Erica Muller

Original Content from www.ThePinkFlamingo.info

When considering the investment of a piece of Disney area real estate to use for a vacation home or short term rental your number one consideration when buying shouldn't be which neighborhood you think is the coziest or which house has the nicest window treatments but rather which home is going to bring me in the best return on bookings. I'm going to profile seven of the most booked Disney area neighborhoods based on my experience working in the short term rental business.

Lake Berkley -Kissimmee, FL

If this isn't the most booked out community in Kissimmee I don't know what is. The homes in this community were averaging 30-40 solid booked weeks per year. Alot has changed in the economy over the past year however I don't think this neighborhood will suffer as much as most of the booking in Lake Berkley are repeats visitors who love the community. You also can get a great home for the price right now.

Lake Berkley Homes For Sale

Florida Pines- Davenport, FL

Located off the famous 27 strip in Davenport this community has that good old inland Florida feel. As the name states it's filled with Pine trees (though I always prefer palms) and the homes are in good shape. It remains to be one of the more popular neighborhoods in Davenport for bookings despite the recent downfall of many of the major tour operators. Homes are affordable which still makes Florida Pines a good short term rental investment.

Florida Pines Homes For Sale

Four Corners- Davenport, FL

A newer neighborhood with probably some of the best prices in Davenport right now. This neighborhood has a booking track record and guests continue to come back year after year for more. Four Corners has been having it's share of crime due to the recent flood of foreclosures and vacant homes but that's been common in almost every neighborhood these days.

Four Corners Homes For Sale

Calabay Parc- Davenport, FL

Calabay Parc is very popular with foreign visitors. It's one of the more upscale neighborhoods in Davenport and most of the homes in it would be considered an executive level with management companies. Like Four Corners and Lake Berkley, Calabay Parc has it's loyal guests that come back year after year.

Calabay Parc Homes For Sale

Lindfields- Kissimmee, FL

Though not the most esthetically pleasing neighborhood in my opinion, it continues to book like crazy due to it's awesome location to Disney and it's affordable nightly rates. The homes are older and the neighborhood is not as impressive as some of the others but when you consider the low price you will pay for the home and the return on the bookings that neighborhood has been seeing it easily becomes a no brainer why Linfields is one of the better holiday villa investment choices.

Linfields Homes For Sale

High Grove- Clermont, FL

This is such a cool neighborhood. It's one of the only vacation home neighborhoods in Clermont that I am a fan of. It has a very California feel to it when you drive through and apparently is a booking magnet. Most of the vacation homes in there are usually booked up compared to other neighborhoods. It's location right off 27 and 192 is prime for everything.

High Grove Homes For Sale

Regal Palms- Davenport, FL

And the grand finale wouldn't be complete if I didn't mention Regal Palms. I have this love/hate relationship with Regal Palms simply for the reason that if such a nice community with some of the best amenities in davenport but the club membership fee is so high I sometimes wonder if it's actually worth the investment. In any event the tourist love Regal Palms and it has almost a cult following of guests who come back every year. This neighborhood books and if you've ever seen it you understand why. Prices are low in regal Palms right now due to foreclosures so if there ever was a time to justify the amenity fee it would be now.

Regal Palms Homes For Sale

If you're in the market to invest in a sunny vacation home near Disney World in Orlando,Florida then lets talk money. These are five of the most common expenses that you could and most likely will incur when you own a vacation villa near Disney and use it for short term rental use. These are NOT your settlement expenses but rather your recurring expenses associated with ownership.

(For information on vacation home settlement expenses please contact us directly for a free quote)

1. Orlando Property Management (Villa Management) Fees

If you live outside of the Disney area (within a few hours or more) than management is a must in my opinion. They rent out and maintain your Disney area vacation villa, condo or townhouse for you.

Cost To You: $150 and up per month

2. Orlando Resort Community Amenity Fees
So you think that just because you own in the community means they let you use the amenities for free? Well they do (depends on your definition of free) but they certainly don't let your lovely house guests. There are a handful of specific resort communities in Davenport and Kissimmee, Fl that tack on this lovely fee to you so that your guests can utilize amenities such as the pool and gym facilities.

Cost To You: Anywhere from $10 per each booking day on up to a flat fee of $250 per month on top of your management and HOA fees.

Read Also: Disney Area Vacation Home Communities That Charge Owners Amenity Fees

3. Orlando Homeowner's Association Fees

Probably the most unavoidable fee that exists in Davenport, Kissimmee and Clermont vacation home communities. The fee you must pay to the homeowners association that covers that upkeep and maintenance of the community itself. This is important because if you do not pay this fee the HOA (homeowner's association) can put a lien on your property.

Cost To You: Ranges from around $30 per quarter on up to over $250 per month

Read Also: 4 Davenport, FL Neighborhoods with Some of The Highest Homeowner's Association Fees

4. Property Maintenance Fees

These fees are the costs of Orlando vacation home ownership. These fees include expenses such as:

• Pool maintenance
• Yard maintenance (sometimes covered by your HOA and sometimes not)
• Utility expenses (power, water, cable, phone etc)

Cost To You: Could start anywhere from $250 per month combined and can go up from there depending several factors. I always recommend to estimate higher than lower.

