Setting up a vacation rental home

Gumbo4x4

Note to the ladies who forgot to
Joined
Jan 19, 2012
So, some of you may recall my thread about looking into vacation rental properties a couple hours from us at Lake of The Ozarks. Primarily looking at condos, but a new listing is very intriguing. Mind you, we're still very much in the "tire kicking" phase & haven't decided this is definitely something we want to do, much less made a decision on THIS property, but here goes anyway.

This is a 5 BR home within walking distance of one of the lake's best hot spots. It's completely unfinished, so this is where I'm letting my imagination take over. Just a couple of thoughts: in lieu of cable, how about smart TV's and wifi? We could also put in an HD antenna to pick up the local stations.

Second, with 5 bedrooms, what about stocking 1 BR with 3 or 4 sets of bunk beds? This could potentially make the home doable for up to 4 small families.

Am I of my rocker?
 
So, some of you may recall my thread about looking into vacation rental properties a couple hours from us at Lake of The Ozarks. Primarily looking at condos, but a new listing is very intriguing. Mind you, we're still very much in the "tire kicking" phase & haven't decided this is definitely something we want to do, much less made a decision on THIS property, but here goes anyway.

This is a 5 BR home within walking distance of one of the lake's best hot spots. It's completely unfinished, so this is where I'm letting my imagination take over. Just a couple of thoughts: in lieu of cable, how about smart TV's and wifi? We could also put in an HD antenna to pick up the local stations.

Second, with 5 bedrooms, what about stocking 1 BR with 3 or 4 sets of bunk beds? This could potentially make the home doable for up to 4 small families.

Am I of my rocker?

Not off your rocker as far as furnishings go. My mom used to rent out her home in Florida before she moved there full time, and there, it was all about how many the house could sleep. Many times multiple families would rent the house. I'd say two rooms with a king or queen bed as "masters", then the rest with two twins or even a few sets of bunk beds. Even the couch in the living room could be a pull-out. Where she lives (Destin, FL) a lot of the vacation rentals can sleep 12-16 people. I probably wouldn't do a single room with 4 sets of bunk beds though. That's a little madness haha. I would limit each room to 4 people (two sets of bunks at most).
 
I don't think you're off your rocker. We've rented several homes at the lake and I think I know the "hot spot" you might be talking about. I think four sets of bunks might be a bit much if you are trying to get eight kids to calm down and to sleep. We usually went with 2-3 other families though with several children. The more beds to sleep in and floor space for air mattresses is what we looked for. And a dock with swim deck! I think smart tv and wifi is a great idea.
 
Two rooms with two sets of bunks each would be great. Kings and queens in the rest.

Most condo rentals we have rented have had cable. In fact I think all of them do.
 


My step-father-in-law has a client who owns a condo just past the Lodge of the Four Seasons (very close to Osage Beach area) on the 11 or 12 mile marker and for the past 2 years we've been going down 4 to 5 times during the summer.

It's a 3 bedroom condo: 1 master bedroom and 2 guest rooms. 1 of the guest rooms has two full sized beds and that specifc room doesn't have a bathroom directly inside it as the bathroom for that room serves as the guest bathroom as well.

The furnishings are dated for sure but it comes with a boat slip included in the charge per night. I believe the normal rate per night is somewhere around $225-$250 depending on the time of the summer however we do not pay that full amount since it's a client of my step-father-in-law (who is an insurance agent).

I'd say with 5 bedrooms you could easily turn one of them into a multi-sleeping room. Depending on what you want to charge per night you'll want to consider what to do with the other 3 rooms (taking out the master room out of the equation).

The main problem with the condo we use is we don't have children that come with us perse so my husband and I sleep in the room with the queen-sized bed w/bathroom attached which leaves the room with the two full-sized beds for the other adult...which isn't the most ideal.

