What would you look for in a 6BR villa in Windsor Hills?

[castanhope]

We are buying a villa to rent out beginning this August and are in the final stages of decorating and purchasing items for the home. I was wondering if you guys would give me some input and ideas as to some less obvious things that you would like/need to have in a vacation home. We are doing two king suites and a queen, three kids themed rooms, 4 Baths, living room, dining, and kitchen, plus the garage/game room. Besides the obvious furnishings, is there anything you would like to see in these rooms that you haven't seen anywhere else? What would entice you to rent a property over all others? We are looking to attract renters quickly to fill up the fall season...what kind of rates or other offers do you think would stand out if someone were looking to do a rather last minute vacation?

Any input from fellow Disboard members would be awesome, thanks so much!

 

[two*little*birds]

Some of my recommendations would be:

Install window blinds/shades - we like to sleep in (and not have the kids wake up extra early)

Plant some bushes/plants around the pool for added privacy.

Paints the walls a color other than white or off-white. Even better, hire a decorator or someone who can do a color consultation for you – typically this is inexpensive and can add so much value (for the house and guests).

Have a welcome kit for guests that includes sample sizes of cleaners, laundry detergent, toilet paper, etc. It may take a day or two before people can get all the supplies they need.

O.K. that's it, just my two-cents.

 

[two*little*birds]

O.K. thought of a few other things as well.

A computer with internet access (and maybe a printer), that way I don't have to travel with my own laptop.

Lastly, an awesome website with lots of pictures and virtual tour. Include a current guest book, booking calendar and rates. I'm sometimes shocked how poorly some owners put together their website, or lack thereof.

BTW - Congratulations and good-luck!

 

[Family Fun Mom]

I have never rented an offsite house but I'm seriously thinking about it for our next trip.

I love staying onsite so I'm looking for a house that definitely gives the feeling that I'm "at Disney." I want theming. If I see white, undecorated walls I click right past it. TVs with DVD players in the bedrooms are a big plus. Internet hook up helps, too.

If I think of anything else I'll chime in again. Good luck!!!

 

[Willow1213]

When I was looking at rental homes I wanted something that looked comfortable. I want a living room to have lots of comfortable seating - a six bedroom villa will have lots of people and they need places to sit.
Also, make sure you have nice linens on the beds. I have looked at some villas that had bed linens that looked like a motel 6.
Like some other posters have said make sure you have lots of pictures and a great site. It makes a big difference.
Good luck!

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

Apart from looking nice I return to the TH we rent because it is clean, kept fresh looking & updated and has a good management company who are responsive.

In addition the beds are very comfortable and the linen & towels of a good quality.

Good luck in your venture

 

[an_evans]

We wanted places to eat. We were having extended family stay together and homes with 4 chairs by the pool didn't cut it. We loved the home we stayed in because the kids could sit at the breakfast bar and the adults filled in around the table. A large space for family dining would have been fabulous!

 

[tednvon]

Hello, as previous owner of 7BR/6BA in Emerald Island I have a few thoughts that may help may reinforce what others have said in earlier posts. The only thing I disagree with in the above posts is the need for a computer. We had one and it was a nightmare...always shutting down and someone screwing up the access. I think free WiFi is a must and most folks will bring a laptop these days.

Web sites have progressed so much since we did one in 2003. We sold in 2005 when all the competition for game rooms, Big screen TV, internet access, and very high end furnishings was beginning. In 2009, A really catchy professional website with lots of pictures is now a must on all "by owner" sites.
You must communicate with all potential rentors immediately and never put off answering any emails or calls from a person who has sent you a deposit. People are very fearful of renting from owners at first and any glitch in the communication will cause a panic.
When we first started, it was a "Field of Dreams" enviornment..."If you build it, they will come." By the time we sold the competition was getting to the point where you could almost get into a bidding war for lowest price.

If you want to rent it out as much as possible "by owner" then be ready to be flexible, especially on short notice rentals. I would use EBAY and look at what rock bottom price you are willing to accept to help meet costs monthly.

I once rented our home on 2 week's notice for $700/week or $1000 less than going price because $700 beat nothing and paid the utilities for a month. This was a savvy renter who knew how to get rock bottom price.

