All Forum Posts by: Thu Pham

I own and manage a portfolio of STRs across the US. I purchased existing STRs that cash flow! I closed on one in SC last month and just completed this future booking conversion process.

Firstly, I would like to double down on everything Andrew Steffens mentioned 1000%.

One incredibly important question, how are the reviews from the current listing and is there anything with the existing furniture that would give you a bad review? If not, negotiate to buy it, get future cash flow secured, & take the next couple months to do the updates in between guests then get updated photos. P.S. Get a signed bill of sale including the furniture at closing for tax depreciation.

Communication is key! I would recommend matching old reservation rates and offering free gifts to secure good reviews and booking momentum. After you've completed some updates & have reviews start to increase your rate.

Feel free to reach out anytime if you have questions :)

Hey @Thu Pham, gratz on the new place! Joshua Tree is a bit of a tough market as there are a lot of STRs in the area.

Be prepared that your first year might be a little thin as you are new and need to build up some reviews to get rolling.

The interior is a bit of a toss up. One you have furniture right there ready to go but if you want to make some kind of major design change, then just let it go and get to work on the new look. You have 3 months (potentially) to get it all sorted which should be pretty easy.

If someone is selling a STR, that doesn't mean there are issues. There are a bunch of reasons people sell a property. Buying a new one, changing tactics to LTRs, etc etc. Look at the current reviews and see how people feel about the place. If it has a good review history, there probably isn't any issues with the place.

BTW - AirBNB is a platform where you list your Short Term Rental. Get it listed on VRBO as well. Those 2 will generate plenty of bookings if you have a great place and priced right.

If you want the furniture, just negotiate that and put it in the contract.

Could you lease it from them for those 3 months and operate under their permit till yours is available?

I encounter this semi often as I broker to buyers and also own a PM company so often have to do the same or similar transition as you are looking for, for my clients.  This is how I would recommend doing it:

First a caveat I am in Tampa, FL and do not know any rules or laws for CA or dealing with the permits for Joshua Tree.

1. After inspections and appraisal come back satisfactory make a new listing for the property. 

2. Block out the dates of future bookings.  The current owner will tell Airbnb/VRBO about the sale and the platform will refund and cancel the booking and provide the new booking link to the guest.  Please note they are not required to book your property so once they receive their refund they can and may book elsewhere.  Communication is key.

3. Service these guests along with any new bookings you receive.

4. Personally I would recommend purchasing the furniture.  Usually you can negotiate it for a few thousand and buying new costs about $20/ft.  I would use this furniture and the existing photos so I could go ahead operate.  You can then block out some time in slow season for a refresh and also indicate your plans in your listing. IE **UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP WILL BE UNDERGOING IMPROVEMENTS AND REDECORATING JULY-AUG 2025**

I hope this helps, good luck!

I am doing a Joshua Tree closing right now and the future bookings were negotiated into the contract! 

There's no reason for someone to charge you for these questions, and I'm a co-hosting company owner! To put it bluntly....if a company can't take 15-20 minutes and talk with an investor about the market and the possible purchase of a property, they're not a company I would recommend working with. Helping others and adding value should be at the top of their list, not making another dollar! If you want they're help applying for permits or getting contractors around, that's a different story, but general questions is what every business answers the phones for. 

BTW if you need a great PM/co-host company in Joshua Tree, reach out to me and I can send you some names.

You should pay them an hourly rate for all of this.

After all, there’s no guarantee that you will even end up buying a property or selecting them as your cohost. So you should definitely pay them an hourly rate for all pre-purchase time they help you with. Good luck!