Ways To Make More Money With Your Vacation Rental

You're in the property rental business to make money. It might be difficult to stay ahead of the competition and make money on your property at times, so let's take a look at the best strategies for you to maximize revenue on your vacation rental.

Have the Best Amenities

Beat the competition by providing your guests with the best amenities and extras. You are already ahead of the curve if you invest in amenities such as high-speed Wi-Fi, smart TVs, game consoles, and docking stations. Give your property a unique selling point by installing a fire pit or tipi tent. Offering luxurious soaps and linens will increase the house's attractiveness, and if your property is pet-friendly, make sure to supply bowls and beds for furry visitors.

Be Flexible

When peak seasons end, there may be a gap in bookings, making it even more crucial to remain flexible. To ensure that you receive enough bookings to retain your revenue as high as it would be during peak seasons, you will most likely need to cut your nightly rates. This implies that your room will stand out, and off-season guests will choose it because it is the most affordable alternative. With regular involvement and favorable reviews, your property will be more appealing and will remain rented throughout the season.

Be Present Everywhere

You have to be in it to win it, so make sure your property is registered everywhere. Create a descriptive profile on all of the major vacation rental websites to increase the visibility of your property. Sites like Airbnb and Booking.com are currently the most popular, so displaying your properties there will allow you to reach more people and boost your chances of making a booking.

Have the Best Profile

Make your profile stand out by using the best images and including as much information about the property as possible. Use your smartphone camera or a high-quality digital camera. You may wish to employ the assistance of a professional or amateur photographer here to ensure that the photographs accurately depict your property. Consider creating a short video presentation as well. Finally, don't forget to complete the entire profile with information on the amenities, local transportation, proximity to the city center, park, or other attractions, and so on.

Keep It Simple

People use the internet to get things done as quickly as possible, so make booking as simple as possible for your guests. Allow guests to book with a credit card for immediate payment and enhanced security. By enabling the Instant Booking and Book Now options, you enable your guests to make an immediate booking without waiting for a response - this means that more people will be ready to book with you and will receive speedier service.

Use a Channel Manager

Here's a quick calculation for you: more presence on OTA websites equals more visibility plus more reservations. That's a lot of additional potential income!

A Channel Manager, such as Hostaway, will assist you in managing all of these bookings from a single location and will synchronize your availabilities and rates across all of your channels. To cut a long tale short, you'll have all of your work centralized, and you'll save a significant amount of time maintaining your properties.

Re-evaluate your contractors:

When the pipes burst or there's an electrical problem, who do you call? Don't fall into the trap of using the same contractor you've dealt with for years just because you know them. Instead, request quotations from at least three different vendors or contractors to save money.

This can be time-consuming, so when you have work that isn't urgent, take advantage of the opportunity to compare new and present professionals. To stay current, you should check in on pricing on a regular basis, anything from 6 months to a year. You might be amazed at how much money you can save on short-term rentals by doing a little extra research or bargaining.

Go green

If you haven't had a home energy assessment (also known as an energy audit) performed on your property, now is the time. An energy audit is a straightforward process that can save you money while also lowering your carbon footprint, which is appealing to prospective renters. You can either schedule a professional audit (which is recommended) or conduct a fast home assessment to see how your house will fair.

While a professional energy audit can provide a much more comprehensive picture of your property's energy use, a thorough self-assessment can be a good starting point for identifying particular problem areas and prioritizing your most important energy efficiency measures.

Contact your energy provider, such as your local electric company, and request an audit of your property. Make the suggested modifications, and you should see a reduction in your utility bills. Some firms even provide rebates for energy-efficient homes, which can help you save money.

Maintain Your Property Regularly

Small maintenance concerns are easy to ignore when you're busy and trying to save money, but ignoring them for too long can lead to major problems. You can establish a maintenance schedule and avoid severe troubles by staying prepared and planning ahead of time. To remain on top of minor issues, emphasize regular maintenance every spring and fall.

Failure to keep up with this can lead to costly repairs that are more expensive than the upkeep itself—or, worse, your short-term rental becoming unoccupied. Once you've hired reliable contractors, talk with them about a recommended maintenance schedule, add it to your online calendar, and move on to more pressing issues.

In Conclusion

By putting in a little time and work, you can make your vacation rental property more appealing to guests, resulting in more bookings and higher revenue. Consider your guests' demands from the moment they browse for a property until the end of their stay, and you will undoubtedly see results. Don't forget to take advantage of what technology has to offer. Check out the Hostaway marketplace to see what we can do for your property management business.