calculating vacation rentals

[Jessica Flint]

I'm thinking of trying my hand at vacation rentals but I don't know how to even begin calculating for cash flow, ROI, etc. How to know if the home will be a good deal. I've done it many times for SFH and MFH but never vacation rentals. There's so many other things to consider: cleaning fees, taking inventory after every guest, utilities, etc. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[Lauren Kormylo]

I am not aware of any calculators that will allow you to put in your gross income month by month. You will have to use Luke's Enemy Method, where you analyze the competition, for that.  You have to add up the fluctuating 12 months and divide by 12 to get the average.  

As far as figuring out COC, etc., there are 2 sites that I use for calculators. Both are free, but you must sign up for accounts. First is Vrolio, a site where STRs are for sale. After making an account, hover over Learn at the top, then click Investment Analyzer.

Second is DealCheck.  This one doesn't have as many categories as Vrolio, but you can save your info on up to 15 properties.  I don't see how to do that on Vrolio.  https://dealcheck.io/