Every summer when Trevor Plencner, 24, was growing up, his family would take a trip to New Buffalo, Mich., where they’d rent a house on Lake Michigan. Year after year, Mr. Plencner became increasingly intrigued by the notion of owning a vacation rental property himself—so much so that he decided to give it a whirl.
In February 2018, when he was 20, Mr. Plencner purchased a vacation rental in Lake Geneva, Wis., about an hour northwest from where he lives in Hoffman Estates, Ill. While there are multimillion-dollar houses on Geneva Lake, through persistence and good timing, Mr. Plencner bought a 1,200-square-foot cottage a few blocks off the water for $111,000. He put 3.5% down using a Federal Housing Administration loan. Six months later, after painting and furnishing the interior and renovating the basement, Mr. Plencner put the cottage on booking websites. In the summer, his nightly rate is around $400; in the winter, it is closer to $175. To his delight, the three-bedroom home’s rental income started covering the mortgage, and then some. In June 2019, he bought a second Lake Geneva property with a friend for $85,000.
Vacation rentals are his side gig—Mr. Plencner works full time at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. His goal is to work solely in real estate, with properties throughout Wisconsin. “Vacation rentals is the best business anyone can get into, especially young,” he says.
Many of Mr. Plencner’s peers agree: Vacation-rental ownership among young adults is on the rise. According to Denver-based vacation-rental management and hospitality company Evolve, the proportion of its homeowners under 30 grew by 100% between June 2019 and June 2021. In comparison, the proportion of its clients between 31 to 56 grew only 17% during that period and the proportion of homeowners between 57 to 75 dropped 11%. Evolve’s properties are bookable on its own website and marketplaces including Airbnb , Booking.com, and Vrbo.
“This is quite clearly a growing segment,” Evolve CEO and co-founder Brian Egan says.
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