The Short Term Rental Authority Podcast

STRA Episode 20: What we Did Right and Wrong in 2022 in our Short-Term Rental Business [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey everyone. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams here with the short-term Rental Authority, your authority on all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And since this is a new year. We thought that we would take us some time and reflect on last year some things that we did well, some things that we may need to improve on, and what our goals are going to be in the new year. [00:00:39] And so Happy New Year. Happy New Year. Happy New Year. Yeah. Happy 2023. 2023. You know what's funny? As I used to every year, when the year changed, I would think to myself, okay, I gotta remember to write 2023 on my checks. On your checks. You don't write checks, but I don't write checks anymore. I don't even think I have any. [00:00:58] Yeah, if I do, they don't even have my right address on them anymore, but I write checks. Some of our places only take checks. That's right. We do write some rent checks. Some rent checks. , they're still old school in that regard. Right. So I did have to remember to write 2023. Okay. Well, you had to remember. [00:01:18] Yes, I did. I had to remember. So anyway, last year, it's a new year. 2022. What did it look like? What did 20, well, one big thing that we did was we got some new units, well, we doubled up on units. Yeah. Yep. We expanded quite a bit, so we decided to expand and we actually did it in a wholly, totally different market. [00:01:45] Yeah. So instead of a Charlotte that's, ended up being in Greensboro, which is about an hour and a half away from us. Yeah. It's about an hour and a half north of Charlotte. Yeah. Yeah. So it, it's not like it's a, it's a hop, skip and a jump , like it is over to Charlotte. Right. [00:02:00] Yeah. You have to plan to go there. [00:02:01] Yeah. These, these units are, I mean, it takes some time to get there. Right. So we had to be sure that we had. Infrastructure in place. There are boots on the ground so that we weren't the ones driving an hour and a half up there. Right, right. And that that took some time. It, so it did take some time. Success was, hey, they will give us as many as this, this is an apartment building. [00:02:23] they're basically like, Hey, take as many as you want. Right. And we were actively looking for, and we were for units. So we're, and that's one thing that we already knew, was you're always looking for more units and you're always looking for more money. . Right. Right. Th those to those things are, are always happening. [00:02:41] Yes. So you, you ended up finding this building through another operator actually. Yeah. Right. Who was already in that building. Right. And they were looking for, we were looking for two bedroom units, cuz that's who our client is. They were looking for one bedroom unit. So that worked out well cause we weren't stepping on each other's toes as far as what was available. [00:02:58] So that was a win. And that was a good thing. It was, it was good that we did that. Where we went wrong was that second half you said we were looking for the units. We weren't fully funded Right. For everything. Right. And we, we ended up picking up five of them, but I think we signed leases for like eight. [00:03:17] Yes. Seven or eight. Yes, that's true. And realized that oh yeah. We're not gonna have enough money to get all of these units. We're not gonna, we're not gonna be able to furnish all these. Yeah. And so we, we got, we kind of backed out of a few of 'em and ended up with just the five. But even then, that was a big mistake we made. [00:03:35] Yep. In 2022 was we. , I wanna say two of those. Two or three? No. Was it just two or three that were kind of sitting for a while? Two. It was just two. It was just two. Yeah. Yeah. And they sat there for a while and the, and the catch 22 we were in was, well, we had to pay rent on them, but we had no furniture in them, right? [00:03:57] Mm-hmm. , so we couldn't put them [00:04:00] up, so they became a drag. For a few months. So it was like, okay, what do we do? Do we spend the money on rent or do we spend the money furnishing them? Right? And getting 'em set up. And we ended up picking, okay, let's pay rent, right? Because it's a new landlord. Let's not piss 'em off at the very beginning, right? [00:04:19] But then we were in this catch 22 of, okay, we could pay rent, but we can't furnish it, which means we've gotta come up with rent next month. Right? And finally we kind of just bit the bullet and did some expensive loan options. Yeah. Yeah. And rented some furniture. Yes. Renting furniture is really expensive. [00:04:37] It is. That it's a form of financing. Right. And if you, and that's why I said it, it was very expensive financing. And, and it was in a pinch. We did it cuz we, it was, it was the option and, but it, it's expensive. We had to get 'em up and operat. . But that ended up being a lot of output just in rental furniture. [00:04:57] Yeah. Because we, I think we did an entire unit we did with rental furniture. We did. We have one unit that is all rented furniture. Right. And we kind of, I think we, we, we, we did the bare bones that we could do to get that thing up and running. Yeah. Yeah. But now it's, and it looks nice and it does, it looks really nice. [00:05:16] And now we're at the point where're, okay, now we need to buy out that, that rental and, and, and convert that to, well we own the furniture instead of renting it. Right? So that's one of our goals actually this year, cuz that, that's finally, it was a year long contract. Right? So that was part of it too. On the, on the rental Furniture Furnitures a year long contract. [00:05:34] Right? So, , you basically either have to go through the whole rental agreement or buy out the rest of the agreement. There was some prorated amount we could have done, but it was very expensive either way, either option, right? Yeah. And now, and once that year is over, you can purchase the, the