Rental Agent
 

Am planning to rent my Gilford condo next season. Rental agent recommendations?



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Are you thinking weekly rental or longer term?

Why not do it yourself using Craigslist?

I would not look at spencer Hughes. Very poor recent experience in a rental property they manage. If I posted the pics most would be horrified....

My neighbor rents his lake house every Summer. One or two week increments.

3 bedroom lake home.

Let's see. One day I counted 11 cars in driveway. Estimating 2 people per car. Up to 22 people. Then add in some children. Maybe up to 30 people.

So far he/they have replaced every toilet. Every faucet. Replaced stove/oven, microwave, television (twice), dishwasher, and washer and dryer.

Best to get a good rental agency with real specific rules. Also check your homeowners property insurance.

Good luck.

Renting is renting...
 

Renting is way to recoup some expenses however whether you do it yourself or use an agent it's still a risk. Good references or not. People renting tend to do whatever they want regardless of the rules. 90% of them do not take care of rented property the way an owner would, although there are a few that do. You can be lucky or you may not be. Sooner or later you'll have a "less than wonderful" experience. If you go into it with that in mind, you won't be disappointed.

True Story: My parents rented their small cape near the Cape Cod Canal for this past winter to an EMT and a nurse thru a reputable agent to recoup some expenses. No issues thru the 6 months until the renters left. Upon inspection the place was filthy mess. Our feet stuck to the kitchen floor like a fly trap! Dirty dishes in the cabinets (like bacon grease puddles in frying pans! Puddles, not just greasy feeling!) moldings broken off the wall, broken kitchen chairs, drawers in dressers with front torn off and no bottoms, a bed (frame & mattress) was missing along with personal items like pictures and kitchen utensils! In the end they sent a bill for $4900 in lieu of the security deposit of $900 they had requested back. My parents had no intention of getting a dime of it back and didn't.

Not trying to scare you but be aware that there's risk no matter who you rent thru or to.

Oh and you will need to talk to your ins. agent. Should a disaster occur like a fire, you could very well be denied a claim unless you have a policy that covers rental property.

Yes looking for a good agent to avoid the above. If they are good it would be money well spent. Want to avoid rolling the dice with online rentals.


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In the end, the rental agency is really not liable for damage caused by renters they obtain through their listing and the only protection that you have is the security deposit.

Are you planning on weekly type rentals or monthly/lease?

One good thing about using VRBO/Homeaway on a weekly rental basis is the added insurances you can either buy or add to the lease agreement. Here is the link.

https://help.homeaway.com/articles/W...age-Protection

Based on the crappy experience we had renting through Prudential Spencer Hughes and the fact that we used to use VRBO to rent our place I would do it myself. You just need a good cleaner to handle the back end. If you are not local I am sure you can find someone to handle check in/check out.

I suggest calling Gail Archibald at Bayside Rentals in Meredith-they know what they are doing!

Disagre. Bayside
 

I Have used them is the past and was NOT happy at all with their service or screening process. My current neighbor also used them this summer and I had overcrowding, late night parties and drug use next door. All accompanied with them having to repair their bathrooms for damage, two floods and a 911 call because the tenant could not shut off the A/C :eek:

Tried them also, Bayside, not good experience. Weekly rentals


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Get referrals
 

It has been many years since I had a rental condo at the Weirs. I rented, weekly, mostly to people referred by the previous owner. I sold after two years because I didn't want to spend Saturdays cleaning and doing check in/out. No major tenant problems. Also rented the camp once for the month of July to somebody through an internal company computer bulletin board. No problem, but didn't want to give up the lake time again so that was a one-timer. Once to a co-worker for five days between weekends. Good experience.

So the important thing is knowing the tenant source and having references/referral. Try some self marketing between now and April through friends, family, co-workers. If it doesn't work, April is still lots of time for renting through an agent.

I think VRBO/Homeaway may have a method of screening repeat renters. New law in NH: if you use these you need to publish license number and pay room/meals tax. Use an agent and they collect/pay the tax for you. The agent does a lot of good things, but screening is the most important and the most difficult for them to do effectively. Renting long term is probably better than weekly.

Anybody know? When I go to a hotel, they take my credit card "for incidental expenses." If I trash the room, can they charge the damages to the card? Can a landlord do this if damages exceed the security deposit? Or instead of a security deposit?

Very little damage...
 

We clean around 75 rental properties every Saturday for the 10 weeks of Summer and rarely do we come across damaged or misused homes. For the most part we find the homes left in very good condition. I think if you require a decent deposit, you will have no problems.

