Tara and Larry are the parents of six children. They all live in Louisville, KY but often vacation in Panama City. They family wants to make the investment of finding a Florida vacation home that can also act as a rental property. They need House Hunters’ help to find the ideal beach view place for a family of six.
Tara and Larry met while playing football in Baltimore. Their first date last for five hours, and they shared their dreams, which included having six children and living in Kentucky. The happy couple has been together for 20 years and married for 16 years. They often vacation in Panama because it’s only 10 hours from Louisville, so it’s the closest beach area to them.
They’re working with a budget between $1 million and $1.5 million.
Wish Lists
Tara and Larry want a property that provides them with rental income. They would like the vacation home to have five bedrooms and five bathrooms. Larry and Tara want a downstairs master bedroom for when their parents visit. They don’t want them to have to deal with walking up and down stairs.
Hers: Tara wants a beachfront cottage style home. She wants a water closet, to have a bit more privacy. Tara wants a white kitchen with no travertine tiles. She’s also okay with some renovations.
His: Larry wants no renovations. He wants the home to be near a few restaurants. It also needs to be turnkey. Larry prefers homes that have a Mediterranean style.
House #1, $1.55M
The home would provide $125,000 a year in rentals. It has four bedrooms, and three full bathrooms with two half bathrooms. It comes with a pool for additional water access. The place has lots of natural brightness, along with high ceilings, and spacious rooms. The balcony has a nice view but the noise from the road overpowers it.
It is close to the beach, but not near any restaurants or activities. The home is fully furnished and turnkey. Most of it is white with lots of colorful accessories placed throughout the home. It has the beachy vibe that Tara likes. However, she doesn’t like the cream countertops in the kitchen.
House #2, $1.35M
This Mediterranean style home is about two blocks from the beach, which Tara thinks is a little too far. It has five bedrooms, and five and a half bathrooms. It also has the travertine tiles that Tara hates so much. Larry and Tara can get an additional $115,000 in rental income from this home. The home has an extra large family/living room area. This is also a high ceiling place.
This rental property looks very outdated. It also comes fully furnished, but Tara would want to replace the furniture. Tara also doesn’t like all the stone used to design this place. She does like that it has a first floor master suite. The home is missing a water closet. It is close to restaurants and activities, and each bedroom has a bathroom attached.
House #3, $1.68M
This home is a two minute walk to the beach. It has lovely gulf views from the balcony, various bedrooms, and even the lower floor. It’s a contemporary style home with five bedrooms and four bathroom. It would provide an additional $145,000 a year in rentals.
Looking out the balcony, they can hear the ocean. It’s fully furnished. Two of the rooms have a jack and ill bathroom, so all bedrooms have easy access to a bathroom. The master bedroom has Tara’s water closet.
Decision Time: House #3 had everything Tara and Larry needed but it was way over their budget. House #2 needed lots of updating but it had the most rooms, and it had easy access to restaurants and the beach. House #1 was located too close to a road, which killed some of the vacation appeal. However, it was very close to the beach.
Tara and Larry picked…House #2.
They got the price down from $1.35M to $1.26M. They’ve only been there a month but already made some changes, like removing the bookcases, turning the whole house white, and changing the backsplash. They plan to do more renovations to turn it into the perfect beach home, with a water closet.
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