The honesty is appreciated Rob. We do the best we know until we know better. Market conditions have changed and as you guys have mentioned that business plans need to change with current market conditions and you are doing just so. Cheers!
Absolutely right Rob. I came to same conclusion ... I enclosed a porch and converted to bedroom to drive a 30% increase to the bottom line. Worked so well that my next project is an attic conversion at same property.
Same. I have a rental where I already converted the basement into a 1br while still able to rent the second floor as a 3/2. Now I'm looking at this back yard that I PAY ppl to just cut the yard. and I'm like why don't I add a carriage house unit there and rent the top unit as well as the garage spaces. It would be cheaper doing this than buying a new property.
Check rules…my husband is an appraiser in Virginia and ceiling must be a certain height to be considered square footage. He recently appraised an 800sqft house and well over half couldn’t be counted in the square footage!!! This rule went into effect a few years ago in our state. So check your rules before converting so you don’t loose out on that square footage when you go to refinance or sell!
My client in real estate lost her 4th bedroom upstairs, even with a bathroom and 2 closets. Why? It didn't have central heat n air and she just had window unit. Thank Lord! She was still able to sell it even for less profit.
Thank you for this video. Makes a lot of sense to max out your profits with less properties. Less headaches and less debt. I'm not a huge fan of the idea of collecting a mountain of debt to receive a trickle of cash flow. Lately I'm leaning more towards owning rentals free and clear - no more debt and max cash flow.
My takeaway was early in the video...focus on improving the property or properties you have until they're where you want them before buying more real estate. Each property should have some type of improvement plan, which is really an ongoing process, because trend change. I think that makes sense. Focus on the improvements until you're ready to expand.
Great to see you back on TH-cam Rob. I love the one-take, stream of consciousness type edit (non-edit) style. Do more of these. As far as the strategy you are espousing in this one, I'm with you 100%. I have 8 doors and I've been upgrading them continuiously since the pandemic. My revenues are up on a yoy basis every year and nearly every month on a mom basis over 7 years. I continue to think of things I can do to improve. I hired an interior designer - something you never talk about on this show but for me it has been my best investment along the lines of what you're talking about here - particularly in conjunction with professional photography. I tried it for one unit at first and was so blown away with the uptick that I did all of them. Now I'm focused on outdoor spaces and experiences. No more units, just better units. No additional management overhead, just more revenue from the existing management. No more hassles with STR permits, etc just optimizing what I already have. As of yet, I'm not seeing an end to the potential of this strategy. I'm sure someday I will. Then when I buy another property I'll go all in right from the beginning, confident that all the upfront improvement cost will produce a return. I think you just graduated from a host to a developer. You are developing property to increase your return.
You’re right, I would also add that people get sucked into using the business income to support their lifestyle, rather than maintain or upgrade the property. I’ve learned patience in investing, and to take what the market is giving you. Truth is, you can make 15% yield or more on dividend investments now, and do nothing for it. When I was able to finance at 3% and make 50% to 100% cash on cash in real estate, I went all in, but now, people are buying property at zero cash on cash return. Makes no sense.
One of my favorite videos from you Rob! I would love to see more videos from you analyzing what you're doing at each of your properties and why you decide which option for each property. Seeing the direct reflection in the numbers is very enlightening and reassuring.
It is interesting. I read some articles showing that in the 1980s when interest rates peaked last, real estate investors found the best ROI by building extensions to their homes to add more rooms or guest houses. This is instead of buying new places in high interest rate environments. If contractor prices continue to get more reasonable then this might be reflecting in what you are preaching here as well.
Rob has never talked about the inevitable STR killer and that is community pushback. Every city that is plagued by STRs (Coachella valley is the best example) ultimately chooses to ban or limit STRs. The fact is local communities get fed up with homes operating as motels in residential areas. Once locals start pressuring govts to enforce zoning laws, this will truly be the end of STRs. No one wants to live next to an STR.
@@s.flandersStrs are typically 28 days or less (target are vacationers). Mid terms have a different target, typically professionals like traveling nurses (this is very niche group of renters). Rob only mentions pivoting to mid term due to economic slowdown. But the biggest looming threat is community pushback and I’m surprised he had never mentioned it. In the CA desert area of Palm Springs where I live, the resentment is so high nearby cities have voted to ban them in large margins. Neighborhoods have also put rental caps on contracts per year. There also enforcement officers with 24 hour hotlines for noise and parties. 3 strikes and ur license is suspended. All the neighbors know exactly which homes are STRs and they do get banned after violating 3 noise complaints.
I pulled my money out of the stock market to get into real estate and starting to wonder if I made the right decision. My investment made 20% last year and I didn’t have to lift a finger. This real estate stuff is a lot of hard work!
