Brief-term leases (STRs) have apparent upside: money stream, appreciation, and the added perk of proudly owning a property in a spot you get pleasure from visiting. Nonetheless, as each skilled host is aware of, the postcard view doesn’t at all times translate to earnings.
Rules, seasonality, property taxes, and nightly price caps can considerably affect your deal. That’s why we analyzed 31 of probably the most stunning cities in America, a listing straight out of Condé Nast Traveler, and ran the numbers like an investor would.
We examined median dwelling costs from Zillow, estimated annual STR income with predicted averages utilizing Mashvisor, Rabbu, Airbtics, and PriceLabs, and calculated a easy yield (gross income divided by worth). Then we added the essential layer most “greatest cities” lists omit: native STR guidelines.
The outcomes present a mixture of doable winners with double-digit yields and extra pleasant insurance policies, big-budget status cities the place returns are slim, and do-not-invest locations the place moratoriums or outright bans make STRs all however inconceivable.
The Numbers First
Right here’s the information on costs, yields, classifications, and regulatory notes for all 31 cities we examined:
Robust however doable
- Bar Harbor, ME: $677K properties, $97K income, 14% yield. VR-2 leases are capped at 9% and require a four-night minimal.
- Ketchikan, AK: $399K properties, $44K income, 11% yield. Zoning allow and parking house required.
- Lake Geneva, WI: $399K properties, $68K income, 17% yield. License wanted, 180-day cap, two-night min.
- Lake Placid, NY: $358K properties, $53K income, 15% yield. New unhosted STRs are banned; hosted STRs are capped in neighborhoods.
Potential
- Beaufort, SC: $410K properties, $44K income, 11% yield. 6% cap per neighborhood.
- Camden, ME: $674K properties, $58K income, 9% yield. 150-license cap.
- Deadwood, SD: $445K properties, $35K income, 8% yield. STRs are banned in residential areas besides through the Sturgis Motorbike Rally.
- Eureka Springs, AR: $311K properties, $23K income, 7% yield. New STRs are banned in residential areas.
- Gatlinburg, TN: $411K properties, $54K income, 13% yield. STRs are banned in some zones, however allowed in most.
- Harpers Ferry, WV: $396K properties, $38K income, 10% yield. Registration and taxes.
- Hudson Valley, NY: $437K properties, $53K income, 12% yield. Have to be registered and pay charges.
- Jekyll Island, GA: $875K properties, $77K income, Software course of.
- Lewes, DE: $605K properties, $52K income, 9% yield. License and native contact.
- Mackinac Island, MI: $490K properties, $37K income, 7.6% yield. Leases <30 days handled as resorts.
- Montpelier, VT: $437K properties, $34K income, 8% yield. Rental registration and taxes.
- Rockport, MA: $869K properties, $61K income, 7% yield. State STR registration and taxes.
- St. Augustine, FL: $441K properties, $52K income, 12% yield. Strict zoning guidelines.
- St. Michaels, MD: $730K properties, $79K income, 11% yield. License and inspections.
- Sedona, AZ: $904K properties, $71K income, 8% yield. Registration and taxes.
- Taos, NM: $449K properties, $45K income, 10% yield. 120-permit cap.
- Whitefish, MT: $858K properties, $70K income, 8% yield. Solely sure zones are allowed.
- Woodstock, VT: $712K properties, $54K annual STR income, 7.6% yield. City ordinance with caps.
Massive finances
- Block Island, RI: $1.8M properties, $84K income, 5% yield. Annual registration, two ppl/bed room.
- Carmel, CA: $2.36M properties, $125K income, 5% yield. STRs are banned in R-1 zones (the single-family district).
- Jackson, WY: $1.9M properties, $79K income, 4% yield. STRs restricted to a few stays/60 nights in residential.
- Snowmass Village, CO: $2.1M properties, $130K income, 6% yield. Annual allow, four-night min.
Don’t make investments
- Cannon Seaside, OR: $890K properties, $69K income, 8% yield. 14-day guidelines.
- Friday Harbor, WA: $887K properties, $37K income, 4% yield. Registration and taxes.
- Magnolia Springs, AL: $403K properties, $29K income, 7% yield. STR moratorium.
- Paia, HI: $1.3M properties, $92K income, 7% yield. STR moratorium.
- Portsmouth, NH: $776K properties, $50K income, 6.5% yield. STRs are unlawful in residential areas.
- Woodstock, VT: $712K properties, $53K annual STR income, 7.6% yield, City ordinance with caps.
Breaking It Down Additional
Now that we now have the numbers in hand, let’s analyze these markets additional.
Robust however doable
These are the markets that make traders’ palms sweaty. On paper, the yields are unimaginable. We’re speaking 14% to 17% in locations like Lake Geneva, WI, and Bar Harbor, ME.
However right here’s the catch: You’re not simply shopping for a property; you’re shopping for right into a algorithm that power you to function in another way.
