- property

Top Cleaning Tips for Vacation Rentals during COVID-19

The COVD-19 pandemic has changed how vacation rental homeowners clean and maintain their Kissimmee vacation rentals to keep themselves and their guests safe.

The following top cleaning tips for vacation rentals help you comply with local and national standards while getting the most out of your vacation rental home.

Understand the Needs of Guests Staying in Your Vacation Rental Home

Staying in a clean home and keeping loved ones safe has become the top priority for guests when booking a vacation rental property. Homeowners need to make sure that cleaning staff and property managers understand what to do before and after every guest stays in your home.

Cleaning staff must safely use germicides and other specialized cleaning products while…

How to Counter a Lowball Offer for Your Orlando Vacation Home

Home buyers often try to get the most while spending the least when making offers on Disney villas for sale in Orlando and the surrounding areas. Lowball offers are one of the biggest hurdles home owners face when attempting to sell their properties. Knowing how to counter a lowball offer will help you get the most out of the sale of your vacation home.

Why are Buyers Making Lowball Offers on Your Vacation Home?

Realtors consider lowball offers to be any price that’s 20 to 25 percent lower than your listed selling price. Although, what constitutes lowball depends largely on the price of your home. For instance, a home owner would be more likely to dismiss an offer of $80,000 on a $100,000 home than a $1.6 million offer to buy a $2 million home.

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What to Do Before Listing Your Vacation Home for Sale

Selling your vacation home can be hard when you don’t attract enough buyers willing to pay your asking price. Knowing how to improve your home’s curb appeal and update your property can help you close the sale of your home in less time.

It’s important for homeowners who want to maximize the return on their investment to know what to do before listing their Orlando vacation homes for sale. Here are a few tips to consider if you’re planning to put your second home on the market.

Curb Appeal Essentials for Selling Your Vacation Home 

A home’s exterior is the first impression buyers get when looking to buy. It pays to spend some time and money on improving your property's curb appeal. Trimming your home’s trees and shrubs can highlight its design…

How to Attract Specific Travelers to Your Kissimmee Vacation Rental

Marketing a vacation rental is where many homeowners fall short when trying to get the most out of their home investment.

Knowing the different types of travelers who choose rental homes over hotels is the first step to generating more visibility (and guests) for your Kissimmee vacation rental home.

Vacation Rental for Families 

Families are the ideal audience for your rental property. Your vacation rental can provide all the comforts of home while helping parents save on the cost of traveling with children. Since Disney World hotels now charge for overnight parking, your vacation home will be even more appealing to budget-minded families. 

Vacation homes let families share meals and other activities without leaving the home. This saves them…

How to Hire a Cleaning Service for Your Orlando Vacation Rental

Keeping your Orlando vacation rental clean is essential to keep your property looking its best for holiday guests. House cleaning is a big chore, so it’s a wise investment to hire someone else to do the work for you – especially if you don’t live in the area. 

Hiring cleaning help for a short-term rental property is NOT the same as hiring someone to clean your own home. The biggest difference is that cleaning a vacation properly requires a keen attention to detail. The cleaner should notice whether anything has been damaged by a guest, or if anything is missing. It’s also helpful for them to ensure that everything is stocked up for the next renter. 

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when looking for a cleaning service that will set you up for…

How to Search for Vacation Homes Next to Disney

There are a wide variety of vacation homes for sale next to Disney. Some are single family homes, some are condominiums, others townhomes. It can be confusing trying to find a property that fits both your needs and budget. That’s especially true if you live outside of Florida and only have the internet as your guide. 

Team Donovan’s new website aims to take some of the guess work out of finding an Orlando vacation home. Our map search feature allows you to see at a glance all of the homes for sale in the Disney World area. When you hover your mouse over one of the house icons, a window pops up and gives you the following information on that property:

• Property Address
• MLS number
• Listing Price
• # Bedrooms
• # Baths 
• Square Footage
• …

How to Know if You Should Buy an Orlando Vacation Home

Do you dream of owning a vacation home in Orlando? What’s holding you back from making those dreams a reality? Could it be that you find the idea a little too intimidating? Believe it or not, it’s actually easier than you may think. You just need to keep a few things in mind before you make the commitment. Here are some things to consider to help you analyze your options. 

1. Match housing choices to your lifestyle – Many people make the wrong assumption that you must own a primary residence before owning a vacation home. But that’s not a hard and fast rule you have to follow. The important thing to focus on is matching your housing choices to your lifestyle. 

Perhaps you live in a big city and want a lot of space that is just not affordable where you…

4 Reasons Why It's Smart for Snowbirds to Buy a Home

Many Canadians and residents of states like New York, Michigan and Ohio spend their winters in Orlando every year – trading in the cold and snow for Florida’s balmy breezes and warm sunny skies. If you’re one of these “Snowbirds,” you know that Orlando has a lot to offer, including world-class theme parks, championship golf courses, fine dining and exceptional shopping. 

Renting a home may seem like a good option for part-time residents. But it may wind up costing you more in the long run. Here are a few reasons why snowbirds should consider buying a second home in Orlando instead of renting one. 

1. No Surprises – A typical snowbird can spend upwards of $15,000 to rent a home for 3-4 months out of the year. Besides the cost, the downside of…