All Forum Posts by: Stetson Miller

Hi @Jim Windgassen,

Assuming it is an annual rental, as others have noted, offering fully furnished isn't necessarily advisable. With that being said, I would highly recommend @Ashley Simonelli and Royal Palm Property Management

Hi @Tom Kaser,

State Insurance USA our of Fort Myers has been able to help me with a similar situation before, hope they can do the same for you

@Mike Morehead STR's are still profitable in Cape Coral, but there's a very specific criteria set that you will be needing to target to ensure you're able to compete in an already competitive market. Finding a property that already has an existing repeat guest list is a great way to start out, and these homes can often be purchased turnkey during the right time of year. As for general criteria, the higher bedroom count homes will perform best (ideally 4+), pool is essential, and waterfront is almost a necessity as well. Location is the biggest key for success though, so it's very important to work with someone who is familiar with that industry, market, and management as well, to ensure you're able to achieve that

@Roman A Elizarov All great points, and very informative posts above as well to consider! Cape Coral is a unique market in that it offers access to nearly every major investment strategy within a single market such as LTR, STR, new construction development, land banking, retail/commercial, industrial, etc. This has definitely played a big factor in the huge growth that this particular market has seen over the past 5-10 years

@Joseph Kirk All great advice above for reference. In my opinion (you can see there's many) Cape Coral would be your best bet for a consistent and well-established STR industry, but the property type, location, and management are paramount in an ever increasingly competitive market. Because of this, the price point for an entry-level STR here has gone up drastically, which may cut out the majority of buyers. Depending on your price point, some markets in Fort Myers or Bonita Springs may be a better fit

Regarding analytic sites, the only one I use consistently that I don't see mentioned above is Awning.com, which has a free income projection tool and also provides rental comps

Thanks @Peter Davis

I would also like to correct @Robert Ellis in that Lehigh Acres is comprised of 6 zip codes, not 3, and is the 16th largest city in FL by population, 8th largest by area. Taking into account the larger Cape Coral and Fort Myers markets, this region as a whole poses a strong economical position, even compared to a few of the other larger metro areas across the country

Hi @Blaise Bevilacqua,

I can second Cape Coral, or really the Southwest FL market in general for house hacking. Affordability and a great supply of multifamily housing is still something we're seeing consistently in this area, but there's also a huge range of opportunities depending on exactly what you're looking for, or willing to sacrifice to maximize future return

With your lease ending in September of next year, first, I would confirm with your landlord if you're able to transition into a month to month lease after the current one expires. This will help set expectations for whether you have a hard or soft move-out date. Either way, the goal should be to be moved into your new property by current lease end, which means you should plan on having an offer accepted on a new property around three months prior to that date in my opinion

Hi @Jasmine Hicks,

Happy to connect, sending you a request now! 

As others have mentioned, a HELOC could be a great way to move your current equity into the new purchase, but if you need those funds for current repairs, I would say that should be prioritized over a new purchase. Again, as mentioned above, rates have an inverse relationship with pricing, so as rates come down you'll start to see an exponential rise in pricing again very similar to what we were seeing in 2022 and early 2023. Because of this, it could be a great play to get into the market now to try and capitalize on the expected appreciation gains over the short term in the Cape Coral market, but there is more risk involved in that. If you don't already have capital reserves for your investment portfolio, as well as an emergency fund for personal use, these would also take priority over another purchase in my opinion

Hi @Shannon D.,

I sent you a PM with additional information, but just for visibility purposes, I would highly recommend Royal Palm Property Management

Hi @Shannon D., sending you  PM now