Are there any snowbirds here?

[tink]

Congrats on your first day. We are currently in Orlando ourselves, but just for the week. We leave for home in the morning.

How long are you renting for? How did you go about finding the place? Did you go through a realtor or find it on your own?

Steve- we have a second home in Florida (Disney area) that we purchased as an investment property. We visit it as often as we can for vacation and when we are not present, we rent it out (advertise on VRBO and the like). I’m no where near retirement so we’re not snowbirds, but if you have any questions about buying, renting in the Disney area, I may be able to help.

[MatthewDouglas]

I decided to be a permanent snow bird and moved from the North shore of Boston to Charleston South Carolina. I'm 31 and my wife is 28. My parents are coming down to visit mid February. They dream of being snowbirds.

[disneysteve]

I'm spending a few weeks with family, then renting for 2 months. I used VRBO (on my own) for the rental. I actually booked it last June and it seemed that rentals were a bit picked over.

Did the owner give you a better rate since it was a longer term rental? Or did they still charge you the same nightly rate as if you were renting for a week?

[disneysteve]

Steve- we have a second home in Florida (Disney area) that we purchased as an investment property. We visit it as often as we can for vacation and when we are not present, we rent it out (advertise on VRBO and the like). I’m no where near retirement so we’re not snowbirds, but if you have any questions about buying, renting in the Disney area, I may be able to help.

I've looked into doing exactly that a few times over the years and could just never make the numbers work. If we get a place, we won't be renting out. I mean we might let friends or family use it from time to time but we won't be advertising it to strangers.

[disneysteve]

permanent snow bird

I think that's an oxymoron .

[MooseBucks]

I've looked into doing exactly that a few times over the years and could just never make the numbers work. If we get a place, we won't be renting out. I mean we might let friends or family use it from time to time but we won't be advertising it to strangers.

How much of the year do you expect to spend in FL? What makes you so adverse to renting the property out?

[greenskeeper]

I've looked into doing exactly that a few times over the years and could just never make the numbers work.

Renting it out and still using the property when you visit could easily be a vacation home that earns money

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I guess some people hate being locked into one location for vacation homes?

[Jluke]

Renting it out and still using the property when you visit could easily be a vacation home that earns money

Isn’t there a rule for a rental property that the owner can only use it for a certain amount of time (2 weeks??) out of the year?

[bjl584]

I'm kind of thinking that would be the way to go for a variety of reasons. Once we are back home and settled, I need to sit down and crunch some numbers and start giving it some serious thought, as well as checking sites like those Jluke mentioned to see what's out there.

They found the listing through a Realtor on the MLS. The property was owned by a single woman, who couldn't keep up with the payments. They talked her down quite considerably from the original asking price. It was an all cash purchase. Upon taking ownership, my stepdad did several updates to the house. Put in all new flooring and paint. And ran a new gas line to the back patio for his grill.

The property is in a gated community about 30 minutes drive from the Gulf Coast. 2 bedroom, 2 bath. Open floor plan/patio style home. There is a HSA fee for lawn maintenance, street cleaning, etc.

[bjl584]

Isn’t there a rule for a rental property that the owner can only use it for a certain amount of time (2 weeks??) out of the year?

Depends on who the realty company that manages the property is.
Typically, there are blackout periods during peak season that will prohibit the owner from using the property. There can also be, as you said, time limits on how much they can use it.

[rennigade]

I guess some people hate being locked into one location for vacation homes?

If you would crunch the numbers I dont see how owning a vacation home could ever make sense...unless you rented it out which is a whole other can of worms...and a whole lot more effort.

[moneybags]

Isn’t there a rule for a rental property that the owner can only use it for a certain amount of time (2 weeks??) out of the year?

Depends on who the realty company that manages the property is.
Typically, there are blackout periods during peak season that will prohibit the owner from using the property. There can also be, as you said, time limits on how much they can use it.

The rule is in regards to income tax, it is not dependent on the realty company. You can rent your property for less than 15 days without having to report on your taxes.

[moneybags]

Did the owner give you a better rate since it was a longer term rental? Or did they still charge you the same nightly rate as if you were renting for a week?

I got a 20% discount. I think the owners can set their own discount rate for long term rentals. If we do this again next year (depends on how this year goes), I will look at some of the resources on this thread and book early!

[disneysteve]

What makes you so adverse to renting the property out?

I think initially we would want one of two things. Either a) an extended rental from someone else or b) a place of our own. I'd lean toward a rental at first just to explore the area, make sure we're happy there, and figure out where we want to settle long term.

Why not buy a place and rent it out? That's not the point here. If we buy a place, we would want it to be ours. How we would furnish, decorate, and supply a rental is entirely different than how we would furnish, decorate, and supply our personal home. We wouldn't want to have to pack up all of our personal stuff every time we leave because the place will have strangers living in it while we're gone.