Hotels FAQ

Question:

You could start by purchasing a condominium in a reputable building and work up from there.   You could still rent it out,  but the risk in having someone not cut the grass or clean the pool is alleviated.   As you become more familiar with the rental market in the area you could upgrade to a detached property. Good luck, David – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Hello, > My wife and I are contemplating buying a vacation home near Naples, Florida. > We are Belgian citizens and have our main residence in Belgium, where we > both have our full time jobs. We would like to buy a place in Florida in > order to enjoy the benign climate and "park" our money into some real > estate. The idea would be to spend a couple of weeks per year and Naples and > try to rent out the place to vacationers the rest of the year. We have found > a couple of single family detached homes that fall within our budget limits > and seem to have the amenities we are looking for. > However, we have been talking to fellow Europeans who have undertaken the > same venture. Their experiences were, in general, negative. Basically they > had the following gripes: > 1. Given the 8,000 miles between sunny Florida and dreary Belgium, all of > them had to rely on a property management firm to handle the issues that are > inherent to a vacation home. However, most of these property management > firms seem to have a rather questionable reputation when it comes to ethics. > One former owner told me about $100 per month charges for maintaining the > lawn, only to find the grass 3 feet high when he arrived unannounced at his > vacation home. Another guy told me a similar story but this time with the > pool maintenance being the issue. Still another former owner had been ripped > off by the property management business, which rented out the house at an > actual $900 per week, but claimed to the owner they only got $500. I guess > you get the gist by now. Apparently, it is very difficult to find a > reliability property management firm, which does not fill its own pockets on > the gullible foreign owner’s account. > 2. The second routinely mentioned problem is with the overall quality of the > houses. Apparently the way of building a house in the USA differs sharply > from what is done here in Europe. The real estate brokers claim a home in > Naples is a sound investment, with a project annual appreciation of 10%. > However, according to those former owners, the problem is that general light > design of the house (concrete bricks, simple roof, etc…) is something that > we Europeans are very unfamiliar with. As such, repairs are required on a > frequent basis, bringing along additional costs. The projected 10% annual > appreciation is subsequently severely reduced as a result of these expenses. > Anyone want to chime in on this? > 3. Finally there is the issue of short term rental wear and tear. I > understand that renters are not particularly careful with furniture, > fittings, etc… Still as a home owner, you need to supply a vacation home > which is in top notch condition, year after year. Again, considerable > expenses are needed in this respect. The alternative would be not to rent > out the home to others. But then again, some people have told me that a home > which is vacant for 48 weeks per year, deteriorates rapidly as well. > Given all the rather negative feedback we have received so far, we are > pretty reluctant to pour our money into the Florida vacation project. On the > other hand, somehow we still have this dream about owning a home in the USA > and being able to fly there whenever we feel like. > Are there people in this group which have owned or still own a vacation home > in Florida, yet live abroad? What are your experiences? Would you recommend > it to pour something like $250,000 into this, or would you rather suggest we > take our money elsewhere? > Thanks to all for the feedback. You can reply on this group, or email me > Regards, > Rik Gruwez > Brugge, Belgium

Response:

> Hello, > My wife and I are contemplating buying a vacation home near Naples, Florida. > We are Belgian citizens and have our main residence in Belgium, where we > both have our full time jobs. We would like to buy a place in Florida in > order to enjoy the benign climate and "park" our money into some real > estate. The idea would be to spend a couple of weeks per year and Naples and > try to rent out the place to vacationers the rest of the year. We have found > a couple of single family detached homes that fall within our budget limits > and seem to have the amenities we are looking for.

If you are only looking for a vacation (for yourselves) house.  I would suggest that you take a look at timeshares.  Instead of buying the "whole" house; you only buy one week’s worth.  You are not going to get the kind of appreciation that you would with a standard ownership; but there is a management company that handles all of the maintenance headaches.

Response:

> If you are only looking for a vacation (for yourselves) house.  I would > suggest > that you take a look at timeshares.  Instead of buying the "whole" house; > you > only buy one week’s worth.  You are not going to get the kind of > appreciation > that you would with a standard ownership; but there is a management company > that handles all of the maintenance headaches.

Haven’t ever tried the timeshare route myself, but they have a generally very bad reputation as a financial investment, and most consumer groups advise great caution in investing in any of them.