Your cash on cash comparison (adding amenity vs adding door) is interesting but you’re not considering the long term appreciation of adding another door. Adding an amenity may have a superior ROI in the short term, but adding another door will allow more portfolio appreciation in the long term. This math might be worth considering.
At 40 doors its probably not really an issue. At some point limiting your downside becomes more important. You can always put another loan on the same properties if you really want to leverage more. The extra income will help you qualify for it.
If you’re doing that math, you need to factor in the time value of money too. How much is a five year $100k appreciation worth month on month in today’s money vs the additional monthly revenue you generate and reinvest by optimising your existing portfolio?
Totally agree, the hot tub as an example, you might get the return he mentioned but you also have to maintain and eventually replace the hot tub. I also agree with what Rob is saying. I would think a lot would depend on if you are trying to get more money now or looking for long term wealth building.
Totally agree. We add game rooms and hot tubs to our units in Colorado. They outperform our competition. I’ve been trying to figure out what other types of amenities to add. Sauna, pickleball, mini golf?
great video rob, i enjoy the funny editing style videos but please keep making more of these casual/direct uncut style like todays. keep it up love seeing you on BP too
I added frisbee golf course! Way cheaper than a pick ball court! My house sucks compared to others in the area but im 90 percent booked. Gotta get creative
We're in a pickle like this too. We have a 2/2 cabin that we bought for 469k in Gatlinburg that does ~70k annually. We've kicked around buying another place, 1031ing this one into a 4 bedroom, or just adding 2 more bedrooms to this cabin. Looks like upgrading the cabin we have is probably the cheapest and easiest way forward.
Hey saw your comment…I grew up in Knoxville so ofcourse visited Gatlinburg a lot. I bet your rental does great there. My daughter and I visited the area around Christmas and it was crazy!!! I moved to Virginia and live in Virginia Beach and I would say here, Sandbridge and the Outer Banks are also great investments if/when you decide to pick up more!
This is great information! The past few Airbnb's I've stayed in were so tired looking and dated. I walked into one thinking someone had gone to a yard sale to furnish the place. Also, the wall outlets were loose and the deck (which had a beautiful view of the ocean) was splitting and cracked all over. We had a wonderful stay for the most part, but I left thinking that the owner(s) really didn't care about the place and wishing such a beautiful location was reflected in a beautiful home. The house had terrific bones overall, but the inside left much to be desired. So many opportunities there. Another house, the offsite owner stored his car (under a tarp) in one of the two parking spaces, so we had to park on the street. What?
I had neglected rent increases and was focused on adding. I took a step back and worked on rent increases and things are a lot better. Small portfolio but very healthy
It is very smart to squeeze the last drop out of your portfolio before jumping into another property. It is just hard when we are all engrained with the growing mindset.
I completely agree with everything you said here. Maximizing your return is much harder in some ways then going out and buying another property. It requires ingenuity and analysis which not everybody can do or wants to do.
This was a very interesting video. I especially liked the insight into AirBnB. Short term rental acquisition has always been a mystery to me because of ongoing transistion of the investment type as well as ability to exit the property. Your video was very helpful concerning the challenges you have faced in this space.
I'm in the process of buying a property, but I've never ever cared about door count. What I care about leveraging existing assets and NOT overlevering them and building a house of cards. Love your podcast but always feels like the advice is overleveraging which can build a fragile system that if the economy drops, everything you have collapses. I'm building a stable portfolio that brings in stable funds, but won't collapse if we have another COVID event, or 2008 financial crisis. I like what you're saying in this episode. BTW another tactic I have is to take my cash/funds and put them into high yield dividend ETFs that provide enough monthly cash to help pay down my debts, or carry them if times get tough. I call it the circle of life, because it one area has an issue, I have a completely different area to back me up to keep my life going. :)
We were planning to rent and then buy property and build ourselves a house this summer. Renting part of a duplex from an elderly couple. They decided they wanted to sell and offered it to us to rent to own for $350k at a reasonable interest rate. We jumped at it. They are basically charging us what they paid for it in 2018. Various websites like Zillow etc put the value over $450k. If we can still buy property and build this duplex could bring in $60k annually on Airbnb.
I’d love a video on this too. I was totally against doing Arbitrage for the first 5 years I was buying properties. I decided to finally try it via mid-term rentals with nurses last year with 2 apartments in a 4-plex. Did ok for the first year and then travel nurses stopped coming. So unfortunately I gave my 30 day notice at the end of February and as soon as my nurse leaves the other unit in May unless something changes I will be giving notice on my other arbitrage unit. It sucks it didn’t work out but I don’t want to start losing money if they stay vacant. At least if I have a bad month with a property I own I’m still building equity in MY property. So no more arbitrage for me. I’ll stick to just buying. And even then I’m doing what Rob’s doing and concentrating on the properties we already have. Especially with the outrages prices and the high interest rates. The STR market and mid-term market have really changed over the past year.
