Short Term Rental Riches

Spas add 8 to 27% to annual revenue in mountain markets, and these winter amenities keep you from getting filtered out of search. Get our amenity checklist with cost estimates: https://strriches.com/go/363?s=pod This episode is for owners of short-term rentals in cold, snowy or mountain markets who want to be found in search. I walk through the winter amenities worth adding, from hot tubs and fire...

Our guest today is Alex Alioto, co-founder of Whimstay, the last-minute vacation rental marketplace. Alex talks with hosts and property managers every day about the nights that would otherwise sit empty. We cover how to split your calendar across Airbnb, Vrbo and Whimstay, why some guests still pick hotels, and how to turn every stay into a future direct booking. How to split your calendar across...

On October 29, Vrbo moves every host to a flat 12% commission. If you connect through a property management system, you've been paying 5%. On a $600 booking, that's $42 more out of your payout. In this episode, we break down the math, the markup that keeps your payout the same, and the pricing rule to check before you reprice. What changes on Vrbo on October 29 The real cost of the jump on a $600...

A lost TV remote or a missing garage door opener can turn a smooth check-in into an emergency trip. In this episode, we walk through the 12 things we keep in every Airbnb supply closet, and almost none of them are cleaning products. We also share the simple formula we use for how many spare sheet sets each property needs. Why we split the closet in 2: 1 locked, 1 open The $30 lock that keeps backu...

Airbnb's photo tour sorts your listing photos room by room, the same way for every host in your market. Once it's on, you only control the order of your first 5 photos. In this episode, we walk through what Airbnb's AI changed this year, how our team turns the photo tour off, and how to check what guests actually see. What Airbnb's AI changed in the 2026 Summer Release Why the photo tour makes lis...

Airbnb collects the full tax bill at some of our properties, none at others, and only part at the rest. Same platform, same property type, 3 different outcomes depending on the address. In this episode, we cover 4 tax layers hosts need to check, who collects each one, and the free lookup tool that pulls the report for any address. Why Airbnb might not be paying all your short-term rental taxes The...

On September 15 Airbnb moves every host to a single 15.5% fee, and it doesn't stop at your nightly rate. It also hits your cleaning fee, pet fee, and extra-guest fee. In this episode, we walk through the 4 numbers to change, the exact math behind the markup, and the cleaning fee mistake our team almost missed on 1 listing. Why September 15 changes your Airbnb payout even if your listing price neve...

A noise alert can go off at 1am and never turn into a confrontation or a bad review.  In this episode, we cover the 2 leading devices hosts use to catch loud guests early… That means where to mount each device, the decibel threshold that actually works, what a setup costs per month, and which device now catches smoke too. Which of the 2 leading noise devices can now catch smoke without a camera? T...

We sit down with Matt Sanderson , founder of STRIQ , to break down how data finds profitable short-term rental properties in seconds instead of weeks. We cover the below key aspects: Why a single AirDNA number can hide $100,000 a year in missed revenue. The exact filters that clean up comp data so a 5-mile radius stops lying to you How one bedroom conversion turned a $150,000 property into a $210,...

Bigger properties bring bigger groups, longer sales cycles, and guests who expect concierge-level service before they even ask... We cover pricing without a comp set, protecting a one-of-a-kind property, and why direct bookings matter even more once a single reservation hits five figures: Why a $30,000 reservation almost never gets instant-booked? What group organizers expect before they even ask?...

Most hosts pick their next STR on a gut feeling, a beachfront view or a cozy cabin. Garrett Brown from BiggerPockets took a different approach… He built a data comparison today across 5 property archetypes, scoring cash flow, appreciation, and long-term risk. In this episode, we break down which property type won, and why management matters more than location: The property type most investors over...

Damage waivers sound like free protection. But the wrong setup can shrink bookings instead of protecting a property. In this episode, we break down how damage waivers work, what they cover, and 1 alternative we recommend for properties with a lower nightly rate. How a damage waiver actually works, from claim to payout. The dollar range most damage waiver programs actually cover. What a damage waiv...

