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Find the property
Comp data, zoning, HOA, and STR-rule checks before you fall in love. Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key, Navarre, Gulf Breeze, Milton, Pace.
FL · SL3629725For investors buying a Pensacola short-term rental
Buy a short-term rental that actually pencils — in Pensacola, Florida.
Most STRs underperform because they were bought wrong, set up wrong, or marketed wrong. I help you avoid all three. Sixteen personally owned and operated short-term rentals, one aged Superhost account, and one person from your first tour to your first five-star review.
Melissa Lazar LLC · FL: LPT Realty (SL3629725)
Already own a short-term rental?
Underperforming, plateaued, or just not sure? Get a STR Performance Review.
Honest review of the listing, photos, pricing, and reviews — with a clear plan for what to fix first.
From offer to first five-star review
Five phases — one agent the whole way through.
02
Renovate
Where to spend, where not to. Vetted contractors. Decisions that actually pay back in nightly rate.
03
Design & furnish
Hospitality-grade design that photographs well, holds up to guests, and earns five-star reviews.
04
Launch the listing
Photos, copy, pricing, channel setup. The listing goes live with everything dialed in for first impressions.
05
Run it on my account
Optional: the listing lives on my aged Superhost Airbnb account, day-to-day managed by my team.
How we look at a property
Eight things we check on every home — before you fall in love with it.
§ 01
Who actually books here
Year-round vs. seasonal patterns, walkability, and what brings guests to this exact spot — beach, downtown, the Navy base.
§ 02
Can it legally be an STR?
City zoning, county rules, HOA restrictions, permits — we check before you ever write an offer.
§ 03
Insurance & flood reality
Wind, flood, and umbrella quotes built into your real monthly cost — not the seller's optimistic version.
§ 04
Smart renovations
Where to spend (and where not to). Updates that actually lift nightly rates — not pretty fixes that never pay back.
§ 05
Furniture & design
Beautiful, durable interiors that photograph well, hold up to weekly turnovers, and let you charge what the home is worth.
§ 06
What it can really earn
Comps, seasonality, and a pricing plan that fits your home — with realistic nightly ranges by week.
§ 07
Honest occupancy
Targets pulled from AirDNA and our own listings — not the dreamy numbers in the listing brochure.
§ 08
What if you sell later?
Resale appeal, the option to switch to long-term, and 1031 flexibility — all thought through before you close.
Buying with intention
Not every property makes a great short-term rental.
The right purchase goes beyond square footage and price. Layout, location, guest appeal, durability, furnishing potential, parking, and experience all matter — and most listings only get a few of them right.
- § 01
Guest appeal
Does this home make someone tap 'book' on a Tuesday night?
- § 02
Layout
Open enough to host, private enough to sleep — the floor plan matters more than the finishes.
- § 03
Furnishing potential
What it could look like once styled — not just what the seller's couch is doing right now.
- § 04
Occupancy counts
Real heads-in-beds the home can comfortably (and legally) sleep — the lever that drives nightly rate.
- § 05
Location demand
Walk to the beach? Near downtown? Near the base? Year-round, or just July?
- § 06
Ease of management
How hard is it to clean, restock, and maintain — especially if you're owning it from out of state?
Who we love working with
You don't have to be a pro — you just have to be ready.
Whether this is your very first investment property or your fifth, you'll get the same thing — straight answers, careful homework, and someone in your corner from the first walk-through to the first guest.
M-01Your first STR
First-time buyers
You want to do this right the first time — without overpaying or picking the wrong kind of property.
M-02Buying remote
Out-of-state buyers
You need someone you trust on the ground, straight answers, and a real human handling the details.
M-03Personal use + income
Second-home buyers
You want a place you actually use — that pays for itself when you're not there.
M-04Premium homes
Luxury vacation buyers
You're looking at premium Gulf-front and Pensacola Beach homes that earn what they should.
M-05Adding the next one
Building a small portfolio
You already own one or two and want a partner who treats every deal with the same care.
Where STRs work · the markets I cover
Each town has its own STR personality.
Nightly rates, occupancy patterns, and the rules — they change street to street. Here's the honest picture by area.
01 / 05Area guide→
Pensacola (city)
Downtown and historic neighborhoods with year-round demand from Navy, business, and weekend travelers — not just summer. Range widens at the top end for unique downtown and multi-unit properties.
Nightly rate
$$ – $$$$ year-round
Booking season
Year-round, weeknight bookings
STR rules
STR-friendly citywide · confirm HOA bylaws if applicable
02 / 05Area guide→
Pensacola Beach
Gulf-front condos and beach homes with the strongest summer demand on the coast. STRs are well-established and the rules are clear.
Nightly rate
$$$ peak nightly
Booking season
Mar–Oct heavy, holidays year-round
STR rules
STR-friendly · permit required
03 / 05Area guide→
Perdido Key
Quieter, condo-heavy stretch with loyal repeat guests. Lower entry price than Pensacola Beach with solid summer occupancy.
Nightly rate
$$ steady nightly
Booking season
Mar–Sep peak, soft shoulder
STR rules
Condo + county rules vary by building
04 / 05Area guide→
Navarre
Family-friendly beach town with larger homes that sleep more — strong fit for groups, weddings, and multi-family stays.
Nightly rate
$$ family-group nightly
Booking season
Apr–Sep peak, school-break weekends
STR rules
Santa Rosa County · permit + tax registration
05 / 05Area guide→
Milton & Pace
Inland and lower entry. Works for mid-term and traveling-nurse stays more than nightly vacation rental.
Nightly rate
$ mid-term nightly
Booking season
Steady mid-term, light vacation
STR rules
Mid-term / 30+ day strategy fits best
Want to go deeper before reaching out?
Read the long-form, run the numbers, see the markets.
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The full process
Step by step, what we do together from offer to launch.
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Why some STRs outperform
What separates a $40k/year listing from a $90k/year one on the same street.
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Setting up a new STR
Furnishing, listing, pricing, and the first 90 days — what makes a launch land.
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STR vs MTR strategy
Side-by-side: nightly vs 30+ night rentals in Pensacola — when each one wins, by area.
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The areas I cover
Pensacola, Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key, Navarre, Milton & Pace — each one plays by its own rules.
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Free revenue estimator
Rough what-could-this-earn numbers based on real comps in your target area.
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Properties I've helped buy
A look at the kinds of short-term rentals we source, set up, and run on the Gulf Coast.
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Buying from out of state
FaceTime tours, real inspections, remote closings — the six promises we make.
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What past clients say
Honest words from owners who hired me to find, set up, and run their STRs.
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Common questions
Permits, insurance, taxes, financing, what management really costs — answered plainly.
Already own a Florida home and ready to move equity into an STR? List with me and buy your next STR with me — preferred pricing and one agent across both deals. Every engagement quoted individually. All commissions are negotiable and not set by law.
Melissa Lazar LLC · Licensed with LPT Realty LLC · FL Lic. SL3629725
Send me a property — free review
Send me a Pensacola listing — I’ll come back with an honest read.
Tell me about the property you’re considering and what you’re trying to build. Each plan is worked individually — budget, target market, timeline.
- ◆ADR and occupancy comps from your exact area
- ◆A clear cash-flow picture (financing, expenses, lodging tax)
- ◆Quick check that the property can legally be an STR (zoning, HOA, permits)
- ◆An individualized plan — not a templated read
Serious buyers only · Your agent end-to-end · Pensacola · Navarre · Milton · Pace · Pensacola Beach