All Forum Posts by: Ben Scarborough

If you are open to investing in a coastal short term rental, I would highly recommend checking out the gulf coast of AL and FL. I'm biased, but you will not find prettier beaches in America. I am originally from Atlanta and the combination between the nature parks, cleanliness, and the friendliness of locals quickly convinced me to make the move more permanent in the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach markets. More specifically, Alabama is a great option for STR investors in general due to being ranked the 2nd lowest state in the USA in property taxes. If you are looking for appreciation, the market still has significant amount of room to continue to develop and several new constructions are in the works. If you are looking to avoid seasonality, you can count on the snowbirds to swarm in from the midwest from January to March. Several more reasons I would be happy to discuss... Feel free to reach out!

-Ben Scarborough

 Turnkey homes are the best way to get started in my opinion. Much less stress and gets your feet wet.

Welcome to BP! Would love to connect and discuss what kind of markets you are interested in to help get you started and see how we could help each other out. Feel free to reach out!

If you are open to investing in a coastal short term rental, I would highly recommend checking out the gulf coast of AL and FL. I'm biased, but you will not find prettier beaches in America. I am originally from Atlanta and the combination between the nature parks, cleanliness, and the friendliness of locals quickly convinced me to make the move more permanent in the Gulf Shores and Orange Beach markets. More specifically, Alabama is a great option for STR investors in general due to being ranked the 2nd lowest state in the USA in property taxes. If you are looking for appreciation, the market still has significant amount of room to continue to develop and several new constructions are in the works. If you are looking to avoid seasonality, you can count on the snowbirds to swarm in from the midwest from January to March. Several more reasons I would be happy to discuss... Feel free to reach out!

Caleb is an awesome agent and a great friend. Anyone who uses him is in great hands! Glad to see you are investing in the Gulf Coast. Pensacola is an awesome market!

Great to hear! It's beautiful and a very family friendly area, which we really love about it. Your property should appreciate nicely with all the growth potential in the area!

Absolutely! Happy to help. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

Yes, I definitely agree with everything you mentioned. Have you had a chance to familiarize yourself with the Fortified program yet? If not, here is a link to some additional info about it. You can save a good amount of money on insurance going this route. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

Solutions - FORTIFIED - A Program of IBHS (fortifiedhome.org)

Whether you are looking for your first or next short term rental, most of us can agree that finding the next great deal can take up a lot of our time. As time gets more valuable, it is important we are taking the appropriate actions to get the most out of our time. When it comes to researching a new STR market, the same holds true. Prior to wasting any energy on diving deeper into a market or running the numbers on a property, it is critical that we have a good understanding of the local ordinances/restrictions. Whether an HOA has a restriction on the number of STRs allowed in the neighborhood or local laws prohibit operating an STR in a specific zone, save yourself some time and get this information before getting excited about your 20% or greater return you may calculate on it.

Regulations can typically be found by looking through the city's Planning & Zoning page, and when in doubt contact the local licensing/permitting department and ask them if STRs are allowed at your specific property of interest! See below for the current STR regulations in place for Gulf Shores, AL as an example.

Gulf Shores, AL - STR Zoning Restrictions

Dwelling Units Licensed for Vacation Rental are allowed in...

- Single Family and Duplex Tourist Rental Overlay District

- BN, BG, BT, ICW-N, ICW-S Zoning Districts

- Multi-family uses that are designated for vacation rentals in Planned Unit Developments

Dwelling Units Licensed for Vacation Rental are prohibited in...

- AG, ATP, ED, IND, OS, R-1, R-2, R-3, R-4, and R-5 Zoning Districts

- Single family subdivisions in Planned Unit Developments

It is important to note that there are exceptions to certain properties that fall within the prohibited list. These exceptions can be identified in Section 6-18 of the Gulf Shores Zoning Ordinance Doc.

Another tool I have found useful in identifying properties to focus on is the Gulf Shores Interactive Zoning Map. Some features that can be utilized from this tool are filtering in the zoning map, searching for a property address, and filtering in the Single Family and Duplex Tourist Rental Overlay District.

What kind of STR regulations are unique to the markets y'all are looking at?

I know a fantastic agent in that area for you... shoot me a message if you are interested!