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All Forum Posts by: Patricia Andriolo-Bull

Patricia Andriolo-Bull has started 29 posts and replied 426 times.

As others have said, I don't have design dilemmas per se, but at first I struggled with finding quality / cost conscious pieces.  Over time, I have go to staples and with resources like Minoan, I've brought the price down a bit.  I'd love to source from Craigslist and FB like @Michael Baum but have often struggled.  I find pieces when I don't need them and don't find them when I do.  We even got a storage locker to keep things I find but that became expensive, too 😊

I'm now not afraid to spend a bit more on finding the design I'm looking for.  It attracts a different guest.  

Post: A possible first STR property?

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313
Quote from @Tomoko Hale:
Quote from @Patricia Andriolo-Bull:

Agree with others that 20% is fair.  Regarding your other questions:

  - If the going value is $260/SF, why would you pay more than that?  This is like buying any other property, it is valued at whatever the market is.  Maybe a bit more furnished unless other properties are also selling furnished. 

- WRT income, at a minimum it has to cover all of your costs plus some for unforeseeable expenses.  What are your goals for this property (e.g. why are you getting into this)?  Will you also be using it for yourself, future appreciation, etc?  This could help decide if the income is enough.  How much do you expect to invest?  I usually look for 10% return if not more.


 Thank you. So 10% return for the cash for the first year? Is that what you mean?


 Yes, 10% Cash on cash return.  Some people are okay with less others wouldn't touch it for that much.

Post: A possible first STR property?

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313
Quote from @Tomoko Hale:
Quote from @Patricia Andriolo-Bull:

Agree with others that 20% is fair.  Regarding your other questions:

  - If the going value is $260/SF, why would you pay more than that?  This is like buying any other property, it is valued at whatever the market is.  Maybe a bit more furnished unless other properties are also selling furnished. 

- WRT income, at a minimum it has to cover all of your costs plus some for unforeseeable expenses.  What are your goals for this property (e.g. why are you getting into this)?  Will you also be using it for yourself, future appreciation, etc?  This could help decide if the income is enough.  How much do you expect to invest?  I usually look for 10% return if not more.


 Patricia,

Thank you for the reply. So this property will come with all of the furniture and they looks fairy new. So the the value of the house is $260/SF but the seller is trying to sell it at S$296/SF because of the furniture. I

My goal is to have a cash flow.


 I don't think you should pay a premium for the furniture but that's just me.

Post: A possible first STR property?

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313

Agree with others that 20% is fair.  Regarding your other questions:

  - If the going value is $260/SF, why would you pay more than that?  This is like buying any other property, it is valued at whatever the market is.  Maybe a bit more furnished unless other properties are also selling furnished. 

- WRT income, at a minimum it has to cover all of your costs plus some for unforeseeable expenses.  What are your goals for this property (e.g. why are you getting into this)?  Will you also be using it for yourself, future appreciation, etc?  This could help decide if the income is enough.  How much do you expect to invest?  I usually look for 10% return if not more.

Post: Scam/fake inquiry of vrbo property ??

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313
Quote from @Lauren Kormylo:

Agree with the others, it's definitely a scam, so report it to Vrbo as such through the app, no need to call them.  You will get others too, since you're new.  It's likely a scam anytime they sound like AI or the grammar is weird or they use the word "kindly", if they ask for you to respond to them off-platform, if they say their employer will pay for it, if they ask if the dates they've specified are still open (when they can clearly see they are open on your calendar), if they ask for a video of your property (they probably want to set up a duplicate listing with your photos and video and scam others out of money), or if they want a long term booking and they have just joined the platform and have no reviews (could have been evicted from somewhere else, and hope a newbie will let them in with no background check, they'll end up not paying or credit card is bad).  


 This!

Post: For owners, self management vs hiring a vacation rental company?

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313

I have 3 properties but they are 4 listings (I also rent 2 of them together). I also had one in the Dominican Republic that I sold last year. I used a PM in the DR because it was just easier, especially with the language barrier and definite distance issues but I did co-host the listing on Airbnb. I self manage the rest. I would agree with what others have said. I am local to the other 3. When I had one, I was still working full time but it was manageable. The cost of PM here is between 20 - 30 % and frankly, while they can drive occupancy, they often have lower rates and less attention to detail (I worked with one when I transitioned a new property that was previously PM managed). The workload has more than doubled with the 3 I have now (and I am technically retired). I enjoyed hosting but it is getting tedious as my portfolio has grown. I have people coming and going on a regular basis. While I don’t clean the units, I am still very hands on. I enjoy the guest interaction for the most part but I have to always be on. People arrive at all hours. People don’t always know how to use lock boxes, things break, the unexpected happens. All this to say, it is work. 

Post: Pricing Strategy - What is your approach?

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313

Strategy vs. Tools?  I see both answers here.  I just started using PriceLabs (still on a free trial, will see if I continue using it).  From a tool perspective, nothing should be set it and forget it.  Like others have said, know your market.  Look at your competitors then adjust regularly.  From a strategy perspective, I market in the top 75-85% of the market.  I furnish and provide amenities that warrants this so I do a lot of work to find comps in this particular space.  I also find that if I am booking out too far in advance I am likely priced too low.  I price higher far out and bring my prices closer to market as dates get closer.  I look at average length of time for bookings by season and try to stay within that space.  Lastly, I'm having a bit of an issue with PriceLabs base rate pricing accordingly for far out stays vs. closer stays (e.g. I've had to override Christmas 2025 to make it higher because PriceLabs has it too low...but if I increase my base rate, the other dates are off...this may fix itself over time as PriceLabs learns my occupancy and rates, not sure).  Also, nightly stays should be adjusted based on your specific pricing strategy as well (e.g. longer stays further out, shorter as dates get closer or gaps exist).

Post: PMS Software to Link 2 Separate VRBO Accounts

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313

I use OwnerRez but not for this.  They do have a property management function that maybe could assist with this?

Post: How to screen guests who book directly instead of Airbnb, VRBO, etc

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313
Quote from @Thanh Lu:

Thank you, appreciate the insights. 

How do you set up/collect the security deposit hold? Not sure if you have a single STR or manage a portfolio, but I'm only managing one STR right now, and wondering how to set up that kind of payment? Do you collect cash via PayPal/venmo/Zelle and then refund, or use credit card payment process to allow the guest to pay the deposit by credit card?

What Shannon said. I have 4 listings and I use OR. They take the security hold for me through my Stripe account. In the past I’ve also accepted Zelle or other means. 

Post: Anyone owns OMG category?

Patricia Andriolo-Bull
Posted
  • Posts 436
  • Votes 313
Quote from @Collin Hays:

Looking forward to the responses on this!


 Same!  I would love an OMG category but I'm so far from that.