Room rentals, short term, long term, Buy/hold, flip, etc.?

They definitely bring in more money than a traditional rental but there are a lot more hoops to jump through and also it can turn into a job.

They are subject to the same local building codes as site-built homes, making them more similar in quality and feel to traditional homes.

The escrow hold can be as much as 150% of the estimated cost of repairs.

Now R3 owners know their properties are going to increase in value, rents are going to climb over the next few leasing seasons, and it might pay off to hold out on listing their student property.

We've analyzed many of traditional vacation rental markets in the US and the Smoky Mountains (Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, Sevier County) offers a great combination of a double digit cash flow, equity appreciation, and a stable regulatory environment.

Our plan is to house hack this property for the next 2-3 years at least, then evaluate selling or just holding long-term and renting both units once we buy a new property to live in. 

This will be important in #4 below...3) Keep in mind: traditional lenders like borrowers W-2 wages.

  - Sales Price $720,000- Down Pay: 15%  $108,000 (higher down payment reduces your risk)- Balance owed: $612,000- Int Rate:  6.75% (nice spread on your cost of money at 2.5% - Arbitrage)- P/I payment:  $3,969.42- make the buyer pay T/I in their escrow payment thus increasing payment- Hold period - 5 years- Additional Interest earned = $203,884 (No Longer a Loss)- No Rental Management needed- No repair costs- You can still deduct the interest on the underlying loan as an expense - ask your CPA- Monthly income without the hassle ($400-500 each month, more if there's T/I escrow)I'm in NM and do these all the time. 

If you are in a market with market rents that increase year over year, or a market that appreciates well, and you plan on holding it for a long time, then sometimes it works.