SOMA Living September 2021

REAL ESTATE

FREE VACAY!

The real estate boom hasn’t just propelled people from the City to the Suburbs. Work from homers are parlaying their extra cash from a year of not eating out or traveling into down payments on vacation properties. It can be fairly simple to leverage this investment into paying for itself (or even boosting your income) but what steps are important to become a land baron? Presuming you’ve worked with your Realtor to purchase a property that makes financial sense & maximum-vacation-fun-for-your family, here are some steps to get started: Become a Pencil Pusher There’s a lot of paperwork involved (I know, you thought this was vacay). In addition to registering the property with the town as a rental, you’ll need to dig into state and local regulations. In many cases, you’ll be required to have a Certificate of Habitability or Smoke Certification inspection. Mark your calendar to make sure you do this annually! You may also be required to settle up on some taxes. Since people will obviously be clamoring to rent your sweet digs, be prepared with a rental agreement, Welcome Packet, cleaning & packing checklists and a directory of area attractions & eats. No need to reinvent the wheel here. Many sites where you choose to advertise the property have articles and examples that you can snag. Overall, you just want your guests to have an easy experience booking, checking in and out, experiencing the home and area. Also, you don’t really want to break a sweat here. Seamless is the goal. Put Yourself Out There There are many platforms to get the word out - the big boys being VRBO & Airbnb. Sure, they collect fees but they can simplify your life & help you maximize your rental enough to justify their services. They provide pricing guidance, a simple process to accept and change bookings, affordable travel protection policies (in lieu of collecting and releasing security deposits), a platform for reviews and endless articles on how to effectively run the business side of your leisure house. Can I Speak To Your Manager? You can certainly increase your profit margin if you’re willing to either manage the property yourself or work with individual vendors, but if skimming the pool in your monokini and scrubbing the fridge in between guests isn’t your jam, you may want to consider hiring a property manager to take care of maintenance, lawn & pool care, cleaning services, etc. The agent who helped you locally may have a name or even provide this service. It’s worth looking into as you determine the value of your own time. Pro Tip Don’t be those people who were so excited about the bookings rolling in that they forgot to block off a week for their own vacation. So, if there is one takeaway - remember to balance your rental bookings with your own time at the house so you can enjoy a truly free vacay.

email us at AtlanticConcepts@hotmail.com to schedule a free estimate www.atlantic-concepts.com (386) 344-3894 Atlantic Concepts is a family owned business that has been serving the SOMA community for over 10 years. Its founder, Eddie Cevallos and family are proud residents of Maplewood. Specializing in kitchens, bathrooms, additions, etc, Atlantic Concepts would love to hear your ideas for your projects. Please give us a call for a free estimate.

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Kate Elliott is the leader of The Kate Elliott Team at Coldwell Banker 646-662-6655 Kate.elliott@cbmoves.com Insta: @KeyToNewJersey

SEPTEMBER 2021 | SOMA LIVING 27

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