The best places to own a AirBnB vacation rental on the Oregon Coast

Oregon is a majestic landscape to both reside, visit or invest. 

I moved here in 2018 on the hunt for investable coastal real estate that I could actually afford. I had a lot of real estate agent and mortgage broker experience, but very little hands on investment experience, even less short term rental development or management. 

I stumbled onto the Oregon Coast mostly by accident, or fate. Like most, it's sort of off the radar, until you actually visit. Then it holds a deep place in your heart, and fortunately still not exceptionally painful to your wallet. 

Oceanfront and Oceanview property is surprisingly, dare I say, affordable? Or at least investable. A genuine oceanfront home that is eligible for nightly vacation rental usages can still be had in the single million dollar rage. 

A quality coastal property in general can still be found, in the half a million dollar range.

For quality, coastal real estate, that is hard to match on the Pacific side. I've sold nearly two dozen vacation rentals in the past two years, and as much as values have increased, there is still considerable investment opportunity on the Oregon Coast for a AirBnB or second home where costs are carried or returned. 

The challenge in 2023 with vacation rentals are reliable licensure and locating a a worthwhile and permittable property. Many of the coastal jurisdictions are smaller, and are increasingly creating more limited permit opportunities. Since 2018 the regulations have increased ten fold. No existing permits have been retroactively effected, but most do not transfer to new owners and the window of opportunity to own an STR on the Oregon Coast, like many other states is likely closing. 

There are some communities specifically designated for short term or vacation rental usages, and others where permits do formally transfer. 

In terms of ease of licensing and general investment opportunity our top three areas on the Oregon Coast to own an AirBnB for 2024 are:

- Florence Oregon

- Lincoln City

- Bandon and surrounding areas

In close runner up positions are:

- Nehalem

- Pacific City/Seaside

Some of these areas offer properties where licenses can transfer outright or be reliably obtained within days or weeks of closing. 

At present there are more licensable properties on market then were accustomed to seeing. Some of the increased inventory is likely attributable to the recently elevated mortgage rates. 

As rates move lower, we anticipate a rush to market as investors look to capitalize on reduced carry costs before competition intensifies. 

In general the dozen or so buyers we were able to support in acquiring a live short term rental for this year have performed beyond expectations. Several clients have reached SuperHost recommendation in record time and are looking to reinvest utilizing the same formula. 

Leverage options have been critical to luxury vacation rental sales for our clients in Oregon. Several investors utilizing the property as a part time second home and vacation rental were able to obtain very favorable financing with as little as 10% down on jumbo loans. 

We regularly used Bigger Pockets rental assessment tools to help us and our clients identify hot prospects and assess mortgage options.