All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Styer

Hello @Chelsea Price, we take on properties here in Columbus without in unit laundry all the time. We find that our best course of action is to usually add hookups and units (it's less expensive than you might imagine). Doing this is an investment into your property and your monthly revenue. 

There is usually always somewhere you can stick at least a stackable unit - a closet, mechanical area, or even just a corner if no where else. We house a lot of people traveling for work, and the last thing they want to worry about is where and how to do their laundry. They often have to do it more than normal since they have a limited wardrobe, so for us this is a huge value add amenity. 

Hi @Elaine Hester, my PM company manages over 100 furnished rentals all over Central Ohio, about 80% of which are MTRs. Let me know if you'd like to connect to see if your property might be a fit for MTR. 

Is the place furnished? I would not suggest paying to furnish unless you're sure it'll work. You can check comps on Furnished Finder as well as 30+ day stays on other OTAs (AirBnB, etc.) to see if there appears to be a demand at a price that works for you. 

Happy to help @Michael K Gallagher! We do a lot of acquisition and management on the east side outside of 270. Reynoldsburg up to Westerville and through to Powell. The corridor between 315 and 71 is also great, as well as the northeast inside of 270, think 43229. 

We also do well with higher end MTRs more centrally located as well that bring in $4-$6k+ and are in high demand. It depends on the guest profile you're going for and your appetite for risk/reward, occupancy, etc. There are a lot of levers that we assess when analyzing properties. 

We try to serve as a one stop shop for our clients in acquisition and management, so we align ourselves because or management is commission based, we only help our clients buy properties that we believe will be successful. This serves as a win-win for our clients and management company.

Curious to hear what types of mid-term tenants are performing best for everyone lately. We've hosted a wide range in our units in Columbus, corporate relocations and travel nurses, but a big chunk of our bookings come from traveling tradespeople like electricians, welders, and pipe fitters working on regional infrastructure projects.

We've noticed:

• Tradespeople tend to book 8-24 weeks at a time, sometimes longer if the job extends (not uncommon).

• Insurance placements are generally higher paying but come with more red tape and longer setup times.

• Travel nurses are steady and reliable, but in some cases, price-sensitive.

• Corporate guests vary depending on industry. We've had good luck when there’s a relocation involved.

Columbus seems to be a strong draw for all of these guest types thanks to our hospitals, universities, ongoing commercial construction, and consistent job growth. I don't see it slowing down here, and we truly love the tradesperson guest profile. But, I don't want to lock in too much, diversity is a good thing. 

Who’s been your most consistent or profitable MTR guest lately, and how do you tailor your setup to attract them? Would love to hear how this compares across markets, and if anyone really niches down on their guest profile. 

All utilities, landscaping, maintenance, etc. are included in the booking costs for over 100 MTRs here in Columbus, OH. We wouldn't want it any other way as we have control to make sure everything is paid and well maintained. For properties we manage for owners, we put the utilities in our name so if there is ever a service issue, we don't have to involve the owner. 

Since we manage through our brokerage, we are able to operate with trust accounting and pay the bills directly from the incomes/reserves. Our goal is remove as many barriers for both our guests to book, and our owners to worry about their property. 

@Summer Chen If they aren't responding they don't want the business. Taking more than a business day to respond maybe you can let slide every now and then I would say as you never know whats happening on their end. Weeks to respond is unacceptable. 

I'd try calling them and just ask them straight up what is going on with the communication. 

I think you need to go case by case on MTR vs. STR. it's so property specific. There are multiple factors to consider, but from what I'm reading, you're better off doing STR if you're good with more turns. It's a risk-reward proposition and for us here in Columbus, I see a lot of saturation with STR, but we have very high demand for MTR so most of the properties in our portfolio wind up being mid terms.

We do this with specific properties in our management portfolio here in Columbus. If you're going to do this you need to do it with intention. Best practice is to operate as an MTR and backfill with STR guests because if you open up your calendar to STR guests without tight restrictions, you're an STR.

One booking 6 weeks from now really handicaps your ability to book MTR guests. 

You can also plan your calendar for the year with this in mind if you have a high seasonality market where STR crushes and then dies off.

You're going to appeal to a lot more people with a nice looking clean unit. If it can be tucked away and brought out then that could be a great amenity. If it's taking up space in the living room, I'd avoid.