Buying and Renting Out An Orlando Rental Home Near Disney

Many purchasers forget that when they buy an Orlando rental home they are not just buying a 'home' but are setting up and running a business. Therefore when you buy an Orlando rental home it needs to be treated not just as a home purchase but looked at commercially as you would do when buying or setting up a business.

Preparation
If you buy an Orlando rental home (i.e. a new home on a new development) you will have at least 6 months (quite probably longer) to get prepared for your new rental business. You should start this process now. Before you go to buy an Orlando rental home, as part of your business plan, you must determine how you intend to promote your rental home. If advertising through the medium of the Internet is part of that plan you will need a web site. If you can't do this yourself, then we are happy to assist by introducing you to someone that can provide you with a low cost and effective web site. For full details please see our Marketing page

Bookings For Your Home
Be extremely wary of promises of guaranteed bookings. Take the recent events of 9/11. Villa owners saw drastic declines in bookings following this atrocity. No one knows the future. The only way to receive a guaranteed number of weeks bookings is by 'selling' weeks to large tour operators. You will know from your own experience of using tour operators that they try and keep costs to a minimum to make the 'package' attractive to the traveller. To enable them to do this they have to purchase the various elements at a vastly reduced cost. This means purchasing your rental weeks at a vastly reduced cost! The income you will receive will probably barely cover your mortgage payments (assuming you have a mortgage and not bought the villa outright) let alone cover your management company fees and the property running costs (e.g. utilities, air conditioning maintenance, garden maintenance, irrigation maintenance, home owner association fees, pool maintenance, interior and exterior pest control, telephone, cable TV etc. to name but some). Utility costs are not cheap - electricity and water in Florida are both extremely expensive.

Pricing Your Rentals
You must determine the market at which you are aiming. If this is the luxury end then your home must reflect that. Look at homes geared up for this market. This is whom you will be competing against! Whatever market segment you are targeting, endeavour to offer more. You do not need to be the cheapest within your market segment.

Promoting Your Home
If you have a brochure produced or a web site designed, there are three key elements. The design of the web site, the photographs and the content. The latter two are probably the most important. An ill-designed site although not very professional, but that has fantastic photos and says all the right things will get the home owner more bookings than an owner that has a professional looking site but where there are badly taken photos and where the content is dribble!

What You Say
The first important element is what you say and how you say it. Content is 'king'. For example, if you have a games room don't just say you have a games room and point out the features. Point out the benefits of having a games room, such as:

Ideal for keeping the children amused when you are not at Disney on those 'occasional' stormy Florida days
Provides parents with the opportunity to spend quality time with their children
As the children can amuse themselves, it gives parents the opportunity to have a little time to themselves.

The Window of Opportunity
As indicated above, the second important element is the photography used in your promotional literature or web site. Visual components show what your property looks like and what it offers. This is a very much underestimated important element. Potential renters only have these photos as a basis on which to make their rental decision (pictures speak louder than words!).

Looking Professional
A professional looking web site will inspire the potential customer, instil more confidence in the service you will provide and also that you are a bona fide business with a home to rent. It is an important element in creating the right brand image for your rental business.

When you buy an Orlando rental home you must therefore ensure you have or get first rate photographs. Photographs are the window to your property, so when you buy an Orlando rental home these need to be the best - have them professionally taken if need be. Remember, what potential renters see from looking at the photos will form a very large part of their buying decision.

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