All Forum Posts by: Kristi Kautz

Hey Jason - sorry I'm just seeing this! Yes, we just installed solar on both of our Airbnbs in Yucca Valley this past March, and I believe it was about $40k per house. We didn't finance - just paid in full!

@Jason Silver

We own two STRs in the Flamingo Heights neighborhood of Yucca Valley (in the JT area). When Covid hit, we moved here permanently and have been renting while trying to find another house to buy. Our plan was to buy a house here and then live in it while we renovate and get it ready to launch as another Airbnb. BUT, we have been searching for almost four months now, and it has been impossible to find any property even half as good as our first two STRs, and they're all double the price that they were in 2017. In January 2017, we paid $560k for TWO houses (2 bed/ 2 bath) sitting side-by-side on 10 total acres. Now, our budget is $600k for just ONE house, and we can't find anything good for that price. We're pretty picky about what we want (main thing is privacy and to be away from neighbors), but for $600k, you'd think we'd be able to find a fixer-upper that meets our needs. And when we do see something that could maybe work, it gets bought up for cash with multiple offers before we even get a chance to see it. I'm starting to think that this market is too saturated and isn't really a great investment for Airbnbs anymore... which sucks because all of our friends live out here and we really want to buy here so we can keep hanging out with them. I'd really love to figure out where the next "Joshua Tree" is... a desert city that's up-and-coming that people haven't found out about yet... and preferably within an hour or two driving distance from JT. Something like Lake Arrowhead or Idyllwild, but in the desert. So if anyone has any ideas on where this could be, please let me know! :)

Drilling a well in the hi-desert is now priced at around $40k. 

Hi! I'm in the process of looking in the hi-desert, as well. We moved out here full time and are renting during our search. We originally wanted to remodel a house, but the market has dried up and we can't find anything that works for us, so now considering buying land and building from scratch (this would eventually be for Airbnb by the way). We've met with a few contractors, and have been told that drilling a well is typically an average of $40k. New septic will be $5-6k if the land qualifies for a standard septic. Electric depends on how close other electric poles are to you. It can be pretty expensive if there's no other electric nearby (can't remember, but I think I read like $1k per pole, maybe more?) For a water meter connection, I've heard that in some towns like 29 palms, it can be really affordable, and in other parts of the hi-desert, it can be around $16k. And the wait list for a meter, depending on where you are, can be many months, if not more. In Pioneertown, they have a lottery where every few months they choose 5 parcels that are already on the list. Just writing this, I'm starting to talk myself out of building from scratch! Good luck with everything!

My vacation rentals aren't in your location (we're located in the Joshua Tree, CA desert area), but just want to chime in and say that we have everything at our properties (Nintendo, tons of indoor and outdoor games, hot tub, movie projector, mortal kombat arcade, etc.) and we also have a pool table, and that thing gets used like nobody's business! I know because the balls are always in the pockets (we re-rack it every time) and sticks almost always taken off of the rack and not returned there. We got the table newly felted over 1.5 years ago, and it has some little spots from so much use, but no tears in the felt yet! Nobody's even spilled a drink on it! (that part impresses me the most. lol) It was the ultimate pain to get it down to our basement (the stairway was way too small so it had to be taken apart and rebuilt by a professional) but totally worth it, in my opinion. Also, my husband and I, as well as our friends and family, LOVE to shoot pool when we're there. I feel it adds a feeling of novelty and luxury, because almost no one has a pool table in their regular home. Just my two cents!

I actually think it's totally fine. I block off all the closets in my rentals for owner use, and then I've added racks for hanging clothes + a set of coat hangers in each room, along with a luggage rack and bench at the foot of the bed for luggage, as well. No one has complained yet and all 5-star reviews. Why do they need a closet, as long as they have a place to hang their clothes? And owner storage is so hard to come by. Just my two cents!