furniture and everything at a discounted rate? [00:05:59] [00:06:00] Yeah. So if I had to go back and do it again, if I had advice for someone. Hey, cuz rental it, that is a, a way to do it. You know, if you don't have the 10 grand or whatever it is to set up that unit, you can rent the furniture. But the advice I would say is make that a short term plan. Make that, okay, I'm gonna rent this for maybe the next three months with a plan to buy it out. [00:06:21] Yeah. Knowing that that's coming. So that's, that's one thing we should have done differently. Assigned a a shorter lease agreement on that furniture. That would've been a, a good plan and we probably should have just went ahead and done that at the beginning. Should have. So there was some indecision of do we do that or do we not? [00:06:37] And then that cost us a few months of drag Yeah. On the rest of the portfolio. Yeah. Right. Because all the other units were basically paying rent on these two empty ones. Right. , and then that was the end of it, you know, no, no extra. Yep. Right. So, and you're not in business to, you know, break even. So it was kind of a weird spot to be in. [00:06:58] Like we doubled up in units, but all of a sudden now we were back to break even. Right. Because they weren't all actually operating. Yes. So I wanna say that was a mistake. So that's something you can learn from our mistakes. You know, you, that's, if, if you ever talk to somebody that didn't make a mistake, then they're probably lying to you. [00:07:16] And, and we do that all one of our mentors or quasi mentors Larry Alt down in Florida. That's where I heard that from him. He calls them seminars. Seminars, . Where you learn from him. Yes. When you make a mistake, his thing is, okay, you paid the money for it. learn the mistake. You went to the seminar, right? [00:07:32] We did. Right. So I'm giving you our free Well, we paid for the seminar for you guys. It's free . Right. Don't do that. Right. Right. Have your finances in order. If you're going to rent furniture, do it short term with a plan to get outta that quickly. That's really good advice. Yeah. But you know, one thing that we did do well is we already knew that we needed people.[00:08:00] [00:08:00] to be there. Right. Cuz we had the, we have the team here in Charlotte already. Right. So you know what the roles are. Right? Right. So we already knew that. And e even though it took us a little bit longer to find the, the laundromat, cuz that was one thing that we, that we knew that we needed was, was a laundromat. [00:08:22] And then we knew that we needed. And operations specialist also called like a runner, right? We knew that we, that we needed that position filled and, and that took us a little, a little time cuz it's, it's difficult sometimes to find someone that has that availability, especially if you're smaller, if you, if you don't have enough work for them to like, bring them on full-time, like as an employee type situ. [00:08:53] then now you're talking about something that's like, eh, it's a few hours a week and when we might need you. Right, right. So you need somebody that has another gig going on, or you know, something else, and you know, it, it you could share them with other operators. You can. Yeah. And that's, that's what we do here in Charlotte. [00:09:09] Our, our runner actually. Well, she's not the only person. Or we're not the only people she deals with. Right. And she's also not someone that works their traditional nine to five either. So she does this, she does she drives her, drives her Lyft and Lyft DoorDash and things like that. So she's kind of a gig economy person anyway. [00:09:29] Right. And we've found those people to be very flexible because they're already used to doing that and they're already out and about and can run over to the unit. Yeah. And you don't have to be their main source of income. Right, right. Mm-hmm. . So that, that works very well. In Greensboro, we ended up with a, with a college student and one of which is a very sim similar type situation. [00:09:51] Right, right. Yeah. So, and, and one of the. One of the draws for him was, you know, I was like, Hey, [00:10:00] we are not the only operators in this building, so you have the potential to, you know, make more money and I'll be glad to give your information to these other operators that I already know in the area and, and give, put in a good word for you. [00:10:18] So. I did that too. Yeah. And because we operate similarly, then they need the same position too. Right. Right. So that, that worked out well. Yep. So yeah. But, and I will say the one other success is everything else in the business stayed the same. Yeah. That, that's true. So everything that's remote, the customer service, the, the messaging templates, the setting up, the listing, like all that stuff just plugged right into our, our existing SOPs for the most part. [00:10:46] Mm. Now this is an apartment building as opposed to Yeah, some of the systems had to change the houses, right? So some of the systems involving turnover and inventory and storage and things like that are different and actually more efficient there because for one thing, we have a central location for. [00:11:05] all of our linens and stock and all that kind of thing. Right. Because we, we rented a garage. Right? Well, you need storage. And that was our solution there was to rent a garage. Yeah. And that wor that's been working out real well. Yeah. And that services all the apartments. Right. So that now, once we have that in place, okay, now it's just easy to sign. [00:11:23] other leases. Sure. So if we want to expand next time, we don't have to go find another runner and Right. Make another storage. We can just grow in that building. Mm-hmm. . Right. So that's a good thing that we did to establish ourselves there. Mm-hmm. and get all that set up and going. Yep. So I wouldn't be. , now that I've done it, I, I wouldn't be opposed to going to other markets because I know that we can do it mm-hmm. [00:11:47] and not have to be somewhere that you and I physically