Gulf Coast Home Experts Investment Guide

Our Spring Street project is officially complete! We have launched 3 units on both the Airbnb and VRBO platforms. A lot of hard work and planning has gone into these listings from the beginning of construction to staging and photographing each individual unit. Our team has had a blast getting Spring Street ready for vacationers and we look forward to a busy summer season.

Unit 1, Your Victorian Getaway, is a one-bedroom, two-bath space with a fully equipped eat-in kitchen and a spacious living area that walks out onto Spring Street's historic wrap-around porch. With plenty of natural light, the modern decor makes for a sleek, comfortable stay. 

We would love to be your host, be sure to check out Your Victorian Getaway on Airbnb and VRBO:

Book on Airbnb: Your Victorian Getaway

Book on VRBO: Victorian in North Hill

Upstairs, we have two units. Each space is a one-bedroom, one-bath, with a fully updated kitchen. Unit 3, similar to 1, has a spacious living area attached to the kitchen and direct access to the restroom. Bright and roomy, unit 3 is ready for you!

Book Downtown Pensacola Historic Home on Airbnb

Book on VRBO: Downtown Historic Home

Across the hall you'll find unit 4, The Victorian Studio. A one-bedroom, one-bath with an eat-in kitchen, this apartment provides the perfect amount of space for a comfortable getaway. 

We look forward to having you as a guest at one of our three Spring Street rentals!

Book The Victorian Studio on Airbnb

Book Historic Victorian Studio on VRBO

The construction crew has been hard at work on the garage to one bedroom transformation at Kipling Street. The drywall is in place and the mudding process is under way. Painting should begin at the end of the week. 

Entry way with a view down the hallway. The doorway to the left leads to the bedroom and the door at the end of the hallway gives access to the bathroom. 

Living room have plenty of room to relax and unwind for short term rental guests. 

This is a view of the progress on the kitchen with access to what will be the laundry room. 

This space is planned to be the dining area.

A fresh coat of paint was applied to the exterior and siding was added around the windows that were placed where the garage doors. 

Another window was added in the kitchen, which helps to brighten up the space indoors and provides views of the beautiful trees and flowering bushes in the yard around the unit.

Gulf State Heating & Air did a wonderful job on installing the new HVAC system at Spring Street. An HVAC system has never been placed at the property, this was a huge undertaking for the crew that did the installation.

The project started underneath the house, by cutting space in the floor for vents and continued with the placement of duct work connecting the heating/cooling system to the floor vents. A straight cool split system was placed with each individual cooling unit installed for each all four units on both levels of the home. This helps optimize efficiency and lower the need for service calls in the future. Installing a straight cool split system was a suggestion by the professionals at Gulf State Heating & Air, it came highly recommended for units that will be occupied by renters, whether it be short or long term.

The HVAC crew suspended the air handlers for the first floor to the floor joyces under the home securing the handlers with metal strapping. The smaller downstairs unit, #2, now has a half ton heating and cooling system in place and the larger unit, #1, has a 2 ton package heating and air system in place. 

Heading upstairs, you will find the heating/cooling units placed in the attic along with freshly ran duct work and newly placed vents and returns for the systems. The crew placed the heating/cooling unit for Unit 3 and 4 above the units in the attic because of the close proximity, which allows for sufficient heat and air flow. 

Big thanks to Gulf State Heating & Air for their hard work to ensure our guests will be cool before the Florida summer heat picks up. 

Unit 1 is about to "Spring" into the Airbnb market! 

The finishing touches are taking place. The construction crew has been hard at work touching up paint, installing shelving and bathroom hardware, hanging blinds, placing outlet covers and assembling furniture. A couple more pieces of furniture need to be assembled and wall decor needs to be hung. We also need to stock the kitchen with essential items and place the linens for the bedroom and bathrooms. 

Here are current progress photos. Make sure to check back for the final results early next week!

Now off to work on Unit 3 and 4!

Kipling Street's garage to studio renovation recently underwent a complete electrical installation. This process started with the placement of the breaker box. Then outlet boxes were strategically placed throughout the unit, to provide optimal accessibility to light switches and outlets for the future tenants. Once the outlet boxes were placed, the correct wires were run from the breaker box to the outlet boxes. 

