Similar to last spring, our rental activity has been disappointingly slow.
There are several factors:
We have returned to pre-Covid demand, with prime weeks coinciding with the school calendar. Late June to mid-August are once again the standard rental weeks. Weeks books beyond that time frame are considered bonus rentals for owners.
Families often have difficulty coordinating everyone’s schedule. Therefore, last minute bookings have become more common.
When potential tenants are searching online, they see a variety of options still available. That lowers their sense of urgency. Procrastinators are no longer at risk when planning a beach vacation!
We expect an increase of rental inquiries in the coming month.
In the meantime, we are spreading the word via social media and other online advertising to encourage vacationers to commit.
On my father’s side: my grandmother was born in County Clare in the Republic of Ireland, and my grandfather grew up near Ballymena and the Antrim Coast in Northern Ireland. A real mixed marriage!
They met and married in Philadelphia, and vacationed in Stone Harbor each summer while raising 6 children (pictured in front of their compact rental cottage).
In the 1950s, my grandparents built a modest year round home in Avalon. A family business brought the sons and daughters (including spouses and young children) from Philadelphia to Avalon shortly thereafter.
After visiting the beautiful windswept coast of Northern Ireland, I can totally understand my grandfather’s love of the shore.
Sand in our shoes… and salt air in our lungs π
Slainte!
P.S. According to family legend, my grandfather arrived to the United States through Canada. And my grandmother used her older sister’s ID to travel from Ireland to the US. Her grown children didn’t know her real name/age until she applied for Social Security! It’s important and relevant to consider that our family’s immigration history may be softened by nostalgia.
