•October 21, 2015•

By Stepheny MacMahon
Sullivan Chamber & Economic Development

These days many people are using non-traditional sources to rent private homes while on vacation. Some are finding that price and quality often equal a wonderful bargain with more space and amenities than traditional rooms for the same price or less. Websites such as Airbnb, VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) and HomeAway exist for homeowners to list personal properties for overnight rentals.

Are overnight rentals of your residence or income property something you should be considering? What are the pros and cons of allowing strangers into your home?

There are many different sites to help facilitate the short-term rental of homes, so do some research. Even the three sites listed above offer different services for charging fees, payment transactions, and reviews rating the property.

So why might someone coming to the area want to rent a private house? First of all, Moultrie County has the largest campgrounds on the lake providing almost 200 campsites just north of Lake Shelbyville in Sullivan. There are 44 overnight rooms including a motel, kitchenettes and cabins. That’s not a lot of rooms when the lake itself attracts almost four million visitors per year.      Login or Subscribe to read the rest of this story.