Easy Vacation Guide

Many of us dream about owning the vacation home in the Mountains, or on the Lake or Ocean. A place where one can retreat periodically from the hustle-bustle of everyday life. However, for those who do achieve the financial resources to make such a purchase, there are several factors that should be considered first prior to taking the plunge.

Owning a Vacation Home can be a wonderful experience, but it is a huge commitment and responsibility. When one first thinks of owning a Vacation Home, we think of only the positives, such as a quiet remote location where we can get away from it all. A place where we can swim, fish, hike, and ski. Unfortunately for many, they forget about the other realities: location and travel time, upkeep and the associated costs, high property taxes, their children’s school and other home activities, guests. All of these put stress on the new Vacation Home owner, and how they prepare ahead of time to address these issues determines how enjoyable their new purchase will be.

The first item to consider when purchasing a Vacation Home is location. Is it near enough from your main home such that you can enjoy it regularly enough? If not, consider another investment. The last thing you want to do is make a huge investment in property that you can not regularly enjoy. Though real estate has always been considered a good investment it is not considered liquid, and expensive vacation homes can take a long time to sell.

Cost of upkeep and property taxes should also be heavily considered. Maintaining a vacation home is not cheap and the local town officials love to hit the vacation homes hard with property tax bills.

One also needs to consider his or her own weekend responsibilities and those of their children. Sports team events, clubs and organizations as well as maintaining the main house will eat into the time available to head to the weekend get-away. And if you have teenagers, they have their own dates and plans. Be prepared, more times than not, for having to forgo the weekend retreat for your children and other responsibilities.

One of the other aspects of owning a Vacation Home is having guests. This is a double edge sword. You want to have guests to share in your retreat. However, the upkeep, food and cooking can become overwhelming. Also, when guests visit, they are on vacation, but you may not necessarily be. It is important to let friends and families understand this, otherwise prepare for unexpected meals outs and other activities.

Owning a Vacation Home can be, and is for most, a wonderful experience. Those who truly enjoy them, usually have to go thru an adjustment cycle. First the euphoria phase, followed by a frustration and exhaustion phase, and finally the true enjoyment stage. The enjoyment phase occurs when one has developed a balance between the pros of owning a vacation home and the other responsibilities of their lives.

Mark J. Donovan me_donovan@comcast.net

http://www.homeadditionplus.com http://www.homeaddition.blogspot.com

Over the past 20+ years I have been involved with Building homes and additions to homes. I have completed many projects that have included: building a Vacation Home, Family Room Additions, and a Garage. I have also finished the upstairs on unfinished homes. My formal education and Profession has been as an Electrical Engineer and Marketing Manager.

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If you currently own a vacation home that isn’t getting used enough by your family and friends, you might want to consider how to advertise your vacation home for profit. Many people rent out their vacation rental to earn extra cash if they won’t be staying in it themselves, and you’d be surprised to learn how much people are willing to pay on a nightly and weekly basis to stay in the home that you are not using! Knowing how to advertise your vacation rental will help you get the most for your time and efforts and will also mean that you can make a substantial income just renting out your property.

The first thing you’ll want to do in the process to advertise your vacation property is to write a very descriptive ad of your vacation rental. You’ll want to tell the potential renters the square footage, how many rooms, how many bathrooms, and what sorts of furnishings are provided. You’ll then want to mention, possibly in bold lettering, any amenities the property has such as hot tubs, pools, saunas, tennis courts, and things that many people would consider luxury items worth paying for. You’ll also want to list these items because it’ll make your vacation rental stand out from the rest. When you advertise vacation homes, you want to make sure that people see your property and recognize its attractiveness and worth. A great way to draw people to your advertisement is to use a bold typed catchy headline. Don’t lie in the headline, but make it be something that will grab renters’ attention. Suggest that you’ll give a free night rental if a week is booked or something to that effect; it’ll bring the renters in! When you advertise your vacation home, you want to be sure that you really sell the place on all of its good character traits, as that is how you get renters to book with you and start making money.

