BRRRRSTR in Tobyhanna

[Sarah Claxton]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $101,000
Cash invested: $140,000

This is our first BRRRRSTR in the Poconos. The reno cost was greater than the purchase price, a first for us. The renovation turned out great, and it rents almost every weekend, but we are now considering selling. The renovation involved fixing the foundation, moving the front door, completely redoing the kitchen, converting the garage to a game room, new flooring and windows, redoing the deck and adding a hot tub, and updating all the paint, etc. Since it's a full-time STVR, we furnished for guests. Mattresses are Helix Hospitality, the kitchen is entirely stocked with all dishes and utensils, furniture is from Article, Anthropology and Wayfair. Their are some vintage pieces and the art is a mix of original by myself and Eric Prine, and purchased from Society6. We also provide all cleaning supplies, toilet paper from Who Gives A Crap, and Shampoo/Conditioner/Body Wash/Soap from Public Goods.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Eric Prine found this deal after we'd done a few BRRR's. We wanted a new STVR and thought the Poconos would be a good market.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

We used a realtor based in the Poconos and narrowed down our search area. We saw a lot of houses before landing on this one. It was in rough shape, but we could see the potential.

How did you finance this deal?

Hard money lender, refi'ed into a DSCR loan.

What was the outcome?

The house is gorgeous and rents every weekend, if not more.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

The renovation took much longer than anticipated. We had to fire our first contractor and after realized that he had ignored HOA rules that he told us he followed. We did a lot of retroactive permits. The HOA was the biggest challenge and I don't think I'll ever invest in an HOA community again, but now that it's done we can manage.