Home Managers Live In 1.3 Million Dollar Home For $2500 A Month

Home managers Calvenn and Crystena Starre are living a life of luxury in a $1.3 million home in Carlsbad California, but not for the price you may think. According to CNN, the couple is renting the home for $2,500 a month, a third of what the home would normally cost!

So how are the Starres living like stars? They are living as home managers “hired” by Showhomes to live in high-end homes that are currently on the housing market. Showhomes is a company that helps to sell high-end homes, and according to CNN the company stages homes to look “lived in” and that includes finding the perfect tenants to live in the home while it’s on the market.

Showhomes isn’t the only company out there that works with home managers. According to the Florida Times – Union, McInnes Staging, and Home Management also makes use of home managers, and Jacksonville Florida’s Sheriff’s Officer Marva Watkins is taking advantage of the opportunity and is now living in a 5,000-square-foot, three-story, waterfront home.

Individuals who work as home managers for staging companies are reportedly taking advantage of these opportunities because it allows them to live in better homes for only the fraction of the price.

“I was amazed. My highest mortgage once was $3,800 a month [the former home she was buying] and it wasn’t waterfront and there was no swimming pool,” said Watkins who is currently only paying a monthly rent of $1,300 a month for her waterfront home.

While living a life of luxury is a dream for many, working as a home manager does have its drawbacks. Matt Kelton, chief operating officer of Showhomes, told CNN that there are quite a few rules that must be followed in order to stay in one of their high-end staged homes:

“You can’t be a smoker, you can’t have a bunch of pets, no religious items — things that can deter [a buyer] one way or another,” sad Kelton.

He continued on to say that personal items, such as sports teams and political paraphernalia, and even family photos are prohibited. Because prospective buyers can show up at any time to survey the home, the place also has to remain in top shape:

“You have to keep it clean and model home-ish,” said Crystena Starre, a stay-at-home mom to her three kids. “We got to teach the kids, ‘We need to put things away.'”

Once a home is sold, the home managers normally have a month or so to leave the home, which can be another drawback. Having to pick up and move at a moment’s notice can be stressful on any individual, but many home managers have said that they chose this route as a middle point in their own home buying adventure.

The Starres, for example, want to purchase a home for themselves, but couldn’t decide on where they wanted to plant their roots. By participating as home managers, they’ve gotten a chance to live in a variety of areas, and they told reporters that “the wealth of knowledge they’ve acquired from living in different San Diego neighborhoods has helped them narrow down” where they plan on looking for their own home.

What do you think of the idea of being a home manager? Would you give up certain parts of your life to live the life of luxury? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

[Image via Shutterstock/Ernest R. Prim]