Houses, rooms available during inauguration week — for a price

Call it the “Yes, we can” strategy. As in, yes, we can ... make a buck off the inauguration.

Though he won’t be sworn in for another two months, it seems President-elect Barack Obama, known for that three-word catchphrase, is already spurring economic activity.

As of Tuesday, entrepreneurs on the Internet classified ad site craigslist were hawking inaugural lodging at more than 30 Prince William-area homes.

Supply and demand may be on their side. Hotel rooms were reportedly booked up as far away as three hours from Washington.

“We sold out probably about four days before the election,” said Richard Luz, guest services manager at the Potomac Mills Courtyard by Marriott.

The establishment requires a three-night minimum stay around the Jan. 20 event. Rooms are $309.99 per night, but Luz said he could probably sell them for $200 more with no problem.

He heard that rooms were so scarce that tourists were resorting to staying as far away as Delaware or Philadelphia.

“It’s impossible to find a hotel right now,” Luz said.

And, despite the name, some Econo Lodges were pricing rooms at $600 a night, he said.

The story was the same from one of Luz’ counterparts in western Prince William County.

Tammy Bragg, general manager of the Best Western Battlefield Inn on Balls Ford Road, said her rooms were sold out the day after the election.

“Everybody’s been calling,” she said.

Bragg also joked about telling her husband that they could rent rooms at their home.

And that’s just what Myra Tillery-Smalls is doing — or, at least, she’s trying to rent rooms in an apartment she owns.

She expected to use the space for visiting family from New York and California. But when plans changed, she decided to advertise on craigslist.

She heard some hotels were charging $1,000 per night and requiring a five-night minimum stay, and she thought that was way too expensive.

So Tillery-Smalls is marketing her rooms in Dumfries for half that amount per night: $1,000 to $1,200 for two-night stays.

And, she said, “I am offering hotel amenities.”

She knows about all those little touches, too. Her husband is a Marriott manager.

Prince William craigslist ads range from $100 per person for a room in Manassas to $25,000 for a week at a seven-bedroom, 5,000-square-foot house in the city.

In the middle of that spectrum was a posting for a week at a Woodbridge town house for $8,000. It was put up by Sandria Cox.

“I think my place is pretty spacious inside,” she said.

She acknowledged that there’s a risk involved with leasing your property — especially when the renters are likely to be in a partying mood. But she figured the potential reward would be greater.

In terms of the entire area, the economic upside of inaugurating the 44th president extends beyond lodging, according to Laurie Wieder, president of the Prince William Regional Chamber of Commerce.

“It’s good in a lot of ways,” she said.

For example, when people stay in Prince William, they’re more likely to eat here, too, and shop here. And if they discover local attractions, they may return for another visit just to come to the county, she said.

Also, business people attending the inaugural festivities may take note of the area and later consider expanding or relocating a company here.

Steve Nelson, chairman of the Prince William County-Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce, said he’s glad that the inauguration largesse spills out to Prince William, particularly because it comes at a time of year that ordinarily might not be busy for hotels and motels.

And he noted that the trickle-down effect Wieder mentioned could extend to even something as simple as tourists gassing up their cars in Prince William rather than in another locale.

“That’s the theory,” he said.

Staff writer Jonathan Hunley can be reached at 703-369-5738.