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The Smoky Mountain (Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge) Market
The Smoky Mountain (Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge) Market
Kicking off the Gatlinburg – Pigeon Forge (Smoky Mountain) discussion!
I own 5 vacation rentals in the Smoky Mountains, and have connected investors with hundreds of cabin investments over the past few years. This is a fantastic vacation rental market for a number of reasons:
1. CASH FLOW. 20-40% cash on cash return is easily attainable here.
2. 12 million visitors a year visit the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, making it the most visited National Park in the country by double (The Grand Canyon gets 6 million).
- 3. We have very little hotel presence. So the vast majority of those 12 million visitors stay in vacation rental cabins, and always have since this area became a tourist destination in the 70’s.
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- 4. Very friendly (read: no) short-term rental regulations. Tourism is the only industry here, and the tourism in this area is so dependent on short-term rentals, it would be incredibly detrimental to the local economy for the city/county to ever impose any sort of legislation against them.
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- 5. Prices and low property taxes. The market is high everywhere at the moment, but prices in East Tennessee are significantly lower than other major vacation rental markets, and property taxes are under $2000 a year for a $500k property. Under $1000 for a $250k property.
A few cons would be that it can be difficult to find good local help such as cleaners and handymen if you aren’t plugged in to the network. Many local vendors aren’t tech savvy and don’t have a web presence, so they can be hard to find on your own. Your agent should be able to supply you with a list of cleaners and handymen so that you can interview them.
It’s very easy to be successful in this market. And the best part is you don't need a property manager, you can do everything right from your phone! There are many different types of investors from many different backgrounds that are successful in the Smokies. You can be successful too if you ask the right questions, do your research, and pull the trigger!