The condo we rent does have cable and wifi. The only thing I would be concerned with not having cable is what people may want to watch (we end up watching a ton of Family Feud reruns for some reason lol). You might be limiting who would want to rent it. I know the in-laws more than likely wouldn't want to rent a place that doesn't have cable because they don't have all the fancy devices we have (x-box, roku stick, fire stick) and in fact we just got a smart TV (for black friday-a small one though) nor would they know how to use a smart tv. No matter what I would honestly say wifi is a must nowadays. At the lake depending on where you are at and your cell phone provider, service can be spotty at times; I have really good signal in the middle of the lake for example and sometimes not so good in the condo so I connect to the wifi at the condo. It also means people can bring their tablets (feels like every kid has one nowadays) and whatnot and connect up with the wifi.
 
Most condo rentals we have rented have had cable. In fact I think all of them do.

Same for us, but I'm just thinking going forward it seems everyone has Netflix & such and they could log into their accounts to watch whatever. Dunno, just thinking it might be more appealing than cable eventually.
 
My step-father-in-law has a client who owns a condo just past the Lodge of the Four Seasons (very close to Osage Beach area) on the 11 or 12 mile marker and for the past 2 years we've been going down 4 to 5 times during the summer.

It's a 3 bedroom condo: 1 master bedroom and 2 guest rooms. 1 of the guest rooms has two full sized beds and that specifc room doesn't have a bathroom directly inside it as the bathroom for that room serves as the guest bathroom as well.

The furnishings are dated for sure but it comes with a boat slip included in the charge per night. I believe the normal rate per night is somewhere around $225-$250 depending on the time of the summer however we do not pay that full amount since it's a client of my step-father-in-law (who is an insurance agent).

I'd say with 5 bedrooms you could easily turn one of them into a multi-sleeping room. Depending on what you want to charge per night you'll want to consider what to do with the other 3 rooms (taking out the master room out of the equation).

The main problem with the condo we use is we don't have children that come with us perse so my husband and I sleep in the room with the queen-sized bed w/bathroom attached which leaves the room with the two full-sized beds for the other adult...which isn't the most ideal.

The condo we rent does have cable and wifi. The only thing I would be concerned with not having cable is what people may want to watch (we end up watching a ton of Family Feud reruns for some reason lol). You might be limiting who would want to rent it. I know the in-laws more than likely wouldn't want to rent a place that doesn't have cable because they don't have all the fancy devices we have (x-box, roku stick, fire stick) and in fact we just got a smart TV (for black friday-a small one though) nor would they know how to use a smart tv. No matter what I would honestly say wifi is a must nowadays. At the lake depending on where you are at and your cell phone provider, service can be spotty at times; I have really good signal in the middle of the lake for example and sometimes not so good in the condo so I connect to the wifi at the condo. It also means people can bring their tablets (feels like every kid has one nowadays) and whatnot and connect up with the wifi.

Yeah, I think wifi is pretty much a must now & was thinking how to get away from paying for both cable & internet LOL. Of course we might be able to do a bundle.

As far as beds, I'd definitely want kings or queens in at least 3 bedrooms. Might be able to put a Queen and a bunk in one room to make it a little more versatile.

I would think $350 per night would be pretty reasonable in Summer, or at least on weekends. It does come with a dock & slip, and also a hot tub (outside). Could possibly get a bit more, especially on the "big" weekends (the 3 holidays, lake race, shootout, and bike week).
 


Same for us, but I'm just thinking going forward it seems everyone has Netflix & such and they could log into their accounts to watch whatever. Dunno, just thinking it might be more appealing than cable eventually.

You have to think of your target demographic I guess. I'm mid-30's and we don't have Netflix. My mom DEFINITELY doesn't haha. My 20-something friends all have it. If you're targeting family vacationers, especially in an older age bracket, I think sticking with basic cable would be prudent. PLUS if you're looking at having wifi and expecting them to use streaming as their primary entertainment, you'd need a fast internet speed, which honestly wouldn't be all that much less than just a basic cable package.
 