Response:

Why would you want to come to the U.S. – Brugge is one of the most beautiful cities in the world! But on your advice – If it were me – I would prefer to save the cash, investing it in some high return product and then joining with a hotel under their VIP membership. Otherwise – maybe this group can help you with more information regarding Florida – http://www.propertyrightsflorida.com Good Luck JAIL THE SUITS!      Eradicate  corporate and political criminals.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Hello, > My wife and I are contemplating buying a vacation home near Naples, Florida. > We are Belgian citizens and have our main residence in Belgium, where we > both have our full time jobs. We would like to buy a place in Florida in > order to enjoy the benign climate and "park" our money into some real > estate. The idea would be to spend a couple of weeks per year and Naples and > try to rent out the place to vacationers the rest of the year. We have found > a couple of single family detached homes that fall within our budget limits > and seem to have the amenities we are looking for. > However, we have been talking to fellow Europeans who have undertaken the > same venture. Their experiences were, in general, negative. Basically they > had the following gripes: > 1. Given the 8,000 miles between sunny Florida and dreary Belgium, all of > them had to rely on a property management firm to handle the issues that are > inherent to a vacation home. However, most of these property management > firms seem to have a rather questionable reputation when it comes to ethics. > One former owner told me about $100 per month charges for maintaining the > lawn, only to find the grass 3 feet high when he arrived unannounced at his > vacation home. Another guy told me a similar story but this time with the > pool maintenance being the issue. Still another former owner had been ripped > off by the property management business, which rented out the house at an > actual $900 per week, but claimed to the owner they only got $500. I guess > you get the gist by now. Apparently, it is very difficult to find a > reliability property management firm, which does not fill its own pockets on > the gullible foreign owner’s account. > 2. The second routinely mentioned problem is with the overall quality of the > houses. Apparently the way of building a house in the USA differs sharply > from what is done here in Europe. The real estate brokers claim a home in > Naples is a sound investment, with a project annual appreciation of 10%. > However, according to those former owners, the problem is that general light > design of the house (concrete bricks, simple roof, etc…) is something that > we Europeans are very unfamiliar with. As such, repairs are required on a > frequent basis, bringing along additional costs. The projected 10% annual > appreciation is subsequently severely reduced as a result of these expenses. > Anyone want to chime in on this? > 3. Finally there is the issue of short term rental wear and tear. I > understand that renters are not particularly careful with furniture, > fittings, etc… Still as a home owner, you need to supply a vacation home > which is in top notch condition, year after year. Again, considerable > expenses are needed in this respect. The alternative would be not to rent > out the home to others. But then again, some people have told me that a home > which is vacant for 48 weeks per year, deteriorates rapidly as well. > Given all the rather negative feedback we have received so far, we are > pretty reluctant to pour our money into the Florida vacation project. On the > other hand, somehow we still have this dream about owning a home in the USA > and being able to fly there whenever we feel like. > Are there people in this group which have owned or still own a vacation home > in Florida, yet live abroad? What are your experiences? Would you recommend > it to pour something like $250,000 into this, or would you rather suggest we > take our money elsewhere? > Thanks to all for the feedback. You can reply on this group, or email me > Regards, > Rik Gruwez > Brugge, Belgium

Response:

JAIL THE SUITS!      Eradicate  corporate and political criminals.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> If you are only looking for a vacation (for yourselves) house.  I would > suggest > that you take a look at timeshares.  Instead of buying the "whole" house; > you > only buy one week’s worth.  You are not going to get the kind of > appreciation > that you would with a standard ownership; but there is a management company > that handles all of the maintenance headaches. > Haven’t ever tried the timeshare route myself, but they have a generally > very bad reputation as a financial investment, and most consumer groups > advise great caution in investing in any of them.

That is exactly what we have heard as well – a well planned ’scamdal’.

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> If you are only looking for a vacation (for yourselves) house.  I would > suggest > that you take a look at timeshares.  Instead of buying the "whole" house; > you > only buy one week’s worth.  You are not going to get the kind of > appreciation > that you would with a standard ownership; but there is a management company > that handles all of the maintenance headaches. > Haven’t ever tried the timeshare route myself, but they have a generally > very bad reputation as a financial investment, and most consumer groups > advise great caution in investing in any of them.