Nice to see an influencer say how hard something is for a change. Problem with the bubble we are currently in is the mondset that money is easy and investments should pay off fast.
Great point on maximizing the revenue from existing investments. Curious to hear your thoughts on building your guest email list to do direct marketing and re-booking campaigns. Rather than waiting for Airbnb to throw you a bone and get you more bookings, you can increase revenues by selling to the people who have already stayed at your place and loved it. Some cool companies helping STR owners do this.
Really good video, Rob. I’ve been thinking the same thing for the past several months. Wondering what I can do with what I have to increase revenue and occupancy. I still work my W-2 job which pays me really well, raising a family with two small children and still trying to keep up with everything else in life. To your point it’s always a time crunch because so much of my time is spent with work and raising my family to where all of the things you described to just acquire and then kick off a new property is a lot. I do think you’re in a different situation than the best majority of us though. With 40 short term rentals, you probably should pay more attention to your portfolio and optimize it. For those of us with five properties or less, Then I think we still want to scale just a bit more. Again, great video, and it really resonated with me. It is extremely hard to find the balance with running my short term rental business, staying successful in my career, being a husband & father, and staying on top of myfitness.
That is a great point. I wish you had some more on long term rental. But I love the concept. And think of the value the unit is for resale. Great epiphany. It actually gave me one as well. My only problem is gonna be. I spend all my money on me, but I’m 71. And all my properties are paid for. But you are so right so right. However, just saying I would like to put a syndication together and do a tiny home community for fun. Do you want to invest? I know a good spot..
Thanks for the suggestions #Robuilt... How about for the test of us with HOA'S and condo/Apts style props.? I heard your photographer ideas... That was a good suggestion.
Excellent! Wendy and I are on the same track. We are nearly done renovating the main house on one of our glamping properties, a $12k investment. It most likely will earn all of it back by June.
I want a tee shirt like yours. I come for the terrific info and insights but then get wowed with the merch. The Restoration Hardware airplane desk has been a fave of mine since it came out. But who is the player and where can I get the shirt. I play guitar ever single day.
One of the advocates for getting more units instead of increasing margins for your existing properties, is risk diversification. If you have 200 units making $300/month, having a few units being down for maintenance or other issues wont impact your revenue as much as having 60 doors making $10,000/month and then having a few units being down for maintenance. There's a balancing point of course, but I agree that solely focusing on quantity over increasing return on existing properties is not the ideal route, especially since it costs a lot of overhead and time to source new opportunities than just increasing margins on existing properties.
That’s where I think some serious ROI can come from. They don’t let us add ADUs where I’m at otherwise that would be something I’d be all over! I’d be ADUing like crazy 😆🤣
Rob, you are 100% on the money! We've been investing back into our "Farmstay" for the past two years. We're doing great compared to our competition in Northern AR.
Thank you for being transparent! This is a real dose of truth and honesty. Greatly appreciate all you do for this investor community. It’s good to hear how you are pivoting and strategizing as the market changes for your portfolio!
I'm wondering if there is a tipping point in terms of doors, where itt makes more sense to improve what you have rather than buy another door. Does this strategy make sense when you have 1 door? How about 5? Its unlikly that I will double my revenue with an improvement to the one door I own. Its is likely that I will double it woth another door. So where is the point at which it makes sense to stop aquiring doors, and just improve what I already have?
I’ve seen a big influx in AirBNBs buying our wallpaper murals lately. I even had one guy have us make 10 custom (Hollywood themed) wallpapers. I couldn’t figure out why this was happening all of a sudden. Now I get it. 😅
Kia ora Rob, this video is awesome. I totally get what you’re saying and where you’re going with this model. I have 3 bed 1 bath house on a 45,000 square foot R20 zoned property in Hawaii that I’m in the process of subdividing and at the same time I’m adding a ADU to the front lot where the existing house is. I’m doing exactly what you’re describing. The equation is simple, I can owner build a 800 square foot ADU on my land for less than $200k or I can buy another investment property for about $400k, Hawaii prices, and get the same return. No Brainer. I would love to connect with you if at all possible my friend. Nga mihi, Andrew.