You have to think of your target demographic I guess. I'm mid-30's and we don't have Netflix. My mom DEFINITELY doesn't haha. My 20-something friends all have it. If you're targeting family vacationers, especially in an older age-bracket, I think sticking with basic cable would be prudent. PLUS if you're looking at having wifi and expecting them to use streaming as their primary entertainment, you'd need a fast internet speed, which honestly wouldn't be all that much less than just a basic cable package.

Good point
 
Wifi would be more important to us than cable or a smart tv.
 
So are there plenty of vacation rental agemts in the area to handle keys and housekeeping? I know that's pretty common in some areas with a lot of vacation home rentals. We stayed in a condo in Kona once, and it was almost like a hotel, where they had an office for check in. We had a problem with our first unit, and they gave us the keys to another one. I'm guessing they probably had some sort of shared revenue system.

You might also need to pay for commercial internet or TV service, depending on the terms of providers.
 
We use only cable as we don't have Netflix either. We just rented a house this past summer and my daughter hated sleeping in bunk beds. There was no other bed available so she opened up the futon that was in the laundry room and used that. So now going forward I know we are limited to not renting houses that have bunk beds. That's just our recent experience.
 
So, some of you may recall my thread about looking into vacation rental properties a couple hours from us at Lake of The Ozarks. Primarily looking at condos, but a new listing is very intriguing. Mind you, we're still very much in the "tire kicking" phase & haven't decided this is definitely something we want to do, much less made a decision on THIS property, but here goes anyway.

This is a 5 BR home within walking distance of one of the lake's best hot spots. It's completely unfinished, so this is where I'm letting my imagination take over. Just a couple of thoughts: in lieu of cable, how about smart TV's and wifi? We could also put in an HD antenna to pick up the local stations.

Second, with 5 bedrooms, what about stocking 1 BR with 3 or 4 sets of bunk beds? This could potentially make the home doable for up to 4 small families.

Am I of my rocker?


I'm not at all familiar with the area you are speaking of, but just as a 'heads up' in case you haven't taken it into consideration-

make sure to check into any occupancy laws that may be on the books for the property you are considering purchasing-and look to them as they pertain to both residential and rental. I mention this b/c we live in an area/previously vacationed in an area with VERY STRICT zoning laws as they pertain to occupancy. granted, there are/were property owners that ignored the laws and stuffed the bedrooms with beds upon beds-but in the event of certain situations it can come back to bite them (prosecution by local authorities if a group of renters causes problems-ala noisy party-, or the number of occupants exceeds local fire safety regulations, homeowner's insurance not covering claims/canceling coverage for illegal land use....and in the case of where we currently live-if there's any kind of shared roads, flow fields or such that entail easements it can escalate into costly litigation and ruined neighbor relationships such that you would NEVER consider spending any time there).

just mentioning this b/c it's becoming an even hotter topic these days with the proliferation of people doing the air bnb stuff (what flew under the radar is now being closely looked to in our vacation areas).
 
Something to consider: while I would have a "regular" king in the master, you could do two twins that convert to kings in a couple of the other bedrooms. We have a special pad that goes between the mattress--you push them together, put in this pad, then put on the bottom sheet. There might be more sophisticated ways to do this, but it would allow you to provide sleeping options. A king bed is a huge plus to us when travelling.
 
So are there plenty of vacation rental agemts in the area to handle keys and housekeeping? I know that's pretty common in some areas with a lot of vacation home rentals. We stayed in a condo in Kona once, and it was almost like a hotel, where they had an office for check in. We had a problem with our first unit, and they gave us the keys to another one. I'm guessing they probably had some sort of shared revenue system.

You might also need to pay for commercial internet or TV service, depending on the terms of providers.

Yes, no problem with keys & housekeeping. Will need lawn care too if we get a house rather than a condo.
 
