With over 15 years of experience, Northwoods Camp Rentals is dedicated to finding families a vacation rental that meets their needs, and service that exceeds their expectations, so that they will come back to your home and our area year after year. As members of the Better Business Bureau, we demonstrate honesty and reliability; as members of the national Vacation Rental Managers Association, we have the most experience; we support our small town community as members of the Moosehead Lake Region Chamber of Commerce; and our region as part of The Maine Highlands.

We currently have over 60 vacation rentals ranging from camps to cabins, from homes to cottages, from brand-new to rustic, and from remote to local. We currently rent, manage and service units in the following locations: Greenville, Sandy Bay, Beaver Cove, Prong Pond, Harford’s Point, Lamb’s Cove, Rockwood, Baker Point, Lower Wilson Pond, Rum Ridge, Lake Hebron (Monson), First Roach Pond (Kokadjo), Big Wilson Stream (Elliotsville), Blanchard, and Long Pond.

If you are looking to buy a property with the intent of making it into a vacation rental, please review the following. We have found that the following characteristics make for the most desirable rental properties.

a) Waterfront: First and foremost, the vast majority of our renters are looking for a waterfront rental. Furthermore, since our largest market is families, we also find that most of them want something with easy water access or a beach area, where the whole family can sit, swim and enjoy the lake. The rentals with flat or gently sloping lawns are also quite successful. A dock is a great addition as many families have or like to rent a motorboat, canoes and kayaks. We find that many renters also prefer a rental directly on Moosehead Lake where they have a seemingly endless body of water to explore. Some people do not mind being on a smaller body of water as long as it is a waterfront property, and a few actually prefer it. A handful of rental properties are waterfront, but the water access is owned by an association.
b) Privacy: Most renters are coming to this area to “get away from it all,” and are looking for lots of peace and quiet. Therefore, privacy is the second most important feature to a prospective renter. We get many questions such as how close is the nearest neighbor? Can you see any other homes from the rental unit itself or the water? Is there protection from the woods and trees? There is also a slowly developing market of wildlife watchers who are willing to forego the waterfront to find a secluded cabin in the woods, or families looking for a more economical vacation may also opt for our “woodland properties” as we like to call them.
c) Lake/Mountain Views: Following closely behind privacy, many renters ask if there is a picture of the property’s view of the lake and/or mountains. They also ask if there is a deck, porch or patio to sit on and soak up the views. A screened-in deck is also a welcomed amenity.
d) Log Cabin: We frequently hear that renters do not want to come and stay in a home that is like their own, therefore our log cabins, cabins with log siding, homes decorated in a moose/deer/bear décor, or properties with a more “rustic, woodsy” feel, tend to book more frequently.

Now that you know what makes the most desirable vacation rental property, the next question is how often will this property rent and for how much? Our rental properties currently range in weekly rates from $500 - $3000 per week. We will do a free evaluation on your property based on the success of comparable properties.

a) Summer - Summertime is our busiest time of the year, specifically July and August. We will do 85% of our total business during this season. For July & August, we do a full-week rental. For our waterfront rentals, we will be 90% booked for these two months. We do have some reservations for the last two weeks in June or the first two weeks in September, but it is usually only about 40% of our properties. This is because our main market in the summer is families who plan their vacations around when school gets out and when it goes back in session. Usually the first season is the slowest, and grows as you build repeat clientele. For the first season, the average waterfront rental will book about 6 weeks, which can steadily grow to 8-12 weeks, especially if it is year-round.
b) Winter- In the winter we operate a little bit differently. In addition to the weekly rental, we will also do a 3-night long weekend stay. December and March are the slowest winter months. Most of our short-term winter rentals are during the month February. We are especially busy February school vacation, the 3rd week of the month. Out of our winter rentals, we are about 90% booked for that week. For short-term rentals, the average winter property will book one week and 2 long weekends. We also have what we call longer-term rentals during the winter. Since snowmobiling is such a popular winter sport in this area, we have found in the past that many renters like to rent for an extended period of time. Instead of transporting their sleds and trailers up every weekend, they will lease from us for 1 to 3 months. We give these types of monthly reservations a substantial discount as it is more desirable for the owner to have a steady renter in the unit during the cold months.
c) Fall - September and October are steadily growing as getaway months. It is a wonderful time of year in the Moosehead Lake Region after the rush and heat of summer gives way to beautiful weather and the colors of autumn. This time of year we see couples looking for weekend getaways, or adults looking for a quiet week-off. However there is always a sharp contrast in the number of renters between the end of August and the beginning of September. The average rental will see about 1 week and 1-2 long weekends. Columbus Day weekend has some popularity.
d) Spring- This is by far our slowest season, we have virtually no renters during April and May. For Memorial weekend, we will see a handful of vacationers.

We are very active in our advertising and are always looking for new ways to market your properties. We maintain a very active website that drives about 80% of our reservations; in fact, it averages about 600 hits per day! On the website we include interior and exterior pictures, a general description, location and a complete list of amenities for each property.

2006 Marketing Plan
Continue to update and improve brand-new website
Membership in the Moosehead Lake Region Chamber of Commerce
Listing in the Moosehead Lake Visitor’s Guide
Enhanced listing on www.mooseheadlake.org
Member of the Moosehead Lake Vacation & Sportsman Association
Member of the Vacation Rental Managers Association
Monthly information meetings with other Maine agencies
Maintain Maine-VacationRentals.com
12 months ad in Down East Magazine
Member of the Better Business Bureau
Strategic advertising on www.cyberrentals.com
Co-op Ad in the Maine Invites You
Ad & Web Link from Sled Maine
 

We never ask owners to change or restrict their vacation time in their homes. We simply ask what dates are not available. Scheduling is so critical in this business that even when we have an open date, whenever we get a reservation we will call or e-mail to let you know the time that we have booked, the last name of the party, and any other pertinent information.

Please give us a call at 1-800-251-8042, or send us e-mail at info@mooseheadrentals.com, if you have any additional questions or are ready to list your property! We look forward to speaking with you soon.