All Forum Posts by: Lisa Loesel

Hi Garrett-

I have condos in an urban location that I STR. Less people visit our city in the winter so I am working on MTR for those few months.

Took a deep dive into analyzing my STRs this year. November marks the beginning of our slow season for the STR market in our area & I started noticing that even though I had to lower my prices to keep occupancy at a comfortable number, the guests seem more demanding & a little harder to please, resulting in more work for me & lower ratings, which impacts my overall, pretty high rating on my main platform (Airbnb). Last year around this time I had a traveling nurse reach out via Airbnb to rent one of my spaces for a 4-month period of time over the winter. This midterm rental situation worked out great for the slow season & then the property was available just as peak season started. This combination of STR & MTR seems to be the ideal way to max out profits & decrease my time investment. I listed one of my units on Furnished Finder & 3 days later I had 2 traveling nurses renting the unit for 3 months covering most of my off season & at a number that cash flows, which is not always a given over the winter months. According to my new tenants our state is in a nursing crisis. My properties are within 8 miles of 10 different hospitals making it a prime location for this type of rental. Is anyone else using this approach or only doing MTR? As we start seeing STR restrictions in more areas, I wonder if MTR is going to become more prevalent?

Hi Anthony-

STR is definitely more management intensive than LTR. I've done both & now only do STR because once you have a system in place, I feel the return is worth it. I also think it is the most efficient use of a property. I've always taken a quality over quantity approach to my portfolio, granted it is only a side hustle for me. I have some examples in my profile of STR projects, but just to give you an example of a property that I have done both LTR & STR, here is roughly the breakdown:

LTR Expenses: 21,100/year

LTR Rent: 24,000/ year (this number is from 2016 so rent value may have gone up slightly)

STR Expenses: 28,000/year

STR Gross revenue in 2019: $56,500 (The actual number on my tax return was over 68,000, but when the DNC canceled I had to return the $11,500 the guest had prepaid for the event)

STR revenue does not include a management fee because I manage the property myself. This also does not include the initial set up cost of the property which is roughly $9,000-$12,000 depending on the size.

I have a cleaning person who has been working for me for years & handles all of my properties. If nothing has gone wrong during a stay I would say I spend 1-2 hours a week per property on management activities.

Hi Stuart! Nice to meet you. I am a Realtor in Milwaukee, WI & I've been managing my own short term rentals since 2012. Obviously Covid has changed the short term rental market a bit, but from what I've been seeing, I believe it is on its way back up. Here are my answers to your questions:

1. The downtown area & surrounding neighborhoods are a safe bet especially once the Milwaukee summers come back to life. With a festival or event every weekend, you can expect to be fully booked (all weekends) May-October. I do think some of the areas with close proximity to downtown & other high interest areas (i.e. the Brewers stadium, the medical college, the zoo) will do well also, but nightly rates will be a little lower. From everything I've been reading, lake front property is going to be important in the short term rental industry over the next few years & is definitely something I would consider. Our lake country is a 25-45 drive from the city so its a peaceful lake stay, but guests could easily head to the city for sight seeing & attractions. Seems like the best of both worlds.

2. You can get renters all year long, its just less in the winter. I am typically fully booked March/April through October. Nov-February I just want to cover costs knowing the high season is where my profit is. Or you can find the holy grail of short term rentals which is a longer term renter covering the winter months. This year I have a traveling nurse renting one of my units January-April which covers the winter months & then the unit is available again for high season. 

3. Not that I'm aware of, I've always managed my own. I do know another host in the are who does co-host that I could put you in touch with. 

4. I can't tell you how many times I've gotten this question from clients. As far as I know there are no rules or restrictions for the city of Milwaukee. I have heard of some of the suburbs trying to put restrictions in place. As far as HOAs, I'm sure there are some neighborhoods that do have rules against it. Every single condo HOA in the city restricts it. All but one, The Knickerbocker. It's partially owner occupants & partially a hotel so they do allow owners to short term rental. From what I've heard from clients in the building, it isn't going well. I'm not sure how long they will continue to allow it.

If you want to short term rental in the city, it has to be a single family, duplex or a twindominium/boutique condo situation.

Let me know if you have other questions, I'm happy to help!