All Forum Posts by: Mitch Davidson

@James Dager: Perhaps join us at our next Asheville BP meetup. The meetups are casual, networking focused, and roundtable in format. Our second September meetup is next Wednesday morning at 9AM upstairs at The Rhu. No Need to RSVP, but you can if you want on meetup.com. And you can find a little more info there too.

@Lex Layton Great to hear! A really talented local investor, Christin Austin, will be leading the discussion. I'll be out of town, sadly. I'm happy to connect by phone in the meantime if you like, and to help you start connecting to some local money options. I'll DM you.

Hi @Lex Layton. I can intro you to some good local PM and HM lender options. And, a friend and I host two BP meetups here in Asheville, one on the evening of the third Wednesday and one on the morning of the fourth Wednesday. Our September evening gathering happened just last evening, with a dozen or so of us roundtabling about STR and viable options. Next Wednesday, we'll meet upstairs at The Rhu at 9AM, with a general focus on the same topic. Our meetups are intentionally conversational, networking focused, etc. And 200 or so of us have a local Slack channel as well. Beyond that, I would also highly recommend AVL Meetup and CREIA as well. I'm happy to discuss more if you want to message me.

@Erica Calella. Many of us here in WNC thought we were going to see a mass selloff in the Summer or Fall of 2023. because the first 2 quarters were surprisingly brutal regarding STR revenue and bookings. It didn't happen though, and I don't think it's because potential sellers reckoned they wouldn't have a buyer due to mortgage rates. After all, inventory was super thin and many of our markets are highly desirable for owner occupancy (i.e., not just STR). Also a healthy chunk of our sales are cash. If you can buy now, I would. You'll likely pay more later, due to the fact that a load of buyers may soon jump into the game when rates fall enough, as well as the fact that homes in our region appreciate at a pretty strong pace.

@Alessa LeSar: We have a couple private money lenders in our Asheville BP meetup network that would be eager to finance you. 

Hi @Caleb Bucklew. I'm happy to help you get connect to people, resources, and ideas here in WNC. For one thing, we have 2 BP meetups per month in Asheville. The second one for August happened this morning, so the next one isn't for a few weeks. If you DM me your email address I can add you to our invite list. You can also find our group by searching "Bigger Pockets AVL Meetup" at Meetup.com. Another great resource is AVL Meetup, which is a large monthly gathering with speakers, great networking opportunities, and a real estate focus. You can find more info at avlmeetup.com. And CREIA is the other major opportunity I would look at. They host a larger monthly meeting, some sub group meetings, and also provide great networking opportunities and education. Happy to discuss more.

Hi @Cory Churchill. I'm happy to share thoughts on Bryson City as well as other markets here in Western NC, including the greater Asheville area, if you want to set up a call. My family and I vacationed in Bryson City for 10 years before setting up an STR there in 2022. We recently sold it.

Agreed 100%. Personally like PriceLabs the best.

@Sebastian Sogamoso. I would highly recommend you get an agent to do a CMA on it. I'll message you contact info for a friend who's both an agent and an STR investor in and around Lake Lure. He's not acquiring more in the area anymore, due to shifted focus, but still has three 2/2 cabins doing really well.
Location: Sounds like it's almost in Hendersonville. I'm happy to look at it further if you want to message me the address.
Price: $200,000 is pretty amazing for anything in the region right now. Even an old doublewide. 
Washer/Dryer: That's easy to add, even if you don't have hookups yet. 
Basement: If it's unfinished, it might be best to lock it off, use it for storage and cleaning supplies, and only provide access when guests need to use the washer and dryer.
Size: 2/2 is enough space for most of the guest traffic there, especially if you can fit in a bunk bed.
Well water: It's super common here. Don't sweat it. I would get a water quality test though, included in your home inspection. And if the home is on septic, get that inspected too.
Fully furnished: Most of the time that means you've a few things worth using, perhaps bed frames and such, but still a ton to replace. What's good enough for a second home is often not attractive or special enough for STR, despite what we see in many STR listings. 
Lending: You bet. I can help with conventional, DSCR, etc.
Will message you now.

@Sebastian Sogamoso, I was about to say much of what @JD Martin said above. It's one of our best STR markets when you study it. I almost bought there myself a few years ago. There are many second homes there, meaning homes where the owners are content with a crummy PM making them a little bit of STR money in their absence, so it can be a challenge to weed those comps out of your study. I also don't think the appreciation opportunity is as great as communities a little closer to Asheville. Friends of mine do really well with cabins in the woods there, and stay pretty booked in the winter (for low rates of course), but they've had the homes listed for years. Meaning it takes a while to get the momentum going. And you have to work hard at making the home a destination in and of itself (ex: hot tub, outdoor lighting, heat umbrella, fire pit with wood, grill, sauna, games, arcades, books, great cookware, etc.). Also, properties on the lake cost 3-4x per SF and have a major downside for Dec 1 - April 1 or so: they see a giant mud bowl out the window because the lake is drained. You won't have that problem with a cabin in the woods. Final thought. I wouldn't buy anything that's more than 15 minutes from the Chimney Rock strip or otherwise the public beach. The drive down from the norther parts of Lake Lure, for example, is a long, slow, twisty pain in the neck. Your guests will hate it. And they'll have no cell signal or gas stations while they drive it, which can be another problem.