Vacation Rental Property Management: Everything You Need to Know : Wheelhouse Blog

Vacation Rental Property Management: Everything You Need to Know

October 25, 2022 | Hailey Friedman

The vacation property management rental market is worth a whopping $74 billion. Plus, some Airbnb owners make well over $1 million annually through renting out vacation properties.

But before you step into the market, you’ll need a management plan. That’s where vacation rental management companies come in. You can sit back and relax while your rental works for you!

Today, we’ll explore vacation rental property management and assess different companies that might meet your needs. Plus, we’ll help you figure out optimal pricing with our dynamic pricing tool (more on that later).

What is Vacation Rental Management?

Have you ever heard of Airbnb or Vrbo? Of course you have — you might have already used them to stay at a vacation rental. But Airbnb, Vrbo, and other vacation rental sites have great opportunities for property owners as well.

Many companies help vacation rental owners rent out their homes, apartments, condos, or even land to people looking for a place to stay, usually as short-term rentals. Rentals can last anywhere from one night to a few weeks.

Mid-length and longer-term rentals (usually months-long) can be a great passive income investment. With the rise of remote work, you’ll find more demand for this these days.

But those companies don’t really handle vacation rental management. Who fixes the lightbulbs, maintains the grass, and changes the sheets once a guest leaves?

Vacation rental property management entails additional work to keep your rental functional and appealing to guests. Here’s what that management includes:

Guest Communication

As a vacation rental owner, staying up to date with your guests and answering their questions is one of the most critical parts of your job.

Answering guests’ questions, big or small, helps make their stay much more enjoyable. On the other end of the spectrum, you’ll have to handle complaints sometimes. Vacation rental management includes professionally – and quickly – managing guest complaints.

Some property management software are specifically designed to make guest communication quick and easy, with unified inboxes to funnel all communication like texts, emails and whatsapp chats into one platform, automated responses to the basic questions every guest will have, and portals for guest and owners to find all the info they need on their rental.

Booking Management and Scheduling

Organization is key so you know who’s staying at your property and when. When accepting reservations, you must ensure you don’t layer multiple bookings with overlapping dates. Make sure to schedule in time for housekeeping between arrivals too.

Other booking and management responsibilities include:

There’s also the guest screening process. If you’re finding guests on Airbnb, check their reviews to look for any past experiences that might encourage you to reconsider.

On some platforms, guests can rebut poor reviews as well. Sometimes you can get a better sense of potential renters through their responses to criticism. Was their comment on their bad review professional and reasonable? Or did it contain profanities and unreasonable expectations?

Luckily, there are property management companies and software that help with all of these tasks.

Maintenance and Repairs

Common issues that come up in all vacation rentals are leaks and broken appliances. When these issues arise, you have a few options for dealing with them.

If you or a handy family member live nearby, you can try dealing with the issue yourself. Sometimes you can assess the damage and fix the appliance while the guests are present. However, sometimes a broken appliance means ordering a new part or even a whole new appliance. This may mean your guests will be without a dishwasher or washing machine during their stay.

If you’re not handy, you can also keep a handyman on retainer to deal with issues while you are away. Maintenance also includes regularly performing checks on your heavily used items.

Lastly, you’ll need to keep the property clean and hire regular pest control and lawn care.

Vacation Rental Management Options

Now that you know more about what rental property management entails, you might be nervous about the work you have ahead. But vacation rental management companies and contractors help alleviate the load.

Three main options are popular among rental property owners: individual rental managers, vacation rental companies, and vacation rental management software.

Vacation Rental Managers

A vacation rental manager is a one-person show for your rental property. This person can be an individual that you hire, or it could be you! Individual managers are often much cheaper than big companies, and provide more personalized service.

But less staffing means less availability, which could mean slower service times.

Cost: Usually vacation rental property managers charge a percentage of monthly rental income, around 8-10%.

Vacation Rental Companies

Full-service companies, like Vacasa and Evolve, can also manage your vacation rental property. They often have entire professional teams dedicated to ensuring your property is up and running.

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Vacation Rental Management Software

You don’t even need to be tech-savvy to reap the benefits of vacation rental management software. Why not combine vacation rental management and hospitality with automation? It usually results in more time on your calendar and money in your pocket.

Whether you own one property, are a vacation property manager for multiple properties, or an enterprise vacation rental management company, property management software makes the process a lot easier.

Some examples of this software include Wheelhouse, Guesty, Hostaway, and Lodgify. Some property management companies even have proprietary software included in their services.

