Shampoo & Booze 22: Raising Airbnb Prices and The Roof (and Chimney)

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We're getting into the springtime busy season at the Farmhouse rental and things are going well considering some stained linens and BBQ crust on the oven. We like to think of those things as regular renter use, not fee-worthy behavior. The river house roof is almost done, the chimney is done, and we're watching every episode of the British TV show, Grand Designs, so we know we're not the only ones taking on big projects like this.

Interesting article about hotels trying to woo the Airbnb market with 'micro-tels'. We've stayed at Pod39 about 3 times and loved it. Guess they're doing it right.

Check out some more house progress photos below.
--Our new official Farmhouse sign.
--Different views of the rear of the River House where we tore off the junky deck to better complete the roof.
--And a series of progress photos of the chimney as it was being bricked up.






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15 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. hey everybody do what they want. but we aren't ones to bill people for normal wear and tear, as we said in the podcast. it just doesn't feel right to us.

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  2. Love, love, love the Farmhouse sign !!

    And oh gosh, does the brick fireplace look awesome or what??!!?? It just makes such a huge difference, and makes the house look so much more modern and well cared-for. Nice touches & now I cannot wait to see how great it looks when you change the outside color; blue, right?

    Nice job on everything, and do fun to watch the progress - lots of pictures are greatly appreciated.

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    1. We'll be posting many more photos as the job continues. I think we have another four months or more on this job to be honest. Balancing time, availability of contractors, and our cash flow.

      But it'll be done how we want it.

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  3. Love the Sign very professional, is that a tennis ball in Jays hand?

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    Replies
    1. Yeah, people throw them around for their dogs and I pick them up.

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    2. That was the first thing i thought of but i didn't think you had a dog but now I understand I hope you have a great rental season.

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  4. So exciting to watch the progression of work. The sign looks fabulous. I've been scoping out real estate in the last couple of months for locations where we'd like to move. It's good research. Could you tell me again the site you use for alerts on real estate. You mentioned it once and I can't find it. I've just been using realtor.com. Thanks!

    BTW, looking forward to the interview with your friend.

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    Replies
    1. we use Redfin.com or Zillow.com, both are good. good luck! what part of the country are you looking?

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    2. Hi Margaret,

      I currently live in Chattanooga and have lived in both TN and western NC. It's a great area. Are you going to be buying a mountain home?

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  5. Hi, just wanted to say that I never comment but we have come across all of the above incidents whilst renting out our holiday home. We have the guest who decided to fix everything he thought the management company hadn't done and then email me every day with an update, he put a new belt on the Hoover, fixed a tap, and then took a blade to the stove top as he had burnt something on it, we also had the gent who wet the bed, needed a new mattress, he left without saying and our cleaning lady put her hands on the soiled sheets, we had the family who brought their maid, but then left nine bags of rubbish in the house for the cleaner to deal with. We have since sold our beloved home in Florida and have now purchased a second home here in the UK. We had the house eight years and I do think you will have less hassle than this as your guests don't just deal with you over the net or phone. In hind site I think I should have billed the guests for damages as I found it so heartbreaking to have my home destroyed by careless renters. I follow both your blogs as we are also Irish trash elves, we eBay, and hope to become full time when we retire. Thanks for great info The Irish Travellers

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    1. This is good info. I guess there will always be the good and bad guests. It's a balance between wanting to make income on a vacant property or not.

      Do you have a rental in Ireland? We'll be in Dublin in September. Our plan is to travel around the country for about three weeks.

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  6. Hi, sorry we don't rent out at the minute as we are renovating our cottage but hope to be finished by end of summer, , we are in the North so about two hours drive from Dublin, let us know if you are coming up to the North, check out the Fermanagh lakes it is very beautiful country. It's always great to welcome fellow trash elves.

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    1. Understood. Since Ireland is so small (compared to the US), we plan to wander around the country. Fermanagh lakes looks beautiful.

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