All Forum Posts by: Andrew Steffens

How are you defining co-host?

Co-host is a feature of just the Airbnb platform and some do finances, some just respond to messages.  I just find it hard to find a singular definition of a co-host.

Points for thinking outside of the box!

I am in a beach market and most of my inventory is just off beach.  I think I would maybe consider this if this was on the beach and had a gym, pool, and plenty of parking and perhaps some chairs and items just for guests.  This would be tough.  Also the stretch of beach I cover is probably about 15 miles from North to South Pinellas County so even if it was dead center some guests may find it inconvenient and not use it.

I think this could work in a highly centralized and compact market like maybe Key west.

On top of @Michael Baum's great recommendation you could find a STR group on FB for Blue Ridge area and probably get some good local recommendations there. Definitely do not overedit the photos - that leads to complaints and possible bad reviews.

As for influencers - If you build it they will come.  I manage about 65 units and several times per month someone reaches out trying to exchange a free stay for posting about the property.  I would caution you to not fall for this, I think it rarely works.  I would not consider this unless it was a super unique and expensive property and an influencer with clout in the local area and tons of followers. 

Good luck!

@Trent Reeve you definitely can cashflow a 10% down loan, I find those for my clients often! It may be a little thin but definitely possible.

@Andrew Sangar - @Erin Spradlin and @Michael Baum brought great points, you definitely want to bring your A game.  It sounds like you may (and I could be wrong) be jumping in a little fast.  You can not simply buy a nice place and expect it to automatically be successful.  Spend time on here in the previous posts for every step of the process (market identification, property selection, underwriting, furnishing, management, best practices, and more).  Best of luck and do not hesitate to reach out to me or almost anyone else on the forum for advice. 

I see you post similar posts semi - often.  Are the regulations changing that frequently there or is it just my imagination?

Unless you are an aspiring, amateur, or even pro designer I recommend hiring one. A few thousand extra will yield a better product and save you valuable time and will offer a positive ROI in the long run. Pro design, pro photos, pro management - unless you consider yourself a pro in any/all of those categories.

Im a PM, however my market is stable, growing even.  You should focus your efforts on areas that are also growing, or ride the wave of lower ADR until it stabilizes.  Not sure what else to recommend, maybe add some additional revenue sources vis-à-vis concierge services etc. 

I imagine FL has somewhat similar numbers, as 2021 was peak COVID and people wanted outdoor activities in states that were open/fairly open for business. I at the time owned 9 STR's. I was guilty of renting out half renovated houses furnished with used staging company furniture, basically I was making a killing doing the bare minimum. when the gravy train slowed I had to decide whether to deck out all of the houses or reorganize in some way. I sold off for a profit a few and improved what I still have today. The ones I hold continue to do well. Moral of the story as supply stabilize(s) to current demand levels the creme rises to the top and continues to prosper as the rest will sink to the bottom and inevitably exit market making room for others with proper expectation to provide and adapt to current market.

Nice! Maybe a dumb question but does the app only work on iPad or also iPhone?

There are some pretty knowledgeable non-CPA's here, but I would double check any answer with a CPA to be 100% sure