All Forum Posts by: Kathleen James

Hi Emily, 

Vermont realtor here! I have had much more success with my Stowe investors successfully cash flowing than Ludlow investors. Stowe is more expensive, but commands a higher nightly rate and Stowe is busy year round, with the slow seasons being only November and April. 

Seriously, don't miss this one; Adam is a PRO! 

Hi Marissa,

I'd speak with a tax attorney, but a 1031 exchange should fix this problem. 

Hi Everyone! I wanted to update you on this legislation. H200 did not and will not pass. Instead, our legislature passed bill S79, which can be read here: https://legislature.vermont.go... This bill will just create a registry for short term rentals and will require rental properties to be inspected and approved by the Vermont Department of Fire Safety only if a complaint has been filed. There is no active legislation that will mandate that short term rental owners are Vermont residents. 

Unfortunately, this doesn't correct the market, and many are still priced out, but I'm hopeful that with the warm weather approaching we will get more inventory!

Please reach out with any questions!

@brian kantor, I heard! That's wonderful. You're really in great hands with this agent. Please feel free to always reach out with anything! 

Hey David, 

This is spot on. The number of people that we have flocking up to Vermont from New York and New Jersey (among metropolitan areas) because they can now work from home is astronomical! 

Hey again Brian! Each town up here has different zoning and permitting laws, so your best bet is to reach out to the town clerk's office of the town that you are considering creating this third unit in. The town zoning administrator will be a great resource to you, so definitely introduce yourself and let them know about your plans. 

 Regardless of location, you will most likely need to update your wastewater permit and septic system to have the capacity to support more bedrooms. Depending on the property, this can run you between $5,000 for upgrades to the current septic and/or well to over $20k for a whole new system. I think the best place to start is with the town clerk's office to start forming a game plan for what your specific town would need from you. A good wastewater engineer in the area (the town clerk's office will definitely be able to recommend someone!) will be a great contact for you at this juncture as well. 

@Adrian Tanguay that's HUGE! Hopefully soon that will break up some of the monopoly that Consolidated holds in the NEK and Stowe Cable olds in my neck of the woods and help the super rural folks who still have dial up!

I apologize everyone, I promised an update! The Realtor Political Action Committee, Vermont Association of Realtors, Realtor boards across the state and Representatives from all of the ski towns are very aware of this and discussions have been taking place in so many different forums. There are multiple petitions circulating against this. 

Many of us recognize that tourism is a huge part of our economy and we can't survive without it. We also recognize that we need the out of state owner's taxes to survive. Another factor that is brought up quite frequently is our need for more internet access, and with more people purchasing property in rural areas, we may have the money to create a better internet infrastructure. 

My representative has let me know that this is only a first draft of a bill. The language that we all find so troubling will likely be negotiated out. As of now, they have not set any time for this to come to a vote. I will keep you all updated when anything changes!

Hi Lauri, 

What area are you looking in? One thing I will say about Vermont is even before the eviction moratorium, it is incredibly difficult to evict tenants in Vermont. The law leans heavily on the side of protecting tenants.