After you write your ad you will want to advertise vacation rentals in every possible outlet. The Internet is obviously a great resource that most people use to search vacation rentals. There many of these sites that it will be hard to select which ones to use, so try to pick the ones that seem most enjoyable to browse as a renter, as these are the sites that are most attractive to your potential renters. When you advertise vacation homes on these web sites you’ll want to include photos. Without photos you might as well not advertise your rental at all, because people really want to see what they are paying for. Look for a site that offers unlimited pictures, so you can add as many as you want of the interior, exterior and surrounding area. Pictures have a positive effect on inquiries and bookings.

You should also prepare a nice, professionally produced brochure for your property. You can use the same content you wrote and posted on the Internet, and the photos, too. The more exposure your home gets when you advertise your vacation rental, the sooner it will rent and the better your profits will be. Not a bad way to start out, not to mention all the money you’ll make!

David Goldschmidt heads GreatFamilyRentals.com, a leading directory of vacation rentals by owner. Find villas and condos for your next vacation. Owners can list vacation rentals for more bookings. http://www.greatfamilyrentals.com

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Villas, condos, townhouses, twins, quads, and single-family homes at the beach or in beach resorts. Vacation homes offer a great opportunity for investors. The second home and vacation home market has been skyrocketing. The baby-boomer generation is in or approaching its’ peak earning years and not afraid to spend money on real value.

Beach Property

Across the board from coast to coast the Pacific, Atlantic, or along the Gulf beach front and beach areas have taken off. Some coastal resort properties have increased in value 60% and more over a 12 month time period. The areas are not only the prime high priced island and gated communities but almost any where near the ocean. A couple of years ago the quiet lower priced areas saw a big demand and their values have exploded. Two years ago the $140,000 rancher near the beach has now become the $350,000 beach house with no renovations just straight appreciation.

Making a Boat Load of Money

Friends bought a 2 bed 2 bath 1000 sq ft condo near the beach (not on the beach) for $355,000 Feb 2005. 4 months later another friend bought in the same building, same size unit for $415,000. Now 10 months later another condo in the same building, same size unit sold for $495,000. Can you believe it $140,000 in10 months with no money down. There is a waiting list to buy these 23 year old condos they are sold over the phone when they become available.

1.4 Million Dollar Beach Front Condos

16 Beach front condos sold in 45 minutes. Average price was 1.4 million dollars the 2 penthouse units sold for1.8 million. The sale was pre construction by lottery. Each potential buyer either deposited or had a letter of credit for $200,000 in order to be placed on the list. Pricing was fixed by the developer on the day of the drawing no one knew in advance. The drawing process was very simple as your name was drawn you could pick which unit you wanted and at the pre determined priced. The buyers’ only decision was yes or no. The 16 units sold to the first 16 names drawn no one backed out. There were 190 buyers in the lottery. This year the second building sold faster and for more money.

Did you miss it? No way. The opportunities it appears are never ending when we are talking about vacation homes, second homes and resort properties. I have personal experience in each of these examples above. They took place along the coasts of North Carolina and South Carolina. To top it off mortgage companies are offering to vacation home owners and 2nd home owners 100% financing. How would you like to make $150,000 in a year with zero down payment? It’s unbelievable.

Bill Carey with over 30 years in real estate sales, investments, and home building offers a unique perspective to the buying and selling process of residential real estate for F*R*E*E consumer information and reports log on to http://www.CharlotteNCExecutiveHomes.com and see “Insider Real Estate Secrets Revealed” …a must-read for Home-Owners and Renters! It’s a F*R*E*E 12-lesson e-course covering more than 20 topics exposing the realities behind buying and selling a home. It Could Make(or Save) You Thousands of Dollars

See http://www.BillCareyRealtor.com and sign up for our monthly e-newsletter with tips for buyers, sellers, home owners and soon to be home owners.

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