What makes this Maryland Inn For Sale a Nature Resort?

When is a Bed & Breakfast Inn a Resort?

Our dictionary defines a resort as a place that provides recreation and entertainment to vacationers. To some, that means dance lessons and floor shows. To others it means trout fishing, bird watching or a relaxing massage.

 At the Stonebow Inn, a western Maryland Bed and Breakfast for sale, guests find Nature in abundance. The Inn sits on the banks of a famous trout stream, in the midst of the Allegheny Mountains. The creature comforts here have been well thought out and include a range of accommodations from renovated historic bedrooms to private cottages. There’s as much “Nurture” as “Nature.”

In the last two decades, learning vacations have grown in popularity. To update the concept of “Resort” think of learning as entertainment and doing as recreation. Across the street from the Stonebow Inn is the Spruce Forest Artisan Village which offers workshops in arts and crafts as well as a summer music series. Nearby, guests can take a kayak tour, play golf or ski. On the Inn premises, guests can fly fish (guides are available,) bird watch, take a sauna or get a massage.

By making use of the fully restored post and beam barn and the carpeted recreation room learning-and-doing programs can expand at the Stonebow Inn. “Audubon” … “Arts and Crafts” … “Yoga” … “Watercolor” … “Fly Tying” … “Nature Writing” … These are ideas that immediately come to mind. Guests at the Stonebow Inn love the natural setting – New owners will be inspired to offer them more ways to appreciate it!


Eliot Dalton Inn Broker and Consultant Bed and Breakfast Real Estate (610) 717 8083

Inn Photography and Bed and Breakfast Photography Matters!

The adage "A picture is worth a thousand words" is true!

Today, an Innkeeper with an Inn for sale is competing with hundreds of Inn owners for the attention of potential buyers. Just as potential guests rely on photos to form an impression of an Inn, so do potential buyers. An Inn buyer who is contemplating a move from California to New York will want as complete a picture as possible of an Inn before booking a flight to go see it! Most Bed and Breakfast Inns have websites with good photos of guest rooms, common areas and the exterior setting. Inn buyers are interested in seeing everything else. Photos of the Innkeepers' living quarters are of utmost interest, followed by the kitchen and work areas. Outbuildings, storage areas and potential expansion space are other subjects for photographs of a Bed and Breakfast for sale.

Are professional photos necessary? It's easy to compare the inspiring work of a professional Bed and Breakfast photographer with grainy do-it-yourself photos taken in a hurry.

But with patience, and a little practice, a determined Innkeeper with a digital camera can produce very good Inn photography. (Amateur Inn photographers interested in improving skills should visit the Ken Rockwell website - lots of excellent, free how-to information.) An Innkeeper is always on hand for a "magic moment" and can shoot photos over time.

For Innkeepers who do not have the time to become experts in Bed and Breakfast photography, the services of a professional Inn photographer are an excellent investment. Professionals are experts at making Bed and Breakfast properties look romantic, vibrant and successful.

Either way, Bed and Breakfast photography should be both informative and attractive. Naturally, guest rooms should be "picture perfect" - and so should Innkeepers' living quarters! Prepare for a photo shoot as though a VIP is coming to visit - clean, organize and use fresh flowers.

Great Inn photography will:

• set an Inn apart from others on the market
• leave a lasting, positive impression
• create as complete a picture as possible of the entire property

Eliot Dalton Inn Broker and Consultant Bed and Breakfast Real Estate (610) 717 8083

Bed and Breakfast Information - Record Keeping

The importance of keeping accurate and complete financial records is obvious when you sit down to prepare your income tax return. What about other records such as permits, licenses, advertising analytics, insect treatments, occupancy rates, equipment warranties, etc? When a Bed and Breakfast for sale is under review by a buyer, accurate financial data is essential. Both the buyer and her lender expect to be fully informed, in order to make an intelligent decision. That information gathering goes beyond tax returns. For example, a buyer must know if the Inn for sale is permitted to operate by the local authority. On the other hand, the roof doesn’t have to come with a warranty, but if it has one, documentation of that is helpful and will strengthen the deal. Good record keeping will expedite the due diligence phase of a contract to buy a Bed and Breakfast, enabling both parties to reach settlement sooner.

Some of us are naturally more organized than others. If you are like me, after preparing your tax returns, you will promise yourself to be more precise during the coming year. If you are contemplating listing your Bed and Breakfast for sale any time in the future, now is the time to start organizing.