Hahaha The problem here is not real estate, it's the person. Yeah if you're into "keeping up with the Jones" then real estate is a bad investment for you...and so is everything else. Nothing will ever be enough. Nothing you buy, invest return, relationships, etc.. That's a social media lifestyle. It's horrible, never going to be happy long term way to live. I'm old as dirt and I know other real estate investors who are old as dirt. Our investments are as boring as dirt. We're not making videos on social media because we out looking for deals. Boring deals. We think it's fun, but it wouldn't be exciting on social media. Short term rentals have been almost 100% people with no experience in real estate. It's mostly a social media thing. Believe it or not short term rentals have been around for decades. Mostly in vacation markets. We already know how that works. You get a huge rent, but not 365 days a year and it's a lot of work. It's pretty close to running a motel. If you're the first in an area you make good money, but it's not long before others see you making money and they jump in. Long term your profit will depend on how good you are at running a motel. It's a very hard job, high risk, not super profitable. A good solid job. There are many examples of the "next new thing" being very profitable at first, very hot. Then everyone jumps in and margins fall and people who aren't good at doing the job go broke. Remember how hot Ebay once was? Making money selling on Amazon was easy money once. Driving for Uber was once high profit and today you're a cab driver. Long term rentals are boring and keep paying a return.
Maximizing doors was a good objective when financing was super cheap. Most important overall though is how much time the income will cost the investor on a recurring basis. That will be the ceiling of scalability until you employ good help. I don't pay much attention to gross income because I don't think of it as income until the expenses are deducted. Otherwise, like door count, it can introduce extraneous emotions to my decision making
the online community of real estate investing as a whole reminds me of high school popularity clubs. it's become about clout and followers rather than actually helping other investors grow.
Such a great watch! The section on understanding cash on cash return in real estate investing for optimal financial gains really got me thinking. For fellow multifamily investors, our channel is packed with invaluable insights and strategies.
The honesty is appreciated Rob. We do the best we know until we know better. Market conditions have changed and as you guys have mentioned that business plans need to change with current market conditions and you are doing just so. Cheers!
Absolutely right Rob. I came to same conclusion ... I enclosed a porch and converted to bedroom to drive a 30% increase to the bottom line. Worked so well that my next project is an attic conversion at same property.
Same. I have a rental where I already converted the basement into a 1br while still able to rent the second floor as a 3/2. Now I'm looking at this back yard that I PAY ppl to just cut the yard. and I'm like why don't I add a carriage house unit there and rent the top unit as well as the garage spaces. It would be cheaper doing this than buying a new property.
Attic conversion! Great idea!
Check rules…my husband is an appraiser in Virginia and ceiling must be a certain height to be considered square footage. He recently appraised an 800sqft house and well over half couldn’t be counted in the square footage!!! This rule went into effect a few years ago in our state. So check your rules before converting so you don’t loose out on that square footage when you go to refinance or sell!
My client in real estate lost her 4th bedroom upstairs, even with a bathroom and 2 closets. Why? It didn't have central heat n air and she just had window unit. Thank Lord! She was still able to sell it even for less profit.
Thank you for this video. Makes a lot of sense to max out your profits with less properties. Less headaches and less debt. I'm not a huge fan of the idea of collecting a mountain of debt to receive a trickle of cash flow. Lately I'm leaning more towards owning rentals free and clear - no more debt and max cash flow.
My takeaway was early in the video...focus on improving the property or properties you have until they're where you want them before buying more real estate.
Each property should have some type of improvement plan, which is really an ongoing process, because trend change.
I think that makes sense. Focus on the improvements until you're ready to expand.
Unless of course, 2019-2021 happens again, then build your portfolio just like Rob did.
Great to see you back on TH-cam Rob. I love the one-take, stream of consciousness type edit (non-edit) style. Do more of these.
As far as the strategy you are espousing in this one, I'm with you 100%. I have 8 doors and I've been upgrading them continuiously since the pandemic. My revenues are up on a yoy basis every year and nearly every month on a mom basis over 7 years. I continue to think of things I can do to improve. I hired an interior designer - something you never talk about on this show but for me it has been my best investment along the lines of what you're talking about here - particularly in conjunction with professional photography. I tried it for one unit at first and was so blown away with the uptick that I did all of them. Now I'm focused on outdoor spaces and experiences. No more units, just better units. No additional management overhead, just more revenue from the existing management. No more hassles with STR permits, etc just optimizing what I already have. As of yet, I'm not seeing an end to the potential of this strategy. I'm sure someday I will. Then when I buy another property I'll go all in right from the beginning, confident that all the upfront improvement cost will produce a return.
I think you just graduated from a host to a developer. You are developing property to increase your return.
