All Forum Posts by: Lisa Graesser

I use the Hoover steam vac, never heard of using fabulosa. Is it specifically for carpet cleaners or just the general cleaning solution? I use it for carpets and tile. My main stains are traffic patterns and occasional pet accident. I love my steam vac, wouldn't live without it. 

The only thing I can think of that you should buy new are big screen smart TV's, other than that, if you can find nice quality second hand anything, that works great! If you can't find what you want Wayfair.com is a great place to puchase bedroom headboards, dressers, entertainment centers and dining furniture.
I would suggest leather(real leather, not bonded) furniture for the living room. Reclining furniture is a plus. Must have comfortable mattresses. We just stayed at a house that I thought the matress was so comfortable, when I checked to see what make it was, it was a memory foam topper(sleep innovations, 2-3" topper, put that on my list for future purchases) Nice soft  sheets, soft blankets, nice pillows for all preferences and have at least 3 per person available. Cotton towels. Put shelving in the showers to hold shampoos, soaps and razors(Command) makes great shelving for these accessories(Command Shower Water-Resistant, Clear Frosted, 1 Caddy, 4 Strips (BATH11-ES), 4.8 x 11.3 x 6", https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00H... ), makeup mirrors. supply in the kitchen anything that you would use in your own home.  I have done this for 3 homes, sq ft 1200-1700, cost between 10,000-15,000(1/2 of all puchased second hand). We did the last house in 10 days non stop(relaced floors, repainted throughout, furnished and accessorized).  Just consider whatever would make you comfortable a good choice.

Retirees, especially the snowbirds renting from 1-3 months love big screen tv's, full cable package with sports channels like ESPN and the golf channel and reclining furniture. 

This won't help you with your question, but I thought it was a coincidence, so I had to chime in! Our family just left the Las Vegas airport and are on our way to Mammoth. We are staying at a STR condo, through Airbnb. The main purpose of our visit is to get acclimated to the altitude to prepare us for a Mt. Whitney hike. While in mammoth we will be doing the Via Ferrata climb, the Bike park and some other hikes close by.

 Mammoth seems like a great destination. Good luck!

I manage 3 STR in Florida from NY. You need to have a great, reliable cleaner, a handyman and a list of people that you can call for something that comes up such as AC, plumbing or refrigerator repair. Then all you have to do is make a phone call. Use a lock on the door that can be accessed with a code. You can also puchase remote locks and thermostats that you can control from your phone. Don't let it intimidate you, you can do it. When things come up that need repair you just take care of it the best you can, as soon as you can and guests will be usually be very gracious. Worst that can happen is you have to pay for somewhere else for them to stay(say AC goes out, as has happened) and I paid for a hotel room while it was fixed and gave them a refund for dinner out.) They were very appreciative and were gracious because they knew I was doing as much as I could to take care of the problem. Go for it!

I do not list on airbnb, I have read more negative than positive threads regarding how they seem guest friendly vs. Host friendly.  I have several 30-90 day reservations, but these are basically all direct bookings. I have a no refund cancellation policy. I have had guest leave a few days early to beat the snowbird traffic in April from Florida and have had one guest who rented 60 days and notified me 2 days in advance that they were leaving 30 days early due to a family situation. I did not give them a refund, but if I could have rented it during that time period, I would have refunded them that amount. These are with direct bookings. I seem to have a different demographic than most of the regulars here. I cater to the retired population, snowbirds in the winter and most of my VRBO reservation are the younger generation, wanting a place to stay while visiting family in the off season. Most of you would probably be surpised to know that the majority of my inquires and reservations when I have availability come from Zillow. I think it may be due to my generation target. But if I were you @Bob Mueller Jr. I woud list on Zillow, the older generation love Florida and I think there is a comfort and familiarity with Zillow and you can book direct and make your own rules.

@Michael Baum yes,  VRBO will submit your taxes for you if you are in a state that allows them to. I don't know how it works in your State, but in Florida, you still have to submit(in my case monthly) the total amount of rent received and claim the amount of rent received from VRBO as exempt sales and  pay the tax on direct bookings. Even if I owe no tax from bookings outside of VRBO, I still have to claim and submit the amount of rent received that month, even if it is zero.

My booking was a legitimate direct booking, with an employee of a company on a work assignment.  A legitimate company sent me a check, because I dont take credit cards with direct bookings.

 Like @Paul Sandhu said, they would not send me the check without sending the W-9 and I dealt with accounting Dept of the company.

Avalara.com, they will submit you taxes for you for a monthly fee. I do mine myself so I can't speak for whether or not it is worth it. It is not difficult to submit your own, just contact your state taxing authority and they will give you the info you need to start. Congrats on your first booking!

I have a guest that is staying on a work assignment and her company did require that I send a W-9. As long as you are paying your taxes, I dont know why it would be an issue. Curious what anyone else has to say about it.