etc?

@Mark Miles  @ken boone Thanks a ton on this ....  appreciate the heads up.  

thanks all on this.  i have some thoughts on it ..... you've given me some good ideas :)

Before I have even listed my property in a vacation / ski town, I have been asked if I would consider a "seasonal" rental on the unit.  I honestly don't have any real details yet but wondered what people's thoughts were on this type of option.  I am thinking the pro/con is that the "potential" income may be greater than the received but its a "potential" vs "guaranteed" argument I guess.  Also less abuse for the time being is likely as well.  

I would think that I would look at the several I have been tracking already in my unit and see what their anticipated money is and use that to gauge what my discounted price for longer stay would be.  Curious if others have done this with their STRs and split it a bit.  Also if people are booking for 3-5 months at a time would that change things in regards to taxes etc and how the property would be classified?

@paul sandhu I am guessing this is more along the lines of some of your properties right?  

Bo

@Paul Sandhu

It would be between me, the owner, and the person who rents even though they book through vrbo/Airbnb.

I’ve had to sign a few to rent but was always curious if they’re enforceable.

In Denver area ... was drawing up a rental contract for STR and would like to have it reviewed by lawyer in Denver area (or am i going a bit too far???). any suggestions?

Bo 

@robin 

@Robin Searle Yup exactly...they are specifically targeting STRs that is true.  funny thing though, my property tax rate in broomfield is actually nearly as high or higher (rate not amount) than when i was in SF b/c we have a bunch of bonds set up to pay for schooling etc.  so it is around 1.2% of value...give or take...  looking at the expensive areas though is interesting to me... boulder is like 0.6%...  

i posted this post with an opposite view so as to not lead the witness so to speak.  curious what others thought / saw.  so far what my original thought was if it passed seems to have been the consensus as with any business:  pass the costs to consumer LOL.  say 50 bookings (~150 nights) need 6000 bucks... 6000/150 is 40 per night... now say increase cleaning by 25 bucks that is 50x25 = 1250.  6000-1250 = 4750.  4750/150 is 32 a night...  so many ways to pass it on and it still be soft.

that said it has pretty much died where it started but the fact that it has been discussed a few times leads me to believe something is in the works at some time.  

Bo

so i totally get people looking at a STR rented all year as a business, but how is that any different than a SFH rented all year to another person? isnt that then a business as well? What has changed there? i am speaking off the cuff here as i havent had a chance to research this but seems to me, a rental property regardless of short term or long term, by definition here is a "business" then. its not considered commercial until the 5 unit in a complex but why not if the STR is considered a business?

again speaking off the cuff so perhaps there is a simple explanation i am missing.  either way i am paying property taxes etc.  

This is definitely a very solid STR area however prices are pretty high there esp for ski in ski out (actually most any ski area in CO that is ski in ski out ). Looking at around 600-700 sq ft or higher. while definitely could pull profits on a rental, this would be pretty difficult with only 10% down. Unless of course you self manage. there are numerous threads that on here about self managing and several members that are even willing to chat with you about self managing. it can be done remotely. we are close to a couple from florida self managing in winter park.

most of these towns are year round places now outside the months of say late april/may (wet season) and october / early nov.  (pre-ski).  

also on the 29% ...i recently started a thread on this ... worth reading a bit.  the increase is on how the calculation is done so it isnt a full 29% property tax but it does raise taxes from say 2800 to say 9000 or so.  pretty significant but likely not to pass.  something to follow though.

also as others state, most of your income will be winter months.  keep that in mind when planning your 1-2 week visits. 

lastly you can use a service like evolve for only 10% that handles a lot of stuff but still requires you to be active.  will help cut costs of management and share some responsibility.  still managing across state lines is plenty doable.

brek is a great area...  winter park is gaining pace fast...  ski in / ski out is not fully necessary to get more bang for your buck and in some cases may not be optimal from a year round perspective.  in fact some are buying in towns that are a few miles away from resorts and doing really well.

happy to chat more if you want to PM.  im no expert but have been researching a ton lately.  just learning myself....  happy to share what i have seen though.

Bo

@Marcello Di Gerlando @Robin Searle

Thanks for the feedback both of you.  Marcello, i too already started thinking about that 30 day rule.  the prices in ski resorts and the vacancy / occupancy rates are likely quite different than col. springs.  (quick estimates are 35% vs 70%).  that said if one can definitely utilize the 30 day during the wet season and off weekends not booked, 30 days is fairly easy to come by when you live close.

further more you are hitting on a point with the fact that if it does turn people away a bit, it may open up that 35% to more like 40% or 45% ...  so if one can weather the storm, it may turn out good.  

as with any bill its always good to do a bunch of reading etc.  you've hit upon several points that definitely caught my eye as well.  

thanks all for the continued conversations.  always good to get feedback etc.

Bo