You’re right, I would also add that people get sucked into using the business income to support their lifestyle, rather than maintain or upgrade the property. I’ve learned patience in investing, and to take what the market is giving you. Truth is, you can make 15% yield or more on dividend investments now, and do nothing for it. When I was able to finance at 3% and make 50% to 100% cash on cash in real estate, I went all in, but now, people are buying property at zero cash on cash return. Makes no sense.
One of my favorite videos from you Rob! I would love to see more videos from you analyzing what you're doing at each of your properties and why you decide which option for each property. Seeing the direct reflection in the numbers is very enlightening and reassuring.
Excellent presentation, Rob. Thank you for the transparecy, and valid next steps,
Bro everyone stopped in 2022 you were the only one left 😂
Huh, Care to elaborate on this.
Please provide your podcast that showed that you did differently
@cjspencer5396 You area are you in? The prices are the competition.
Agreed. Most deals have t penciled for a while.
lol
It is interesting. I read some articles showing that in the 1980s when interest rates peaked last, real estate investors found the best ROI by building extensions to their homes to add more rooms or guest houses. This is instead of buying new places in high interest rate environments. If contractor prices continue to get more reasonable then this might be reflecting in what you are preaching here as well.
good job on the one take, all the info was just as valuable as a cut up version. appreciate this!
Rob has never talked about the inevitable STR killer and that is community pushback. Every city that is plagued by STRs (Coachella valley is the best example) ultimately chooses to ban or limit STRs.
The fact is local communities get fed up with homes operating as motels in residential areas. Once locals start pressuring govts to enforce zoning laws, this will truly be the end of STRs.
No one wants to live next to an STR.
Hasn’t he said he prefers mid-term rentals? Are those as vulnerable to that kind of pushback?
@@s.flandersStrs are typically 28 days or less (target are vacationers). Mid terms have a different target, typically professionals like traveling nurses (this is very niche group of renters).
Rob only mentions pivoting to mid term due to economic slowdown. But the biggest looming threat is community pushback and I’m surprised he had never mentioned it.
In the CA desert area of Palm Springs where I live, the resentment is so high nearby cities have voted to ban them in large margins. Neighborhoods have also put rental caps on contracts per year. There also enforcement officers with 24 hour hotlines for noise and parties. 3 strikes and ur license is suspended.
All the neighbors know exactly which homes are STRs and they do get banned after violating 3 noise complaints.
I pulled my money out of the stock market to get into real estate and starting to wonder if I made the right decision. My investment made 20% last year and I didn’t have to lift a finger. This real estate stuff is a lot of hard work!
I've been a professional RE for 15 years and I wish I stayed in the stock market. The juice isn't worth the squeeze.
WOW!!! The real Rob is back. Where have you been buddy. Finally some real content.
no more content about how great airbnb is. airbnb jocks done!!!
Hope he stays
Your cash on cash comparison (adding amenity vs adding door) is interesting but you’re not considering the long term appreciation of adding another door. Adding an amenity may have a superior ROI in the short term, but adding another door will allow more portfolio appreciation in the long term. This math might be worth considering.
At 40 doors its probably not really an issue. At some point limiting your downside becomes more important. You can always put another loan on the same properties if you really want to leverage more. The extra income will help you qualify for it.
If you’re doing that math, you need to factor in the time value of money too. How much is a five year $100k appreciation worth month on month in today’s money vs the additional monthly revenue you generate and reinvest by optimising your existing portfolio?
That is a good point, but adding amenities can also increase your property's value, therefore increasing, or forcing appreciation further.
Totally agree, the hot tub as an example, you might get the return he mentioned but you also have to maintain and eventually replace the hot tub. I also agree with what Rob is saying. I would think a lot would depend on if you are trying to get more money now or looking for long term wealth building.
Totally agree. We add game rooms and hot tubs to our units in Colorado. They outperform our competition. I’ve been trying to figure out what other types of amenities to add. Sauna, pickleball, mini golf?
Property Investment requires property management...
great video rob, i enjoy the funny editing style videos but please keep making more of these casual/direct uncut style like todays. keep it up love seeing you on BP too
I added frisbee golf course! Way cheaper than a pick ball court! My house sucks compared to others in the area but im 90 percent booked. Gotta get creative
This is my favorite TH-cam channel. Thanks for adding value every time, Rob!
We're in a pickle like this too. We have a 2/2 cabin that we bought for 469k in Gatlinburg that does ~70k annually. We've kicked around buying another place, 1031ing this one into a 4 bedroom, or just adding 2 more bedrooms to this cabin. Looks like upgrading the cabin we have is probably the cheapest and easiest way forward.
