Becoming Vacation Rental Hosts: A Never-Ending List of Projects
Hey there! Welcome Back to the Rosa Lake Lodge Blog!
In our first post, we shared a brief story about how we ended up becoming vacation rental hosts in Cable, Wisconsin. Click Here to read! Today I am going to fill you in on what projects we have completed that got us to where we are today and what things we have in store for the upcoming year ahead!
Let’s dive in around the time we decided to turn our COMPLETELY EMPTY 6 bedroom, 6 bathroom log cabin into a vacation rental in the middle of a pandemic when finding in stock furniture was at an all time low… what a time to be alive and take on a project this size! What were we thinking!? At this point in time, we had already prepped the cabin to sell which entailed sandblasting and restaining all the logs on the exterior, sanding and restaining our beautiful hardwood floors on the main level, repainting all interior walls, new carpeting everywhere, new flooring on the 3 season porch and in the lower level, as well as fresh class 5 rock on the driveway.
Over the last year we have tried to consider all things in regards to making our property more functional, desirable, and comfortable.
Let’s talk exterior…
We have added stairs outside of the walk-out basement down to the lake. My husband built an awesome fire pit area close to the water for optimal views while kicking back in the Adirondack chairs! We are currently in the process of building a pergola with outdoor dining on the deck! Bistro lights and everything! (Shout out to Toja Grid! - New Project Post coming soon!) We are adding a gas fire table and more Adirondack chairs up on the deck for ease of use! We already had a canoe, so we purchased 2 Kayaks, 2 Paddleboards, a lily pad floating raft and a dock to put in the lake! We have a variety of life jacket sizes for our guests to use as well as some hammocks for those who want to be outside but not in the water. As we are located close to so many skiing, biking and snowmobile trails we wanted to do something special for our Winter guests as well… SAUNA coming this Fall! We are sooooooo excited about this addition! I can’t imagine a better way to warm up after hitting the trails or spending the day on the lake ice fishing!
Coming Soon!
Imagine something like this with a big window facing the lake! It will be 8x8 and able to fit 8-10 people. Shoutout to Stoke Sauna out of Delano, MN. It should be completed by September/October 2023.
Blog Post with our favorite outdoor purchases coming soon!
Let’s talk interior…
If you don’t have a Costco card and/or Business Credit Card… now would be the time to get one! To use our referral link for American Express - Click Here! You need to get the most out of these purchases and collect all the points you can! I promise this truly does make it easier for tax purposes as well, so just do it! Remember to start a file for those receipts!
Step 1: Go to Ikea
Step 2: Go to Costco
Step 3: Repeat Step 1 about 1328 more times
Step 4: Repeat Step 2 about 2765 more times
Why did we choose Ikea?
Shortest Answer: We really enjoy DIY furniture building and thought this was the perfect excuse to practice our skills… NOT!
Short Answer: We didn’t want to wait 6+ months for furniture. They have what they have in stock and you can walk away that day with the items you want. Their prices are also a lot more reasonable that other furniture stores in our opinion. We purchased all of our couches, rugs, lamps, tables, chairs, benches, and tableware from Ikea. We are really happy with the quality of the products we have purchased so far and would recommend all of them!
Blog Post with our favorite IKEA purchases coming soon!
Why did we choose Costco?
Short Answer: Costco has everything you need to get you started in regards to mattresses, sheets, bedding, blankets, pillows, towels, glassware, and other kitchen essentials. Plus while you are there you can stock up on things like laundry detergent, paper towels, toilet paper, dish soap, and cleaning supplies! It’s a win-win.
Blog Post with our favorite Costco purchases coming soon!
Sometimes you do have to shop around for the best deal - we had better luck finding things like box springs and bed frames from local stores. We also added in some odd and end decor items that were already in our current home. Everything else was found by searching on Facebook Marketplace from time to time - This is the best place to find furniture for a great deal!
Once the place was furnished, it was time to take those pictures and list it on AirBNB and VRBO. I think we got our first booking within a week of listing it! We were shocked! We’ve had great luck so far renting out our cabin, which has allowed us to take on more projects each year. For those of you beginning your journey… I will be writing blog posts in the coming months discussing topics like getting started with AirBNB/VRBO, 5 Things to Consider When Starting Your Vacation Rental Journey, The Pergola Project, and many more. We hope you stick around to hear our helpful tips and tricks, recommendations, and updates on our projects throughout the year! Thanks for stopping by!
Don’t forget… you can earn an additional 15,000 points on your new American Express Business Card by using our REFERRAL LINK! We appreciate you! If you have any questions regarding this… shoot us an email!
Cheers and Happy Trails,
Rosa Lake Lodge