re: Beach Condo/Townhome Investment Property?

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You raise some good points, but you're noticeably down on the $250k price point

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As said for sure, real estate is up so the returns are really not there right now. I would tell anyone interested to not buy right now.

I don't know much about that area. I do have a good friend that owns and manages a rental company in Gulf Shores though.

I can tell you that if you are not within 2 blocks of the beach, I would guess you'll be luck to get 100 days a year of rentals. Especially if you don't have a pool.

You will likely make 50-60% of your income from memorial day to labor day. Outside of the holidays from Nov 1 through February 1, you are lucky to get any reservations. Snow birds are fine, but if you aren't beachfront good luck. The problem with them is those are the peak owner usage times, if you aren't using your place in the off season then honestly you should question your ownership. You can often rent it for just Thanksgiving, Christmas, and anything else you can get and then stay yourself and be better off.

The best use of a vacation rental by the owner is off season use for virtually free. I know some retired people from Wisconsin that own a condo on the beach and stay from Nov to February themselves and then rent it the rest of the year. If you can use it like that, it can make a lot of sense