Motel management

Buy the motel. We'll run it without the hassle of a manager onsite.

Covering holding costs until you redevelop, or renovating to hold or sell. Either way, you want the income without living onsite or hiring full time employees.

We forecast it, fit it out with our renovation partners and run it for 15% + GST of accommodation revenue.

Get an income forecast for your motel

Send the address or plans. Forecast within 24 hours, then we visit the site.

200 short-stay properties · 4.9 from 140 Google reviews · Miami Motel 10% above market occupancy

Renovated room at Miami Motel on the Gold Coast

The numbers

A growing site that pays its own way.

An example 10 room Gold Coast motel, bought for $5.25m and renovated. The rooms pay the interest and more while the land does the work.

$3.24m

Equity in

$7.69m all in, 65% loan on purchase and renovation
+$9,300

Cash a year after interest

The rooms cover the loan up to 7.01% interest
$5.78m

Your equity in 10 years

At 4% growth, including cash from the rooms

How your equity grows

Including cash from the rooms, at 4% growth a year. Back above what you put in by year 3.

Put inYear 1Year 3Year 5Year 10

A year of trading

Managed by us, interest only at 6.8%

Room revenueFull nightly rate$787,907
Running costsBooking site commissions, utilities, rates, insurance, land tax, repairs, FF&E reserve$261,065
Cleaning, linen, consumablesOur cleaning company, at cost$96,579
Staff, marketing, techCovered by our fee$0
Our fee, 15%$118,186
Net operating income$312,077
Interest$302,770
+$780 a monthafter interest. The rooms cover the whole loan, so you hold the site for free.

The land

Motels often sit on large, well located sites that are hard to assemble, with the option to redevelop later.

Income while you hold

The site earns while approvals or the market come your way, instead of sitting empty.

Value you create

The renovation lifts income, which is what valuers and lenders look at. Fit out may also be depreciable.

Example only. Assumes the property is worth its purchase and renovation cost on completion, 4% growth a year, interest only at 6.8% and 65% loan to value. Revenue is the full nightly rate, before booking site commissions and cleaning. Figures ex GST. An illustration, not a forecast or financial advice.

Run your own numbers

Change the price, rooms, rate and growth in the calculator below.

How it works

From purchase to first booking.

One team from build to bookings. Plan for no reception in the renovation; it costs less than fixing it later.

  1. 01

    Forecast

    Income forecast within 24 hours, then we visit the site.

    • Rates and occupancy against the local market
    • What the renovation needs to earn
  2. 02

    Renovation

    Our renovation and furnishing partners, working to a spec built for no reception.

    • Digital lock on every room
    • Layouts and finishes guests book
    • Linen store cleaners can reach
    • Manager's residence fitted out to let
  3. 03

    Set up

    While the build finishes, so rooms earn from day one.

    • Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and direct
    • Opening rates set and signed off
    • Our cleaning team on site
  4. 04

    Live

    Guests check themselves in. We run the rest.

    • 24/7 guest team
    • Pricing twice a day
    • Monthly report against the market

Case study

Miami Motel, from front desk to self check in.

Eleven rooms on the Gold Coast Highway, renovated and run without reception.

10% above market

Occupancy against comparable Gold Coast motels, PriceLabs market data.

Miami Motel exterior before renovationBefore
Miami Motel exterior after renovationAfter
BeforeNow
Manager living onsite, reception hoursNo onsite manager
Keys handed over at the deskDigital lock on every room, self check in 24/7
Phone and walk in bookingsAirbnb, Booking.com and direct
Rates set by the managerPriced twice a day, a director signs off every change
Manager answers the phone24/7 guest team
Cleaning done by the managerOur cleaning company, after every stay
No reportingMonthly owner report against the market

Calculator

Run your own numbers.

A simple version of how we model a motel. Interest only, QLD duty, 15 month renovation, figures ex GST.

-Equity required
-Cash after interest, with Lane
-Rate where income covers interest
-Equity in 10 years, incl. cash, with Lane
Per year once tradingOnsite managersLane

Assumes booking site commissions of 10%, repairs and FF&E reserve of 6%, fixed costs scaled from our example, and a 2.5% selling cost. Nightly rates are full rates, so booking site commissions and cleaning come out of them. Our fee covers staff, marketing and tech; with onsite managers you also pay about $29,000 a year for marketing, tech and accounting. Managers live in the residence and do the cleaning. Growth is your assumption, not a forecast. General information only, not financial advice.

Once it's live

What we run, and what it costs.

  • Bookings across Airbnb, Booking.com, Expedia and direct
  • Nightly pricing: PriceLabs twice a day, checked against the market every morning, signed off by a director
  • Guest messages, check in codes and late arrivals, handled by a 24/7 team
  • Cleaning and linen by our own cleaning company
  • Maintenance booked and followed up, reviews answered on every platform
  • A monthly report on occupancy, nightly rate and revenue per room against the market

What it costs

15% + GST
of accommodation revenue

Cleaning at cost through our own cleaning company. No per booking surcharge, no lock in.

No manager means the residence can be let. Monthly reports build a trading history for your valuer or lender.

Redevelopment sites

Holding it until you redevelop.

Knocking it down in two or three years? The rooms can still pay their way. We run it while approvals go through and hand it back on your date.

Already own a motel

Have a manager or lessee now?

No need to change anything yet. We'll show you what we'd change and what it could earn, and time any handover to when your current agreement ends.

Get a free second opinion

Send your last 12 months of bookings. We'll reply within 24 hours.

FAQ

Questions developers ask us.

When should I talk to you, before or after the renovation?

Before. Locks, layouts and the linen store are cheaper to get right in the build than to fix later.

Do I need someone living onsite?

Usually not. If guests book online, like most on the Gold Coast, they check themselves in and our 24/7 team handles the rest. In smaller country towns where guests ring to book, we'll recommend a part time local person and explain why.

Who does the renovation?

You choose. We'll introduce partners we've worked with and deal with them directly on the room spec, or work with your own builder.

What happens if something goes wrong at night?

Our 24/7 team takes the call, sorts what can be sorted remotely and sends someone out when it can't.

What does it cost?

15% + GST of accommodation revenue. Cleaning is charged at cost through our own cleaning company. No per booking surcharge and no lock in.

Which areas do you cover?

Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast.

How many rooms?

We're set up for motels of roughly 8 to 30 rooms. Bigger than that, talk to us first.

Get an income forecast for your motel

Send the address or plans. Forecast within 24 hours, then we visit the site.

Get Your Free Rental Assessment →