Vacation Home Help

Is your vacation rental ready for hurricanes and other natural disasters? With hurricane season in full swing, John shares his Hurricane Fiona experience. This episode will go over what to think about to prepare for natural disasters and how to plan to protect your guests and your vacation rental property.

John and Tim share how to identify and prevent common vacation rental scams... ● This industry has so many scams so here are some you need to be aware of as a host ● The guest coming in to trash your place with the weekend party (What this request will look like) ● The bed bug scam ● The your place is dirty scam ● The squatter ● The constant complainer ● I found a better rental scammer ● Extortion...

John and Tim share stories of hosts and owners they know that sharply contradict each other. Some owners find great financial success and rewards, while others find heartache, stress, and loss. Know what to look for when investing and avoid losing thousands of dollars. In discussion, John and Tim share common pitfalls when you make the wrong assumptions, pay too much, or buy into an HOA or communi...

Are vacation rentals dead? Is short term rental a dying asset class? John and Tim discuss their take. While losses will be taken while nightly rates are low, there are huge opportunities for savvy and clever vacation rental entrepreneurs who practice patience. The outlook may seem bleak, however, this is when the best opportunities present themselves. Listen in today to learn about the current sta...

Information overload: your guests have too much info, how simplifying your marketing will win big in 2022 and beyond a. Your message needs to highlight WHO the property is for b. Price needs to signal your ideal demographic c. Description needs to match your headline and marketing message d. Do not try to be everything to everyone, this is a recipe to win nothing. e. Make sure your marketing is un...

Dealing with people matters so much in the vacation rental business. If you are an airbnb host or in any business really, you must develop and work on your people skills. In this episode, we will discuss how to deal with contractors including how to let one go that is underperforming. You will deal with tons of contractors as an airbnb host or vacation rental owner (cleaners, maintenance, handymen...

What to do when you hate your vacation rental manager Do you hate your rental manager? A couple reasons why this may be true Fees are too high for value they are delivering They are not handling guest issues effectively They are not driving direct bookings and are solely relying on airbnb or vrbo They did not pay your taxes Poor reviews Poor returns When it may be time to cut the losses and move o...

John and Tim discuss the reality of airbnb guest expectations in 2022 and how to think about and create a guest experience that can exceed expectations... Guest expect more, however want to pay less Buzz on the news about nickel and dime'ing with clean fees, pet fees, heat fees, etc. Sticker price is more expensive than what nightly rates suggest, bait and switch Guest are coming in expecting a wh...

John and Tim discuss social media for vacation rental owners who know nothing about social media Overview of major platforms (facebook, instagram, tiktok, youtube – there are others however, these are big hitters) You do not need to be everywhere try to pick one and crush it and then move to another (focus on one first) If you are not from the social media generation or not tech savvy hire someone...

This is our second talk about the blood sucking vampires. In this talk, we will answer more questions about bed bugs in your airbnb. What are bed bugs? What happens when your short term rental becomes infested? How to install bed bug protection How much do bed bug encasements and covers cost? Why you should really have two people to install bed bug covers More tips to protect yourself and your gue...

John and Tim discuss the airbnb service fee. In the Disney World market (Osceola County - Kissimmee, FL) it is taxable and their tax office literature states you must pay tax on airbnb's platform fee. Does not sound fair does it? However, you must do due diligence to see if your local tax office will charge you on airbnb's platform fee as well or you can end up in thousands of dollars in penalties...

In this episode, John and Tim answer common questions from their experience with pool heat. This episode is for those hosts who have a pool or plan to have a pool in their vacation rental. These are key highlights and questions answered: Should you charge guests for pool heat? How much should you charge for pool heat? Is the pool heat fee taxable? Common pitfalls and complaints with pool heat and...

John and Tim share the 6 building block to start a new airbnb listing. This is a quick overview of steps to take when first listing a property on the OTAs. Leave Some Feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. We are new so all feedback helps us improve and grow. We want to help as many hosts as...

John and Tim share the 6 building block to start a new airbnb listing. This is a quick overview of steps to take when first listing a property on the OTAs. Leave Some Feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. We are new so all feedback helps us improve and grow. We want to help as many hosts as...

John and Tim share their experiences and tips about airbnb amenities and supplies to provide your guests. Highlights: Think about getting your guests through the first couple of nights in comfort, don't make them run out to the store At a minimum leave airbnb essentials Add soap, shampoo, conditioner, plenty of linens and towels, kitchen supplies, bathroom supplies and more Add a welcome gift and...

In today's short episode, John and Tim discuss wifi at your airbnb or vacation rental. How fast should wifi be at an airbnb? How much does wifi costs for our short term rentals How many devices guests can actually use at one time on your wifi What to think about when setting up wifi Leave Some Feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below Did you enjoy this epi...

In this short episode, John and Tim discuss the right frequency to deep clean your airbnb. Why deep cleaning is important What deep cleaning is How frequently to do it and why Leave Some Feedback: What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review. We are new so all feedback helps us improve and grow. We want to h...

Optimize Airbnb Titles to attract 3x as many bookings This is just one step in your total Airbnb optimization strategy, there are many other things to consider and plan to optimize to get the full effect. This is a starting point. Appeal to your audience Use the airbnb character limit wisely 50 characters Abbreviations are your friend Use descriptive adjectives not generic ones…. Don’t use all cap...

Welcome books are a first impression and they help your guests navigate your rental. We will provide you with a guest book we actually used in Tim’s rental so you can see how one should actually look. Link. to come, please subscribe to our email list to receive a copy . We recommend having one custom done for your rental It should include how to use appliances, TVs, what to do in emergencies, clos...

Cameras in Airbnbs. Don't creep out your airbnb guests. How to strategically use cameras to add security to your vacation rental, without being a creep. Highlights: Camera and video doorbells, great in most cases not so great in others Most guests think its intrusive, but you can still protect your property in a tasteful way Pool cameras are a no no, I went to an airbnb and felt weird they had one...

In this episode John and Tim discuss their experiences with clogged drain lines and how they can mess up your guest's vacation plans...how to think about this for a better guest experience. What happens when you do not clear drain lines What guests will usually say How to build this into your preventative maintenance routine AC horror stories Leave Some Feedback: What should we talk about next? Pl...

Airbnb Cost Management 101 In this episode, John and Tim discuss their money saving strategies on how to handle the costs of a vacation rental / airbnb business. We can be better informed and manage our cost better, we need to tell our money what to do not let our money talk for us and push us around Budgeting for hidden costs and unforeseen expenses is super important, having a piggy bank or emer...

Airbnb and Vacation Rental Maintenance. Is preventative maintenance worth the cost? In this episode, John and Tim discuss: What is preventative maintenance How a preventative maintenance plan can save you thousands of dollars and hours of your life Why a great handyperson is essential Cost of maintaining a vacation rental with preventative maintenance Leave Some Feedback: What should we talk about...

Vacation Rental and Airbnb Investing Beginner Lessons and Experiences. How to find the best short term rental markets to invest in 2022. This topic has been beaten to death by real estate brokers and management companies on the podcast circuit, but we want to share our experience anyway - these tidbits may prove helpful on your next vacation rental venture Market saturation - asking around faceboo...

In this episode of Vacation Rental & Airbnb Mastery, John and Tim discuss pricing your vacation rental during inflation and recession. Please rate, review, and subscribe. If you have a question that you would like us to answer on the podcast - let us know! Leave us a review with your question or shoot us an email and we will review and answer on the next episode. Highlights and Tips: Rates are...