Vacation Homes - Selling vs Renting

Are you thinking about selling your vacation home but maybe the timing isn't right? The news media is reporting that prices are down and the real estate market is overloaded with homes just like yours! However, you may be experiencing some financial problems. Your mortgage is high and the expenses are draining you. What should you do?

Here are your options:

1. You could make your property the most desirable property in your area, better than any other house on the market in the same price range and sell it.

2. You could hang on to your vacation home for a while and use it for short-term vacation rentals while preparing it for a future sale.

It is not easy to make the decision to sell your vacation home. It is a place where most families create a lot of great memories! This is where you gather around with your family and friends to share stories, play games and laugh together!

What should you do? Since you are the only person who can decide whether you should sell or rent your vacation home, here are some things to think about before you make that decision.

If you decide to sell, you need to learn as much about your competition as possible. Go to all the open houses in your price range in your area. Check out the size, location and condition of the houses that are for sale. How do they compare with yours? Once you find out what you are competing against, you will need to think about what you can do to make your house the best choice for your potential buyers. In other words, after they have seen your house, they should look no further!

Try to look at your house through the buyers eyes. Remember, whatever you see wrong with your house, your potential buyers will see as well. Make a list of everything that needs to be fixed or changed. It is important to take care of those items before you show your house. It helps to give your property a fresh coat of paint.

A lot of sellers are staging their homes in order to sell their property. For example: You could set your kitchen or dining room table with romantic settings. Add nicely scented candles on your counter. Outside your home, you could add a small fire pit with a couple of beach chairs around it to entice your buyers. You need to make your home more appealing than any other house on the market in your area! I used this technique to help my daughter sell her house and she sold it two days later.

Maybe you are not ready to sell but you do not know enough about being a landlord. Did you know that you can earn more income from short-term rentals than from annual rental properties? That is made possible when you make your property the most desirable vacation rental available in your area! You can design your home to earn maximum rental income!

If you have made the decision to keep your house and use it as a short- term vacation rental, there are some things you will need to know. Todays generation is willing to pay higher rental rates for quality and comfort. That is why it is important for you to take the necessary steps to make your vacation home the best rental available. If you provide your renters with more amenities and essentials than your competitors, your home will become the most desirable rental in your area. Your vacation home will warrant the highest rates! This will not only help you with your current financial situation, it can also provide you with a more valuable asset for a future sale. You may decide to keep it long term to maximize your benefits.

No matter what your decision is today, whether you sell or rent your vacation home, one thing remains the same. You will need to make your vacation home more desirable than your competitors in your area to gain the highest return. In doing so, you will increase your chances of reaching your goals.

Copyright 2006 Marie R. Ferguson

Marie R. Ferguson, author of Breaking all the Rules: How to Rent Your Vacation Home. A New, Innovative Tool on how to prepare, manage, advertise, screening, pricing and maintaining your vacation home rental. Free Welcome Book available. Free Advice Offer.

For more information go to Marie's Website: http://www.howtorentvacationhomes.com

Or contact Marie at info@howtorentvacationhomes.com

Come See Party Cove

Party Cove, located in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri is one of the wildest adventure spots in the United States. From Memorial Day through Labor Day, every weekend is a party at Party Cove. If you are not hip on seeing scantily clad men and women or wet and wild adventures, then you may want to avoid Party Cove during each weekend of the summer season. Otherwise, the area is in a serene setting backed by the beauty of Lake of the Ozarks.

The water party spot is located in Osage Beach. You cannot get there with the help of maps, unless they are homemade, but in the summer, you simply cannot miss finding this location. If you plan to boat to the Cove, you will just need to head over to the Grand Glaize Bridge. As you approach, if you do not see the party going on, then you will be able to hear it for sure.

From the bridge, you will be able to see hundreds (or thousands) of boats, heading at regulated speeds (just because it can get so wild) to a pre-determined location on the Lake. At the present, this area is officially known as Anderson Hollow Cove and it is located right off the shore from a Missouri state park.

Over the years, the location of Party Cove has moved around this man-made lake. This is mostly because real estate development, a booming industry in Lake of the Ozarks, has made it hard for partygoers to party quite so hardy in the backyard of these recent building developments. This has not slowed the celebration down. In fact, in recent years it has grown to the point where water patrol projects numbers in the three thousands for July 4 weekend alone.

Once visitors arrive at Party Cove, all of the boats are tied together, in a procession, to make one large, floating, party house. There is no other party quite like the one at Party Cove. Things can get wild as alcohol is distributed freely. Anything goes at Party Cove, and the excitement is enough to bring people from all over the country to Party Cove for at least one weekend in the summer.

The history of Party Cove dates back to the 1960's and the party continues on today. Sometimes, the party gets a little out of hand, as X-rated adventures occur. With this in mind, if you are into wild partying then you simply cannot afford to miss a trip to this wonder of the ozarks. Just remember not to get too out of hand.

The mile long path that Party Cove stretches across can lead to trouble if you are not careful. Make sure, if you drink, you have a designated driver of your boat. You will not want to be picked up for a BWI (boating while intoxicated). Otherwise, just remember to be safe and have fun. Your adventure at Party Cove is ready to begin, whenever you are ready to set sail and party!

Dave Huffman owns and operates rental by owner vacation rental websites. For great lodging at the Lake of the Ozarks go to Lake of the Ozarks Vacation Rentals