All Forum Posts by: Jon Martin

Quote from @April Birdsong:

Update:  My floor guy came over and found original hardwoods under the carpet in the bedrooms. So I am just going to refinish them for $1500.  Yeahhhhh a wonderful surpise. 

Thanks again

 Now that's good news!

MInut has a low average review (mid-3s I think) on Amazon which is a bit of a red flag. 

1 per room at a total of $60/month sounds excessive for something that is not likely to be a common occurrence. As for noise, that is most likely going to be in the main living room or outside. I would do one in the living room and another outside mid-way between the living room and your nearest neighbor. 

Also, there are some others that have been recommended that don't charge per device but I don't know the names off-hand. 

Quote from @Calvin Thomas:

 Best to stay away from silly names.

 I thought it was for 420 friendly rentals 

Can you get away with 1 You tube TV account at more than 1 property?

Quote from @JD Martin:

I basically do the same thing and specifically tell them not to worry about bedding. Despite that, case in point- a guest decided to wash the comforter, with the duvet still on it . .. . Right before Helene knocked the power out for a week! 

So yeah, worth emphasizing more for them to do nothing at all aside from start the dishwasher. I do ask them not to leave trash laying around as well, however I'm not sure if this helps, because the types of people who do this will probably do so anyway. 

Quote from @Gregory Schwartz:

I'll probably get pushback on this... but here's my experience. I have 4 units, 2 have formica and 2 have quartz. There has been no noticeable difference between all 4, same income, same 5-star reviews. 

No pushback at all . . . I've listened to some analysts break down the top amenities and kitchens rank near the bottom. Bedrooms and shared/fun amenities are much bigger drivers. 

What I want are countertops that have a subtle slope built in 3-4" around the sink edge so that water drains naturally. 

Quote from @John Underwood:

I've heard horror stories of people putting in butcher block and people using it as a cutting board.

Isn't that kinda the point? I know someone who had trouble remembering to use a cutting board as an adult because they grew up with butcher block. 

Which to me sounds like leaving the house and forgetting to put your shoes on . . . . 

The Go Daddy vacation rental template was good enough for me and super easy. You don't need much. 

That said I tried to make a more extensive (yet not complicated) website on word press and it was a nightmare. Square Space is super easy and intuitive. 

Quote from @Patricia Andriolo-Bull:

This doesn't make any sense at all.  I can't even understand how they would know.  What if someone books through Airbnb?  They still charge you 10%?

Would not be a stretch to use AI or bots to do reverse image searches of your profile pics to scour the web for direct booking sites. 

@Mindy Nicol that's great! I find with larger homes that are big enough for wedding parties, reunions etc that I get a lot of bookings well in advance, with ~50% occupancy several months in advance. With my 2 bed I get a fair amount of advanced bookings but nothing like the 5 bedroom. 

IMO 2-3 bedrooms are the squishiest middle in most markets with too much overlap in guest avatar. I'd rather have a 1 bedroom that I can optimize for couples or a 4-5+ bed.