All Forum Posts by: Michael Greenberg

@Andresa Guidelli

PM me and I can give you contact information for a friend of mine who is working for a large public financial firm to build out their STR lending platform.

Best,

Mike

I would reach out to Shared Economy CPA's (do a web search) - they're very competitively priced, excellent CPA's, and no-frills.

Best,

Mike

I found a website called GetApp that allows you to compare up to 4 apps for features and functionality (thought I'm not sure how outdated this information is) but it displays a list of features that seem to apply.  Worth a look-see for the specific features you may be looking for.  

I agree with @Mike V., Amazon's hotel collection are great, I also ordered from JC Penney's as their deals on linens is great if you time it right.  I also agree with @Luke Carl comment - do what you can to get renting now.  As for Black Friday - ELECTRONICS are going to hit crazy low numbers so if you need Google or Amazon products for "smart" home features, I would jump on those deals.

Thanks @Tim Schroeder and @Sid Payne.  I may be going back into the tech sector soon and will need the day-to-day stuff covered.  I appreciate your thoughts and input.

Best,
Mike

Thanks @Tim Schroeder!  So do you think it's worth the monthly investment?  It seems that it takes the headache out of a lot of the daily monotonous tasks.  Are you using any of their "pro" features?  

Hi @Lee L.,

Initial thoughts - design, pricing, photos, reviews and patience! There is an odd thing about listing STR's (I just listed another one) in that it takes a while to rent consistently. I took a brief look at your property and I would recommend a number of items. First thing - what does MarketMaker and your competitive set look like on HA? Are your rates competitive? It matters when you're just getting started - get your rates down below your comp set and raise them later. If you're using market maker, adjust the slider to occupancy and accept the changes in pricing. Second - the place looks pretty dated in your photos. I would also consider moving the bunk bed out of the living space or at least get it out of your photos. I would consider hiring a professional photographer for a few hundred bucks and if you're willing to make the investment, get the furnishings updated and consider a kitchen overhaul. You also need more photos and details. The back deck looks very appealing, how about some furniture and a fire pit with some cool Adirondack chairs? Maybe have some friends spend the night and get them to review your property - it matters and you need some 5-star reviews. Final note - stay patient - it's hard to do when you're starting out but it is worth it in the end.

Hope that helps a bit and I'm sure you'll get some additional feedback here from the BP group!

Mike

Hi @Sid Payne,

I was a focused Airbnb'r until last year (though always ran both VRBO and ABB). That shifted this year as for whatever reason I saw my ADR with Airbnb starting to erode as my market in Arizona became more saturated with STR's. I also found that my larger homes were getting more attention on VRBO and I was able to get paid in advance (cash is king), whereas Airbnb sits on the guests cash until they have checked in, then it takes even a few more days for them to transfer the funds to me (or you can pay them to send it earlier - BS in my opinion). At times it can be challenging to manage two many of those nuances anyway. So for now, my focus is VRBO/HA and my secondary option is Airbnb to fill those extra "lower rate" available days. I would recommend experimenting in your market with both and if it becomes too burdensome, you can always dump Airbnb.

Question for you about OwnerRez:  What's missing?  What do you have to manage yourself?  Do they support both ABB and VRBO with the same feature set?  Are you using their premium features and are they worthwile?  I am considering an off-load of the day to day management.

Best,

Mike

Done!  Thanks @Mike V.

@Sean Wilt VRBO/HA allows you to upload your own agreement and my experience has led me to "you can't be too careful" with STR's. While no agreement is iron clad, when there is a dispute/disagreement I want to be able to share that with a guest. I've also had people question the agreement which raises a red flag for me (similar to having common area video cameras installed - what are they trying to hide ?). I believe it might also bring a more responsible group and flushes out some of the riff-raff.