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VRBO boasts 3372 rental listings, and that’s not counting your competition on other sites (like Airbnb). But how many of those are actually being rented out? I know of one resort that was summer-only and didn’t even rent in the winter, and yet just being on a short term rental site makes all of its properties count as listings. That’s not even to mention all the homeowners who dabbled in short term rentals, but tapered off without officially de-listing, or those who listed their property to make a few bucks during a  big event and then decided it wasn’t for them.

Airdna, the research site we use at Away Agents, has an algorithm that analyzes listings and availability to estimate which properties are active and which aren’t. Their best analysts have calculated approximately 1315 active listings (across Airbnb and VRBO) in Avon. That’s down a little since Q1, a dip that also happened last year. It’s no wonder, as winter listings can be significantly more profitable than summer listings (think $650 per night as opposed to $350) for no extra effort. But there’s still plenty of demand.

Here’s what you need to know when looking at VRBO investment property in Avon.

The Goldilocks Principle

Very small or large properties rent for more or less. The general rule of thumb says you should pick a property YOU want to vacation in, because you’ll always find a market. But if you’re planning on buying purely as an investment, you should know that fully 66% of short term rentals are 2 (31%) or 3 (35%) bedroom properties.

What Do They Have To Offer?

Amenities in Avon are mostly what you’d expect. Air conditioning is in 91% of the units, as is heating, washer, dryer, parking, kitchen, and internet. Surprisingly, a pool or hot tub is available in about two thirds of the units, so you may want to think twice if your property doesn’t have either.

Growth and Investability

First, our research site Airdna isn’t offering sunny “buy everywhere!” recommendations. In fact, there’s a hefty subscription fee just to get as granular as we get in our blog posts (you’re welcome!), and the site makes its living on real data. So when they suggest the Bay Area or Rome don’t have a great ROI for short term rentals, it’s just a dose of realism.

That’s why it’s so shocking to see them rate Avon with a 97/100 for investability. Those are very high numbers. But breaking the data down, it makes sense. Rentals are just exploding in this market (from 532 in late 2016 to almost triple that now). But house prices aren’t stunningly high. Renting 60% of the time, you could pull in $100,000 a year on a $615,000 property with a $455 daily rate. That’s some good math, especially if you’re only putting down 15% upfront and financing the rest.

For more information on VRBO investment property in Avon, give us an email at scott@awayagents.com.