About to flip flop my life and rental, need advice, please

My life situation may be about to change dramatically. My husband has significant memory issues and may need to be in a more professional care environment soon. I am still of working age and will need to stay in the workforce for at least 5 more years, possibly more. My current home is in a vacation area. My place is a large cabin on the river with a detached carriage house with an apartment above. My original goal was that the carriage house would be a rental option, small and cute, mostly geared towards couples. Not a ton of income but not a ton of work, either. But now if I’m going to be alone here, I was thinking of moving into the carriage house and renting out the main house. I would probably do some significant upgrades first because the other rentals in my neighborhood are pretty stunning.
So do you think it would be off putting for renters for the owner to be on the property? I do work so aren’t generally hanging around.
Here is a pic of my place to give you an idea. The neighborhood requires detached buildings be connected to the main building, hence the crazy covered walkway. The main cabin is the one on left. This is prior to our purchase.

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Go for it. The listings that experience the least amount of problems are those with on-site hosts. If it’s off-putting for guests, it’s likely because they want to have a party, sneak in extra guests or pets, etc.-those aren’t the type of guests you want.

As long as an on-site host isn’t intrusive, overly chatty with guests who are not, or controlling, it’s actually the best hosting scenario.

I’ve also read posts from guests who prefer on-site host listings, as they have found those rentals to be cleaner, better maintained, and with hosts who are more attentive to issues or guest needs than faceless, property-managed listings.

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Are you doing the cleaning yourself? If so, since you’re working and will be checking in on your husband, it might be easier to rent out the carriage house because it would be quicker and easier to clean. I don’t think guests mind if the host is nearby. I rented an attached studio in Arizona and only saw the host at check in.

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I don’t think I’ll do the cleaning. As this is a vacation town, there is an abundance of great cabin cleaning companies.
I like the fact that being next door I can do a walk through after the cleaners and check guests in and give them a quick tour.

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First, I’m sorry to read about your husband’s developing situation.

Second, I think it will be fine with you on the premises. I’ve been in similar cabin rental areas where cabins are closer together than this. The fact that you’re around will ensure that you have fewer problems.

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The fact that you are on site should not be an issue at all for prospective guests. We make it very clear in our description that we are right next door. The advantages are numerous both for the hosts and for the guests. Being able to immediately address any problems that may come up is a major point. In some instances our guests have invited us over to share their food or join them for a cocktail hour. We have gained friends along the way.

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I’m facing the same with my hubs, hence we are moving to be nearer to our DD.

I like everyone’s advice about moving into the smaller home and then being available (or not) when you have renters. I cannot count the number of times we’ve been called to join the renters for a glass of wine and good conversation - all initiated by our guests of course.

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It looks like a beautiful property and Hopefully you will find a way to make the larger house unique and inviting (if it is not already) to maximize the income!

So sorry about your family issues. Take a walk in nature every day.

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I think it will be just fine to be near your rental. Having good cleaning teams available is a real plus. Of course, you can also probably demand a higher nightly rate. I’m considering something similar.

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An on-site host is the best way to prevent problems with parties.

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So sorry to hear about your husband. We are onsite hosts and like others have made some nice acquaintances, some I do call friends now, from hosting. I’d probably do the same as you, move into the smaller house. Best wishes.

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As an live-in, onsite owner, I highly agree with everything Muddy states.

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Totally go for it.

I’ve been a host for about 4 years and I remodeled the 1000 sq ft attached garage to be an Airbnb unit.

I act more like a friendly neighbor and most respond in kind. I always say I’m available via txt if they have questions but some are just like normal friends…some don’t have much to say so you just give them their space.

I’m sorry about your husband’s condition.

Best wishes!

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I have a similar setup where we rent the smaller house next to ours. It’s not been a problem, I just give guests their space but we have occasionally had some really nice evenings socializing with guests, some guests I barely even see (i quit the meet and greet walkthrough with covid) Every now and then someone will be disappointed that the houses are so close despite having an aerial photo of the home placement. It is nice being onsite if guests need anything during their stay or tk deal with any issues that arise.

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If you want to rent the smaller place, or the larger, either would work. It just depends on how much time and effort you want to expend in cleaning. Off-putting? NO! We are home share hosts. Our guests have the north wing of the house, we have the south wing, which is separated by the Great Room. Our guests have as much privacy as they want. We charge top dollar, and have only the most wonderful guests. Because we share our house, we have no misbehavior. Being resident on the property is the best of all possible worlds.

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