All Forum Posts by: Joshua Strickland

Schlage Encode and Ring floodlight cams work just fine for me.

Just my opinion but my stack is...

1. SmartBNB

2. Pricelabs (pricing tool)

3. Hostfully (guidebook only)

4. Stessa (accounting)

5. Google Voice Phone number

6. My cleaner uses Resort Clean that syncs with my SmartBNB calendar.

The agent I spoke with their left that part out. She did mention they had two to choose from on site. Hard pass if they require a PM though. 

I hear a lot about Windsor Hills and Championsgate, but does anyone have experience with buying an house in the Margaritaville resort near Four Corners? Seems like they have a ton of amenities for guests.

@Katie Christian It was either Blissful Mortgage in Panama City or RK Mortgage Group. Sorry I probably spoke to 20 different lenders over the past 2 weeks but those were the 2 that stood out. Those were by far the best options. Due to that I’ve turned my attention to beach houses or townhomes that can get the traditional 10 or 15% down on.

@Matthew Collins Very nice! I also purchased a cabin last year through Avery's team thanks to @Gennifer Mix and have another one being built in Scenic Cove. (Off market land deal that was too good to pass up). I am also just outside of Atlanta and curious if you are looking at other markets to replicate the vacation home loan strategy or dive back into PF/Gatlinburg/Sevierville and use investment loans? I'm looking on the FL panhandle, but the recent change in condo lending makes it not as desirable. Maybe Blue Ridge? 

@Abhi Jain I am actually in the process of looking for a condo in PCB right now and may offer some insight. In my recent experience going through this it depends on if the condo is considered "warrantable". Most in resort areas are now going to be non-warrantable and not eligible for financing backed by Fannie Mae. There is a good list of guidelines on the Fannie Mae website, but let's just say it is going to be hard to find any loopholes with this one. Best lending I've found so far for a non-warrantable condo is 20% down 4.65% interest rate (with great credit) and a 30 yr fixed term. Other lenders in the area have multiple 5-7 year ARMs with 20-30% down at around 5%. Definitely hurts the CoC return that you can get with a 10% vacation home loan.

If anyone else out their knows a Florida lender that will do better, I would love to talk and am all ears!

@Philip Mullinax I love Myrtle, but was blown away by PCB. The beach is much nicer in my opinion, water is actually clear, and not even close to the amount of condos/hotels that Myrtle has. I can see a lot growth in the future for the panhandle. (Fingers crossed) 
With the software and tools that @Daniel Denning refers to for managing properties from afar (I bet we use some of the same apps), it makes for a pretty streamlined process to manage out of state.

@Daniel Denning Nice. Thanks for the insights!

@Daniel Denning I see the HOA fees at places like the Carolinian are pretty high, but it also seems like almost everything is included (utilities, etc.) making it more palatable. Is this the case with yours or are their other utilities or fees that are not included? This is one of the biggest reasons I went to Panama City versus Myrtle.