I wasn’t suggesting it as a financial investment. The O-P seemed to be looking for a vacation spot & was thinking about renting out the place for the rest of the year to help with costs.  My wife & I have a week (memorial day) at a TS here in Minnesota that we enjoy.  I WOULD suggest that he buy from a reseller – not the original sales company… Check out "timeshare" on ebay for a lot of listings.   My comment was that this would be easier than trying to be an absentee landlord. (& I ALSO know what kind of headaches THAT can be … we have a couple of houses that we rent; but they are close enough that we can handle all of the management stuff ourselves)

Response:

Also, I would question that 10% per year appreciation figure.  Naples has seen some drastic appreciation in the past couple of years, and I wonder how far back they go to get the 10% number.  At that rate, a $200,000 home doubles in about nine years.  That is not going to go on forever. John Waldron http://www.ushomeloan.com/ – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Why would you want to come to the U.S. – Brugge is one of the most beautiful > cities in the world! > But on your advice – If it were me – I would prefer to save the cash, > investing it in some high return product and then joining with a hotel under > their VIP membership. > Otherwise – maybe this group can help you with more information regarding > Florida – http://www.propertyrightsflorida.com > Good Luck > JAIL THE SUITS!      Eradicate  corporate and political criminals. > Hello, > My wife and I are contemplating buying a vacation home near Naples, >  Florida. > We are Belgian citizens and have our main residence in Belgium, where we > both have our full time jobs. We would like to buy a place in Florida in > order to enjoy the benign climate and "park" our money into some real > estate. The idea would be to spend a couple of weeks per year and Naples >  and > try to rent out the place to vacationers the rest of the year. We have >  found > a couple of single family detached homes that fall within our budget >  limits > and seem to have the amenities we are looking for. > However, we have been talking to fellow Europeans who have undertaken the > same venture. Their experiences were, in general, negative. Basically they > had the following gripes: > 1. Given the 8,000 miles between sunny Florida and dreary Belgium, all of > them had to rely on a property management firm to handle the issues that >  are > inherent to a vacation home. However, most of these property management > firms seem to have a rather questionable reputation when it comes to >  ethics. > One former owner told me about $100 per month charges for maintaining the > lawn, only to find the grass 3 feet high when he arrived unannounced at >  his > vacation home. Another guy told me a similar story but this time with the > pool maintenance being the issue. Still another former owner had been >  ripped > off by the property management business, which rented out the house at an > actual $900 per week, but claimed to the owner they only got $500. I guess > you get the gist by now. Apparently, it is very difficult to find a > reliability property management firm, which does not fill its own pockets >  on > the gullible foreign owner’s account. > 2. The second routinely mentioned problem is with the overall quality of >  the > houses. Apparently the way of building a house in the USA differs sharply > from what is done here in Europe. The real estate brokers claim a home in > Naples is a sound investment, with a project annual appreciation of 10%. > However, according to those former owners, the problem is that general >  light > design of the house (concrete bricks, simple roof, etc…) is something >  that > we Europeans are very unfamiliar with. As such, repairs are required on a > frequent basis, bringing along additional costs. The projected 10% annual > appreciation is subsequently severely reduced as a result of these >  expenses. > Anyone want to chime in on this? > 3. Finally there is the issue of short term rental wear and tear. I > understand that renters are not particularly careful with furniture, > fittings, etc… Still as a home owner, you need to supply a vacation home > which is in top notch condition, year after year. Again, considerable > expenses are needed in this respect. The alternative would be not to rent > out the home to others. But then again, some people have told me that a >  home > which is vacant for 48 weeks per year, deteriorates rapidly as well. > Given all the rather negative feedback we have received so far, we are > pretty reluctant to pour our money into the Florida vacation project. On >  the > other hand, somehow we still have this dream about owning a home in the >  USA > and being able to fly there whenever we feel like. > Are there people in this group which have owned or still own a vacation >  home > in Florida, yet live abroad? What are your experiences? Would you >  recommend > it to pour something like $250,000 into this, or would you rather suggest >  we > take our money elsewhere? > Thanks to all for the feedback. You can reply on this group, or email me > Regards, > Rik Gruwez > Brugge, Belgium

Response:

Trip says… >Also, I would question that 10% per year appreciation figure.  Naples >has seen some drastic appreciation in the past couple of years, and I >wonder how far back they go to get the 10% number.  At that rate, a >$200,000 home doubles in about nine years.  That is not going to go on >forever. >John Waldron >http://www.ushomeloan.com/

