STVR- Renters Won’t Communicate

[Jeffrey Hillen]

Hey all, I’m new to this and am self managing remotely. The first two renters were great and gave 5 star reviews on AirBnB. My last renter did not respond to any method of contact. My electronic lock was opened over 100 times in one day. My cleaners confirmed no damage so maybe this can happen... any advice on someone with similar experiences and what you do differently?

Also, I’ve had great success on AirBnB but not one message on VRBO. Anybody know of any suggestions to get more traction on this platform besides pricing?

[Jon Crosby]

Hi @Jeffrey Hillen, first rule of owning an STR...don't fall in love with your STR. : ) Were you trying to get a hold them just because they opened the lock 100 times, because I'm guessing there are no rules against that in your rental agreement. And kids will play with those locks for hours sometimes and just part of owning an STR that has kids there (if that was the case).

When we got our first STR (which was remote) we would watch it like a hawk on our monitoring systems, like it was our baby or something...but you just can't do that...you will drive yourself crazy and eventually you will need to start thinking of it as a income producing asset (with operating costs) rather then your second home. Doesn't mean you shouldn't respect it and take care of it or anything, just means you have to look at it as an investment...not a piece of personal property (if possible).

Guests are on vacation and really don't want to be bothered, nor do they want to bother you at the same time.  Obviously if there are complaints coming from the neighbors and they are not responding that is a different story, but that is where you need to have 'boots on the ground' locally to handle those rare situations. 

Don't worry though, you are experiencing the same thing all of us have gone thru with our first STR and you will get your bearings soon enough. As others mentioned, don't worry about where your bookings are coming from, so long as your occupancy rate is a high as possible.

Best of luck!