All Forum Posts by: James Carlson

Thanks for the mention, @Tyler Howell . 

Hey @Charley Silverman. Awesome idea. There are some hurdles you'd have to get over if you're looking to do this in Denver. It sounds like you're aware of many of them. I am hosting a happy hour event on April 26 all about the Denver laws, but that's a bit away. Let's connect and chat. 

Also, I have a Swiss friend living in the U.S. with the same issue about having a credit score. I've talked to a few lenders about potential ways around this. 

Hey @Valerie Rogers. Good to hear from you. You've certainly got the expertise. Not sure if they're accepting new members on the committee or not. The members have been set for as long as I've been attending. You might check out the city's STR site. On the right side, under "Questions? Contact us" there's an email address through which you can reach them. (Not sure who that email goes to, but I've received responses from it before.)

And feel free to reach out any time if you have questions about what's going on. Cheers!

@Damian Solorzano. I just posted the next edition. It's on April 26 at the same place. You can see it listed in the Denver events section. 

What exactly can you do with Airbnb and short-term rentals in Denver?

We had a great showing at the first event. If you couldn't make it, come grab a drink in April and learn all about:

• The primary residence rule
• City enforcement efforts
• What insurance you need
• Duplexes, basements & carriage houses

Bring your questions! There will be happy hour pricing and (possibly) some light appetizers.

April 26, 2017
Capitol Hill Tavern
1225 Logan St
Denver, CO 80203

FREE. To register (or basically, to let me know you're coming), call or email:

James Carlson
720-460-1770
[email protected]

Congratulations @Billie Miller and @Luke Miller. Great story! It's so great to see the fruits of what this site is all about. 

Hey @Mindy Jensen . Sorry for the delay. Yes, I know about Longmont, but had a hard time tracking down the response I received from them. Here it is: "Renting a residence for less than 30 days is not allowed under our current code. This is explicit for accessory buildings (like a mother-in-law suite) and indirectly for primary residences by our use regulations."

That same zoning official did tell me that they're looking at short-term rentals for their code update but he wasn't the one with more info on that. Your question prompted me again, and I reached out to the person at Longmont who should have more insight into what the city plans to do. When I hear back from him, I'll let you know. 

@Rob Allmand. Welcome to Bigger Pockets. And welcome to Denver! If you love beer, you've come to the right place. You can't go far without seeing a brewery turning out interesting beer. Cheers!

Hey @Mindy Jensen. I will focus on Denver, but I know what many other cities along the front range have done or are planning to do. (It's actually a current project of mine to create a database -- or just a simple document -- with all the laws for the various cities. The cities don't make it easy to find this info.)

What city are you looking in?

Hey @Chad C.. It doesn't take too many short-term rentals to make a full-time job, both in terms of revenue and time spent. Between cleaning and laundry, responding to potential future guests and responding to current guest requests, it can add up quickly. If you want to scale, you need systems. A good cleaning person. A good management company. A good repair person on call. They'll take more out of you up front, but if you're looking at doing this full-time, you need to grow. And if you're doing everything yourself, you'll quickly hit a wall.

@Blair Russell. Great minds think (and spend) alike! @Michael Greenberg, I know you have some nice properties in Arizona. For the size of them, that sounds like a pretty good price. 

 Oh @Michael Greenberg, how embarassing to not know your deisign styles! ;) Shabby chic: pleasingly old with a slightly worn finish. Uh ... anyway. 

I totally agree with you about using staging items that won't necessarily be in the unit for the guest. Before taking photos, I always situate a couple bouquets of fresh flowers around the space and a bowl of fruit in the kitchen somewhere . Are they there when guests arrive? No. But they sell the space well in photos, and a guest has never left a review that said, "Love the space. Great service. But what about that bowl of apples?" 

You and @Blair Russell and @Nancy Bachety raise the issue about quality furnishings versus economic purchases. I'm interested in what people have spent. I agree that the IKEAbnbs are a bit overdone. That said, I love that store. I think it depends on what kind of space you're providing guests. Are you going for a higher-end clientele? If so, then yeah, IKEA's not going to cut it. But for a lot spaces, it's worked well for me.

I use a combination of Craigslist, IKEA and estate sales. I spent about $3,000 to furnish a tiny studio in Denver, and the same for a 1br condo in the same area. What about you guys?