Turning my childhood home on the lake into a rental property - need advice

TiltonBB · 03-17-2026, 07:36 PM

At best, this would be difficult to do and may strain family relationships.

If it sold for $1.5 million and if after real estate commissions and any capital gains taxes he ended up with $1.2 million that would be $400,000 each to the three of you. If your brothers got the money and put it somewhere safe at 5% that would give them each $20,000 per year.

Do you think you can pay the taxes, insurance, and maintenance, put money aside for reserves, and net enough in rental income after that to pay $40,000 per year to your brothers? Probably not likely. And that amount is only interest with no paydown of the principal. If I was one of your brothers I would say sorry, but no, I would rather have the cash now. There is no gain to them unless they are using the house too, and that would cut into your rental income. If you intend that anyone else in your family use it you would need a plan for who can use it, and when.

When you go to check on the property, where will you stay if it is rented? Do you already have a list of maintenance and cleaning people you can call when you are out of state and a renter calls with an emergency? If it rents by the week, most rentals on the lake have checkout at 10 AM Saturday and the new renter arrives at 3 PM Saturday. That is a short window for cleaning and any minor maintenance.

If it is priced right you can probably count on 8 - 10 weeks of rent in the summer and a much reduced rate in the winter. It will rent better if you have wifi, cable TV, air conditioning, and a gas grill. Someone needs to clean that and keep the propane full. If you have a decent dock, a sandy walk into the water, and good swimming area that will help you to rent it. People do rent in the winter and you can either do short term or one off season tenant. If the house is vacant and not winterized you will need someone to check on it.

I have a summer weekly rental in Gilford and during the off season I get one tenant from September until Memorial Day. The winter rate for one month is about 40% of the summer weekly rate for just one week.

03-17-2026, 07:36 PM	#11
TiltonBB Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Gilford, NH and Florida Posts: 3,159 Thanks: 748 Thanked 2,277 Times in 986 Posts	At best, this would be difficult to do and may strain family relationships. If it sold for $1.5 million and if after real estate commissions and any capital gains taxes he ended up with $1.2 million that would be $400,000 each to the three of you. If your brothers got the money and put it somewhere safe at 5% that would give them each $20,000 per year. Do you think you can pay the taxes, insurance, and maintenance, put money aside for reserves, and net enough in rental income after that to pay $40,000 per year to your brothers? Probably not likely. And that amount is only interest with no paydown of the principal. If I was one of your brothers I would say sorry, but no, I would rather have the cash now. There is no gain to them unless they are using the house too, and that would cut into your rental income. If you intend that anyone else in your family use it you would need a plan for who can use it, and when. When you go to check on the property, where will you stay if it is rented? Do you already have a list of maintenance and cleaning people you can call when you are out of state and a renter calls with an emergency? If it rents by the week, most rentals on the lake have checkout at 10 AM Saturday and the new renter arrives at 3 PM Saturday. That is a short window for cleaning and any minor maintenance. If it is priced right you can probably count on 8 - 10 weeks of rent in the summer and a much reduced rate in the winter. It will rent better if you have wifi, cable TV, air conditioning, and a gas grill. Someone needs to clean that and keep the propane full. If you have a decent dock, a sandy walk into the water, and good swimming area that will help you to rent it. People do rent in the winter and you can either do short term or one off season tenant. If the house is vacant and not winterized you will need someone to check on it. I have a summer weekly rental in Gilford and during the off season I get one tenant from September until Memorial Day. The winter rate for one month is about 40% of the summer weekly rate for just one week. Last edited by TiltonBB; 03-19-2026 at 07:17 AM.