Looking to create a high-income, passive real estate empire?
Vacation rentals are massive right now. And they're only going to get bigger.
Here's some market research from Precedence Research in 2024:
"The global Short Term Rental Market size was estimated at USD 124.52 billion in 2024 and is projected to expand at a CAGR of 7.7% to reach USD 344.06 billion by 2034."
It's estimated to triple in size by 2034. Numbers like that should jump out at you.
The good news?
It's the perfect time to get started. Competition is still low. And if you implement these short-term rental management strategies, you can set yourself up to dominate your market.
The Bad News
Massive markets like this one can also be super chaotic and crowded.
Countless new investors are entering the market without much guidance or structure. They get lost. Or they give up. It's sad really.
A lack of planning kills success for so many.
If you don't have a system in place, it doesn't matter how many properties you own. You'll waste so much time and money chasing random leads that never pan out.
In short…
The vacation rental industry needs more serious real estate investors with 10+ year real estate track records. Whether you're looking for rental arbitrage tips or scaling strategies, the best operators are extremely profitable. I hope this list of rental management strategies helps you join their ranks.
Here's What's Inside:
Why Short-Term Rentals Are Booming
5x Short-Term Rental Management Principles
6x Short-Term Rental Management Strategies
Common Short-Term Rental Mistakes
The Short-Term Rental Boom Explained
As I mentioned earlier, the short-term rental investing landscape is in a golden age right now.
Millions of new investors enter the space every year. With no idea how to get started. It's overwhelming and often confusing.
Meanwhile, traditional long-term landlords continue to manage 12-36 month leases.
Travellers are naturally drawn to unique, high-end properties that offer a local experience. In fact, over 72% of vacation rental bookings now happen through online platforms.
This isn't some new trend. These preferences have been around for years.
You can't open a 3-month listing on Airbnb without noticing 99.9% of guests are booking furnished, spacious homes.
Your goal as a short-term rental manager should be to control as much of the market share in your chosen location as possible.
It's the only way to generate the volumes required for 10x success.
If you want to grow an empire, take a page out of the 3-30-300 rule book.
Manage 3 rockstar properties > Become a local expert > Go from 3 to 30 properties > Manage a full team > Go from 30 to 300 and beyond.
Stay tuned for more on each of these strategies in the future.
Do you want to see where to find the cheapest renters insurance?
Short-Term Rental Management Principles
Let's start by talking about the principles behind successful short-term rental management.
Contrary to popular belief, it's not about…
Buying cheap properties. Finding a "secret spot" on AirBnB. Copying the competition's listing.
It's way deeper than that.
Successful real estate investors have mastered the art of systems.
They've figured out a way to make their money work as hard as possible. Constantly growing through scalable systems.
The most profitable property managers have a solid foundation based on simple, core principles.
The main ones I'm focusing on with this newsletter are:
Excellent guest experience
Flexible pricing
Scalable processes
If you work hard enough on these principles, the results will come.
Short-Term Rental Management Strategies
Now that we know the core principles let's look at actionable strategies for making these principles a reality.
#1 Short-Term Rental Management Strategy: Optimise Your Listing
Your listing is your business's calling card. It must attract attention and entice clicks that lead to bookings.
Professionally shot property photos are the number one thing guests look at to determine if a property is worth booking.
Take it from one of the most successful photographers in the space.
I've heard it from Kyle Bartram, Chris Adams, Mike Karasik, Zach Allen, John Leveille and others.
If you cut corners and try to take your own photos, you'll look unprofessional and attract less qualified leads.
Writing a great copy is just as important. Your headline, subhead and property description need to tell a story.
Emotionally engaging copy leads to more clicks and more conversions.
Properties with high-quality images + emotional copy are on another level.
#2 Short-Term Rental Management Strategy: Dynamic Pricing
Dynamic pricing is a huge opportunity to make more money with your rentals.
Too many new investors pick an arbitrary price and hope for the best.
This is rookie talk. You need to respond to real-time demand signals in the market.
If you're charging the same price in July as you do in November, you're not optimising your revenue.
Tools like price tamers and price geniuses let you do this automatically and increase your prices in a high-demand period.
#3 Short-Term Rental Management Strategy: Guest Communication
Communication is a massive problem area for hosts who manage their properties manually.
Hosts and property managers that treat guest communication like an afterthought get destroyed by competition.
Fast responses lead to higher bookings. Platforms like Airbnb reward hosts with faster response times with better search positioning.
Your messages must be both timely and helpful. Automated booking confirmation, guest welcome, and checkout messages can free up time.
Perfect the art of crafting useful, relatable messages that make guests feel appreciated.
#4 Short-Term Rental Management Strategy: Build Systems
Scaling short-term rentals can be hard to do without systems.
Cleaning, property turn, guest communication, maintenance and turnover are areas that need to be systemised.
Software solutions that automate repetitive, manual tasks take the strain off.
Tools that allow you to manage multiple properties from one dashboard are the most valuable.
Cleaning and property maintenance teams on auto-pilot lead to fewer errors and greater consistency.
#5 Short-Term Rental Management Strategy: Collect Reviews
Reviews are the lifeblood of a short-term rental business.
Positive reviews breed trust. Positive reviews lead to more bookings.
You need to actively solicit guest reviews after each stay.
Make it easy for them to leave a review. Send a post-checkout text message with a direct link to the AirBnB page.
A personal touch goes a long way here. Tell them you enjoyed their stay and would love them to leave feedback.
Negative reviews? Respond professionally and address the feedback.
#6 Short-Term Rental Management Strategy: Direct Bookings
As of this email, Airbnb and Vrbo's standard commission fees are 3% and 5% + cleaning fees respectively.
Hosts who rely on platforms completely miss out on a massive opportunity to drive direct bookings.
Online direct booking leads can be sourced from your own website or via paid marketing campaigns.
Once you establish direct booking channels, your profitability skyrockets.
Thank you for taking the time to read this guide on short-term rental management.
I'll be adding more useful info to this thread every month. Bookmark this guide for reference.
Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below.