Also, I like an add that says "our price includes EVERTHING, NO ADD ONS" for tax, pool heat, cleaning. I also like an add that says "ONE PRICE YEAR ROUND INCLUDING HOLIDAYS." This simplifies things for rentors. For some, it is a turn off to be quoted $1100/week and then find out that that does not include 13% tax, pool heat at $25/day, cleaning fees and so on.

Finally, On my catch line that people see first, I would consider going for those looking for a bargain vs. those looking for luxury. Take a look at www.vrbo.com and look at Disney area and Windsor Palms or Emerald Island adds. You will see many different one line hooks to get you interested.
I did not see one that said something like "Get 6 bedrooms for the price of 4,free WiFi, totally redecorated" Some might think is the "6 for the price of 4" is a bit much, but it is a competive world and you need to get the guests attention.

Again, these are random thoughts for your consideration. I wish the best...Ted

 

[Jessieknj]

I agree 100% with good linens. Also, pool towels are nice if the home has a pool and perhaps some pool toys.

We will not be needing the following things so it didn't influance our decision to rent here but one thing the owner offers that I think is nice is baby stuff. They have a highchair, Stroller and maybe monitor? I don't remember but I can see that swaying some people with small children. We will be travelling with our own stroller and my son doesn't use a highchair but still nice. Maybe a few board games or something to entertain kids.

One thing our townhouse does not have is toddler bed rails.. I will need 1 and I guess will pick it up at target.

This will be our first rental home but a good website is nice too.

 

[dotty dot]

i have stayed in villas for years and years now even though their is only 3 of us we have abooked a 6 bed villa in sunset lakes this year, here is what we were looking for when we booked - some items were not that important but swung it for us when we were shortlisting villad and checking them out on google eath ( yep we take booking the villa very seriously) it is an important 3 weeks in our life and we like our creature comfits.

large pool - with heating
private if poss - we choose one with a hedge
secure intenet access / wifi - printer would be good for on line check in
tv in all the main bedrooms - with cable
large tv in main room / dvd and cable
big leather sofas in living room
BBQ big gas or elec if possible
hot tub - but would have settle for a spa
pool toys if poss
fridge with ice maker drinks thing - on outside
coffee maker / elec kettle
at least one room with ipod doc station
the one we have booked has a duke box ( dont know how handy that will be but nice anyway )
the villa site nees to be clear pictures with up to date info and prices and availlablity on
nice clean bathrooms with nice towels
good clear info pack in the villa with basic info in like bin days - alarm info - pool info
takeaway menues and info on local places
a foam cooler box for the guests to borrow to put in boot and take drinks to parks in would be good we have left loads of these behind over the years
hurricane pack - would also be good - torches - battery radio ( we were in a villa for hurricane charlie and had to buy all this stuff )

can not think of anything else that would make us happy if we walked into a villa but agree with other posts needs to be clean and decorated nice but not too cluttered with bits

good luck with buying a villa

 

[dougsmom98]

With such a large home you are likely going to get guests with small children. When my kids were little, it was awesome to find a place that has a complimentary high chair, pack and play, and stroller. A small toy box with toys is also nice. A soft sided cooler that guests could borrow to take to the parks, several of the reusable blue ice packs, and several hair dryers are also great additions to any home with the strict luggage/carry on requirements these days. I agree with advertising your prices with all fees and taxes included is beneficial. I also recommend being specific about prices for various months. I can't stand it when owners list high, low, and peak season and then they don't define when those seasons are. I usually skip over those villas completely. If you plan to advertise prices in British pounds, please have the United States dollar equivalents listed as well. There are so many rentals out there and if I have to work too hard to figure out the approximate price, I will skip over it.
Good luck!

 

[castanhope]

Thanks so much to everyone who responded so far! Keep the suggestions coming! You guys have given me lots of great new ideas and also some good reinforcement that the ideas I am already going with are solid.

Tednvon, I appreciate the feedback from a fellow owner! I hadn't even thought of ebay as an option, so I will definitely explore that. Willow1213 and an_evans, I appreciate the feedback on seating and dining accomodations for large groups. That is one of my personal issues with a lot of the larger homes. I feel that if you advertise as able to sleep 14, then you should also be able to accomodate them in the rest of the house. Rather than have the small more formal seating area in the front room combined with the traditional dining table, we are presenting our front room as the family room. We've chosen a gorgeous sectional that we added an extra piece to in order to make it very comfortable for at least 6-8 adults with a couple kids thrown in too! When we stayed at the same model house this spring, we felt very cramped as 3 couples trying to relax together and watch tv or chat. Hopefully, this will be a more friendly, comfortable arrangement for larger groups. We've also done something really cool with the dining area that I can't wait to show off when we get our furniture delivered and our website up!

