Often people think, that looks easy, I can do that. Then they jump in with both feet and realize things are more difficult than they thought. Many recent news stories about nightmares where homes were abused.
Starting any type of business requires serious planning and for many when it comes to vacation rentals, they just find a website that will accommodate their pictures and description and voila, they are now ready to earn income. They don’t consider all the other expenses and problems that could grow from this new income. I often wonder if they realize they are now self employed and this means something different for your taxes depending on how you set your business up, IF you actually set up a business.
Many have no idea of the tenancy laws that affect them and they are shocked and dismayed when they have to evict someone from a 3 day booking. At Scates Realty, we help investors make the best decisions for their properties that they will not reside in. We handle all of those headaches and know the laws surrounding these types of businesses. Having someone trash your home, not leave when you have other guests coming and then try to also trash your reputation once they leave. That’s a lot for someone brand new to deal with.
Nightmares such as the ones I shared above have me sharing a few things you can do to ensure successful bookings should you decide to use this as a strategy to leverage your investment property.
Communicate with your customer the day before check in, be sure they know how to gain access to the property, what the check in and check out rules are. Also, what the rules of the house are as well.
Communicate with your customer the day they arrive. If you are not there personally giving them access, be sure you check with them to make certain they gained problem free entry to the home, welcome them and let them know if they have questions or concerns to reach out.
Communicate with your customer they day before checkout. Remind them of the checkout time and any maintenance items that should be taken care of, for example, if you require the dishes be left clean, remind them that things on the rule list that are undone may incur additional charges.
Communicate with your customer 1 hour prior to final checkout to ask if there are any issues and let them know your cleaners will be there to clean after checkout, thank them for staying, ask for a review and remind them if they visit your area again, to be sure to check with you for their stay and to refer others if they enjoyed the accommodations.
Notice what the bullet points all say “communicate with your customer” we all know that communication in any situation will help keep issues at a low. If your investment propety is located in the Orlando, Florida area, I welcome you to Pop In The Pink Door and allow us to take care of all of this for you. We have multiple divisions all under one roof, at Scates Realty & Investments we can assist you in purchasing that perfect home that suits your needs, at Pink Door Management, if you decide to put long term tenants in your Orlando investment property, we can help you with that and should you decide you like the income that comes from being a short term vacation rental, Pink Door Holiday Homes is where we will shine on communicating with the customer for the perfect experience. We look forward to helping you in the near future.