I would do one room with multiple bunks....but no more than two (i.e., 4 beds) unless the room is HUGE. And, definitely at least queens in the other bedrooms. And, if you are going for a house that sleeps 12+, be sure to have dishes and flatware for that many people AND room for them all to sit while dining. I've stayed at rental homes that allegedly "sleep" a ton of people and then have flatware only for 6-8. What kind of sense does that make? LOL.

Personally, I would NOT be bothered by smart TVs and wifi (assuming you have a subscription to at least one good streaming service, such as Hulu or netflix). I am close to 60 and am savvy with all that stuff. It's what I have in my own home. Plus, many people now have their own streaming subscriptions, which would (of course) work anywhere they go with a smart TV and good wifi.

A bigger issue for me is bathroom space. If the idea is to have 12+ people staying at a home, you better have enough FULL bathrooms to accommodate that many people...2 wouldn't cut it for me, and I'd nix your place based on that alone. I want (need is too strong a term) at least one bathroom for every 2-3 people...I'm not big on sharing bathrooms. So, when I'm looking for a VRBO (or similar) for my family of four, I bypass all those with less than 2 bathrooms. Wouldn't even look at it, no matter how "nice" it might otherwise be. In the case of a group of 7 or more (when I've done that), I've looked for places with at least 3.5 bathrooms. More is always better. The best vacation places (large homes) in Disney World area, for example, always have at least two masters (with en suites), and lots of other baths spread around the home. There's a reason for that. It's just easier when you have multiple families traveling together if you have options for more than one couple to get an en suite.

If you go with the pull out couch option for additional sleeping space, please, in the name of all that is holy, go with a COMFORTABLE option. They are out there. Nothing worse than expecting someone to sleep on something that has that horrible bar on it. An ideal option, though definitely more expensive, is a murphy bed option with a real mattress, but yet can be stored away during daytime hours.

Finally, high quality linens and bath towels can make up for a lot of sins elsewhere in the home. Don't skimp here as the quality of sleep is one thing people will remember about your rental and the one thing people invariably comment on.
 
Age 43 here and while DH and I don't have Netflix our three teens do and they could work it for us if we rented a place with just Netflix. They have helped me pull up shows to binge on Netflix before. WiFi would be most important.
 
We use only cable as we don't have Netflix either. We just rented a house this past summer and my daughter hated sleeping in bunk beds. There was no other bed available so she opened up the futon that was in the laundry room and used that. So now going forward I know we are limited to not renting houses that have bunk beds. That's just our recent experience.

YMMV obviously, but if I was taking my 17 year old kid on a free vacation, the last thing that would be a dealbreaker for me would be whether they were annoyed by having to sleep in a bunk bed.

OP, we have Netflix (42 and 40 years old, with teens/tweens) and our kids would happily sleep wherever we told them to if it means we can go on vacation. We value wi-fi over cable. I think your plans sound fine.
 
From my experience, no more than 2 bunkbeds per room. Nobody wants 8 children (the likely occupants of bunk beds) sleeping in the same room.

And you definitely need high speed internet AND cable TV. I never rent unless there are both - my ILs tried to start renting their cabin without cable TV and the first people who rented demanded a full refund and never came back. Most people don't have Netflix.
 
YMMV obviously, but if I was taking my 17 year old kid on a free vacation, the last thing that would be a dealbreaker for me would be whether they were annoyed by having to sleep in a bunk bed.

OP, we have Netflix (42 and 40 years old, with teens/tweens) and our kids would happily sleep wherever we told them to if it means we can go on vacation. We value wi-fi over cable. I think your plans sound fine.

My daughter hated sleeping on the bunk bed because it was very uncomfortable. I think they are more for younger children. And yes it would definitely be a dealbreaker for us. Why would I want her to be uncomfortable for a week when another house could be an option? Yes if there were no other options then maybe yes but now that we know what it is like to rent a house we are more picky. This was the first time we did this and we know now more of what we want/don't want.
 

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