Eliot Dalton
Inn Broker and Consultant
Bed and Breakfast Real Estate
(610) 717 8083

Seller Financing Options for Inns For Sale

Seller financing of Inns, wherein an Inn owner offers a mortgage to an Inn buyer, was rare during the last decade. Money was cheap and lenders were eager to lend. Those conditions have certainly changed and bank financing for Bed and Breakfast Inns is elusive today. Seller financing of Country Inns and Bed and Breakfasts for sale is re-emerging as an option that benefits both parties. One advantage is that the Inn buyer and the Inn seller have control over the terms of the transaction. A seller does not necessarily have to own the B&B outright in order to offer seller financing. Here three ways a seller can participate in financing:

1. Free and Clear Financing – When a seller owns a property “free and clear” there are no liens or mortgages on the property. In this situation the seller and buyer are free to make any terms they want to in order to make a deal successful. An Inn owner typically agrees to transfer title to the Inn in exchange for a note and a security interest in the property. The note is paid off like a conventional mortgage, though to the seller instead of a bank.
2. Second Position Financing – In this scenario, the Inn buyer makes a down payment, obtains new mortgage financing (paying off the seller’s existing mortgage) and the seller finances the remainder of the purchase price. Down Payment + Bank Financing + Seller Financing = Purchase Price.
3. Purchase Option – Any time the Inn buyer gives money to the Inn owner for the right to purchase the property at a given price and within a given time frame the buyer has a “purchase option”. Typically, the buyer simultaneously leases and operates the Inn. This is a form of seller financing because the seller still owns the Inn until the buyer purchases it (exercises their option to purchase) or the option expires.

As the chill on institutional lending persists, and the inventory of available Inns remains high, variations of seller financing will become more commonplace. I would be happy to discuss any of these options for financing the purchase or sale of your Bed and Breakfast for sale - contact me!

New Business Plans for the New Environment

Most Innkeepers felt the effects of the Great Recession in 2009. Continuing high unemployment numbers and waves of home foreclosures mean that consumers won’t be spending freely in 2010, either. Travel is, after all, “non-essential”. This trend is likely to last for some time. With the easy lending practices of a few years ago being replaced by Scrooge-inspired lending rules for small businesses, it’s difficult for Bed and Breakfast owners to find financing for improvements or seasonal credit. What are pressured Innkeepers to do? Now is the time to plan.

A new business plan will:
•    Force you to focus on your Inn’s strengths and weaknesses.
•    Keep you on track in the face of daily distractions.
•    Give you a sense of control.

A new business plan will also serve to tame the “marketing monster” so that your limited resources are carefully targeted.

Of course, the most important way to grow your B&B business and bring happy customers back will always be to deliver great service in a beautifully maintained Inn brimming with atmosphere and comfort. But a current business plan will help you take specific steps toward more success and reduce stess.

Offer Guests Educational and Cultural Packages

 “Today’s guests increasingly buy the experience. Witness the growth of cultural and eco-tourism, spiritual and physical wellness packages, heritage tours, culinary immersions and other unique revenue-producing programs. Successful contemporary hoteliers focus keenly on creating a home base for the modern social experience–adventure, education, or just hangin’–accompanied by up-to-date technology and décor.”

Words from a Bed and Breakfast consultant? No, this commentary is from Tom Brumleve, a columnist for the online hotel industry news site HotelNewsNow.com.

The hotel industry is in hot pursuit of Bed and Breakfast Inn customers and that is a good reason to double-down and create special programs to educate and entertain them. This is what Innkeepers have been doing for generations (remember White Christmas?) This year, more than ever, is the time to start something new and interesting at your Inn or Bed and Breakfast! 

The US Census and Bed and Breakfast Inns

Do Bed and Breakfast Inns get counted by the Census? Yes! But not this year ...
Every 10 years, all the people in the United States are counted. The census is mandated in the US Constitution and the first one was held in 1790. The resulting data is used for many things, including congressional redistricting. Why? So each congressional district represents approximately 600,000 people. Businesses, however, are counted in an Economic Census which is conducted every 5 years. So while Innkeepers will be counted this year, Bed and Breakfast Inns will not.

During the 2000 Census (of people) the census workers overlooked us. I think they assumed our New York Bed and Breakfast Inn had no permanent residents. Innkeepers may need to flag down a census worker to be counted.

As for the Economic Census, that will come around again in 2012. I took a look at the data from the 2002 and 2007 census to see if I could spot trends for the Innkeeping industry. My conclusion is that the census folks should contact PAII if they want meaningful Bed and Breakfast industry information!