Being homeless, and loving it?

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: Soaring real estate prices, taxes and the associated costs of living in a tourist destination can be an expensive endeavor. A small but growing number of intrepid homeowners, however, have figured out a way to make their prime locations pay. Big sporting events, festivals, presidential conventions or simply sought-after tourist destinations have homeowners clearing out their homes, packing away the family silver and renting out their homes to deep-pocketed strangers. Sometimes it is for a few days; in other cases, it is for an entire summer or winter. Some people see it as a business, others as a way to pocket a few thousand dollars when they are on vacation.

John Gilderbloom of Louisville, Ky., has rented out his five-bedroom, two-bath Victorian home for the last three Kentucky Derbys. This year, he charged $3,000 for the first Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights in May. With the Ryder Cup golf tournament coming to town in September for six days, he expects to bring in another $6,000 to $7,000. He says he eventually would like to rent his home for weddings, family reunions and holidays. “I started with $1,000 and was just thrilled to get that. And it just keeps on going up. Next year, it’ll be $5,000 or $6,000. When you’re asked to give up your house for four or five days, that’s not much of a sacrifice,” said Gilderbloom, who teaches historic preservation at the University of Louisville. “I’m just a college professor—three nights, $4,000—that’s great. That’s half my salary.”

It is more common to see people rent out second or vacation homes than it is to see them rent out the place they sleep every night. For example, primary home rentals are now happening mostly in cities like New York, and Los Angeles.Opportunities, however, also exist for residents in less urban areas. Midsize cities that only occasionally find themselves being a hot spot tend to have fewer hotels than are needed for a Super Bowl, Republican or Democratic presidential convention. Short-term hoteliers can capitalize on the imbalance.