All Forum Posts by: Jesse Howell

I have a potential deal in Katy Texas.  I have some other properties in different markets of Texas, but curious about Katy.  The deal is in Freeman ranch area and a newer build for LTR.

Anyone have any thoughts on this market?

Any recommendations for a property Management Company?

I'm going to do some more research of course, but figured I'd put up a post.

TIA

Quote from @Bruce Woodruff:

I'd put it up on Abnb, VRBO AND Furnished Finders....Why limit yourself? It sounds like an incredible property. Have you really run the numbers, with a worst case scenario as your basis?

Yes, I think that would be best to start and see how it performs for sure.  Maybe it could work more as an MTR in the off season with a lower margin, that would be nice.

Airdna says $360 a night with a 40% vacancy which would get me right around a break even amount assuming 25% management cost. I think that is low thought if the cottage down the street is getting $300 per night on the lower end and booked out a few months, but not sure. Nothing else this size/style in the area, everting else is in town, that could be really good or bad, not overly sure.

Quote from @Sarah Kensinger:

Reach out to @Aj Wong. He may know the area and if a property your size would do well or not. Sometimes it's really hard to know and it does seem like the smaller properties do better in situations like yours.

 Thank you for the help and thoughts.  I'll reach out to AJ to see if he can provide some feedback.

Quote from @Chris Watkins:

I think if you market it well, you could have a great STR on your hands. Plenty of wine country traffic with larger groups staying for a few days at a time. Likely highly seasonal, though, late Spring through mid-Fall. MTR in the winter months would be helpful, but as others have noted, it's not a great configuration for MTR.

You mention having a community lake, are you in a neighborhood with an HOA?

Agreed, I think with the right marketing and amenities it could do well.  A lot of potential if done correctly.  Yes, we have a low key HOA and board, mainly it just covers the lake maintenance and minor details of the community.  Everyone has 2-10 acres or so.  That is another concern is that currently there is nothing saying you can't rent your property, but I could see some neighbors making a fuss about it when they find out.  I'd hate to turn it into an STR and then have some new rule passed by the board afterwards.  Also, only owners are allowed at the lake or friends/family accompanied by owners.  That and potential parties or disrespectful use of the lake area is why I would not allow access, I know it would  be an issue very quickly.

Quote from @Collin Chan:

Definitely worth to try both in a hybrid if you can.  I don't know the Oregon scene too well however a house we purchased in Napa was a monthly vacation rental before and it was booked 8 months of the year.  It was smaller as well (2/1) so maybe attracted retired couples but with things changing, I'm not sure if remote workers might be interested in staying your location?  Most of our STRs have an office set up of some sort or a spot to work with monitors and we do find this attracts a lot of guests where someone needs to work while the family enjoys the activities.

Traveling nurses get a lot of the buzz around MTRs but displaced families from fires (Napa and Oregon do see a lot of these), other work force that can be remote or travel, or other potential guests.

Also, definitely use Airdna or one of the other sites that estimate your revenue to see how it would perform in your market and then look at other listings as well to see what amenities they offer to see if you could be competitive in your market.

Great thoughts.  I would definitely make sure the office is set up for a quality remote work site, love that idea.  Airdna says $360 a night with a 40% vacancy which would get me right around a break even amount assuming 25% management cost.  I think that is low thought if the cottage down the street is getting $300 per night on the lower end and booked out a few months, but not sure.  Nothing else this size/style in the area, everting else is in town, that could be really good or bad, not overly sure.

Quote from @Bonnie Low:

Without seeing the property, here are some thoughts. It really sounds like this property lends itself more to an STR than an MTR. It has a lot going for it in the STR department: location, close to attractions, amenities, ability to host large groups. As an MTR, a property that size probably won't work out for travel nurses - especially if you need it to generate $60k. The monthly rate will be too high for travel nurse budgets and the property is just bigger than they need. Rent-by-room with traveling medical professionals is difficult for a lot of reasons. You may do well marketing to Realtors for clients relocating to the area who need temporary housing. This also may make a good property for insurance placements. Both of these options are at the higher end of the rent scale and suitable to properties of that size and caliber. A lot of people use a hybrid MTR/STR strategy, especially if you're in a seasonal market. It just takes good calendar management so you don't end up with a random weekend booked as an STR that makes it impossible to rent out 30+ days.

Agreed, I think it's more suited to be a STR. I just like the idea of a MTR or hybrid model as it's less wear and tear, maintenance, management, etc. Networking with realtors for temporary housing as well as insurance placement is a great idea. Thank you for your help and thoughts!

Hello,

I have been playing around with the idea of turning my home into an STR/MTR, but not sure how well it would perform. My concern is the home is large (4,500SF with 3.5 acres) and about 15 minutes out of the city. The pro's are we are in pretty decent wine country, about 8-10 minutes from 2 very popular vineyards and around another half dozen smaller ones in the area.

We love our home and have a 2.25% interest rate so we don't want to sell it.  My idea would be to rent it out and buy another home each year while putting a long term tenant into each home as we move on.  Move back into our current home maybe 5 years down the road as we make updates and add amenities to it to increase the desirability and income of it, all while stacking other rentals.

There is a MTR/STR down the road that does very well, but it's a 2/1 cottage and caters to traveling nurses and couples who want to check out the vineyards. He shared with me that he does $3,000 to $3,500 for MTR and $2,600 to $9,000 for STR depending upon the season and is currently booked out about 4 months. It's a new build and very nice. Everything else I see, especially larger homes are closer to town.

My cost to break even I'm guessing with PITI, maintenance, etc., would be around $60k (conservatively) annually. I have some local mutli-family rentals and out of state single family rentals, but I'm not overly educated on MTR/STR space. I would love some feedback and or ideas from people in the space. TIA

Some property info:

- 4,500 SF home with 3.5 acres and 3 car garage.

- Home would be remolded and is a 5 bed 3 bath with a game room (one very small room that could maybe be a nursery or bunk room).

- Hot tub.

- Could leave one room as a gym.

- Wine country with a newly remodeled wildlife refuge area about a mile away.  Beautiful area.

- About 15 minutes to Salem and about hour from Portland Airport.

- There is a shop and community lake, but those would be off limits.

- There are also a couple pet goats in a fenced area haha

Quote from @Kyle Mccaw:

@Jesse Howell Insurance in Texas has been crazy this year. My go to insurance broker is @Cameron Moore with ProCo Insurance. He is a beast at getting the best covered for the best price.

 Thanks Kyle!  A couple people have referred Cameron.  I'm now covered for this project, but I had a conversation with Cameron and will be getting in contact with him on my next project.

Does anyone have any insurance agents or brokers they could recommend for central Texas. Doing BRRRR's in the area and my normal agent came back with what seems like a high quote on my current deal. I'm doing single family and small multi-family LTR deals at the moment...

Thanks!

Quote from @Chris Seveney:

@Jesse Howell

Go through the title company to create the note and deed of trust - I would let the seller know this is not a cash deal but you are financing the deal (getting a loan), as on the offer you probably noted you were using all cash.

 Called my lender and he explained the same info.  I called the seller/wholesaler and it wasn't an issue.  Thanks!