Hey saw your comment…I grew up in Knoxville so ofcourse visited Gatlinburg a lot. I bet your rental does great there. My daughter and I visited the area around Christmas and it was crazy!!!
I moved to Virginia and live in Virginia Beach and I would say here, Sandbridge and the Outer Banks are also great investments if/when you decide to pick up more!
What is the name of the photography company you use
For your short term rentals. Thank you for your great info.
Eric Barkhurtst! His Instagram is @barkhurststudios.
What app is that at 11:39?
BEST ADVICE I ever heard! Amazing! Thank you Rob!
Yupppp 2024 is all about guest experience, amenities, being cost efficient to have extra margin to stay occupied while making those bands
Do murals or wallpaper add any value? I know they’re not anything major like a pool or a tree house but is it worth adding it?
Yeah I think so!
Totally resonates with me. Thing is, I have fun with real estate when I'm setting it up the way I want, more than just the money. Fun is underrated.
Adaptation is the key to survival. It's great that you recognize the need to pivot.
This is great information! The past few Airbnb's I've stayed in were so tired looking and dated. I walked into one thinking someone had gone to a yard sale to furnish the place. Also, the wall outlets were loose and the deck (which had a beautiful view of the ocean) was splitting and cracked all over. We had a wonderful stay for the most part, but I left thinking that the owner(s) really didn't care about the place and wishing such a beautiful location was reflected in a beautiful home. The house had terrific bones overall, but the inside left much to be desired. So many opportunities there. Another house, the offsite owner stored his car (under a tarp) in one of the two parking spaces, so we had to park on the street. What?
Great Advice, Rob! It absolutely makes sense, squeeze the profit out of the assets that you already own.
I had neglected rent increases and was focused on adding. I took a step back and worked on rent increases and things are a lot better. Small portfolio but very healthy
It is very smart to squeeze the last drop out of your portfolio before jumping into another property.
It is just hard when we are all engrained with the growing mindset.
Did you increase the nightly rate when you add these amenities? Or was the profit increase just from more booking only?
Awesome video! One take videos are good. They are low maintenance and feel more down to earth rather than being overly flashy.
I completely agree with everything you said here. Maximizing your return is much harder in some ways then going out and buying another property. It requires ingenuity and analysis which not everybody can do or wants to do.
Funny you mention this now. I just had a similar realization as to why I don’t leverage what I currently have versus constantly scaling new things.
Solid transparency! Do you buy all your properties in LLC using DSCR loans?
I have 6 doors. Each of my houses has 3 doors. 😂
Great video and spot on with what we have found in our business as well. Improve and do more of what’s already working before adding more.
So add pickleball courts, MiniGolf, or tree houses ? How about if those are not options due to location or space ? Any other ideas ?
Better design, better photography, better indoor amenities like game rooms, theater pools, pool tables, foosball tables, shuffleboards, Pac-Man barrel arcade, murals, etc.
I’ve been saving up for an airbnb and note the cities near me have banned it. I really had My heart set in one particular city 😢
"Everybody has a plan, until they get punched in the face."
-Mike Tyson
Thank you Rob to share your experience as you go, at the end of the day the one who adapts the fastest survives, thank you for sharing, this is gold!!
Thanks for the info! Is it hard to find someone to maintain a hottub? I would think those could be a headache with all the issues???
This was a very interesting video. I especially liked the insight into AirBnB. Short term rental acquisition has always been a mystery to me because of ongoing transistion of the investment type as well as ability to exit the property. Your video was very helpful concerning the challenges you have faced in this space.
Buena idea Rob y información. Es lo yo estoy asiendo con mis casas. Saludo a tus padres. Cuídate…
Good points here and I appreciate the honest ❤
I'm in the process of buying a property, but I've never ever cared about door count. What I care about leveraging existing assets and NOT overlevering them and building a house of cards. Love your podcast but always feels like the advice is overleveraging which can build a fragile system that if the economy drops, everything you have collapses. I'm building a stable portfolio that brings in stable funds, but won't collapse if we have another COVID event, or 2008 financial crisis. I like what you're saying in this episode.
BTW another tactic I have is to take my cash/funds and put them into high yield dividend ETFs that provide enough monthly cash to help pay down my debts, or carry them if times get tough. I call it the circle of life, because it one area has an issue, I have a completely different area to back me up to keep my life going. :)
35k ? To furnish,.. what a joke
Love the information, Rob! Thank you!
great point on squeezing out what you already have!
This got me thinking. Thank you
did you layoff your editor?
No lol. Caleb is still working for me full-time haha.
@@Robuilt hahaha just checking bc the editing style changed
I like the idea of porperty optimization. What about a duplex? Would you add on square footage to lets say a 2br/1ba?