Take Lake Geneva. Sure, a 17% yield seems to be like mailbox cash, however the metropolis caps you at 180 days and enforces spacing guidelines between stays. Which means you don’t actually personal a year-round STR; you personal a seasonal machine. Nonetheless, if you’re priced out of the mountains or seashore markets, Lake Geneva is among the few Midwest cities the place the money stream rivals the large names.
Bar Harbor is one other one the place the foundations appear painful, however shortage is your buddy. Nonowner STRs are capped at 9% of parcels and require four-night minimums. Most traders see that as a deal-breaker. I see it as a moat. When you’re in, there’s much less probability of a race to the underside on nightly charges.
Lake Placid, NY, additionally matches this mildew. The 15% yield is actual, however “unhosted” STRs are banned in most neighborhoods. That’s not a spreadsheet downside; that’s a method downside. You both play the hosted sport, discover a business space, or watch for a grandfathered allow to develop into out there.
Backside line: In the event you’re keen to work round restrictions, these markets repay. The principles weed out informal hosts, which might depart extra room for execs.
Potential
This is probably the most monumental bucket—markets the place the numbers work, however the native guidelines are extra like guardrails than roadblocks.
Gatlinburg, TN, is the headline act right here. You get a 13% yield and a market that’s bulletproof due to the Smokies. The one catch is zoning. Purchase within the incorrect district (like R-1A or R-2A), and also you’re sitting on a non-cash-flowing trip dwelling. Purchase in the fitting district, and also you’ve bought a without end STR.
Then you definately’ve bought markets like Taos, NM, and Beaufort, SC, the place caps restrict provide. Taos solely points 120 permits citywide, and Beaufort caps STRs at 6% per neighborhood. Each guidelines sound scary, however take into consideration the moat they create. Fewer permits imply much less competitors, which suggests greater occupancy and pricing energy if you have already got one.
The Northeast is a combined bag. Hudson Valley, NY, yields 12%, however provided that you observe owner-occupancy guidelines and zoning. Camden, ME, limits licenses, and Rockport, MA, punts to statewide registration and taxes. In different phrases, you can also make cash in all three, however you’ve bought to just accept the paperwork as a part of your underwriting.
Some locations on this tier are extra area of interest. Eureka Springs, AR, banned new STRs in residential zones, which caps progress however protects current operators. Deadwood, SD, solely actually is smart in the event you’re capitalizing on the Sturgis Motorbike Rally (which takes place in August) or exterior metropolis limits. Whitefish, MT, requires you to purchase within the right zone. In the event you can reside with these quirks, the numbers maintain.
Traders ought to view these cities in the identical means they’d a property with deferred upkeep. The bones are good, however that you must handle the danger to unlock the worth.
Massive finances
This class is the place the numbers cease making sense from a pure money stream perspective.
Jackson, WY, is the basic instance. Houses common almost $2M, and even with robust nightly charges, your yield barely breaks 4%. Add within the three-stay/60-night cap in residential zones, and also you’re primarily shopping for bragging rights, not money stream.
Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA, tells the same story. Stunning city, insane demand, however STRs are banned in R-1 zones. Except you’re sitting on a authorized nonconforming unit, you’re a $2.3M dwelling that doesn’t money stream.
Snowmass Village, CO, seems extra profitable by way of income, with $130K yearly, however once more, with $2M dwelling costs and heavy allowing, your yield is just 6%. Positive if you would like a ski home that pays its payments. Not nice in the event you’re making an attempt to scale.
These aren’t money stream performs. They’re trophy property. You purchase right here for appreciation, for legacy, or as a result of you’ll be able to afford to. For many traders, these are “look however don’t contact” markets.
Don’t make investments
After which there are the markets the place the maths may look OK, however the guidelines principally shut the door. Most will nonetheless enable STRs in particular business zones or exterior metropolis limits, however you by no means know when they may crack down much more.
Portsmouth, NH, is the clearest: STRs are unlawful in residential zones, full cease.
Paia, HI, and Magnolia Springs, AL, each have moratoriums in place. That’s the federal government telling you they don’t need you of their market, for now.
Cannon Seaside, OR, is a case examine in methods to strangle a market: Limiting stays to as soon as each 14 days ends in a collapse of occupancy. On paper, the yield is 8%. In actuality, you’re working half-empty.
Friday Harbor, WA, has a 337-permit cap and a moratorium on new functions. That’s a closed store until another person offers theirs up.
This is the class the place you have a look at the numbers and suppose, “Too good to be true.” And generally, you’d be proper.
Last Ideas
What this checklist actually reveals is which you could’t make investments off yield alone. The 31 prettiest cities in America aren’t essentially the 31 greatest STR markets. Some will make you wealthy. Some will make you loopy. And a few received’t allow you to in in any respect.
As an investor, you’ve bought to underwrite not simply the property, however the politics. Guidelines change. Caps get enforced. Moratoriums pop up.
In the event you’re already in considered one of these markets, you’ve in all probability bought a moat. In the event you’re making an attempt to get in, the most effective performs are within the “Robust however doable” and “Potential” tiers—locations with demand, robust yields, and guidelines that create obstacles to entry reasonably than brick partitions.