When the Sundance Film Festival comes to Boulder in January, scores of out-of-state visitors are expected to descend on the city. Many of those studio executives, actors, directors and fans will need somewhere to stay.
This story first published onKUNC.
When the Sundance Film Festival moves from its long-time home in Park City, Utah to Colorado in January, tens of thousands of attendees are expected. All those studio executives, actors, directors, and fans will need somewhere to stay near Boulder, where it is taking place. But the city’s festival-focused rental market is brand new.
Dan Andrews’ four-bedroom home is on a quiet street in North Boulder. When he heard the city had created a special short-term rental license for the film festival, he applied immediately.
“We were pretty intrigued right away,” Andrews said.
He thought he and his wife could go out of town, make some money, and maybe cover their mortgage for a few months.
“It wasn’t until we started learning more than we were like, ‘Hmm, this may not be for us, actually,’” Andrews said.
That’s because renting out his home would take some work — starting with his office.
“Which is quite a command station here,” he said. “Lots of screens, lots of hardware and equipment.”
Andrews, an artificial intelligence engineer, explained that he would need to move out all of this gear and then buy bedroom furniture for the space. Plus, he would hire a property manager to oversee the rental while they’re away.
“For us, it was really a question of … how many days could we actually rent it out for and at what price,” he said.
These are some of the questions homeowners are considering in deciding whether or not to rent. Right now, the city has around 1,400 active licenses for festival rentals and short-term rentals. But Boulder’s Sundance rental market is brand new, so neither inventory nor pricing is established.
“It is OK to make money when you’re inconveniencing yourself and giving a great asset to someone else,” said Caleb Dickinson, co-owner and CFO of Boulder-area Fox Property Management.
Pricing will vary depending on size, location, and level of luxury.
“Maybe you get Tom Cruise to stay in your place, and money’s not a thing,” Dickinson said. “But maybe you get a first-time director with an independent film who’s never made much money wanting to stay in your home.”
The city of Boulder’s pricing guide suggests a high-end, walkable, four-bedroom house should go for around $15,000 for the 11-day festival. Some properties are listed on Airbnb for much more.
“The reason to price it accurately is so that people keep coming back, honestly,” Dickinson said. “This is hopefully a 10-year event. And if we get this really wrong, it won’t be a 10-year event.”
Jill Grano, a Boulder realtor who helped start the state’s festival lodging effort, pointed out that it is early. She explained that Airbnb data from the World Cup, for example, showed most housing didn’t come online until a few months prior.
“And I think that we’re going to see a lot of that,” Grano said.
Plus, the number of short-term rental licenses is going up.
“So, all of the numbers are actually starting to point in a good direction, a place that we weren’t in a couple months ago,” she said.
Andrews said his family will decide whether or not to rent by the end of the summer. He would love to see some sort of incentive from the city — a rebate or tax break.
“Because I am already picturing all the work I’m gonna have to do to get all my stuff from upstairs down to the basement,” he said. “I would hopefully be able to hire somebody to help, but that’s not free.”
Andrews may just sit out this first year to see how the rental market develops.
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