Our contractor, Dallas Goodale, found a reputable local company, Don Wheelis Electrical Contractors to take on the complete eletcrical installation. Marshall Wheelis, Don's son, oversaw the process from planning to pulling permits to completion. Don Wheelis Electrical Contractors has been an established business in Pensacola for close to 20 years, Marshall has accompanied his Dad on job sites nearly the entire time the business has been in place, which provided him with hands on knowledge and experience. This particular project at Kipling took 2 days from start to finish. Marshall said, "We can complete a rewire project on a home in 1-7 days, depending on the square footage."

Word of wisdom that Marshall provided was to make sure you pull your permits from the city and the county before beginning your project. It will ensure a quicker inspection if the permits are secured prior to starting the project.

What a difference the placement of fresh gravel driveways can have on a rental property!

Our contractor, Dallas Goodale, owner of Turn Key Renovations, Inc., had a huge undertaking with the planning, placement and installation of the gravel driveways at Kipling Street. 

The driveway project began with removal of the two large trees in the front yard. Then the crew leveled the dirt, placed weed block tarping down and covered the space with gravel and leveled it out. Rail road ties will be added to the front of the double parking spaces that were constructed in front of the home. Additional parking space was created to the side of the 3rd unit that is being converted from a garage to a one bedroom home, as well as to the left of the driveway for additional guests visiting the unit. 

The updates on the driveway have given the landscaping a facelift, providing the property with better curb appeal.

Older homes have many gorgeous features, but need attention and a little TLC to maximize efficiency when it comes to planning for energy costs, especially with a short term rental property. 

Applying caulk to the windows and cracks in a home can help keep the cool air in and the heat from the outdoors where it belongs, especially in the hot and humid Florida climate. 

A little tip for when you apply caulk to a surface: have a bucket of water on hand, as well as a cloth. Once you have applied the caulk to the surface, simply wipe the surface with the damp cloth to where the surface is smooth. You can rinse your cloth off in the bucket or you can use the caulk you removed for small holes, such as nail or screw holes. You can apply this process to everything from baseboards, bathroom remodels, windows updates, etc. The possibilities truly are endless.

Whatever you do, DO NOT dump the rinsed caulk water down any drains IN your home. Go outside and dump the bucket in a back corner or your lot or in the street drain. Rinse with an outside hose. If you happen to rinse the bucket in your bathtub or sink, the caulk may settle in your indoor plumbing and will be a nightmare to remove, so rinsing outside is best!

Original hardwood flooring is a charming feature in historical homes. The beauty of the original flooring is a perk that is sought after and appreciated by the masses. 

One way to spruce up the worn in flooring is to polish it up with a bit of stain. 

First step is to pick a stain color, we prefer to use the Minwax Brand in the color of Bombay Mahogany. Make sure the floor is clean from debris and mopped well so the stain can absorb correctly. Next, take the applicator tool and apply in a sweeping motion, only overlapping slightly (about an inch, tops). After the stain is applied, give it ample time to soak into the wood flooring, we have found letting it soak in over night provides the best results. Voila, 100 year old flooring is shining like it did the day it was laid in place.

Another major perk to staining flooring is the ease in cleaning the flooring after the stain treatment. The floors are easily swept, mopped or even steam cleaned with a hardwood floor steamer. 

Gulf Coast Home Experts would like to introduce Dallas Goodale, the man with the construction plan for the garage-to-home transformation on the Kipling Street project.

Dallas owns and operates Turn Key Renovations, Inc. construction business. His company does everything from landscaping to complete renovations. Dallas is licensed and insured and fully believes in following guidelines, from pulling permits for projects to his attention to detail when it comes to efficiently completing the work for customers, he cuts no corners. 

Turn Key Renovations, Inc. has been in business for 3 years. Dallas was raised in the construction industry, he has worked closely with his father, who is a renowned construction business owner here in Pensacola, for many decades.

His plan for the complete transformation from garage to home at Kipling street includes removing the garage doors and framing the empty space and placing windows in the frame; removal and replacement of the front door access; framing of the bedroom and closets, bathroom, kitchen, laundry room and hallway; contracting out for the HVAC system, electrical work and roof removal and replacement. 

Big things are on the horizon for the income property on Kipling Street! This property initially had a duplex; which holds a 3 bed, 2 bath and a 2 bed 1 bath, and a two car garage. With the knowledge and expertise of "Doc" Cindy Tant, the property has so many possibilities! 

First on the list is to convert the two car garage into a 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom long term rental unit - which increases rental income substantially.

Keep an eye out and follow our progress to see the upgrades and updates to Project Kipling!