339. We Fought Restrictive Local Hosting Laws (and Won): Lessons in Short-Term Rental Advocacy

Today’s expert guests are Bob and Callie Karlen. A husband-and-wife investing team, they currently house hack their primary residence near Minneapolis, own and operate Bigwater Cove – their STR cabin in Northern MN – and are hoping to scale their portfolio in 2024 in the commercial boutique motel space in the near future.

Following last week’s informative discussion covering a painful acquisition process that didn’t quite work out, we talk to Bob and Callie about their own emotionally charged short-term rental rollercoaster – only this time, we get a (mostly) happy ending.

Off and running with their new Minnesota-based vacation rental cabin, Bob and Callie received the kind of letter that sends shivers up your spine. They were operating without a license. To complicate things further, they learned their address was located in a township, not the city in the sale listing that they’d done deep STR homework on.

They didn’t give up. In fact, they teamed up to bring their case to the planning commission and, over months and months, affect positive change in their community. We can’t wait for you to hear this riveting success story, and hope it inspires other hosts to fight for their own right to rent responsibly.

(00:01:28) #STRShareSunday: @thewanderstay

(00:03:41) Doing Their Homework to Purchase a Vacation Cabin

(00:09:45) STR Licensing Issues: A Letter From the Planning Commision

(00:17:18) Now What? Amending the Ordinance

(00:26:38) Callie’s Vacation Rental PowerPoint Presentation to the Township

(00:29:25) The Painstaking Process of Changing STR Legislation

(00:43:54) Successfully Lobbying for Your Right to Rent

(00:46:45) Update on Required Noise Monitoring Technology

(00:48:22) Mindset Tips for Overcoming Restrictive STR Legislation

Resources:

• Website: bigwatercove.com

• Airbnb: Bigwater Cove - Lakefront cabin near Brainerd

• Instagram: @bigwater_cove

• Noise Aware: Indoor and Outdoor Sensors monitor noise levels at your property and will alert you through your Dashboard or Mobile App when the noise levels go over your set thresholds. Use code TFVNA20 for 20% off ($144/year including 1 free indoor sensor) and 20% off any additional indoor or outdoor sensor: noiseaware.com

• #STRShareSunday: @thewanderstay

• Visit thanksforvisiting.com/workshop to watch our Hosting Business Mastery Method workshop!

• Airbnb Essentials Checklist: hostchecklist.com

Thanks for Visiting is produced by Crate Media.

Mentioned in this episode:

Minoan | Visit MinoanExperience.com and tell them TFV sent you!

Hostfully | Go to https://www.hostfully.com/tfv and use TFV100 to get $500 off your subscription.

Join us for our live Get More Bookings Bootcamp.