The Business of Estimating STR Income

There is both an art and a science to running a STR. The Art involves design of the property and the marketing that sets expectations. The Science looks at the data generated by the AirBnB, VRBO and other directory sites as well as what is reported by other analytics tools. I believe that half of a property’s earnings comes from the property itself, and half comes from operations, so data can be skewed by exceptional properties and/or exceptional operators.

Recently I collaborated with a leading STR property underwriter in a webinar called How to Feel Confident Purchasing STRs in the Poconos, I suggest you watch.

There are a number of enterprises that compile this data, some offer it by subscription, others use it to draw customers to their platform. These are estimates, indicators of how a property may do in the future, not any guarantee.

The free calculators might be good indicators of what is possible. Here are a few commonly referred to ones:
Rabbu
AirDNA
All the Rooms

There are also experts who “underwrite” and do a much more detailed analysis. Some of my clients have used:
STR Insights

John Bianchi has become a leading STR analytics consultant and he is VERY familiar with the Poconos. He has helped guide his clients to dozens of purchases here. He has some free training courses and some customized products including Property Finder, where he finds the best possible property for you, based on data.

AirValuation – Estimates the potential annual revenue of a property and is ideal for someone who has a property under contract or strongly considering one, and needs a little reassurance from the experts. This is a one time fee for a one time report for $749.

AirOptimization – Uses market and competitor data to determine which amenities/features will increase the revenue of a listing. Ideal for someone with a struggling/failing Airbnb and looking to invest some money to revamp or add amenities that will boost bookings and daily rates. This is one time report for $749.

Property Finder – John and his team find you the best possible property, depending on your goals and your situation, and they keeps at it until you buy one. It costs $15,000 but takes a lot of the risk out of the process. If you are interested in this, please contact me by email Mark.shay@kw.com, I will make an introduction and they will coordinate a introductory call. For those who I am also helping as buyer’s agent, I will rebate $1,500 of this cost to you at closing!

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