When deciding how to manage your vacation rental, it’s a good idea to be honest with yourself, your time, and your abilities. Also ask yourself: what management style works for you?
Vacation rental property manager vs. software
With vacation rental management, there are many options. You could hire a property manager, manage it yourself, or some combination of both with the right software to make your job easier.
Use a property manager
A property manager oversees handling multiple vacation rental properties they don’t own. The benefit of using a property manager is knowing a professional with experience is handling guests and property management. Property managers are usually well connected with other maintenance people, in case something comes up that they can’t handle.
Property managers’ services can range in price. The commission rate is 12% + GST for properties located in Australia and New Zealand, and 12% to 15% + GST/VAT for properties located in the rest of the world. Working with a property manager also means giving up some control and delegating certain tasks. This may be difficult for some homeowners who want to be more involved.
You can research property management companies online. Look for companies with great reviews and large online followings, as well as companies that rank high in the search results. Another way to find property managers is to ask other vacation rental owners or a real estate agent for recommendations.
Before hiring a property manager, find out if they will:
- Advertise the property both locally and internationally
- Guarantee a minimum level of bookings
- Inspect the property before and after each rental and do an inventory inspection
- Welcome the guests to your property
- Organize repairs and maintenance and provide receipts
- Communicate with you regularly
Self-management
Not all vacation rental homeowners choose to hire a property manager. Many prefer to self-manage, or “rent by owner.” It can be rewarding to run every aspect of your business, as well as provide wonderful guest experiences, and our online platform makes it easier. Another advantage to self-management is getting to keep more of your income by saving on property management fees and commissions.
However, there are also challenges to self-management, especially if you live far from your property. Maintaining vacation rentals requires work and often depends on being able to provide house maintenance, home repairs when necessary, yard upkeep if applicable, regular cleaning and housekeeping, and much more.
Finding reliable and trustworthy services is one of the most important part of managing your rental and key to providing a good experience for guests. (It’s also one reason many people end up hiring property managers for support.)
Property management plus self-management
These days, many property management companies are flexible and can provide different levels of support as needed. Now you have the option to self-manage your vacation rental properties while still using a property management company for emergencies and other issues. This is especially helpful if your properties aren’t nearby.
With a hybrid rent-by-owner/property manager relationship, it's important that both you and your property manager are clear on how to work together. A verbal and written contract can outline how tasks are delegated. There are several ways this arrangement can work:
- You pay and manage online listings, but list the property manager’s contact info. With this method you manage everything but don’t deal with inquiries or calls from travelers.
- You pay per service. The cost and services will vary depending on your needs. For example, you might handle marketing and bookings, while the property manager handles cleaning, maintenance, and keys.
- Full-service property managers charge a discounted commission for bookings generated by you. This might be a good option if you don’t have the time to manage your property but still want to play an active role in the bookings.
Use software to manage your listings
Whether you’re managing your vacation rental properties on your own or using a hybrid method with the help of a property manager, the right software can save time and simplify doing business, especially with multiple properties.
Software streamlines property management and bookings by managing multiple calendars, advertising properties across multiple sites, handling online accounting, and more.
When using software for managing reservations, always be sure to follow these best practices:
- Manage all reservations out of your software — and not our dashboard.
- Confirm or cancel all reservations that come in through your software. Do not leave in “unconfirmed” status. When necessary, cancel reservations in your software so that the calendar properly updates; do not delete them.
- Manage your inquiries in your software or email, depending on your software functionality. Respond within a 24-hour period, or as quickly as possible, to provide a better traveler experience. Travelers may be looking at other properties at the same time they’re inquiring about yours.
When choosing software, look for these basic features:
- Calendar synchronization
- Ability to schedule cleaning
- Reservation system management
- Accounting functionality
- Maintenance scheduling
