Mike Swaleh was restless.
Last April, he and his team at Fairway Independent Mortgage St. Louis were adjusting to “working from home.” Their transition was seamless, and actually, Mike had never been busier at work. Still, his heart was heavy from the loss of contact with the outside world. So, Mike and his wife packed up their car and headed to Gulf Shores, Alabama, to spend quarantine working on their laptops in a house with a view of the ocean.
The transition of “work from home” to “work from anywhere” has encouraged people to travel more freely.
“60% of jobs that pay over $100,000 can be done from home, compared to only 10% of those that pay under $40,000,” according to Scott Galloway, author of Post Corona: From Crisis to Opportunity. This statistic is crucial because it explains why those who were already doing well pre-lockdown were well-positioned to capitalize on the second-home opportunities today.
Sheltering-in-place has shed light on two truths. On the one hand, unemployment has run rampant for the lower class, which has stifled the economy and broken the hearts of many Americans. On the other hand, many in the middle to upper classes have done remarkably well—benefiting from more disposable income, stimulus checks, and access to skyrocketing stock and cryptocurrency markets. Combined with record-setting home equity and low-interest rates, these factors have created a pathway for those who dream of living by the beach.
Mike stated that he has had more loan requests for vacation homes in the past 12 months than he has ever had in his 15-year history in the business….combined. The vacation home boom is primarily due to an increase in disposable income spent on travel and down payments, the ability to work from locations other than home, and the proliferation of apps like Airbnb.
Joel Farrell, Mike’s business partner, is an excellent example of how a simple travel plan ultimately resulted in Joel purchasing a vacation home in Florida. Joel was searching for a local cabin get-away. When he discovered the cost to stay at a cabin in InnsBrooke, Missouri, was $400 per night, Joel realized he could purchase a cabin and rent it out through Airbnb. However, other prospective buyers had the same thought. After being outbid on multiple cabins, Joel decided to look farther south. Specifically Destin, Florida.
As far as vacation home locations go, Florida offers many advantages. The real estate market is trending up and, if you decide to make your move permanent, you’ll benefit from the added advantage of no state income tax. Americans are heading to Florida for a reason - people want to vacation and live there.
Joel readily admits that he would never have considered buying a second home had it not been for the duality of being able to work from anywhere and being able to offset his second-home payment with the income generated from Airbnb.
There is no question that the pandemic was a tragedy on a scale that the world has not seen for a long time. But for those looking for small silver linings, the mass adoption of telecommunications and the freedom to work remotely has provided many the opportunity to move throughout the country and enjoy new workplace environments.