Vacation for Profit

A few years ago I was reading an article on investing. I can’t remember the site or writer, but the message the author was trying to get across was to stop purchasing liabilities and start buying assets. This got me thinking of ways I could mix real estate investing with personal benefit/pleasure. How can I buy an income producing asset and also enjoy it personally?

Short Term Rentals!

My first venture into short term rentals was to purchase a house in Boone, NC. Boone is about two hours away from Asheville, NC where my family and I currently live. My wife and I have a young daughter and Boone offers a lot for kids, like hiking, sights, a cute downtown, etc. My goal in the first year was to at least break even. I figured if I had a place to vacation for free it would be worth it. I’m pleased to announce that in its first year, it made $75! I know that isn’t much money, but we stayed there at least four times in the first year and were able to invite extended family and friends to stay at no cost as well. This includes paying the cleaner. We just show up, enjoy the place, and leave. Plus, I was able to claim around $5k of depreciation on my taxes for the property that first year, dropping my taxable income significantly. We are now halfway through year two and are looking at over $4k in profit (but still - $3k in depreciation).

I’ve had so much fun learning about short term rentals and the idea of free vacation spots that I decided to expand to other areas. We just purchased a small place in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and are passively looking at lake houses.

I’m happy to share my experience or answer any questions for anyone looking to do something similar. This can easily be done and be pretty hands off.