All Forum Posts by: Patrick McCabe

 Hostfinancial.com I have heard good things about for no doc loans. Not associated with them and have never used them myself but worth looking into.

@Diana T. Blakeslee...feel free to reach out if you have any questions

I am a big fan of Vacation Rental Success Podcast by Heather Bayer.

On youtube, the channel STR University has some good videos.

Good luck!

Yes Becky, we have a house in the Poconos that is doing very well on Airbnb. Not sure if you were interested in the Poconos... I know it's an area close to you... But if you are, I can answer some questions for you or if there's anything specific you were wondering about STR properties let us know

One app I love to use to find local handymen and even cleaners is Thumbtack. It allows you to pick a task you want completed (specific like painting, power washing, house cleaning or even general like handyman, etc.) and then the zip code of the area you are looking and different local options will pop up who you can message and ask for quotes through the app. Some areas have more options than others.

Not sure if you were planning on doing this based on your post but If you do determine that this is something that is allowed by the HOA and worth the effort the best way to maximize the amount of bookings would be to make it 3 listings. 2-one bedroom listings and 1-2 bedroom listing. You would then need to link the calendars so that if a 1 bedroom listing gets booked, the 2 bedroom listing would automatically get blocked for those dates.

Take the plunge! Sounds like you have done more than enough research. The best way to learn is through experience. My wife and I had similar nerves before we bought our first STR.

There will certainly be times where your inexperience may leave you overwhelmed but the good news is you have a great community here at BiggerPockets willing to help you out with any issues that may come up. There are also numerous free resources outside of BiggerPockets that are very helpful as well.

If you have any specific questions feel free to reach out! Happy to help. Good luck!

I personally just require 25 years or older to book and minimum 2 night stays. I had many issues when I allowed 1 night stays. Those tended to be the guests that would throw parties/loud noise.

Simply with my age requirement and 2 night minimum stay I've had a lot of success limiting the trashy guests. 

For me, adding more restrictions than that will cause me a bigger loss by limiting the potential number of guests that can book.

I definitely want to stay STR...one because I enjoy it so much and two because it's the only real estate investing I have experience in... However, I am having trouble finding other markets that will work for me so I am keeping my options open.

Agreed...We bought our STR in the Poconos in October 2018 and I didn't understand why so many forum posts were saying to stay clear... Our property hasn't appreciated as well as yours has but still has gone up significantly as well. Our plan is to cash out refinance and invest the money in a different area. Good luck with whatever you decide!