With the winter season upon us, and the holiday vacation season looming in the distance, we interviewed Jeff Progar, a Denver-based homebuilder and developer, who kindly let us pick his brain on luxury vacation rentals.

The Society: As a custom developer at Eagle Equity, what is your company’s building philosophy?

JP: As developers and builders of high-end custom homes, we focus on unique environments. The resort area is an obvious bet—they are a safe haven for developers and provide better odds than the standard suburban environment.

Could you elaborate on your philosophy of unique homes?

JP: Location is obvious—when we design and build a home that is a rental unit, we look to see if all the required conveniences are available. We see if it is close to town, on or near public transportation and within proximity to the primary resort activity. Size is a factor as well. We find that there is a high demand for larger homes coupled with low inventory. Finally, there are many design features that need to be incorporated into a “rental.” For example, no porous tiles or carpet on any major traffic area.

Is there a lot more to designing a rental home then there is to upgrading an existing home?

JP: Yes. For rental homes, we specialize in large luxury homes, which obviously means more people and the finest amenities. Larger groups require two dishwashers, prep and dish sinks, double washers and dryers, massive mudrooms for ski equipment and two or more master suites.

Is more than one master suite common?

JP: Yes. If there are two families sharing a rental, you don’t want an argument over who gets the smaller room. Three to four master bedrooms isn’t rare anymore—and of course, there is always the mandatory hot tub. You can’t rent a mountain house if you don’t have a hot tub.

What is a unique, yet not so obvious quality of a luxury vacation rental?

JP: A large linen closet. It is necessary in order to store all the linens of a luxury home. If you have back-to-back renters, you’ll need two to three sets of each, resulting in an actual walk-in linen closet. We also make sure there is plenty of owner space. This will frequently include an owner’s garage, which ends up serving as a storage facility.

If you look at the market you’re in, what percent of homes fit these specifications?

JP: Not many—only a small percent of homes have been designed to accommodate both homeowner and renter.

Now, we would like to ask you a few questions regarding your personal vacation home. You own and rent a luxury home in Breckenridge, right? Is your home competitive?

JP: Our rental volumes are significantly higher than anything I’ve heard of in the area. Our guests have been very delighted with the home.

How do you manage your own home? Have you ever used a full service property manager?

JP: We experimented with several management options. In our first attempt, we tried using a full service provider, who claimed to have many sources for renting our property. Unfortunately, it failed miserably—we didn’t get the number of renters that we knew we could get. Then we tried to do it on our own, which was a nightmare as well. When someone says that their stove is out, all of a sudden you’re scrambling to find someone at ten o’clock on a Friday to fix a stove. In our last attempt, and current situation, we used a local property manager to handle contracts, checkouts, payment and weekly home check-ups. Meanwhile, we handle the rent and price negotiations. This is by far the best setup for out situation. We are very pleased with the service Breckenridge by Owners has provided.

Do you have any tips for those personally managing their home, as you have experienced it firsthand?

JP: I would say to make absolutely sure you know who is renting your house. I screened out eight twenty-two year old couples once because I foresaw the damage that could be done. I was told they had a five grand deposit, but that isn’t enough to cover a damaged house. Someone can do $5000 worth of damage in fifteen minutes—one scratch on a stainless Sub-zero refrigerator equals $2000.

Since you have the responsibility of booking your own home, what online resources are you using to attract travelers? Is your home a standout on any of the listings?

JP: Currently, we’re only using the online classifieds including VRBO and Homeaway. Unfortunately, it is difficult to find my home on any of these sites…in the case of VRBO, next to impossible. Not to mention my home is listed next to condos and town homes and other less-than-luxurious rentals. Thankfully, our current feedback has been beyond stellar and word-of-mouth has been substantial. If my customers were given a vehicle to make comments on my home, I’m sure that I wouldn’t have one single day open.

Jeff Progar currently resides in Golden, Colorado and works for Eagle Equity Investments, specializing in the development of ultra high-end custom homes.