Frank GNC

I'm about to leave HomeAway, because they've put policies in place that put them between me and my renters. I vet my renters, I have a contract that asks for the names and ages of everyone who'll be staying, as well as asking for references. I take a security deposit that most folks would prefer not to lose.

When someone inquires and says that they'll have 7 or 8 people staying, I stand firm on my 6-person limit. "Can my friends come and stay in their camper?" Nope. My contract actually states, "No high school or college groups," or something like that.

I've never had a problem. We have always had really, truly nice people occupy our cottage.

airbnb.com

I would suggest Spenser Hughes as they do a decent job for me. :)

You don't happen to own the rental they have on Woodlands Rd in Alton, do you?

Never had a problem , except you are violating the fair housing act . Home away needs to Run away from you and they have

I have had rental property since 1978, and rental property on Winnipesaukee since 2003.

My experience in Laconia and Gilford has been much different than in Massachusetts. Yes, you will have problems and sometimes you will end up in court. In Mass the courts hold people responsible and make them pay for damage, back rent, and loss of use. In Laconia? Not so much It seems no one is held responsible and every defendant gets a pat on the cheek and is told to try harder. I have had numerous eviction and collection cases in Laconia District Court and walked away disappointed from every one of them.

Compassion is nice but what about personal responsibility? Laconia deadbeats are quick to learn that they can stiff anyone and it is just fine. They all talk to each other and the message that any story you have to tell the judge will work. And it does.

You could do it yourself, using VRBO.

Agreed.
 

I agree. I have rented several times in Laconia and have lost money and the court is no help. These are always annual renters, weekly renters are much different as you receive full payment in advance.

Any other rental agent recommendations. Have gone through two, they charge a premium, but screw up quite a bit.


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Ask a neighbor
 

I didn't see which condo in Gilford. Chances are, there is a Realtor who owns a unit there, or represents other owners who rent their units. Such a person has a higher interest level in finding good tenants and having the condo retain a good reputation. The same would apply to a Realtor who frequently list units for sale in your association. S/he would like good tenants so they can sell them something in the future. I suppose if you're in a place that has only a handful of units, the above is perhaps not so helpful. Nevertheless I'd consider asking internally first.

Bayside
 

We have used Bayside to handle renting out our place in Moultonborough for the past 3 summers. They have been very good to deal with and we have had no significant issues. They seem to do a decent job of screening renters and have been responsive to requests for reimbursement for (thankfully minor) damage.

Bayside Rentals...
 

I have used a few of the agencies in the area, and I have done it myself through a local family member, since I am on west coast most of the time. Our rental history goes back a long time to around the late 80's.

I have been using Bayside Rentals, Meredith, for about 4yrs. approx. They have been wonderful. I had a few equipment failures, and they let me know right away and were able to take care of the issues.

I recommend at least having this conversation with them.

Have used Homeaway for past 10 years. And just started using Airbnb. It does take some time and effort to keep track of bookings, NH rooms and meals tax, check in/out, etc. If you go this route it is critical to have a good cleaning person to handle the change overs.
I find its a great way to offset expenses.


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Preferred Vacations?
 

Curious why no mentions of Preferred Vacations in Center Harbor. I rented lakefront homes from them years ago and they seemed pretty good. Recent change of ownership seemed a bit rocky and I had a bad experience renting a slip through them this year. Any opinions?

Was wondering that myself. I used them for several years before buying and was very happy with them. Funny you would mention slip rentals because they used to rent a ton of Quayside slips but I don't see any on their website anymore. Did they stop renting them?

If I use air BNB am I required to collect any NH taxes? Meals, lodging... I know they report income with a 1099 after 14 days of rentals.

Read the comment in post #25.

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Short term rentals are required to collect NH meals and rental tax. State of New Hampshire issues a permit just as they would a hotel. You file monthly. I believe Airbnb only issues 1099s if you hit a certain threshold. Haven't seen one from them in past few years but only renting part time.



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You just make them pay for the tax. When we used to rent the price was x amount and then 9% tax and x amount for cleaning. That way the state gets their portion but it does not come out of your pocket.

The problem is that airbnb does not have a mechanism for paying NH taxes. Hopefully they will add NH taxes but until then owners have to collect and pay it themselves. It would have been much better if NH could have just worked with airbnb to collect taxes from the platform but hopefully airbnb will step up soon and start collecting and paying taxes on behalf of their customers.

I have rented through them since they changed hands. Yes they had some work to do in the transition, but I had a very good experience. Very positive.