All Forum Posts by: Shawn McCormick

@Stephanie Romo

Welcome to BP and the big world or RE investing. As other have already mentioned, its a little bit of a tough market right now, but with interest rates going up, that should help stabilize things a bit later this year and calm down some of the bidding wars.

Depending on what you want out of your investment (i.e. just paying for itself while it appreciates, get a little cash flow to cover repairs etc, strong cash flow so you can pay down debt quicker....will help determine what you should be looking at. Also your budget will dictate where you can look and size/age of home and some other factors will determine how well you can cash flow. There are calculators on BP and other places you can practice with to get comfortable with analyzing properties so when you are ready, its not so daunting.

I actually specialize in STR in the Orlando area and that is a whole nother conversation (which I'm happy to have) The cash flow is far more unpredictable than a steady long term rental, but the rewards can also be quite a bit better.

Best of luck to you. I'm in Clermont, but work all over Central Florida and belong to CFRI which may be a good place to start networking for you.

Hi @Ryan Cummings although I am not allowed to self promote in the forums, you can view my signature line. I am very active in the Orlando market with regards to STR and would be happy to share my knowledge and insight anytime. Send me a message if you are interested.

I can help with a couple rec's as well. I might also suggest you consider putting the property into a land trust for an added layer of protection. Message me for some contacts

@Kash Jawed I'll piggy back off of what @Jay Breitlow said with regards to Celebration and Orange county being correct. There are several great communities that have been left off of your list and some others need clarification as well. Not trying to nit pick, but for those out of the area looking to research, it is important.

Championsgate also has residential sections that have minimum lease requirements of 7 months, so you have to know neighborhoods inside of the community allow it, the same with Storey Lake.

I am also going to challenge your distances. It doesn't say distance to what, but assuming its Disney. And in that case, depends on what part of the massive Disney property you are measuring to. Windsor Hills is less than 3.4 miles to Animal Kingdom, so in your marketing...you could show Disney is much less than 3 miles to be on property....and that is also true for all of your other distances. For example, Storey Lake is only about 9 miles, not 14.

The link for 'communities zoned for STR' is from 2015. Some of the best communities either were still being build or didn't exist in 2015 when that list was created, for example. What most people call Championsgate is actually deeded as 'Stoneybrook South', the original name of the development. It' missing Solar, Solterra, Windsor at Westside, Windsor Island and several others.

Thanks for your time and input, just trying to clarify on some of the details.

@Olusayo Lawal I will send you a PM.

 I love new construction as an investment, although there is some speculation involved and with building times taking longer than normal, it is hard to lock in rates. But I believe in Central Florida as a huge growth area since there is so much land still available and demand is still very high. I like the fact that builder force appreciation for you. I would say to get in early (like you did in Hils of Mineola), the prices will continue to rise. Builders raise prices every 2-3 homes they sell to keep appraisals ticking upwards and that equates to equity for you. 

Sunbridge will be on the pricier side due to its proximity to Lake Nona and Neo city. But the same concept will remain. You will still get starter size and priced homes in areas like Groveland, Leesburg, Mascotte on the West side (although these areas don't have great infrastructure or retail yet), Davenport, Haines City, Winter Haven are all already well underway, but again, traffic is an issue there. Clermont, Winter Gardena and Minneola are all established and pricier due to that, but will remain solid for families that can afford it, great schools and access to Disney, Orlando, Airport etc.

Hope this helps.

@William Duong I've lived in Clermont for 17 years and the growth has been steady. The Hills of Minneola was approved many years ago and then shelved due to the crash. I believe that a majority of the homes there will be entry level, smaller homes and that will make it attractive to own rentals there. Your 2600 sqft home will not cash flow likely, you may get around 2300-2500 to cover, but that is likely the max for now. The Olympus project is years away, but there are several big housing developments coming along with that area as well.

We have a few newer apartment complexes and not much in the way of jobs locally, so most people commute towards Orlando. Since the Hills is right near a new(er) turnpike entrance, you can get downtown in 30 minutes or less no problem.

 @Matt Kalish You can certainly enter the market at $350, but you will be limited to mostly condos and townhomes that aren't in the high performing communities. So the competition for nightly rates and occupancy get higher. Those types of properties can and do make money, especially if you are purchasing to offset vacation time with family or use it for corporate spiffs etc. But purely as a cash flow investment, it will be much harder. Also in that price range especially, there are cash buyers that you won't be able to compete with. I've submitted dozens of 20% down offers on homes in this price range, waiving appraisal, going 20k+ over asking and still can't win offers.

With the bigger homes, there is still stiff competition from hungry buyers, but the rewards are bigger if you land one. But even with the bigger homes, you still have to make your property stand out and manage it well or you will fade into the masses. In regards to occupancy rates, they are as high as I've ever seen them. Noting that I have many clients that bought the bigger homes (7-9 beds), they are all seeing 60% or more for the year already and we are only two months in. Imagine what they will be at in 2 more months. And we still don't have the International travel back yet. I just closed on a 7 bedroom yesterday in Storey Lake, they have $12,000 in bookings already by pre listing it. Plenty of cash flow in this market.

@Matthew Nadel I'm in Orlando and can get you some great information on what this city has to offer in regards to home types, communities that perform the best and help with some projections too. If you are outside of Orlando, I can still help with a great referral, but wouldn't have as much direct knowledge. Let me know if there is something specific that you are looking to know to help get you going.

 Yes, I have a 'top 10' or so that do very well (depending on size and community), but it is still up to you to manage it well and get good reviews etc. I have several under contract right now.