Rental Investment Questions

[30abob]

This may sound unusual coming from a Realtor, but renting is not "throwing money away." It is simply an expense for housing...

Great point! I had a hard time wrapping my head around this when I moved here a little over 2 years ago. But, by my last estimate I've "saved" a quarter of a million dollars in potential lost equity by renting based on recent sales of homes I considered buying in 2007. No offense to my MANY Realtor friends but it really wasn't "a great time to buy" in 2007.;-)

 

[SHELLY]

....your naivet? is showing...which means you should not buy for 2 reasons:

(1) You used the word "investment" and "rental" in the topic when inquiring about purchasing a vacation home.

(2) You used the phrase "throwing away money renting" to describe paying a few grand for your vacation rental over the past few years. (There's LOTS of vacation homeOWERS who would give their left nut to be in that position right now.)

Go away and learn to crunch some numbers before you "invest" in anything.

BTW: I'm so proud of the answers and advice given by you all--brings a tear to my eye.

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[SHELLY]

No offense to my MANY Realtor friends but it really wasn't "a great time to buy" in 2007.;-)

...it depended on which side of the commission you were on.

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[Matt J]

Okay, assuming this is something you are wanting to get into then consider this.

Are you planning on retiring to the area? Will the house you are purchasing now work for that goal. Is it big enough, too big, is there an ominous undeveloped commercial property next door, etc. There are some sowallers that are currently in a house they consider way to big for themselves and want to downgrade. I won't call them out, but don't buy into the theory that bigger rents better. The opposite is actually true. Currently the rage with snowbirds is 2 bedroom units that they can house the grand kids in the second bedroom. This is also a fairly comfortable set up for your average family.

 

[30abob]

...it depended on which side of the commission you were on.

True that...

 

[Rather B Paddlin]

Okay, assuming this is something you are wanting to get into then consider this.

Are you planning on retiring to the area? Will the house you are purchasing now work for that goal. Is it big enough, too big, is there an ominous undeveloped commercial property next door, etc. There are some sowallers that are currently in a house they consider way to big for themselves and want to downgrade. I won't call them out, but don't buy into the theory that bigger rents better. The opposite is actually true. Currently the rage with snowbirds is 2 bedroom units that they can house the grand kids in the second bedroom. This is also a fairly comfortable set up for your average family.

SWGB,

You gave great information until the bigger does not rent better.

Our experience has been bigger books earlier , rents at a higher rate and has a much large demand relative to availability. Now bigger may not be the best choice for everyone because of other factors, but bigger rents much, much better.

 

[melscuba]

I know it's hard to hear these responses. I don't think anyone is trying to put you off as much as shed some light on the truth about a second home. I feel the same way you do. Every time I cross over the bridge, I feel like I'm coming home. I just somehow want a piece of my life to be anchored in SoWal. I can tell you my husband and I have done some serious number crunching over several years of market watching. I just can't ever make the numbers cover the monthly nut. I've heard people say they're breaking even or making profits. Maybe this is true, but I can't make it work with the spread sheet I'm using. The honest scenario we always come back to is, "What if it never rents?". We have to be good with that picture. As an owner of one home there always seems to be something coming up that needs our attention. It's the nature of the beast. Just keep that in mind. Your dream beach house will have the same scenario. We haven't given up on the dream, don't you either. Just look at all the angles before you jump. We've finally just said, "What the heck", and are now contemplating a full time move. I wish you the best a would love to hear what you guys decide. Have a great trip. We hope to be back down sooner than later.

 

[Smiling JOe]

Rather B Paddlin,

I'm not in the rental business, and I don't have any stats on rentals to know the answer to that question about bigger not renting better or faster or whatever. However, I have seen the larger homes in Grayton Beach sit empty for most of the summer, while the smaller homes seem to stay rented much more frequently.

 

[DreamnOfFL]

Well isn't this a happy group of people! This is the exact reason why I've only been a member of this forum since 2005 and haven't posted anything!
1) I didn't wake up one day and say .. "Hey I think I'll buy a property in my favorite vacation place" .. this has been 10 YEARS of coming there and thinking about doing this.. I stated that in my first Post.

2) Not a single one of you even know what I can afford. My primary home is completely paid for .. so as for a Mortgage here in TN .. That isn't an issue

3) Ever thought that I just might be paying Cash for my "Investment"?

4) The purpose of this post was to either make contact with or to have someone recommend a Real Estate Agent that would be willing to go over my Options (as in available homes and condos currently on the Market) But since I see that isn't the outcome I'm gonna receive, I will have to do that elsewhere.

So with that said .. to TooFarTampa .. Thank you for your kind words and tips.. When I do buy something.. I will implement some of them!

For the rest of you.. I'd go find a Dr to get that stick out that is shoved up ya wazoo :roll:

 

[scooterbug44]

We are a happy group of people and we take care of each other - which is why everyone was trying to make sure you had all the information and were aware of the negatives before making a big decision.

There are a lot of 2nd home owners who WISH they had gotten such "stick in the wazoo" advice, because they are currently finding it out the hard way.