We sit down with Gil Chan, founder of CraftedStays, about what it takes to build a direct booking website for a STR. We cover the gap between a generic template and an expensive agency build, the new AI tool Aria, and why owning a few direct bookings changes a host's leverage across platforms: What a direct booking site actually replaces for an Airbnb-only host? The 2 options hosts face for a webs...

Security deposits come up in almost every hosting conversation, but a lot of what hosts believe about them is wrong. We break down the difference between a deposit and an authorization hold, and why refunding deposits drains money from every stay. We cover damage waivers, when to charge a guest for damage, and how to build one full protection strategy. How a security deposit and an authorization h...

Mattresses seem like a small decision, but they shape almost every guest review a short-term rental gets, and getting it wrong is the kind of mistake guests always mention. In this episode, we share the exact mattress and bed frame we use, why the premium option rarely earns its price tag, and how to prioritize spending when budget is tight. The exact mattress our team buys for every rental Why a...

Running more than one short-term rental often means answering the same guest questions, jumping between platforms, and hoping nothing slips through the cracks. In this episode, we sit down with Frank Bosi from Hostfully. We break down what a property management system automates, who it is built for, and one mistake that slows new users down before it pays off. The one automation that gives hosts b...

Every host eventually faces a difficult guest. When they check out, the question hits: should we leave a bad review? More hosts get this wrong than you might expect. In this episode, we break down Airbnb's blind review system, make the case on both sides, and share a practical framework for writing a negative review the right way. How Airbnb's blind review system works and why it changes everythin...

Not every amenity pays for itself, and the ones that look great on a competitor's listing might do nothing for yours. This isn't about trends or gut instinct. It's about data and real ROI. In this episode, we share the exact framework he uses to evaluate any amenity before spending a dollar, so you can stop guessing. How to use AirDNA to compare listings with and without a feature: the data reveal...

Most STR hosts have a pricing tool, a cleaning checklist, and a messaging app. The gaps between those systems are where money quietly disappears. Today I'm walking through five things we've built at Corzly that most STR software doesn't do — from routing guest notes to your housekeeper to automatically adjusting your base price. Use Corzly or not, these gaps matter. Why your dynamic pricing tool m...

Download the STR Acquisitions Checklist here. Most STR investors spend months researching markets, then hire the first agent they find. That gap between your research and your representation is costing more than you think. Tyler from Savvy STR Agents works across 25 markets and sees the same investor mistakes repeatedly. What he shares today could change how you buy your next short-term rental pro...

Download the Guest Contact Info Capture Checklist Your Airbnb account can change overnight. Algorithm shifts, fee increases, a sudden suspension, and if your entire guest relationship lives inside the platform, you have nothing. In this episode, Tim walks through 10 platform-compliant ways to collect your guests' real contact info, legally, automatically, and without sending a single message that...

If you're an Airbnb host, you've heard the pitch: three million dollars in AirCover protection. Sounds bulletproof. But after managing over 50,000 guests, Tim has seen why the gap between the promise and the payout catches so many hosts off guard. The claims process is more specific than Airbnb lets on, and knowing it before something goes wrong changes everything. How AirCover actually works: it...

Most hosts put up a security camera and call it done. But the right setup does far more than watch the front door. In this episode, Tim breaks down the three features every STR camera needs, compares four popular options, and reveals how cameras can verify guest counts, catch unauthorized pets, and support your housekeeping team — all while keeping your listing fully compliant. Discover the three...

Download the Furniture Checklist 👉 https://corzly.com/furniture-checklist/ Most hosts guess their furniture budget and hope for the best. In this episode, Tim shares his full real Orlando property breakdown — $40,983 in costs, by category — plus the framework he uses on every new property. From knowing where to always splurge to building your annual refresh cycle, this is the furniture episode ev...

Short-term rental management companies are becoming some of the most sought-after businesses in hospitality — but what actually makes one valuable? In this episode, Tim sits down with Jacobie from C2G Advisors, who has helped close over $750 million in STR business transactions. From EBITDA and profit margins to AI efficiencies and buyer demand, this conversation breaks down what operators need to...