Request an Estimated Kissimmee, Davenport or Clermont Vacation Home Expense Sheet Specific To Your Purchase

5. City, County and State Short Term Rental Taxes

Just when you thought you were getting off easy here comes good old Uncle Sam with his hands in your vacation home. You will only incur these fees when you rent your property out not when you stay in it. You can only be taxed on money that you make so every booking is considered money you made according to the government. If you're using a management company they usually take care of sending this money in for you. I still always recommend consulting with a Davenport, Kissimmee or Clemont vacation home tax specialist.

Cost To You: Usually around 13.5% with everything taken directly off the top of your booking revenue (percentage can vary depending on county)

6. Short Term Rental Insurance

This policy is required by just about any Davenport, Kissimmee or Clermont vacation home management company before they will rent your property out. The minimum coverage they require is usually around $1,000,000 but I have seen some companies willing to lower their requirements to half of that for coverage. In any event this vacation villa insurance policy is an expense you will have on top of your traditional homeowner's insurance policy.

Cost To You: $1,000,000 policy's range around $200-$300 per year.

I just got word today that the Black Lake Park homeowners association has worked out a deal with the Winter Garden police department to set up stop sign traps in the community beginning asap.

Last week there was an unfortunate event that sparked the HOA to hold a meeting a put this plan into accident. Two cars collided near the front entrance of Black Lake Park. The accident took place inside the community, both passengers remained uninjured however the cars weren’t so fortunate.

There is a stop sign when you first come into the community straight ahead right before the park and clubhouse. I have seen cops hiding in the bushes right there and writing tickets. I recommend stopping at all the stop signs in Black Lake Park in order to avoid an unwanted ticket. I don’t believe these cops will be showing any mercy.

Homes For Sale in Black Lake Park Winter Garden, FL

Originally Posted at: www.thepinkflamingo.info

1. Vista Park
$602 per month.

Coming in at numero uno thanks to the mandatory rule that you have to use their property management company for short term rentals. The HOA fee itself is not so bad at $122 per month however this particular community has a requirement that you have to use their own property management company for your bookings and management. Their monthly property management fees are $480 per month. It includes pool and lawn care as well as pest control however when you add that mandatory fee with the HOA you get a whopping $602 per month. Some buyers would argue they could outsource those services for much less and others love the one stop shop effect.

2. Highlands Reserve
$430 per month

These fees do not include property management dues. At $430 per month that’s pretty steep but when taking into consideration the amenities the community offers like a public golf course, tennis courts and community pool the expense may become more justified for some. Keep in mind this hefty Highlands Reserve HOA fee will cut into any profit you could or might have made on your vacation villa.

3. Bahama Bay Condos
$425 per month

Condo associations usually always have higher HOA fees for the reason that they include so much more than the typical single home community (building insurance, exterior maintenance, etc). The fees on this community may be a bit high but I was told by the HOA that first floor condo units pay less HOA than second and third floor. I guess it really pays to live on the first floor in this community.

4. Regal Palms
$385 per month

Regal Palms, one of the most sought after resort communities in Davenport, FL that also charges one of the highest amenity fees. The Homeowner’s association dues are only $135 per month which is very reasonable however there is a mandatory club membership fees of $250 that is required if you or your guest want to use any of the club facilities including their pool and lazy river. Oh and did I forget to mention the $10 per day fee plus tax on your bookings?

Originally Posted at www.ThePinkFlamingo.info

Once you purchase your Orlando, Florida vacation home investment you’re going to want to start booking it out in order to offset your expense of owning it. If you’ve decided not to take the management route, or even if you want to get extra bookings if you did, here are over 60 great sites with strong google placement that you can start exploring to get your property exposed to thousands of Disney bound travelers. This is also a great resource for any travelers seeking a short term vacation home

The Big Boys

These sites have not only made a name for themselves but have international recognition. They are on every travelers bookmarks page and dominate Google as well. In my opinion every owner who is serious about renting out their vacation home should be on at least one of these power house vacation home sites.

Cyberrentals.com
Greatrentals.com
HomeAway Vacation Rentals
Rentalo.com
VacationHomeRentals.com
Vacationrentals.com
VRBO.com
Viscape.com

The Local Yokel

There’s nothing like a hyper focused site that is focused on just your city or state. The search engines love these types of sites and you’re sure to get great exposure and more serious inquiries. Often times people that have vacationed in the area before look for these type of sites to find a vacation rental.

A1floridarentalvacation.com
myholidayhomerental.com
traveling2florida.com

Free For All

Who doesn’t love free? Just saying that magical word seems to have therapeutic effects on our wallets. These sites all offer free villa advertisement. Some offer it in the form of a free trial period and some are just plain free.

Budget-tastic!
These websites are perfect for the budget conscious owner. It’s a great idea to place your listing on one of the big boy sites first and pick one or two of these budget sites as a secondary means of advertising.

en.meowo.com
erhomes.com
findrentals.com
findvacationrentals.com
frbo.ca
holiday-home-rentals.co.uk
holidayhomes.ca
keyvacationrentals.com
onlinevacation.com
ovrentals.com
perfectplaces.com
Runawayrentals.com
scenicrentals.com
topchoicevacationrentals.com
Vacationhomes.com
Vacationhomes2rent.com
Vacationrentaldirect.com
VacationRentalPeople.com
Vacations-abroad.com
Vacationsbyowner.com
Vacationsfrbo.com

Syndicate Me

These websites not only give you advertising on one site but when you list with this group they syndicate your listing across numerous sites giving you maximum exposure for a minimum price. Some are even free!

greatfamilyrentals.com
Guestofowner.com
vacation-homes-network.com
masterpiecerentals.com