Pocono STR Amenities Vs No Amenities Community?

Question

Hello. I'm in the process of looking for a STR/second home property in the Poconos and was wondering if amenity filled communities are a must from an income producing perspective? I'm asking because I have found a few properties close to ski resorts and lakes and some of the communities do not offer summer amenities to guests or owners - would that limit the potential interest from guests or does it not matter too much? If anyone has owned both types of STRs I would love to hear from you and see what your experience has been? My goal is to have it rented out at least 120-150 days out the year at minimum.

Mark Miles · Answer

Not necessarily a direct answer to your Q but here’s my 2 cents on the Poconos…

In 2019 there were 10,000 homes for sale in the Poconos. In 2020 and 2021 during the Covid pandemic, folks from Nyc and Philly bought them all up. And they turned about 5,000 of them into Airbnbs. This has caused at least 3 major problems: 1) the market is now oversaturated with Airbnbs, 2) rental rates have come down bc of so much competition, 3) there's a dire shortage of workers available to service the huge increase in the # of Airbnbs.Wait times are often a month or longer for service providers. I have a friend who needs an electrician & has been waiting a month. He had to cancel all of his reservations until he can get an electrician. Another friend's hot tub has been out of commission for over a month while he awaits a hot tub repairman. He has had to give refunds bc of a non-working hot tub. Another friend needs to renovate his house but can't get anyone to do it, it's brutal.Plumbers, roofers, lawncare, there's no one available to do this work bc there's waaayyyy too many Airbnbs for the local labor market to support.Not to mention the dire shortage of cleaners and handymen. Home prices have shot up in the Poconos, there's very few homes for sale, there's bidding wars on the few homes that are for sale, and there's a drastic shortage of available workers. Not an ideal place to run a business but good luck if you wanna try it!Personally, as someone who lives near the Poconos, I would recommend the mountains of VA, NC, or TN. Or the beaches of NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, MS, or TX. I’ve built quite a little nest egg investing in some of those markets 👍👍  My ADR (avg daily rental rate) is $811/night in those markets 💪 Of course, I buy nice houses and YMMV.

William Ramos · Answer

@Mark Miles thank you very much for this, very informative. Definitely something to think about! And congrats on what you have going on in those markets, sounds like you're crushing it