Jul 29, 2019
I was asked about three years ago if vacation rentals were a good idea and my answer was based on the numbers at the time. My answer was “only if you want a vacation home and want a little help defraying some of the expenses.” I did not believe it to be a money-maker. That all changed - probably within the next 18 months as short-term rental sites such as VRBO, HomeAway and AirBnB took over. AirBnB dominates this industry and provides an interesting alternative for travelers while at the same time represents significant earning potential for the owners and operators.
The growth of AirBnB and in fact this entire industry has been phenomenal and it seems that the company founders have handled this explosion with a good plan, solid management, and responsive leadership.
But it hasn’t been and isn’t going to be problem free. Some of the neighbors to these properties have begun expressing concern, filing complaints with governing bodies, and even worked to get an outright ban on the short-term rental industry. This poses some interesting legal questions in terms of private property rights and has set the stage for battles that may take years to resolve.
Short term owners are uniting to fight back. Joining me today are Pat Odell, Executive Director of STROAGA, the Short Term Rental Owners Association of Georgia and one of her Board members, Rich Munroe, who was on the show recently. This group was formed to be an advocacy group seeking balance, reason, and respect for property rights in defense of the short term rental industry. They will join us shortly.
I have some questions stacked up to answer and we are going to get to some of them today as well.
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Guest: Pat Odell and Rich Munroe
STROAGA.org
Lawsuit mentioned: May vs Morgan
Matt Dollar Cobb County GA
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- Character and reputation
- Not necessarily the lowest fees, but not more than 10% either.
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- They handle the eviction.
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- Serena, Jacksonville, FL, “I’m about to buy a property to put into AirBnB service. I am concerned about the future with all of the legal issues coming up. What would you do in this situation?”
- Rashidi, Marietta, OH, “I am looking at an older house to buy and got ahold of the survey. The house appears to be sitting about 8 feet in front of the setback line from the street. I look up and down the street and this house is no closer to the street than any of the others. How can the survey be correct? And if I buy this property will I have to tear it down or will I be allowed to expand it. I was going to take the roof off, put on a second floor.”
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Motivational Thoughts for the day
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“I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars.” - Og Mandino