All Forum Posts by: Shawn McCormick

If your local REIA is part of the National, you get Home Depot rebates when you spend $2,000+/year. But that really only works if you are rehabbing properties regularly. Lowes has good perks ($20 delivery fee for anything, veterans discounts etc)

Check out the Points Guy website, they review and recommend what is right based on your usage and desired rewards and the risks (points expiring, blackouts etc). You can sign up for alerts and travel perks too. 

@Michael Furey. For most STR, location is one of the biggest drivers to your property being successful. Typically in Orlando, the closer to Disney the better.

For condos, you will have dozens of communities to choose from, some with condos, towns and single family do well..think Windsor Hills. Others will be all condos. For condos, you are not usually going after families since they are smaller, not themed out like a SFR and are price point driven. If you look at single family, they will have a private pool, a converted garage (game room) and themed out bedrooms to attract people wanting to keep the kids entertained and wanting more of an experience. You also have to consider the community itself, most are geared toward families and have game rooms, lazy rivers, restaurants etc right on site. Some people want to come here to relax and want to limit the noise and distractions of all the kids, so a higher end community (like Reunion) would be a better fit and get a higher nightly rate.

One thing to consider with condos is that it can be race to the bottom, once a few nervous owners start lowering rates to get higher occupancy, more and more do it to fill up their calendar, so you end up with $100 night. If condos are what you are looking at due to price point, that should be a big consideration. 

There is more to it than just those couple of points, but hope this helps answer your questions so far. 

Best of luck to you. 

@Wagner Dias

Our market is ideal for STR, but easy to get caught up with all the information floating out there with trying to sell you on the idea, rather than help you choose the right size and type of home in the right community.

Solara is just one of about a dozen communities that I would recommend that are all in the same proximity to Disney, have newer homes and great amenities for the guests. Happy to have a call and see what you are looking to get in returns, how you will use it and your budget and timeline. 

Feel free to reach out anytime, Best of luck to you.

 @Khurram Humayun, you are correct, the point of doing BRRR is the the first R to add value to the property and force appreciation..and that takes care of your appraisal issue too.

 Cash flow is just one portion of the equation, don't get focused just on that. Real estate will always appreciate over time, so that is 'almost' a given. Cash flow is obtained via buying correctly and in the right area for your criteria. You can cash flow in the worst part of town or in a penthouse if you buy right.

As far as finding off market properties, what is your strategy? Are you aligned with wholesalers or do it yourself? Do you know the pitfalls and what to look for in a wholesale deal, do you have the cash to take one down? If you find an off market property, you still need cash or financing either from the seller or traditional. Clermont is not a strong market for finding deals..on or off market. The area as a whole is too 'new' and doesn't have a lot of distressed properties. 

Hope this helps.

@Khurram Humayun

Welcome to BP, sounds like you are using it the way it is intended, stay involved and ask questions. 

I actually live in Clermont too and am doing a flip currently. I found it on MLS and it was a foreclosure. I show easily 30-40 homes a month and can tell you at every price point, the condition of most homes is surprising for the price. So even if you find a deal, plan on doing upgrades to be able to command the rents you'll desire.

As the others have mentioned, cash flow properties are in high demand and low inventory. You make your money when you buy, but don't over analyze and pass up deals as Central Florida is still a high growth area and you should be able to reasonably count on appreciation.

There are deals to be had if you are active and ready to pull the trigger, get your financing in order and look at whats on the market daily, price reductions are happening alot and days on market are continue to go up.. both telling signs of motivated sellers.

Happy to help more since we are both in Clermont. Reach out anytime.

Best of luck to you.

James, Celebration does not allow you to STR the homes in there so I would rule that out of your search area. There are many other resort communities that I can suggest that are exclusively designed to be STR. For property managers, @Jay Breitlow is a great choice to help you with all of your needs once you own a unit and also help disect what communities perform well, get better nightly rates, the right size and type (townhome, condo, single family) would be right for you. 

I also have a few great lenders that can help you from that side to decide what loan type would be best for you, the rules behind them and how to get qualified. 

Let me know if I can be of any more help.

@Syed Taqvi Feel free to reach out, I've helped dozens of other BP members for the exact thing. You could use the agent finder tool at the top of the page too. 

Best of luck to you!

@James Shuster Are you looking for duplexes here too, you mentioned 'a unit or two'. Just wanted to make sure as they are in low supply in Orlando and especially anywhere near Disney (in a 'good area' anyhow). Your next challenge will be down payment/closing costs. You'll likely need 20% down, so your $60k won't get you much anymore. There are many new construction communities near the Haines City/Davenport areas that you can get into fairly cheap, but they are all single family. 

Happy to talk more about your options and ultimate goals to be able to give you a better outlook, feel free to reach out.

Best of luck to you!

@Armel Bemmo Although I lived in Nashville many years ago, can't speak to it today. I have been in Orlando for 18 years and have many clients that do well in the STR space here. There are some things to consider though.

1. If you buy and ordinary property in a so so community, the competition will basically dictate your nightly rate and you will cap out.

2. If you buy too much house and don't know how to manage everything properly, you may wind up with bad reviews and hurt yourself. Also if you buy too big, and it takes you awhile to ramp up your bookings, you may get frustrated and not be able to cover your expenses.

3. If you buy a good house in the right community that has great amenities and location to Disney and invest to make it stand out (theming), hire great cleaners and stay involved with your guests, you can do well. 

That being said, this is a big market for STR and so many do very well and so many others just get lost in the shuffle. Orlando is made for this year round with so many other things besides Disney. Happy to discuss further or answer specific questions if you have them.

Best of luck to you!

@Lauren Beech Welcome to BP and congrats on getting started.

I'm in Orlando now (18 years) and lived in Cleveland for 10. I currently have properties in Toledo and OOS can be challenging. Florida and Ohio are vastly different markets for many reasons, but RE is pretty much the same if the numbers make sense and you are comfortable with the property. 

I might suggest to keep the house you have here, (assuming you own it) You likely have equity and are familiar with the area, so thats a good place to start. Perhaps use the equity to use as a down payment for your first Cleveland property? This will give you a jump start of not pulling the trigger in Cleveland while you analyze properties and wait for the perfect one..you already have your first one, so the second will be much easier. 

Best of luck to you and let me know if I can help in any way!