Some other feedback that would be great would be suggestions on what to include in a game room. Someone suggested having a wii, which I believe we plan on doing as I feel it's the most family friendly game system for the widest age range. And providing at least a few games with the system is a MUST. What else would you enjoy in a game room? The setups seem to be so standard...pool table, air hockey, foosball, game system... When we stayed, the kids (ages 3-9) weren't really interested in any of that. I'd really like to branch out. We have some ideas, but I'd like to hear suggestions!

 

[LuckyMamaInDE]

I've started the search for a (at minimum) 6br4ba rental for an extended family trip in late 2010/early 2011. I've been spending a LOT of time looking at websites, at vrbo, at the various neighborhood booking sites, etc.

For the gameroom:
*airconditioning is a MUST
*wii or other game system, with a selection of games for various ages, and WITH SEATING for those playing
*air hockey is easy for all ages to play, much easier than pool. Foosball/table football is good too. I know pool tables are popular, but please choose one that has ball return instead of those little bags below the pockets.
*Last time we rented a villa, the adults enjoyed darts while the kids played the air hockey etc.

Adding:
I've seen a few houses with arcade games (like with 6 or 8 games on it) in the gameroom. That would be really fun, though I don't know how expensive those machines are.

I see that you are thinking themed kids rooms. Try to remember that not every family will have young kids. My two teens don't want to sleep in a room decorated for their 8yo cousin...

Enough seating in the kitchen/dining/pool deck areas is very important. We'll have a group of at least 12 (might be 13 or 14). It would be very nice if all of us can eat at a table at the same time. Doesn't have to be the same table or even the same room, but I don't think it's nice for someone to have to perch on a couch or armchair away from the group while everyone else is talking. (Family of meal-time talkers here!)

I've made a spreadsheet with 25 or so houses that might work for our party. There are several with enough seating for all of us either on the pool deck (several groups of tables) or in the kitchen/dining rooms. One house even has pub-type tables in the space off the kitchen which might otherwise be a family room. We could all eat together in the SAME ROOM, which is just fabulous since we're thinking about a holiday season trip

 

[Tinkmom75]

I pm's you yesterday, but wanted to add some thoughts my sister and I were talking about.

We really like subtle disney themeing. A hand towel or mickey coffee pot thrown in in the main areas is nice, but like said some people don't like that. She suggested different towels that people who want plane ones could use those. Also when it comes to kids rooms not everyone has girls and not everyone has boys KWIM. I have one daughter who is 15 and if we rented with my Dsis we would have 4 boys and 1 15year old girl and the adults. No need for over the top princess theme. There are several characters that can be gender neutral. Mickey theme, Winnie the pooh, even Peter Pan would be good. Then you could have both pirates and fairies in the same room and it works for both genders.

If I had a baby I would definitely look for a house with pack and play or crib, high chair and stroller.

We played pool when my dad rented a place several years ago so pool is good and lots of people would enjoy it. Ping pong maybe

Also, additional personal touches like the previous poster said. Guestbooks, recommendations would make me feel better. You want to feel like the owner or manager is really concerned about your stay and concerned that you have a good time KWIM. I really liked the starter pack idea. Nice warm colors on the walls is a great idea, lockbox at the house to get the keys (not offsite), price all inclusive, a grill and extras in the kitchen like, cookies sheets, muffin tin and baking stone, cable, internet and a good phone service are a few of my favorite things.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

It's been a few years since we've rented a private pool home (have since bought a TS) but we did rent many times and learned what we like:

1. Comfy mattresses. They don't have to be super top of the line, but a hard cheap mattress makes it hard to sleep. Combined with aches/pains of so much walking in parks an a hard bed is just awful.

2. Comfy chairs around the pool. We'd skip over homes that have those cheesy stackable chairs from Walmart.

3. Spare pillows in the bedrooms (maybe different types?) I like to sleep with a pillow under my knees and would dread a whole week without one. Also I like a firm pillow while my mom likes a soft feather pillow. It's nice to have a choice. Good sleep is important.

