Everything I get asked on consultation calls, written out. Each guide comes from ten years of hosting and six years operating units in the Disney World area, not from summarizing somebody else's blog. Where a number comes from a statute, a county, or a platform, I link the source and date it.
If you read two things on this site, read these.
The whole sequence in order, from picking a concept to taking your first booking: what to decide before you shop, how zoning and HOA rules kill otherwise-good properties, the four registrations you need, what the furnishing and launch budget really looks like, and who runs the place once it's live. Links out to the detailed guide for every step.
The single thing that separates rentals with full calendars from the ones that sit empty, and it isn't the decor. A theme is a look anyone near the parks can copy by next weekend. A concept is a property built around one guest's trip, and it is why a unit a mile further out can out-earn the one across the street from the gate. Includes the three levels, real examples, and a four-question test on your own property.
The questions that decide whether a property can legally and profitably be a short-term rental.
Closer isn't automatically better, and paying the proximity premium is how a lot of buyers lose their margin before they ever host anyone. What guests actually book on, when the extra ten minutes stops mattering, and how the resorts themselves set the price you're competing against.
Usually yes, but zoning, HOA documents, and county rules decide it property by property, and a listing that says "Airbnb-ready" is not proof of anything. What to check before you make an offer, how buyers get burned, and why nightly isn't always the best play even when it's allowed.
Florida is still writing the rules here. Getting this right is cheap. Getting it wrong is not.
The four registrations a Central Florida short-term rental needs, in the order you should get them, with current costs: the DBPR vacation rental license, your county tourist development tax account, the state sales tax certificate, and local registration where your city or county requires it. Plus the tax rates by county, what the platforms do and don't collect for you, the three taxes owners most often miss, and what the statute actually says about penalties.
Who does the work once the property is yours.
Eight questions on the two things that actually decide it: how much work your specific property and guest mix generate, and how much of that you can realistically cover. You get a recommendation plus what to look for in a co-host or manager, the vendors you'll need either way, and an honest read on what each route costs you in margin and in time.
Guides in progress, from the questions I get most: what furnishing a Central Florida rental actually costs, financing a second home versus an investment property, and buying a rental that's already operating versus converting one.
Reading only gets you so far. If you're planning to buy in Central Florida, book a consultation and we'll go through your situation directly: your budget, where it actually works, and what the numbers look like. If you already own one, send it over for a free listing audit.