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Why would you want to come to the U.S. – Brugge is one of the most beautiful > cities in the world! > But on your advice – If it were me – I would prefer to save the cash, > investing it in some high return product and then joining with a hotel under > their VIP membership. > Otherwise – maybe this group can help you with more information regarding > Florida – http://www.propertyrightsflorida.com > Good Luck > JAIL THE SUITS!      Eradicate  corporate and political criminals. > > Hello, > > My wife and I are contemplating buying a vacation home near Naples, >  Florida. > > We are Belgian citizens and have our main residence in Belgium, where we > > both have our full time jobs. We would like to buy a place in Florida in > > order to enjoy the benign climate and "park" our money into some real > > estate. The idea would be to spend a couple of weeks per year and Naples >  and > > try to rent out the place to vacationers the rest of the year. We have >  found > > a couple of single family detached homes that fall within our budget >  limits > > and seem to have the amenities we are looking for. > > However, we have been talking to fellow Europeans who have undertaken the > > same venture. Their experiences were, in general, negative. Basically they > > had the following gripes: > > 1. Given the 8,000 miles between sunny Florida and dreary Belgium, all of > > them had to rely on a property management firm to handle the issues that >  are > > inherent to a vacation home. However, most of these property management > > firms seem to have a rather questionable reputation when it comes to >  ethics. > > One former owner told me about $100 per month charges for maintaining the > > lawn, only to find the grass 3 feet high when he arrived unannounced at >  his > > vacation home. Another guy told me a similar story but this time with the > > pool maintenance being the issue. Still another former owner had been >  ripped > > off by the property management business, which rented out the house at an > > actual $900 per week, but claimed to the owner they only got $500. I guess > > you get the gist by now. Apparently, it is very difficult to find a > > reliability property management firm, which does not fill its own pockets >  on > > the gullible foreign owner’s account. > > 2. The second routinely mentioned problem is with the overall quality of >  the > > houses. Apparently the way of building a house in the USA differs sharply > > from what is done here in Europe. The real estate brokers claim a home in > > Naples is a sound investment, with a project annual appreciation of 10%. > > However, according to those former owners, the problem is that general >  light > > design of the house (concrete bricks, simple roof, etc…) is something >  that > > we Europeans are very unfamiliar with. As such, repairs are required on a > > frequent basis, bringing along additional costs. The projected 10% annual > > appreciation is subsequently severely reduced as a result of these >  expenses. > > Anyone want to chime in on this? > > 3. Finally there is the issue of short term rental wear and tear. I > > understand that renters are not particularly careful with furniture, > > fittings, etc… Still as a home owner, you need to supply a vacation home > > which is in top notch condition, year after year. Again, considerable > > expenses are needed in this respect. The alternative would be not to rent > > out the home to others. But then again, some people have told me that a >  home > > which is vacant for 48 weeks per year, deteriorates rapidly as well. > > Given all the rather negative feedback we have received so far, we are > > pretty reluctant to pour our money into the Florida vacation project. On >  the > > other hand, somehow we still have this dream about owning a home in the >  USA > > and being able to fly there whenever we feel like. > > Are there people in this group which have owned or still own a vacation >  home > > in Florida, yet live abroad? What are your experiences? Would you >  recommend > > it to pour something like $250,000 into this, or would you rather suggest >  we > > take our money elsewhere? > > Thanks to all for the feedback. You can reply on this group, or email me > > Regards, > > Rik Gruwez > > Brugge, Belgium

Response:

Hello, My wife and I are contemplating buying a vacation home near Naples, Florida. We are Belgian citizens and have our main residence in Belgium, where we both have our full time jobs. We would like to buy a place in Florida in order to enjoy the benign climate and "park" our money into some real estate. The idea would be to spend a couple of weeks per year and Naples and try to rent out the place to vacationers the rest of the year. We have found a couple of single family detached homes that fall within our budget limits and seem to have the amenities we are looking for. However, we have been talking to fellow Europeans who have undertaken the same venture. Their experiences were, in general, negative. Basically they had the following gripes: 1. Given the 8,000 miles between sunny Florida and dreary Belgium, all of them had to rely on a property management firm to handle the issues that are inherent to a vacation home. However, most of these property management firms seem to have a rather questionable reputation when it comes to ethics. One former owner told me about $100 per month charges for maintaining the lawn, only to find the grass 3 feet high when he arrived unannounced at his vacation home. Another guy told me a similar story but this time with the pool maintenance being the issue. Still another former owner had been ripped off by the property management business, which rented out the house at an actual $900 per week, but claimed to the owner they only got $500. I guess you get the gist by now. Apparently, it is very difficult to find a reliability property management firm, which does not fill its own pockets on the gullible foreign owner’s account. 2. The second routinely mentioned problem is with the overall quality of the houses. Apparently the way of building a house in the USA differs sharply from what is done here in Europe. The real estate brokers claim a home in Naples is a sound investment, with a project annual appreciation of 10%. However, according to those former owners, the problem is that general light design of the house (concrete bricks, simple roof, etc…) is something that we Europeans are very unfamiliar with. As such, repairs are required on a frequent basis, bringing along additional costs. The projected 10% annual appreciation is subsequently severely reduced as a result of these expenses. Anyone want to chime in on this? 3. Finally there is the issue of short term rental wear and tear. I understand that renters are not particularly careful with furniture, fittings, etc… Still as a home owner, you need to supply a vacation home which is in top notch condition, year after year. Again, considerable expenses are needed in this respect. The alternative would be not to rent out the home to others. But then again, some people have told me that a home which is vacant for 48 weeks per year, deteriorates rapidly as well. Given all the rather negative feedback we have received so far, we are pretty reluctant to pour our money into the Florida vacation project. On the other hand, somehow we still have this dream about owning a home in the USA and being able to fly there whenever we feel like. Are there people in this group which have owned or still own a vacation home in Florida, yet live abroad? What are your experiences? Would you recommend it to pour something like $250,000 into this, or would you rather suggest we take our money elsewhere? Thanks to all for the feedback. You can reply on this group, or email me Regards, Rik Gruwez Brugge, Belgium