Services:
- “All-In-One” solutions, which offer help in reservations, communication, messaging, and operations
- Guest experience messaging with automated replies
- Reservation calendar
- Channel manager
- Direct booking websites
- Double-booking protection
- Housekeeping and maintenance
- Team collaboration
- Task management
- Performance and reporting dashboard
- Upsells and ancillary services
- Automated actions and smart home actions
- Smart lock integrations
- Rates and price management
- Review management
- Financial and operational metrics
- Owner portal
- Integrations
- Trust accounting
Pros:
- Various features
- Convenient and automated
- Time saving
Cons:
- You still have to manage and use the software
- It doesn’t cover handiwork and housekeeping

Cost:

While some software companies are less transparent about costs, companies like Lodgify work on tiered monthly fees and variable booking fee plans. The highest booking fee at Lodgify is 3.9% (“Lite Plan at $0/mo), and the highest monthly fee is $56/mo (“Ultimate Plan” with 0% booking fee).

And don’t forget Wheelhouse. The software is a specific dynamic pricing tool using market data and competitor analysis to improve revenue by 40%! With carefully collected market data, we make informed recommendations for your rental prices, and even custom recommendations for different properties.

Vacation Rental Management Tips & Strategies

All set with a vacation rental management company? Perfect. Here are some tips and strategies to maximize success:

1. Automate check-in
Automated check-in is a great way to cross one task off your vacation rental management list. Many vacation rental owners invest in smart locks, where guests can input a code to access the property.
1. Invest in home security
Good home security is essential for both your belongings and guests. A nice bonus? Home security increases the value of your guests' stay. When picking out security systems, you may consider motion-sensing lights, cameras, and alarms.
1. Find reliable support
Hopefully, the vacation rental management company you choose will have a substantial list of contractors and housekeepers to keep your place spic and span. But if you’re managing everything yourself?

Secure a list of reliable support for cleaning, repairs, or other needs before you rent out your property.
1. Make contingency plans
While we don’t want to think of the worst-case scenarios, a contingency plan for emergencies is a must for property management.

What if a guest accidentally gets locked out? Or the neighbors keep complaining about noise? The only thing worse than being in an emergency is being in an emergency without a plan.
1. Market, market, market!
Put your best foot forward to maximize your money-making potential. Make your vacation rental enticing to potential guests with professional photos, and get on their radar through social media.

Pay special attention to vacation property management companies that offer marketing services like advertising and photography. Attracting potential guests to your property is half the battle.

For more marketing tips, check out this comprehensive book about short-term rental properties from Bigger Pockets!

Vacation Rental Property Management Jobs

Are you a property owner looking to make vacation rental management your full-time job? The good news is that opportunities exist in this role nationwide and the industry has steady growth projections over the next decade.

The median annual salary for a vacation rental manager is $42,837, but it ranges between $33,805 – $53,997. While there is no formal degree needed to become a vacation rental manager, it is helpful to have a Bachelor’s degree in either hospitality, business, real estate, or the equivalent experience. Some states require licensing to practice as a vacation rental manager, so check your local requirements.

Some of the skills you’ll need to be successful in the role include:
- Time management and organization: Experience managing a calendar and all the moving parts to keep a rental ticking along smoothly is crucial.
- Customer service: As the face of the property, your interactions with guests can make or break their experience. Understanding good customer service will help you deliver excellence to your clients.
- Computer savvy: Many vacation rental managers will use computer software and apps to list, monitor and track bookings, guest communications and much more. You’ll need to be able to work with the latest technology to keep on top of it all.
- Marketing: Your role may require you to list your property online and through various channels. Understanding marketing is key to catching the attention of potential clients.
- Negotiation: Many will tell you that this is an art, and they wouldn’t be wrong. Vacation rental managers will develop relationships with many different providers to maintain the properties they manage, negotiating the best rates for each job. Negotiation with customers is also part of offering good customer service.

But where do you find vacation rental manager jobs? The traditional route is always an option; search on sites like monster.com, indeed, LinkedIn, and jooble.org to see many listings across the country.

Another route is to check out the career pages of existing rental management companies. They often have openings, but if they don’t, it doesn’t hurt to submit an introduction letter and resume.

The boldest option is to show off your marketing skills by advertising yourself as a vacation rental manager seeking owners to work with. This is best for experienced managers who have great references to back them up.

Find Success with Vacation Rental Property Management

Vacation rental property management could be your first step to passive income and financial freedom. If you hire a vacation property management company, the process gets a lot smoother.

But you always have to ensure your pricing matches the market. The last thing you need is to invest time and money into a property that doesn’t even cover your basic expenses or performs worse than all neighboring rentals.

That’s where Wheelhouse’s dynamic pricing tool comes in. Our intelligent pricing software studies over 10 billion data points to recommend the perfect pricing for every rental. Because it’s dynamic, the recommended pricing changes with the market to ensure maximum occupancy.

Owners report an average increase in revenue of 40% when using Wheelhouse! Best of all, you can choose to manage your prices manually, or set-and-forget for a more hands-off approach. And as your portfolio grows, the software scales to help you manage all of your rentals.

Ready to see dynamic pricing in action? Try it for free today!

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