CHAPTER 5: Location (Location, Location

CHAPTER 5

Location (Location, Location!)

AS WITH ANY REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT, the location of your VRP will be a large factor in its success or failure. Always consider the areas that you personally enjoy visiting fi rst.

“Best” Versus Popular A quick Google search of “Rental Homes Natural Attractions” will pull up page after page of “Best Places.” These information “directories” will give their ten best, 20 best, 100 best, and so on. In reality, after deeper review, these are simply lists that are curated from online services that are crafted to place or advertise locations that are in their own directories. Be they local, regional, statewide or national, they all have their own agenda: to drive traffi c to specifi c listings within their listing services.

Do not be fooled. Take the time to study these locations. Gather information with one eye focused on the purpose and source of the data. Look for objective information. Again, a good source is the Vacation Rental Management Association (VRMA.org). Even some of the large national and international VRP online listing and booking services will provide a broader, and in most cases more accurate, picture of the areas of attractions.

Here is what I mean: a “Best of” listed in Google may turn out to

WEALTH AS A VACATION

be the “Best of Wisconsin Dells.” As such, it will not be an appropriate source of information nationally, or even state wide. Your best bet are national visitor statistics. This will give you direct data on the level of traffi c into the area you are considering for your VRP. Later, you can segment this data into demographic profi les and analyze for the best price levels for your VRP search.

Another consideration is that the “best” location, such as beach, attraction, or other, might not be the best measurement for the purposes of your VRP business. The best ski resort could be, for instance, the best snow, or most challenging slopes, or best instruction, nightlife or any number of specifi c categories. What we are looking for then, is not necessarily the “best,” but the “most popular” in terms of sheer visitor numbers. This search will give you the statistical rating that you need to select the highest potential for hitting your occupancy and average daily rate numbers. Remember, you are not in the business of marketing to attract more visitors to your location. You are in the business of capturing the highest paying vacationers to your VRP.

So, with a focus on “Most Popular,” let’s look at some of the best natural attractions where a VRP may be a good investment. Remember, always consider the areas that you personally enjoy visiting fi rst.

A few years back, I was asked to consult on a hotel chain’s attempt to enter the residential business. These were homes being built around a resort community in Southern California. The properties were priced in the $1 million to $10 million range, and the hotel had created its own in-house rental management company to serve the vacation market.

My role was to advise on the types of homes and interiors the hotel should build, as well as advise on the planning and deployment of the marketing and sales processes. This entailed utilizing the hotel’s own booking system and customer database, and determining the type of customer that already existed as a regular hotel visitor. It was my job to help create the right product, then bridge customers to the sales team. In this role, I also enjoyed the opportunity to create the sales process, and train the sales team. This is a pretty normal set up

CHAPTER 5

for the consulting gigs that I have had over the years; it is the same in many industries.

What makes this role special is the day-to-day experience in the VRP industry. Here’s what I mean: I was fortunate enough to be able to stay in La Jolla for my work, one of my favorite places in the U.S. Beautiful coast, close to everything, with the most incredible local restaurants, and beautiful scenery everywhere you look.

My day would start with meeting the Director of Development on the beach with our long boards at around 7am. We would paddle out into the cove, beyond the breakers, and just fl oat around and discuss what we were going to accomplish that day. That was our morning meeting . . . no desk, no stuff y offi ce. Just the Pacifi c Ocean, the freshness of the morning, and the smell of the ocean. It was magnifi cent. Joining us in these meetings were all types of ocean creatures, from dolphins to seals to even a few whales in the near distance.

After our meeting we would paddle in, getting the added benefi t of exercise, and move through the day. Most days were capped with a meal on the rooftop of the hotel. The stellar Pacifi c-facing restaurant is part of the allure at George’s at the Cove. This award-winning seafood establishment, George’s Ocean Terrace, off ers envious views of the ocean while captivating cocktails and plates keep you company. There, we ended each day watching the sun dip into the ocean while briefi ng each other of the day’s challenges and solutions over delectable seafood. The amazing Long Island ice tea and black bean chicken soup made me weak tasting it.

I also had the opportunity with this group to take up paragliding. We trained and became licensed at Torrey Pines. Our weekends consisted of gatherings to fl y the cliff s above Blacks Beach and over Torrey Pines golf course. It was breathtaking. There were gulls fl ying alongside as we enjoyed views of the Pacifi c so wide we thought we could see the curvature of the earth. It was one of my favorite consulting experiences for a developer.

This may seem like pure fun, and it was! But that fun wasn’t without a purpose. Living and working in this manner allowed me to