All Forum Posts by: Kimberly C.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions on brands.  Does anyone have a recommended model that they are currently using (or better yet) that YOUR cleaner has stated they like using?

Any suggestions on good washers & dryers that are up to the STR task for cleaners quickly turning over a house?

Long story long, I'm currently setting up 2 STR properties (these would be my first).

1 property is a 4/1.5 with a working washer & dryer

1 property is basically a 2/1 with no washer & dryer

I'm definitely getting a washer & dryer for the one property without them but before I pull the trigger I'm realizing that I should be thinking of buying a washer & dryer for the CLEANERS not the guests so much.

Same for the other property, thinking of maybe upgrading those if it would be cost-effective in the long run for cleaners to do laundry on site.

This is all new to me though so I'm not even sure if that's a wise solution or what's normally done for turnover with regards to laundry.

I do know just having an extra set of sheets, towels, etc will spend up the turnover (already planning on having this) but at the same time if I'm using a service that will have different cleaners in every turn...the laundry needs to get done somehow.  When does this happen?  How does this happen?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Yes, I have accounts in both and have gone halfway through then I get to a point where it says to publish or go live and I'm not really sure what happens when I hit these buttons.  There are no tutorials online that cover this exact step in the platforms as they are right now (they're all old).

Again, I'm simply looking for anyone who has gone through this process recently.

Quote from @Michael Baum:

Well both platforms have you essentially build the listing first before going live.

I can't remember, but I am pretty sure you can do all the work ahead of time and save it. It might even autosave based on your account.

Do you have all the ducks in a row for everything? Bank accounts, proof of insurance etc? Some thing I think you can't get until you get your places closed.

So are both places ready to list as is? Fully furnished, equipped etc?

Yes, all the docs are in place.

Furnishings are TBD but I have a general idea (and cart) in the works. There is already a buffer of time allocated to this before going live.

I’m simply trying to finish as much of the online presence, descriptions, details, instructions, etc because I have the time now to allocate to that.

I’ve searched online for tutorials on “listing” properties for the various portals but most are outdated (Airbnb has changed A LOT) and it seems like some of the finer tweaks that would make to a listing only happen AFTER it’s live and published.

If anyone has gone through a similar process of trying to input as much information to a listing as possible please let me know what your steps were.

My gut feeling is that I need to actually set it live but then quickly blackout the entire calendar so no one can book yet. Which seems totally unintuitive.

I'm jumping head first into STR and have 2 properties under contract. These would be my first STRs (I've only done LTR prior).

I'd like to start "working" on the listings in AirBnb and Vrbo without them going live just yet so I can learn the process sooner (rather than later) because I won't have much time once I close.  How would I do this?

Is there a way to start working on the listing information for each platform and filling out the details that I know now (like 90% of the info) and then just "save" the listing to be finished later?  The goal would be to have the listing info almost complete (minus photos) so that I can update the photos and go live as soon as the place is ready.

If there isn't a way to "save" a coming soon listing somehow then how would you go about prepopulating information for a property on AirBnb & Vrbo?  Would you just set it live and black out all the dates?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Quote from @Michael Smythe:

S8 is not the cure-all!

Many issues - just google for them.

I'm not saying it is.  Every PM will have horror stories of tenants and also amazing stories of the best tenants they ever had.

I'm not looking for a cure-all, I'm looking at options.  And having no experience in this area I simply want to connect with someone who does have experience to start a conversation and become more informed.

Quote from @Josue Rosa:

Many investors that have tenants with a Section 8 voucher enjoy the security of a government-backed check. 

Yes, that is the main reason I'm looking into Sec 8.  I don't have time to manage the property and even with the current PM company I'm doing a lot of work (what am I paying them for?).

My goal is to have something that is long-term and not have to deal with a lot of turnover.

Long story short is I rented out my Townhouse last year when I moved and chose the first PM company I could find (because I didn't have any bandwidth to manage any portion of that property).

A year later the tenants moved out and I'm dealing with my first turnover (which has been a pain).  I do have a little extra time to see if there is a better path/company to manage this property and started researching Sec 8.  There are pros/cons but overall I think the pros of going this route might just be easier long-term? I'm not sure though, so I want to ping the idea off a knowledgeable PM company or even just a person who can guide me in the right direction.

Finding Sec 8 information online is easy but I'm kind of lost on how to find an actual person who has experience with Sec 8 in the neighborhood where my Townhouse is. Any ideas?

As the thread title states, I'm looking to connect with CPAs or find a CPA that will help me not just with my REI journey but some other financial situations as well.

Some basic info:

-Live in CA (Orange County)

-Have a W2 job

-Have a rental in CA (LA County)

-Just recently created an LLC for my rental in CA (as of this year 2023)

-Am looking to invest Out of State for more rental properties

-Also have 401K, IRAs, stock, etc to further complicate my finances

I'm really looking to connect with someone who lives in CA or is REALLY familiar with how complicated taxes can be here in SoCal and not just with regards to real estate investing but also LLCs and capital gains with stocks (since I'll be selling stock to fund my down payments).

And to complicate my taxes even more is the journey I'm looking to make in OOS REI (haven't pulled the trigger just yet here but want to make sure I'm doing things right for out of state taxes as well).