All Forum Posts by: Sean Bramble

@Mark Miles same here in NY ... Catskills seem to be significantly slowing down vs pandemic times (30-40% decline this March/ April). Makes sense in a way - people coming from NYC/ Philly have deeper pockets ... I wonder if they're simply opting for flyaway vacations instead ... maybe they're even staying in Luke and Lisa's properties in Florida

I’ve noticed a few markets I’m researching seem to have lower revenues looking forward compared to 2020/2021 … curious to see if that’s more of a nationwide trend or not. What are you seeing in your markets this year? 

(be sure to tell us which market you’re referring to)

@Collin Hays absolutely fascinating - thanks for the history lesson on the Gatlinburg area. Question: what drove home values down so much? Did revenues take a big hit during 08/09/10? I know home values in the US generally declined during that time, but if Gatlinburg homes are more hospitality assets than housing I would imagine it was due to a decline in earnings? Would be interesting to learn if that area is as “recession proof” as some claim ..

Anyone out there willing to share some of their war stories? What went wrong? What did you learn from the experience?

A lot of us focus on the market cycle in the housing market … but you make a great point that the vacation rental market is different and can be in a totally different phase of things… and of course it depends on which particular market you’re talking about

one of the tricky things about STRs is that construction isn’t the only way to increase supply … existing homes can simply be converted. So the market cycle can in theory change rapidly with new entrants

@Brian Kantor just curious - how are you estimating revenue/ occupancy? Are you using other hotels/ motels as comps, or looking at Airbnbs in that area?

Also cheering you on! Please keep us updated! 👏🏻

Wow! Thank you everyone for the detailed responses. You all seem to be in agreement on this one

one follow up question for you: how many markets should I focus on? I’m hoping to balance finding a deal fast and not taking on too much complexity so that I can actually build expertise in the markets I choose.. seems like there must be a sweet spot somewhere 

Hey everyone - I'm looking for my first STR property and am considering expanding my search to include multiple long distance markets since my home market is super slow right now (upstate NY). I have a question about if and when you actually travel to go see properties you're interested in ... seems like it would be a huge waste of time and money to travel cross-country to see a property before your offer is actually accepted

Question for those of you doing long-distance investing: do you wait to visit properties you're interested in until after your offer has been accepted? And then if something is majorly wrong find a way to get out of the deal during the inspection period? Any advice would be really helpful ... trying to widen my lead funnel as much as possible

Agree - check out Proper. Plus there may be similar companies that have popped up by now offering competitive rates