Investor · San Antonio · Member since 2020 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
Probably the biggest reason I have not done Airbnb. Is that the the houses that I have that would be a good fit are large houses that would take extreme bucks to furnish in order to give a short term rental a test drive. I have tried to keep my seed money recycling in order to buy more properties and if I spent a ton on furnishing an Airbnb house it might be several years before I break even and get my seed money back.
Has anyone else ran into this dilemma?
Is there a company that would furnish the Airbnb and allow the opportunity to be paid back overtime?
You'd be surprised how inexpensive it can be to furnish a house as a short-term rental. My wife and I purchased a lake front home and operated it as a short-term rental for about 18 months and realized a total net profit of over $30k during that time before we sold it to my wife's sister to use as her primary residence. It cost us about 10k to furnish and outfit inside and out, right down to the silverware, towels and dock system. While we enjoyed the positive cash flow, the amount of time we spent on this one property far outweighed the other long-term rentals we owned. While I enjoyed interacting with guests and some of the unique aspects of short-term rental operation, I prefer the passivity of our long-term portfolio for sure. Hope this helps.
We have a STR in a vacation spot. We do all right, but there are a lot of expenses. If I did another one, it would be a 30+ day and I would market to medical professionals like Holly said above. In fact I agree with everything Holly said and would only add that I would keep it small - a 1 or 2 BR condo or small house in a safe area. Less turnover, fewer expenses. Look at Furnished Finder to see some examples of what you could rent for in your area in this market. Good luck!
Hi Cody, It’s true that it can cost some money to furnish it. Typically, it takes about $14K to furnish a 4-bedroom house from scratch in our experience.
Between Amazon and Wayfair, you can get 99% of what you need, pay everything off from higher cash flow, and then you’re left with a better performing asset afterward. Keep in mind that when fully furnished, you can even rent it to mid and long term renters at a premium + when you sell the property, it’ll show better too.
Let me know if you have any more questions, hope this helps!
I haven’t had the time to read over the other responses but you’re seriously hurting yourself if Airbnb is popular in your area. They also have more money than Vrbo who is financially struggling. I am not an Airbnb fan. I’ve been on Airbnb since before anyone even knew what it was. Stay on top of your business and it will be fine. If you need advice I am happy to help.