4. TV's with cable in the bedrooms that also have a sleep timer. I like to be able to fall asleep and not worry that we, or our kids left the TV running all night.

5. A decent pool blanket. So many homes had none at all and the one that did was so old, literally falling apart/dry rot. What a waste of energy.

6.I personally don't care, but dh would say big screen tv in living room.

7. While I don't like bland, plain white walls, I also don't like too loud, bright or gawdy decor. I've seen some photos that make me cringe. Soft soothing colors are nice. jmho, this is very subjective.

If I think of anything else, I'll come back.

Good luck with everything!!

 

[littlbugmom]

We're looking for our first house to rent right now and one thing I've noticed is that there are SO MANY to choose from! My head started spinning and I just stopped looking...it was all too much.

While looking, these are the things that I pay the most attention to:


**Above all else, cleanliness. If the house looks cluttered, it's a no.

**Competitive prices and specials. I don't like the extra charges......make me feel like I'm being nickle and dimed to death.

**The website has to show me A LOT of pics and virtual tours. I want to see the rooms from different angles and the pics have to be clear.

**Nice Disney themes. I agree with a previous poster about it not needing to be over the top. We're fine with over the top for now because my kids are young but I can see it not being a plus as they get older. Subtle Mickey does the trick.




***For the gameroom-----I think a variety of toys would be great to add to a gameroom. Sturdy toys that can stand up to a lot of playing and that can be easily dunked into a disinfectant bath between rentals. I'm thinking Fisher Price, Tonka, big Legos, matchbox cars etc..

Nylon pop up tents and pop up tunnels are easy to clean and provide A LOT of fun for young children. http://www.tinkertots.com/depl.html

Also, an area rug for the kids to play on would be a must if you provide the above mentioned toys. Something like this would be nice to have down in a corner of the gameroom-- http://www.everyslipcover.com/asp/s...1016&PiID=1599931&refid=XT111-CFK1016_1599931

If you really wanted to go all out, how about a train table like this-- http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3140254 (Glue the tracks to the table)

Board games kept neatly in a shelf unit and a comfy place on which to play them would be nice. I noticed most gamerooms don't offer very much seating and almost everything is geared for older kids. I would have loved to walk into a gameroom that had something for my 4 yr old.


Good luck with your house. I can't wait to see your website!

 

[sympatico]

I like seeing the floor plan of the house on the website with the bedrooms marked that are the twins, queens and kings so that we can sort out who gets which bedroom before we go.

 

[Dallas_Lady]

Kid-friendly things, especially for babies & toddlers. A family renting a house that large will probablty have some little ones. Keep the fancy/breakable things to a minimum, or keep them up high. Basic childproofing like outlet covers is a good idea also.

I'd also love to have:
-High chair
-Pack-n-play
-A set of bedrails
-Plastic cups, bowls, plates and utensils

These things would make me choose your villa over another one.

Ditto to everyone who said have as much info as possible. We ended up choosing our rental based on the fact that their website answered all our questions. DH was very hesitant about renting this way to begin with, but seeing everything listed clearly won him over.

 

[isla bonita]

Every one vacations differently so needs change from group to group.

I think having a themed room is great just not to one way. My son would never have stayed in a pink room.

Having pool towels when there is a pool I think is a must.

Lots of plastic ware for the lanai. You would not want glass out by the pool.

Pool toys are a must such as dive sticks and floats. They seem to last longer then I ever thought they would.

I know there was mention of air hockey. Ping pong and fooseball are better not many breaking parts. Have heard many complaints on another forum of owners.

Enough towels so laundry does not hae to be done daily.

Ask after every rental if there was anything the guests could have used. You may be surprised. Things get broken and you may not find out until another guest may need it. Keep a list and when you go down you can pick up the needed items. Management co's are wonderful but not all items will they notice like a guest who has just spent many hours there.

One thing I might add. If you choose to have a grill make sure you purchase a grill pad they are worth every penny. It will not stain your lanai. Also grill tools.

Good luck with your new home.

 

[PrincessBelle39]

We stayed in a 6 bedroom villa on our last trip with 11 of us. This time we are renting the 6 bedroom villa next door from the same owner even though there are only 4 of us. We loved the stroller and car seat available for us to use. We also loved the BBQ/Grill near the pool. Some things we would really have liked would have been a few pool toys and some other toys for the kids to play with inside. We did have to make a trip to Walmart to buy these.