We were planning to rent and then buy property and build ourselves a house this summer.
Renting part of a duplex from an elderly couple. They decided they wanted to sell and offered it to us to rent to own for $350k at a reasonable interest rate. We jumped at it. They are basically charging us what they paid for it in 2018. Various websites like Zillow etc put the value over $450k.
If we can still buy property and build this duplex could bring in $60k annually on Airbnb.
Rob, thanks for sharing your change in strategy. I'd love to hear more about your shift in feelings on arbitrage. I hope you'll do a video on this.
I’d love a video on this too. I was totally against doing Arbitrage for the first 5 years I was buying properties. I decided to finally try it via mid-term rentals with nurses last year with 2 apartments in a 4-plex. Did ok for the first year and then travel nurses stopped coming. So unfortunately I gave my 30 day notice at the end of February and as soon as my nurse leaves the other unit in May unless something changes I will be giving notice on my other arbitrage unit. It sucks it didn’t work out but I don’t want to start losing money if they stay vacant. At least if I have a bad month with a property I own I’m still building equity in MY property. So no more arbitrage for me. I’ll stick to just buying. And even then I’m doing what Rob’s doing and concentrating on the properties we already have. Especially with the outrages prices and the high interest rates. The STR market and mid-term market have really changed over the past year.
Where you get that cool lamp in the background?
Nice to see an influencer say how hard something is for a change. Problem with the bubble we are currently in is the mondset that money is easy and investments should pay off fast.
Rob what program or software do you use to keep track of your properties cash flow and expenses. Great video.
Great point on maximizing the revenue from existing investments. Curious to hear your thoughts on building your guest email list to do direct marketing and re-booking campaigns. Rather than waiting for Airbnb to throw you a bone and get you more bookings, you can increase revenues by selling to the people who have already stayed at your place and loved it. Some cool companies helping STR owners do this.
Are there any ways to fund a treehouse build on your property without having all the cash upfront? How did your treehouse builds go?
That is super useful. There comes a time in every business where optimization of the business goes much further that expanding the business footprint.
Love the approach and love the content. Keep making these "Rob-take" videos!
Really good video, Rob. I’ve been thinking the same thing for the past several months. Wondering what I can do with what I have to increase revenue and occupancy. I still work my W-2 job which pays me really well, raising a family with two small children and still trying to keep up with everything else in life. To your point it’s always a time crunch because so much of my time is spent with work and raising my family to where all of the things you described to just acquire and then kick off a new property is a lot.
I do think you’re in a different situation than the best majority of us though. With 40 short term rentals, you probably should pay more attention to your portfolio and optimize it. For those of us with five properties or less, Then I think we still want to scale just a bit more.
Again, great video, and it really resonated with me. It is extremely hard to find the balance with running my short term rental business, staying successful in my career, being a husband & father, and staying on top of myfitness.
Is he still part of bigger pockets?
Number one rule in investment: Do not put your money into something you don't understand.
This channel confirms that motto.
That's very common in any type of business; real estate is no exception. It's an investment philosophy; reinvestment.
That is a great point. I wish you had some more on long term rental. But I love the concept. And think of the value the unit is for resale. Great epiphany. It actually gave me one as well. My only problem is gonna be. I spend all my money on me, but I’m 71. And all my properties are paid for. But you are so right so right. However, just saying I would like to put a syndication together and do a tiny home community for fun. Do you want to invest? I know a good spot..
Thanks for the info, Rob. What you talked about was exactly what I've been thinking with my current STR and the next.
Thanks for the suggestions #Robuilt... How about for the test of us with HOA'S and condo/Apts style props.? I heard your photographer ideas... That was a good suggestion.
Excellent! Wendy and I are on the same track. We are nearly done renovating the main house on one of our glamping properties, a $12k investment. It most likely will earn all of it back by June.
I want a tee shirt like yours. I come for the terrific info and insights but then get wowed with the merch. The Restoration Hardware airplane desk has been a fave of mine since it came out. But who is the player and where can I get the shirt. I play guitar ever single day.
What material did u do for the court. concrete or asphalt?
One of the advocates for getting more units instead of increasing margins for your existing properties, is risk diversification.
If you have 200 units making $300/month, having a few units being down for maintenance or other issues wont impact your revenue as much as having 60 doors making $10,000/month and then having a few units being down for maintenance.
There's a balancing point of course, but I agree that solely focusing on quantity over increasing return on existing properties is not the ideal route, especially since it costs a lot of overhead and time to source new opportunities than just increasing margins on existing properties.
Enjoyed this, Rob. Good take aways with a genuine feel.
