All Forum Posts by: Shawn McCormick

Hi @Steven Glod I working with several out of state investors in the STR vacation communities. I literally just got another under contract tonight in Solterra. Just closed one in Windsor at Westside, Windsor Hills and have a new construction under contract in Windsor Island.

I have an amazing property manager that lives and breathes these communities and we can give you all the insight you need to make the best decision. IMO, a 7-8 bedroom single family is the best as it opens up entire different clientele that a townhome or smaller single family just can't do.

Feel free to reach out if you would like to talk over my experiences and what would be some good options for you. There are plenty of them, just need to dial in on what is a good fit your you and your investing style. Happy to talk anytime.

Hi @Kristie Gautier, Those are still pretty new so I personally don't have any experience with them other than the warnings you have been cautioned about. They are also very difficult to get financed from what my lenders tell me. There is just so much competition in small units like that. 

We have had timeshares here forever, then condos, then townhomes, then the vacation home market in the last 15 years has changed the way people look at units here. It used to be a second/vacation home that people would use, then builders started building communities driven by amenities and now those communities are full of small businesses. But with the condo/hotel and timeshares, there are just so many of them and not only them, but actual hotels and they are all competing with each other and there is only so much you can charge for a small unit and you can't really differentiate it from other units. That is why I like single family units, you can theme them, max them out with game rooms, pool etc and accommodate larger groups...these are just my opinions and there are obviously people making money with them, but seems too much risk for the reward. 

Happy to talk through some options or anything that may help you, just reach out.

Hi @Ronnie Diaz I would be happy to discuss this with you. I am helping several BP'rs right now with purchasing STR, just closed one yesterday in Windsor at Westside and have quite a bit of knowledge in this space. You shouldn't need an attorney to get licensing, it is quite simple and if you have a good PM, they can assist you also.(I have a great PM for STR!) We close with title companies in Florida, rather than attorneys too, just FYI and the process is much quicker.

If you need lender recommendations, I can send you a couple as well. The inventory is kind of tight right now depending on if you want single family or townhome/condos. We can talk about that if you like, shoot me a message and we can set up a call.

As far as the arbitrage, I know a few people that have done it and there is another Realtor couple I know that do very well with that. There are some things you want to be careful of when doing that tho, especially as far as zoning goes. 

Happy to discuss all this with you. Good luck!

Hello @Nancy Bender Margaritaville has pros and cons like any other vacation community. One thing to consider is PM options and being limited to who you can use and how they market the property. Obviously, the Margaritaville Brand is very strong and they have great amenities, but is it universally appealing so you attract as wide a demographic audience. It has great visibility and proximity to the parks.

There are many other sought after communities to consider and some new construction ones as well. Like Tyler said, if it appeals to you and you plan to use it personally, it might make sense. So your returns will be reflected by the reputation of the community, its amenities and your pricing compared to other similar ones.

Happy to chat about my experiences selling homes in some of those resorts anytime. Feel free to reach out! Good luck

Congratulations @Cristovian B., not sure when you bought that, but at $170, I'd bet you have quite a bit of equity now with the way things are appreciating here in Olrando. If the lease is up soon, I would look into making sure you are at least at market rates. Good luck!

Hi @Chris Castillo seems everyone agrees that 203k (for FHA) or Homestyle (for conventional loans) would suit you well. Depending on what you are going to do with the property (live in it, house hack, flip, turn into a rental) those are fine options.

Other ideas would include looking for private money (there is SO much out there that people are looking to put to work!), hard money (only for short term needs and be prepared to make sure your deal has room for the extra costs of this), or if you know someone with a Roth, SD IRA, HSA, they can loan the money out. I do this with my SD IRA for smaller projects exactly like what you need. I loan the money to you, you complete the project and pay me back..all of it goes back in my IRA and I did almost nothing and you got your money at a reasonable rate. One caveat is that I could not be involved whatsoever in the project..I can't suggest a paint color, swing a hammer or recommend a contractor. But it is a great option and also puts you in touch with other people with money, expands your knowledge of structuring deals and allows you to do more of them.

A good start for you would be to join the local REIA (CFRI.net) and start networking with other local investors.

I would be happy to chat if you like, message me if you would like to talk.

Good luck and welcome to BP!

Hi @Account Closed If you are still in town, would be happy to meet up and discuss your strategy and see if I can help. I've flipped several homes and evaluated hundreds for repair estimates. I am not a contractor, but most bread and butter homes are pretty easy to estimate unless you get into structural or foundation issues.

I have several great GC and handyman contacts as well as independents for cabinets, flooring, windows, roofs, paint etc if you plan to self manage the project. I have done one long distance rehab (Floirda>Ohio) and just completed that. It does present many challenges, but you can get thru it with some good contacts locally.

Reach out and lets see if we can get you some answers and pointed in the right direction. Good luck and welcome to BP!

Hey @Ralph Corpuz, the STR niche has been really active in the last month or so and inventory here in Orlando has dropped sharply. I feel that will get worse when foreign investors are able to travel here again and buy up inventory.

As far as long term rentals, we are also having inventory issues, which translates into supply and demand and that puts prices out of reach to make sense as rentals. You can/should still benefit from appreciation and be able to build equity, but cash flow is harder and harder to achieve. Any larger metro area will have the same issue, your best bet is to look further outside. Here in Orlando, you have to go 30+ miles outside to get properties. And in that case, you often are dealing with older homes that will likely need upgrades to mechanicals and finishes. You also usually loose the better pool of tenants and empoyer base, just some things to consider. 

Reach out if you would like to talk thru some options or scenarios about our market here in Orlando.

@Clay Szlosek Contractors are all stacked up right now and picking/choosing what jobs they want. I have several contacts from Handyman to GC. Message me and I can share a couple.

Hey @Jake Greener happy to talk sometime. I'm sure I can help you out in a few of the areas that you need some help in. I'm working with several BP'rs right now in that area. Feel free to reach out anytime. Good luck