Hi, I'm Cindy Browning, CEO of Roundtable Property Management. If you're thinking about buying an investment property, but you can't decide if you want to use it as a long term rental or a short term rental like an Airbnb. Here are some things to take into consideration.
With the short term, rental tenants aren't going to care quite as much about your property if they're only there for a week. There's a possibility that you're going to lack consistency. Short term rentals tend to be popular seasonally, even here in Florida. You're also not going to have as much information about the tenants who are staying in your property. There are no background checks and your short term agreement may not cover everything. So while you can hold a short term renter responsible for things like a broken dishwasher, a few days later, they're already gone. So it's hard to hold them accountable. One of the biggest problems with short term rentals is they may be legal today, but next year your city may vote them out. The laws on short term rentals are changing every day.
On the flip side, a long term tenant will probably care more about your property. After all, they do have to live there. Your long term rental property will be rented out consistently so you don't have to worry about fluctuations of the seasonal market. You also have the opportunity to better screen your tenants. You get to look at things like their employment history, their credit score, the last places that they rented and their criminal history. You will also have an enforceable lease in place and this will tell tenants what's expected of them.
Here at Roundtable Realty Property Management, we handle the screening of the tenants and enforce the lease. And here's maybe the best part: Most associations and local laws allow you to rent your property for long term. That way, you most likely don't have to worry about your investment not being a moneymaker next year.
If you decide to rent out your investment property long term, we can help give us a call at Roundtable Realty Property Management. I think you'll be surprised at our level of service. 9044697272.
