We started this short term rental business in Athens, Ohio kind of by mistake. My wife and I always admired this house on Richland Avenue when we were attending Ohio University. Fast forward and we have two children, the house came up for sale and the rest is history. When purchased, the house needed serious repair and upgrading. As part of our give back to the community, we decided to save houses when we could and bring them back to their former glory. I hate to say what we spent doing this but our builder, Evan, always looked behind repairs to check the actual structure and he found plenty of flaws to remedy. Because the Richland house is zoned commercial, we were able to get the third permit ever issued by the city for a short term rental. We also had to go before the zoning board (kangeroo court) to get their blessing, which we got. From there, we remodeled several more houses and I found that I loved being a host and our  short term rental business bloomed. We have a furniture store in Athens so it is also really easy to furnish our places with quality goods. I had rented many short term vacation properties in the past and I use those experiences, good and bad, to offer the best experience to my guests as I can at a reasonable price.
Mitch & Ann