My boy here finally realizing the trap of the "more" mindset. It's a trap, it never is enough, bro.
I hope you add an ADU to one of your properties so we can see what your ROI on that it.
That’s where I think some serious ROI can come from. They don’t let us add ADUs where I’m at otherwise that would be something I’d be all over! I’d be ADUing like crazy 😆🤣
Productivity! Work in all fields. Great video!👏
Excellent content Rob. Marks sense for every market condition. Get the full potential for every property first then on to the next if possible. Thanks
Great insight!
Rob, you are 100% on the money! We've been investing back into our "Farmstay" for the past two years. We're doing great compared to our competition in Northern AR.
Good info thanks!
Curious what you think about buying condos with a lot of amenities like a condo hotel. Too high HOAs to be profitable?
Finally a kindred soul! That's all I think about - optimizating my income with what I have.
What were your nightly rates before & after the pickleball and tree house additions? And did your occupancy also go up?
Thank you for being transparent! This is a real dose of truth and honesty. Greatly appreciate all you do for this investor community. It’s good to hear how you are pivoting and strategizing as the market changes for your portfolio!
I'm wondering if there is a tipping point in terms of doors, where itt makes more sense to improve what you have rather than buy another door. Does this strategy make sense when you have 1 door? How about 5? Its unlikly that I will double my revenue with an improvement to the one door I own. Its is likely that I will double it woth another door. So where is the point at which it makes sense to stop aquiring doors, and just improve what I already have?
your math for furnishing cost doesn't add up to your 2k sqft analogy - avg cost for furnishing on a 500k house would be 35k tho
I love the pickle ball court! How much did your insurance rate increase?
So why should we not buy?
Always good to see your videos, keep it up!
Btw, are you currently seeking any thumbnail designer.
Can I will share some previous work
Pretty simple…he stopped buying more real estate because he already has 40 doors and doesn’t need more.
I’ve seen a big influx in AirBNBs buying our wallpaper murals lately. I even had one guy have us make 10 custom (Hollywood themed) wallpapers. I couldn’t figure out why this was happening all of a sudden. Now I get it. 😅
Kia ora Rob, this video is awesome. I totally get what you’re saying and where you’re going with this model.
I have 3 bed 1 bath house on a 45,000 square foot R20 zoned property in Hawaii that I’m in the process of subdividing and at the same time I’m adding a ADU to the front lot where the existing house is.
I’m doing exactly what you’re describing. The equation is simple, I can owner build a 800 square foot ADU on my land for less than $200k or I can buy another investment property for about $400k, Hawaii prices, and get the same return. No Brainer.
I would love to connect with you if at all possible my friend.
Nga mihi, Andrew.
Hahaha The problem here is not real estate, it's the person. Yeah if you're into "keeping up with the Jones" then real estate is a bad investment for you...and so is everything else. Nothing will ever be enough. Nothing you buy, invest return, relationships, etc.. That's a social media lifestyle. It's horrible, never going to be happy long term way to live.
I'm old as dirt and I know other real estate investors who are old as dirt. Our investments are as boring as dirt. We're not making videos on social media because we out looking for deals. Boring deals. We think it's fun, but it wouldn't be exciting on social media.
Short term rentals have been almost 100% people with no experience in real estate. It's mostly a social media thing. Believe it or not short term rentals have been around for decades. Mostly in vacation markets. We already know how that works. You get a huge rent, but not 365 days a year and it's a lot of work. It's pretty close to running a motel. If you're the first in an area you make good money, but it's not long before others see you making money and they jump in. Long term your profit will depend on how good you are at running a motel. It's a very hard job, high risk, not super profitable. A good solid job.
There are many examples of the "next new thing" being very profitable at first, very hot. Then everyone jumps in and margins fall and people who aren't good at doing the job go broke. Remember how hot Ebay once was? Making money selling on Amazon was easy money once. Driving for Uber was once high profit and today you're a cab driver.
Long term rentals are boring and keep paying a return.
Long-term rentals are also much healthier for communities, society, civilization, and the species.
Maximizing doors was a good objective when financing was super cheap. Most important overall though is how much time the income will cost the investor on a recurring basis. That will be the ceiling of scalability until you employ good help.
I don't pay much attention to gross income because I don't think of it as income until the expenses are deducted. Otherwise, like door count, it can introduce extraneous emotions to my decision making
great stuff!
Good information. Thanks!
the online community of real estate investing as a whole reminds me of high school popularity clubs. it's become about clout and followers rather than actually helping other investors grow.
Such a great watch! The section on understanding cash on cash return in real estate investing for optimal financial gains really got me thinking. For fellow multifamily investors, our channel is packed with invaluable insights and strategies.