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Hello, > My wife and I are contemplating buying a vacation home near Naples, Florida. > We are Belgian citizens and have our main residence in Belgium, where we > both have our full time jobs. We would like to buy a place in Florida in > order to enjoy the benign climate and "park" our money into some real > estate. The idea would be to spend a couple of weeks per year and Naples and > try to rent out the place to vacationers the rest of the year. We have found > a couple of single family detached homes that fall within our budget limits > and seem to have the amenities we are looking for. > However, we have been talking to fellow Europeans who have undertaken the > same venture. Their experiences were, in general, negative. Basically they > had the following gripes: > 1. Given the 8,000 miles between sunny Florida and dreary Belgium, all of > them had to rely on a property management firm to handle the issues that are > inherent to a vacation home. However, most of these property management > firms seem to have a rather questionable reputation when it comes to ethics. > One former owner told me about $100 per month charges for maintaining the > lawn, only to find the grass 3 feet high when he arrived unannounced at his > vacation home. Another guy told me a similar story but this time with the > pool maintenance being the issue. Still another former owner had been ripped > off by the property management business, which rented out the house at an > actual $900 per week, but claimed to the owner they only got $500. I guess > you get the gist by now. Apparently, it is very difficult to find a > reliability property management firm, which does not fill its own pockets on > the gullible foreign owner’s account. > 2. The second routinely mentioned problem is with the overall quality of the > houses. Apparently the way of building a house in the USA differs sharply > from what is done here in Europe. The real estate brokers claim a home in > Naples is a sound investment, with a project annual appreciation of 10%. > However, according to those former owners, the problem is that general light > design of the house (concrete bricks, simple roof, etc…) is something that > we Europeans are very unfamiliar with. As such, repairs are required on a > frequent basis, bringing along additional costs. The projected 10% annual > appreciation is subsequently severely reduced as a result of these expenses. > Anyone want to chime in on this? > 3. Finally there is the issue of short term rental wear and tear. I > understand that renters are not particularly careful with furniture, > fittings, etc… Still as a home owner, you need to supply a vacation home > which is in top notch condition, year after year. Again, considerable > expenses are needed in this respect. The alternative would be not to rent > out the home to others. But then again, some people have told me that a home > which is vacant for 48 weeks per year, deteriorates rapidly as well. > Given all the rather negative feedback we have received so far, we are > pretty reluctant to pour our money into the Florida vacation project. On the > other hand, somehow we still have this dream about owning a home in the USA > and being able to fly there whenever we feel like. > Are there people in this group which have owned or still own a vacation home > in Florida, yet live abroad? What are your experiences? Would you recommend > it to pour something like $250,000 into this, or would you rather suggest we > take our money elsewhere? > Thanks to all for the feedback. You can reply on this group, or email me

If you only plan to use the house for a month every year, why not just rent a condo instead of buying a house?  I would suggest driving around the area in which you are interested (Naples), and come up with choices of condo complexes that look appealing, then call a realtor.  There are many people who own condos who would be thrilled to have a reliable tenant for a month every year, year after year. Re: investment value of owning a house or condo, I think it’s a big mistake to invest in real estate from such a distance.  It’s too easy to be ripped off (as you mentioned) by unscrupulous real estate companies and/or tenants.  Why not invest closer to home and just rent a condo for your vacations?

Response: