Excessive rental rate Hawks Nest on the Beach??

[Mermaid]

...and just think about the entertainment value of watching everyone get stuck in the sand, from the comfort of your front porch with nice cold beverage in hand.

Hmm, with 24 people stuffed inside the house, I think there'd be greater entertainment value inside the house than out. ;-)

 

[KISH7374]

And it doesn't even have a pool!!

 

[DBOldford]

Our Conch Out sleeps 24, has a pool and panoramic views of the Gulf from almost every room, is right on the main Grayton beach access, and has all kinds of extras. It rents for $5,600 per week during the high season weeks. Our rental manager says that the houses that have kicked their rents up astronomically have had problems renting and have had confirmed renters trying to change to other homes. Consequently, they now want to lower their price and have the rental company go back to entice potential renters. I think $10K per week for that house is far too expensive. Being that close to The Red Bar would not be a plus, in my book, not to mention being on that bad curve. The owners have the house for sale now and they may have upped the rental rate to reflect a higher potential revenue than is really possible.

Yes, owners have experienced increases in wind insurance, property taxes, and utilities rates. I would say that our annual costs have increased by some $7.5K attributable to those factors, as of this year. We've also had increases in costs for housekeeping and other services. I think renters have come to expect incremental increases in rents. But when a house basically doubles their rent, they had better have a better reason for it than granite countertops and HBO. It is unreasonable for new owners to expect that they will recover all their debt service through rentals with prices and interest rates where they are today.

Keep jacking that rent up, fellow owners, because all your renters are standing in line to rent our house as an alternative. Two weeks ago, we had three deposit checks for the same week in 2007, and made the decision to allow the repeat renter to have the house. The others chose other weeks. Never had a better year and already getting fully booked for summer 2007.

 

[Jdarg]

Our Conch Out sleeps 24, has a pool and panoramic views of the Gulf from almost every room, is right on the main Grayton beach access, and has all kinds of extras. It rents for $5,600 per week during the high season weeks. Our rental manager says that the houses that have kicked their rents up astronomically have had problems renting and have had confirmed renters trying to change to other homes. Consequently, they now want to lower their price and have the rental company go back to entice potential renters. I think $10K per week for that house is far too expensive. Being that close to The Red Bar would not be a plus, in my book, not to mention being on that bad curve. The owners have the house for sale now and they may have upped the rental rate to reflect a higher potential revenue than is really possible.

Yes, owners have experienced increases in wind insurance, property taxes, and utilities rates. I would say that our annual costs have increased by some $7.5K attributable to those factors, as of this year. We've also had increases in costs for housekeeping and other services. I think renters have come to expect incremental increases in rents. But when a house basically doubles their rent, they had better have a better reason for it than granite countertops and HBO. It is unreasonable for new owners to expect that they will recover all their debt service through rentals with prices and interest rates where they are today.

Keep jacking that rent up, fellow owners, because all your renters are standing in line to rent our house as an alternative. Two weeks ago, we had three deposit checks for the same week in 2007, and made the decision to allow the repeat renter to have the house. The others chose other weeks. Never had a better year and already getting fully booked for summer 2007.

:clap_1: :clap_1: Well said Donna!! And good for you for picking the repeat renter!

We walk around town alot and always notice that there are a few "big" houses sitting empty. It's the 2-3 bedroom houses or well-priced larger houses like Donna's that seem to have renters every week.

 

[bl2005]

While I agree that the house has nice amenities, a 64% increase in rental rates seems high. Although, watching people get stuck in the sand was fun!
I am not aware of any houses in the same area that rent for that amount.
People come to SoWal because of it's quaint old town atmosphere not
to get a bargain. I am all for the owner's getting a fair rate it just seems
that they might be pricing their home a bit too high--Pride of ownership and all. As far as getting a different clientele--we are the clientele that any owner would appreciate. Families just looking for a nice place to stay
while vacationing--minding our own business--not trashing houses. We love
the Grayton area and love Hawks Nest. We were all excited about staying there
again until we called to re-book and found out the new rate. At $10,000
for a week- we just can't justify staying there again.

 

[Mermaid]

While I agree that the house has nice amenities, a 64% increase in rental rates seems high. Although, watching people get stuck in the sand was fun!
I am not aware of any houses in the same area that rent for that amount.
People come to SoWal because of it's quaint old town atmosphere not
to get a bargain. I am all for the owner's getting a fair rate it just seems
that they might be pricing their home a bit too high--Pride of ownership and all. As far as getting a different clientele--we are the clientele that any owner would appreciate. Families just looking for a nice place to stay
while vacationing--minding our own business--not trashing houses. We love
the Grayton area and love Hawks Nest. We were all excited about staying there
again until we called to re-book and found out the new rate. At $10,000
for a week- we just can't justify staying there again.

Try Donna's house then. It's Conch Out. I've been in it and can vouch for it--it really is a lovely house and it has a pool, too. You'd enjoy it!

 

[TooFarTampa]

Heck, we already have a place up here and I want to book Conch Out for a week next summer!!

I will attest (and I'm sure SHELLY will agree ) that the market rates for rentals and what owners are currently paying due to higher mortgages, property taxes and insurance have absolutely nothing to do with each other. When there are so many houses to choose from, you can increase your rents only by so much. Those of us who don't have "destination" type homes are very much affected by what else is out there. Renters do not care how much wind coverage costs. The good news is I think we got it right pricewise this year and we learned a lot. We had great people in our home and arrived this week to a lot of nice notes in the guestbook. Keeping renters happy and getting them to come back is definitely an art. Way to go Donna and others on this board whose words of wisdom I have used this year!

 

[DBOldford]

Thanks, everyone for your kind words. We really value our renters and some of them have actually stayed in Conch Out longer than we have! But we love it that so many families (and even the Atlanta Ski Club) think of the house as their own beach house at Grayton. Shucks, it makes me sad that the house sits empty as many weeks as it does. The way I see it, if you lose one or two rental weeks because the rent is too high, you've undermined yourself. The name of the game is overall revenue. I love it that our shoulder seasons are filling in with visitors who appreciate those special qualities. We have even considered offering a lower rent for the house during the off-season, for smaller groups. For example, Conch Out would make a wonderful spacious townhouse for two couples or even a honeymoon couple...great views and location and their own private pool. I absolutely adore being there all alone, just floating down the stairway to coffee on the deck with the birds and a view of the Gulf. Like having one's own little hotel.

Another thing that works for us is offering the house to our housekeeper and her family during one of the off-season weeks or long weekends (when they don't have as much work), just with the understanding that they will clean before leaving. Costs us nothing and is a great incentive for your housekeeper to think of you as a priority. These folks work so hard and few of them can afford vacations at SoWal unless it happens this way. We have a new housekeeper who is just wonderful. Even the guests comment that they've never rented a cleaner house. I wanna keep that wo-man!

 

[Mango]

I agree Donna that the homes that have raised their rates dramatically will have problems renting. I did raise my rate this year, but it was no where near what this house has increased. I just brought it up to market.

We had the same problem years ago where we rent in the Northeast. Houses kept getting sold and the new rates were raised dramatically, but due to shortage of rentals, people paid the prices. Owners can not expect to recoup their expenses on any investment property, and I agree this was a large increase and I didn't realize right away this house was being sold. That's probably why the large increase, although it may not rent at that price.
I guess time will tell.

Funny, I almost bought the lot next door to this house, but was concerned about being so close to the Red Bar and on that turn too.

 

[Rather B Paddlin]

I agree Donna that the homes that have raised their rates dramatically will have problems renting. I did raise my rate this year, but it was no where near what this house has increased. I just brought it up to market.

We had the same problem years ago where we rent in the Northeast. Houses kept getting sold and the new rates were raised dramatically, but due to shortage of rentals, people paid the prices. Owners can not expect to recoup their expenses on any investment property, and I agree this was a large increase and I didn't realize right away this house was being sold. That's probably why the large increase, although it may not rent at that price.
I guess time will tell.

Funny, I almost bought the lot next door to this house, but was concerned about being so close to the Red Bar and on that turn too.

Mango,

Sorry, I disagree.

Yes - owners can expect to cover their expenses. If you select the right house, right location, right amenities and manage it yourself; the house indeed will cash flow positive. There are good deals on the market right now that will cover their own costs. Think big (8-10 bedrooms), think private pool, think 1st tier gulf view, and think not trendy. The numbers will work.

RBP