All Forum Posts by: Koren Lavi

@William Silva

After deciding to invest out of state, I actually settled on your home state of FL. Got a SFR in the FL space coast (Melbourne) that I am LTRing. Super cheap houses compared to Denver where I'm at, and good rents. Aside from a rat problem its been pretty smooth 😂

I could not imagine STRing out of state. My local STRs require me to be VERY involved. So to make STR work out of state for me that would require a property manager. To me that expense would negate the increased profits of STR, which is the whole point of STR.

I would find a market with good median rents, and low home costs, and a location that has some indicators that would support future price growth (pop growth, job growth, large businesses/employers moving there). Florida tends to incentivize businesses (tax breaks) and individuals (no state income tax) to move there so it checked that box for me. 

Agreed about consulting with a real estate attorney. I'm not an attorney but when I've researched it, moving title to an LLC, but still having you personally as the mortgagor might not offer considerable protection. An individual could name both the LLC and you in a lawsuit.

Correct. Definitely don’t go off the projected numbers. The comps of actual listings and how much they generate is way more accurate in my experience

@Gavin Snowhite

To answer your comment about “I want to know if this is a realistic plan...” you would have to speak with a lender/mortgage broker. They would be the ones to answer that question based on your credit, income, debts, if you qualify for down payment assistance, etc.

A second point, is that if you find a house within your means and don't overextend yourself, you will likely come out on top in terms of housing costs compared to renting in the long run. I strongly believe that with time, as you build equity (thru principal pay down) and appreciation, that value will far outweigh the amount that you are "in the red" by your househack not being able to cover the entire PITI cost.

And if you have a good househack, your housing costs should be lower than what you would be paying for rent

@Michael Belz that sounds about right to me. Not sure about the staging fee, but my STR property manager in Denver takes 18% of profits (does not including cleaning fees as part of the profits)

 100% agree, that’s the main reason I’ll keep the place despite the dwindling cash flow. 

 North Denver in Adams County. I do fortunately have room to absorb that loss, but with increased taxes, insurance, and maintenance/repairs starting to get reeeeally thin on the margins 😬

@Daniel McDonald is right IMHO. Cash flow is just the cherry on top of the sundae. Appreciation is what builds wealth. 

The market you’re looking into might be high cost and hard to break into, but unfortunately that is not going to get any easier over time.  

@Adam Bartomeo is right on this one. STRs can be an enormous hassle compared to other rentals. But if income is your number one priority, could be the best way to go. The only possible way I would consider doing AirBNB/VRBO out-of-state is if I had A LOT of trust in my property manager. 

@James Carlson No longer an amateur’s game indeed. This is painfully true. The baseline now in Denver is having a hot tub, game room/area, house theme, high end finishes, professional photography, etc. And even with all those updates I am at least 20% lower on ADRs than 2 years ago.