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Today’s expert guest is Isaac French, the visionary creator behind Live Oak Lake, a stunning 7-cabin landscape hotel nestled in the heart of Texas. Having recently sold the venture, Isaac is now channeling his passion and expertise into Experiential Hospitality, a vibrant community and masterclass program for elite hospitality entrepreneurs. In this eye-opening conversation, we learn about how Isa...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Marie asks: We are wondering if we should get a PMS. We have four properties. They're all on Airbnb, and they're doing well. We're about to bring on a fifth and we're wondering if now is the time, but we are truly overwhelmed with all...

Today’s expert guest is Nick Taylor, driver of strategic direction at Nox Cape Town Villas & Apartments in South Africa, and steward of its real estate portfolio worth more than $150M USD. With an educational background in hotel operations, he saw early career success for a top hotel brand in London. After learning how to manage a top-of-class operation, Nick was inspired to bring his talents...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Katie asks: We're about to start our first short-term rental. My question right now is… How important is it to have drawers in the bedrooms? I currently don't have drawers. I don't really want to add them because I like the look and th...

In today’s episode, we’re getting (painfully) real. We felt the need, after seeing a flood of negativity in online STR spaces, to bring this all back to its foundation – why do we work in hospitality, anyway? What does it mean to truly serve the guest? And, how can we go above and beyond in that mission? As open and honest as ever, we recount some educational examples from our recent, and not so r...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Megan asks: I have a question about how to handle an incident that occurred in one of my units. Some event or incident occurred that caused significant damage. This included wall repairs, couch cleaning, rug cleaning, and replacing som...

Today’s expert guest is our new friend, Louis Andrews, President and Director of OVO Network, a company specializing in the short-term rental of high-end mountain chalets in authentic destinations, primarily in the French Alps. We met Louis on our castle STR retreat, and knew he’d provide great insight for our listeners. Under his leadership, OVO Network manages 218 properties, focusing on blendin...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Megan asks: I live in the Dallas, Texas area and I am getting into the Airbnb business. I really wanted to start one in my local area, first, but Dallas recently banned short-term rentals in single-family areas. Right now, I'm limited...

Today’s special episode comes to you live from the showroom floor of the 3rd Annual IMN Short-Term Rental Forum in Austin. We sit down with a few expert attendees; recap our findings from presenters, sessions, and roundtables; and start to apply new lessons to our own businesses. Denise Poteet, from Safari for the Soul Glamping in Marble Falls, gives us some juicy tips for creating an audience-spe...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Elaine asks: We have an outdoor tub, but we do not have a hot tub. We've been getting some feedback from guests wishing that we had a hot tub. I would love to know a great brand, tips for upkeep, and insurance. Do you have to change th...

As owner and co-founder of a European rental management company overseeing 900+ properties, Richard Vaughton has significant experience in short-term rentals and property management. He’s also got some surprising takes on where our industry is headed in the near and long term future. Uniquely plugged into the industry, and endlessly experienced with real-life work in our world (hello, cleaning toi...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Betsy asks: I wanted to talk about damage waivers using companies like Waivo. I'm using Waivo specifically and encountering some significant challenges. I quickly learned that the generous linen coverage that I thought Waivo provided w...

We’re making progress on our Hocking Hills glamping project with cabin demo, prefab purchases, and creative financing. Check in for an honest, relatable recollection of the development process from two eager investors knee deep in a long term legacy build. First, we take you behind the scenes on Day 1 of cabin demo, a delightfully quick process with some fun creative questions to answer (roll-away...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Elaine asks: We get a lot of couples that stay at our romantic gazebo cottage. I had a guest that reached out to me who wanted to know if we have any add-on packages to help celebrate an anniversary. Unfortunately, I did not, but I wou...

Today’s expert guest is Ellyn Vollmer. She’s got a wild pain-to-purpose story that many hosts will find eerily familiar. She and her husband Devin live in Pittsburgh, PA and recently launched their first STR property in Oceanside, CA after a long and winding road filled with false starts and regulatory red tape. We talk all about how their six-month plan turned into a two-year (and more!) ordeal t...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Brandy asks: We host on a 10-acre property. We also live on this 10-acre property. But we continue to have guests that will break our terms and conditions, even though it is stated very plainly that we do not allow parties or gathering...

Today’s expert guest is Lisa Roads, a seasoned short-term rental professional, whose journey began as a property investor in her early twenties. As Lisa continued to grow her property portfolio, she recognised the potential for early adoption in an emerging market in Cyprus. This investment move created the opportunity to start her second business venture, providing a fully managed service for han...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Melissa asks: I am going to be a new host, and I have a question about bed frames and headboards. I have a couple headboards that are upholstered. What are your thoughts about using those and cleaning those instead of buying new headbo...

In today’s solo (duo?) episode, we unpack an expansive recent experience we shared in England, learning about this amazing industry. From an STR business retreat hosted in a towering castle, complete with moat, to the Short Stay Summit 2024 in London – we’ve come home with a wider and more full picture of what hosts are doing and seeing around the world. Our journey begins at Middleton Castle, whe...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Patrick asks: It's Patrick with Farmhouse805 on the beautiful central coast of California. I have a big question for you… We've been having a lot of success with our STR. We've got a nice patio with a gas fire pit and a commercial grad...

Today’s expert guest is Colleen Chrien, a hyper-engaged member of our Hosting Business Mastery Method , mom of four young kids, and owner of Picket Fence Properties and Fully Furnished Charleston where she manages a portfolio of 38 long-term rentals and 21 furnished rentals – a mix between short, mid, and long term listings. We learn all about how she launched her business and landed in Charleston...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Becky asks: I have an ADT security system and my control panel has a little camera on it. It takes a picture of the person who is setting or disabling the alarm. Nobody ever sets the alarm in the Airbnb, but it is in the hallway. I was...

Today’s expert guest is the ultra-informed researcher and short-term rental historian, Brumby McLeod, Ph. D., an associate professor at the College of Charleston, School of Business in the Department of Hospitality & Tourism Management. He is also a research fellow with the Office of Tourism Analysis and the Riley Center for Livable Communities. The focus of his research is in overnight accomm...

Welcome back to the Hosting Hotline! This is an Ask Me Anything where each week we’ll answer your questions on Airbnb, STRs, real estate, and everything in between. Taylor asks: Can you please break down the Airbnb summer release for us? What do we need to know? Thank you so much. Can't wait to hear your response. (00:01:13) What’s New with the Airbnb Summer Update? (00:01:32) NEW Airbnb Icons: Sa...

Welcome back to this dedicated series on the acquisition, set-up, and launch of our brand new Hocking Hills vacation rental project. In this episode, we update listeners on the actions we’ve taken since signing the deal, hard decisions we’ve already made, and what’s coming up next. Golden nuggets include how Sarah has leveraged artificial intelligence to create temporary branding for the property,...