Doug & Lynetta's Story
Doug & Lynetta's Story
Sonoma, CA
"...were not for the ability to use our home as a short-term rental, no doubt we would have lost it to foreclosure or had to sell it many years ago."
Twenty years ago, we bought a beautiful 10-acre property in Sonoma including a 3-story home with an amazing view. We took out a second mortgage to build a granny unit for my parents and a shop for my husband's work (he builds sets for the film industry). We enjoyed raising our 2 children here but financially things changed over the years. Home equity paid for the property improvements and to send our kids to great schools. Our mortgage payments have doubled while unfortunately our income has decreased.
My husband is now semi-retired as a result of reduced work due to Nor Cal’s 2 wildfires. He’s also dealing with cancer treatments. Most people would just sell their home and move into a less expensive situation but for us that would mean putting my retired mother (my father has since passed) out on the street and closing down my husband’s shop which is necessary for his work. Keeping our home is very important for us.
Once our oldest child left for college, my husband and I moved to the first floor of our house with our youngest child. We now rent out the top two floors (3bd/2ba) as a vacation rental. It is rented most weekends and that has allowed us to stay in our home. If it were not for the ability to use our home as a short-term rental, no doubt we would have lost it to foreclosure or had to sell it many years ago. Since there is no interior staircase connecting the first floor where we live to the second floor where the guests stay, we both have our privacy. Of course, we are always here to greet the guests and help them if they need anything: http://www.airbnb.com/rooms/854295
My husband is now semi-retired as a result of reduced work due to Nor Cal’s 2 wildfires. He’s also dealing with cancer treatments. Most people would just sell their home and move into a less expensive situation but for us that would mean putting my retired mother (my father has since passed) out on the street and closing down my husband’s shop which is necessary for his work. Keeping our home is very important for us.
Once our oldest child left for college, my husband and I moved to the first floor of our house with our youngest child. We now rent out the top two floors (3bd/2ba) as a vacation rental. It is rented most weekends and that has allowed us to stay in our home. If it were not for the ability to use our home as a short-term rental, no doubt we would have lost it to foreclosure or had to sell it many years ago. Since there is no interior staircase connecting the first floor where we live to the second floor where the guests stay, we both have our privacy. Of course, we are always here to greet the guests and help them if they need anything: http://www.airbnb.com/rooms/854295
This has been a life saver for us and maybe some day when the kids are grown and can afford it, we can pass it on to them and my husband and I can be their guests. That is the wonderful thing about preserving the family compound for future generations. We are so grateful we have the option to use part of our home as a vacation rental. I wish more people could understand just how important this option is to so many of us who need it.
Doug & Lynetta
Doug & Lynetta
