All Forum Posts by: Matt Owens

Hey Heidi, 

I own one STR and a PM company in North Idaho. You touched on my first thought which is driving Yellowstone and Teton traffic. Have you used social media and created a brand for the property to try and stand out? If you want to drop a link to your listing, I'm sure quite a few people will be happy to review and provide feedback. I try not to reduce my pricing too drastically, even with saturation from competitors. Instead try matching/adding amenities to stand out and promote on social. How about the Yellowstone FB groups? Good luck!

Hey @Keith Bauer I know this is a fairly old post, but I’m in Coeur d’Alene and would love to meet up to talk shop. 

Agree with Michael. Looks like you’ve done a lot of your due diligence and have really specific targets. Good luck with your search and building your team! If you are ever looking at WA,ID,or MT markets, I have a property management company based in North Idaho and would love to connect. 

Yikes, sorry to hear that.
Is there a market manager in your area you could reach out to? They need to take better care of the hosts. I know that sounds like a long shot right now. 

Generally, the bigger, the operation, the more diluted the services are. I have seen a few exceptions from companies that started by self managing their own vacation rentals, built the processes by leveraging tech, and created a culture that is service-minded. We are a boutique PM in North Idaho and are selective of the listings we partner with.  Lack of transparency and communication between the larger PM owners seems to be the biggest gap. We help our clients develop each property into a unique brand and go after a specific target market, so they can stand out amongst the competition, ultimately driving more cash flow. 

Trust your gut and see it through! I’ve had a few of these requests as well for a new listing. Good luck and would love to hear back on what the results are in a few months. 

Hey All,

Do any of you require damage deposits from guests for booking your vacation rentals?

I recently acquired and launched a new property on Airbnb and VRBO that is $500-$600 avg. nightly rate compared to other properties I’m managing at a $150-$250 avg. nightly rate. 

I have never required a damage deposit in the past but for this one I’m curious to hear what you think?  I’m leaning towards NO because I want to limit as many barriers as possible when someone is considering my listing over others in the area. 

TIA

I know there’s mixed opinions about this, but I look at each of my properties as specific brands that I’m trying to attract different target markets to. By lowering my pricing below the range I think it’s worth, I risk going outside of my target market, which could potentially create more issues. This is more focused on the vacation rental model rather than urban properties , etc. could be different.

Look for areas that are going to generate a lot of visits year round. I personally like to find areas that are versatile i.e. lake town in Summer and ski area in Winter. Close proximity to national parks is also nice. 

1.Add something else to the title to stand out.

2. Put a photo of the bedroom within the first five pictures (I’d go with photo number 37).

3. The backyard needs to stand out more. Consider adding a fire pit with four Adirondack chairs or a volleyball or badminton net, cornhole, etc. if you add these items, then put this picture in top five of the order. 

4. Fill out your host profile so guests can get to know you. 
5. Consider a drone photo to give an aerial shot of the property in proximity to other things in the area that are attractive.

6. Your description is structured well, and just enough to not lose me. Good job.

7. Is there a reason your calendar is blocked off after the first week of August? Open that up a few more months and just set the prices higher.

good luck!