Have house in country, want to start a "Homestay" business

Oh, this is Paul again,

You can email me directly at: [email protected]

Thanks again,

Paul

Paul,

You should get you wife or in-laws to go down to your ward police and have a chat with them.  The faster you guys can connect with them, the smoother things will fall into place.  Just remember, those crazy little guys down there are the ones directly responsible for the security and administration of your soon-to-be business. 

They have all the answers, for your area:  you scratch their backs, they will scratch yours; you ruffle feathers, they will sh!t on you.

Good lucks,
Howie

Paul,

How is the house condition now? fully furnished or not? Is that near industrial park, entertainment central or tourist point?

Hi,
May your show out some picture, some info and how much would you like.

pslemmon

You better to get your wife to stand on the biz registration. Foreign company will be limited in certain industries due to investment law and other laws prohibit them from doing that while domestic enterprise or enterpreneur is free. Get your wife to work on paper work with Department of Planning and Investment for the biz registration.
You will have to register for other:
- Fire fighting and prevention (if leased out to expat, local people you dont have to register this)
- Register with local police for resident
- Invoice issuance (if the leasor request)
You can post on any real estate website. They do allow you to post your ads for 30 days for free. Pay a little for top row display or extra day for the ads. It wont cost much (around VND 20k-100k, depend on the length of time and premium package of the ads). Leave the rest of the work to local agent. They will find you well
Other than that, you can put an ads on local newspaper if you willing to pay for extra money, but IMO, i dont prefer it. Free ads on internet are more than enough for you

Thanks Christine,
This is some useful information that I really appreciate.
Paul

Hi Rosyn,
The houses, old and new one, are both near "Nga Ba Thailan", in Dong Nai, before you get to Long Thanh on the main road to Vung Tau. @20-25 minutes from Bien Hoa.

There are alot of industrial parks there. Also, a garden/farming pagoda next door, a Waterfall park not far away, but mostly lots and lots of peace and quiet, except for the occasional ringing of the church bell across the river.

We have a neighbor that has a van service that can pick people up at the airport, take them to Vung Tau, Pagoda tour, golfing, and anything they desire.

Hope this explains it. I am posting photos on my Facebook. facebook.com/paul.slemmons.

Paul Slemmons

Hi Francis,

I am currently posting some photos on my Facebook.
facebook.com/paul.slemmons.

Thanks,

Paul

Hi Francis,

I just posted photos on this Expat.com site, of the new and the old house. I am thinking of living in the old house, and rent out the new one, as it is quite fancier, but not quite a villa.

What were you thinking of? Renting it for a week, day, or lease it for a year? How much do you think would be a reasonable price? I was initially hoping to rent it to a management worker who works at the several industrial parks nearby, but did not know how to market it, then thought of the "Homestay" idea, which is probably more fun.

Thanks,

Paul

I saw some pictures of your house on fb. It's normal house like everywhere in Vietnam. Thus, if you expected to rent out with high price, i think, it's impossible. The price for house is around 2 - 3 million vnd/ month.
To start your ads:

1) Writing the sign in Vietnamese (nha cho thue, your phone number) and hang up in front of your house.
2) Post your ads to some free website, i suggest: muabannhadat.com; batdongsan.com.vn; muaban.net; raovat.com.
with some description: how many sq, furnished or not furnished, the distance to some typical point such as: industrial park, super market, market, school, entertainment center, etc

hope it may help.

Rosyvn wrote:

I saw some pictures of your house on fb. It's normal house like everywhere in Vietnam. Thus, if you expected to rent out with high price, i think, it's impossible. The price for house is around 2 - 3 million vnd/ month.
...

I think 2-3 million a month at Nga Ba Thai Lan is a little high for a normal house.  Binh Duong maybe since that province has more industrial parks but Nga Ba Thai Lan doesn't have as many.  Bien Hoa has more and I know they rent out houses for 1 million a month. 

I would venture close to 1 million a month is doable.  The problem is that there are a lot of vacant houses.  Just drive around the neighborhood and see how many houses are for sale.

It seems to me that there are over 1000 ways to make money in Vietnam.  I thought it would be a great opportunity to open a quality recreational facility outside of the city somewhere.  However, I don't have the funds to do it.  Unfortuniately, everything cost money too! 

Best of luck to you with your project!

pslemmons wrote:

...I was initially hoping to rent it to a management worker who works at the several industrial parks nearby, but did not know how to market it, then thought of the "Homestay" idea, which is probably more fun.

Thanks,

Paul

Renting it to the management personnel is a good idea for your location.  I know the Nga Ba Thai Lan area.  You're in an agricultural transforming into an industrial area.  There aren't many "tourisy" places.  Tourists usually come from HCMC to Vung Tau, rent a hotel at Vung Tau beach.  They don't stop mid-way, rent a house, then continue their trip.

This is Paul again,

Part of my motivation for starting a "Homestay" would be to open a "business", and thus be able to live in Vietnam without going to Thailand to renew my Passport/Visa every three months.

I also think I could make more money as a "Homestay" too rather than just renting it out. My wife agrees that I could not get much just renting it. I am thinking of just short 3-5 day "stays", with breakfast, lunch, dinner, and assorted junkets during the day to keep them busy and have fun.

Also, almost nobody speaks English out in the countryside, so, I could at least talk English with the Homestay renters, and have fun playing tour guide. 

Thanks for everyone's advice. Most appreciated.

Paul

pslemmons wrote:

This is Paul again,

Part of my motivation for starting a "Homestay" would be to open a "business", and thus be able to live in Vietnam without going to Thailand to renew my Passport/Visa every three months.

I also think I could make more money as a "Homestay" too rather than just renting it out. My wife agrees that I could not get much just renting it. I am thinking of just short 3-5 day "stays", with breakfast, lunch, dinner, and assorted junkets during the day to keep them busy and have fun.

Also, almost nobody speaks English out in the countryside, so, I could at least talk English with the Homestay renters, and have fun playing tour guide. 

Thanks for everyone's advice. Most appreciated.

Paul

Why are you going to Thailand to renew every 3 months?  That's expensive.  You have a "wife" who can sponsor you; I assume she is Vietnamese because you mentioned you "owned" several houses in Vietnam and it's under a Vietnamese citizen's name.  Your situation is interesting.  We should meet for coffee...I'm not far from Dong Nai.  Let me send you a message.