All Forum Posts by: Ruth Blue

I agree with Collin, 

As I also Manage vacation rentals in the GSMNP, the Smoky Mountains are typically more accessible for lower-cost vacations if a recession is looming. 

Owners of cabins/chalets may even see more business than usual as visitors are unable to fly due to cost, we saw something like that during peak COVID in 2021. 

Drive-to destinations are definitely going to continue being popular!

Hi Casaundra,

Congratulations! That first investment is so exciting, honestly each investment makes my heart jump a beat.

 I hope all goes well & that investor itch is a real thing, once you have one there are bound to be more!

Hi Cathy!

The market is definitely up for the Smoky Mountains. Although I would consider what you intend to do with the money once you sell & if you want to invest it elsewhere if there are properties available that would be worthwhile to invest in cash-flow wise. We have considered selling some of our family cabins but have decided not to as the income is worth keeping, but if another investment presented itself with higher cash-flow & a lower initial investment it may be totally worthwhile.

A 4/4 for $950k sounds pretty spot on, although I may wait until after the season to sell to make all your rental income. With interest rates on the rise it is a bit worrying to potential Buyers, there are quite a few options at play to see what fits for you & your family right now.

Best of Luck with your cabin :)!

Hi Victor,

I would definitely submit a check or Bank wire Transfer, it depends on how they have been paying you rent as to if you may have their banking info to transfer. 

I once had a landlord who used Cash-App for Monthly payments, for the Deposit & for the return of the deposit! It was pretty convenient but not the most trusted way to handle money.

Best of Luck with your tenants! 

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Pigeon Forge.

Purchase price: $173,000
Cash invested: $40,000

Contributors:
Rhonda Blue

Adorable One bedroom Cabin just on the Pigeon Forge River. This was my first cabin investment and I was super excited to practice the BRRRR that I have seen my mom @Rhonda Blue do. WE bought it low & had the made many big changes, as well as a newly built deck. I am so glad this investment was made as we had a successful Cash-Out Refinance as well to keep the investment funds rolling.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

We live in East TN & I'm always looking to grow my Portfolio! Now we spend some time looking at Mountains Cabins/Chalets & other EAST TN spots for cash-flowing Multi-family LT, Single Family LT & flips!

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

We found this deal within 24 hours & quickly made a connection with the Seller as well as an offer within the first hour.

How did you finance this deal?

20% Down Investment finance!

How did you add value to the deal?

We added a Full-size oven, additional electric work + lights & a full-size Washer/Dryer! We also upgraded to a King Bed for guests! We had a new Deck built in 2021 as well.

What was the outcome?

The outcome was spectacular! Easy cash-out refinance after 2 years & the cabin will continue to make good money.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I think the biggest lesson was being prepared to jump when the right property came up & not being scared of flood insurance.
There is no point in being scared, you run your numbers & you can determine if it will work for you!

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I am a licensed Relator & I worked with Debbie Hill with MIG.

Randy, Arizona is an awesome market. I was there for a year in 2017 and did PM for a friend of a friend of my family! The city code specifies local contact and that is what service I provided. You can offer your cleaners an incentive to be that person for you. Ask them about paying them a fee if and when anyone from the city calls to inquiry or if a guest has a complaint. 

Now that we are here in Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge market, We  do have some cabins  that have the cleaners phone number listed for guests to call for specific issues. It is all in how you set up the listing. 

I would not use Evolve because you can do the same job yourself. They basically hire local contacts to be their "local" Unless you really wanted to set it and forget it. 

In which case I would recommend a local Co-Host situation maybe. It's all about the guests being happy and satisfied with services provided. 

As for the tax filing advice. No way I'm touching that one. There are a million opinions on this forum on who, what, when, and how. Figure out what works for your situation. 

Good LUCK

Just FYI Heloc will create a situation and lower your credit score. My mom @Rhonda Blue did a heloc and took a hit of 15 points a month until it was paid back in full. It shows similar as a credit card that is maxed out when you use the cash. She talks about it all the time as a smart option is you need fast money but can pay it back quickly to keep the balance down. 

We use the strategy to cash out refinance to keep the money rolling into the next investment. With the uptick in the market right now and low interest rates. We have refinanced all our holdings. AS long as the numbers still work for cash flow. 

@Tyrel Holman

Welcome to the neighborhood. There are lots of facebook groups for owners in the Smokies with tons of recommendations and referrals.

Congrats!

Adam... Seriously crazy. The ones with he amazing views are getting those huge numbers the others are asking then settling for less then asking. It is the wild wild west right now. My advice for my buyers is  to only offer what your comfortable with and be ok moving on. Run your numbers. 

We use Your Porter! We Property Manage for a few owners who use Lodigfy and it was not the easiest to set up and sync between all the different platforms. Has taken a few months and we still get double booking sometimes. They do have good Customer service as does Yourporter. 

Your porter is a whole package in my opinion. Pros - owner reports, shared calendar, ability to share vendor calendar links, expense tracking, webpage, easy messaging, automessages timed and triggered. No cons yet. 

Lodgify - unified calendar, webpage, CONS added services is an extra fee upgrade. expensive