Investor clients are now looking for ways to maximize their rental return and one of the more popular ways to do that is through sites like VRBO and Airbnb.  The issue with these short term rental options are that stratas are starting to shut them down, or fine home owners who they find to be using them.  Buildings such as the Woodwards building are fining short term rental owners $200 for each infraction that they catch.  With this being said if you were to look on Airbnb you would quickly realize that there are still numerous options in the building.

 

Acting on behalf of investors I try to find ways around this or at least educate my clients that this may not be a long term plan.  What I find is that you can often get away with short term rentals in the first few years of a building or if you have your own front door, such as a townhome or ground floor unit.  It becomes more difficult as the stratas get in place and complaints start to happen.  There are a few buildings in Vancouver that are known to be more lenient on short term rentals and we can look at those as well.

 

One area that is extremely profitable in this market is Olympic Village.  With huge nightly rental rates, proximity to the sky train and downtown, and a variety of new buildings I see this as a great place to try your luck at short term rentals.  With that being said, be prepared that you may get shut down and need to convert to either a 3 or 6 month rental period.

 

Good luck fellow investors and happy hunting!