need to go to. Right, right. We could probably go anywhere. I would say that's true. Mm-hmm. . and now we have almost a year's [00:12:00] experience doing that too. Yeah. Right. Yeah. Operating in a market that essentially isn't, you know, something happens, you can't just pop over. [00:12:06] Yeah, no, no, you can't. Right. So it's that's a good thing. I wanna say that's a success. Yeah. I, I, I feel like that that was, that, that was a really great win for us, and I, I liked that. Yeah. That was good. Anything else that you can think. [00:12:28] I don't know. In this business it's, it's, it's hard to remember everything that's happened in the last year because there's so many things going on in moving parts. I do know that this year we had we extended our leases, no, that isn't what I was gonna say. I was talking in terms of occupancy and oh, and length of stay and things like that. [00:12:51] We did really well. , our average length of stay over the year was something like 12 to 14 days. Yeah, that's on right. Average reservation because it used to be, I wanna say between five and seven or lower than that. Yeah. Uhhuh. even. Yeah. That's interesting. Why do you think that is? I this year had a focus on that. [00:13:10] So one of the things I will tell you is that. in general. You, you, you make more money. The, the further out someone books. So that's booking lead time. Meaning if they book it two weeks in advance, those same dates are more expensive than if they book it the day before. Mm-hmm. , right? Sure. Right, because typically the prices get cheaper the closer in they are. [00:13:31] Right. Because those days are expiring. Right. So if you, even if you're not use, well, you should be using a dynamic software tool. But in general, that's the way it's going to work. , you know, unless there's some other factor like tomorrow's Christmas, you know? Right. Like it's a holiday or something. Right. [00:13:46] But in general, closer end dates are cheaper than further out dates, so I'd rather sell them further in advance just for that reason. Mm-hmm. , another way to get there is just have them stay longer. because then they're, [00:14:00] yeah, they may book it today for tomorrow, but if they're staying a month now, you're still capturing those, those dates into the future. [00:14:06] Right? Excuse me. Which means more revenue. Right. So my goal was twofold. See if I can get people to book further in advance and can I get them to book longer? And the result of that was what? What you saw this year. Mm-hmm. was does, I'm not sure I quite achieved the far and advanced. , maybe I did, but the longer reservations, I'm not sure what the metric on that is, but the, the longer reservations for sure. [00:14:34] And that reflected in, in gross revenue. Yeah. Yeah. Right. For sure. And there's less turnover, right? So you see less cleaning going on, less supplies being used, cuz we typically don't restock until someone checks out, for example, less laundry being done. Definitely less loan being done at the laundry. [00:14:52] Now some of those are passed through like the, the cleaners. The cleaners and, well, we actually make money on cleaning. Mm-hmm. . Right? So that's, that's something to think about is, you know, for example, say your cleaners charge a hundred bucks and you're charging the guest 120, that should be a $20. , that's a, that's more per night. [00:15:11] The shorter the reservation though, meaning if they stayed, what is that four days then? That's $5 extra a night. 20 bucks is, oh yeah, I see what you're saying. But if they stay eight days, it's only two and a half dollars extra. Right. If they stay a month, then you probably can't even calculate it. Right. [00:15:29] Right. Sure. So that's something to think about. As your stays get longer, the more you. Charged for things like cleaning and the more you probably should. Cause there's going to be more cleaning involved. Right. That's another thing we did this past year too that I just thought of was we revamped our. [00:15:50] quality control process. Oh yes, we did. We sure, because we went through a period of time there where it's, we had the same cleaners forever, and then all of a sudden, all of a sudden quality just dropped. [00:16:00] Right. We kept getting, and we, it was cleanliness, complaints. Every other reservation had some kind of complaint about cleaning and the, we had reviews got bad. [00:16:08] Well, that's gonna be reflected in your reviews, so we had to. Come up with a system of managing that better. Yep. And that became a process of not only the tool turnover, bmb is what we use, and using that more effectively, meaning requiring more pitchers. Yep. The checklists. Yep. Being more detailed and training cleaners and training better. [00:16:34] Mm-hmm. , right? Mm-hmm. . But this was somebody that was already trained. . Yeah. Their quality just fell off. Well, and it was, they're employees. I think that's exactly right. It was because she started expanding her cleaning business and hiring more people to work for her, and she wasn't training them properly. [00:16:54] Right. Was part of the problem. Right, and, and yes, they should be at, especially if they're a company, it's not an individual cleaner. They should be quality controlling their own people. , but I, we came to realize that. Okay, that's fine. But for them it's a $75, $90 cleaning job on the line. For us, it may be a $3,000 reservation. [00:17:16] Sure. So we need to take responsibility for and make sure quality control is there. Yeah. In our own business. Yeah. So we started implementing, okay, now we have a quality control person. That goes behind the cleaners. Not every time. Right? Well, for the first three times, the cleaner cleans for us. We do. If it's a new cleaner, yes. [00:17:36] If it's a brand new cleaner, we'll do we'll do quality control behind them for the first three times that they clean for us, and then it's. , we spot check. Right? So it's every, it should be every 30 cleans, it should be every three cleanings. Right? Or if someone stays for like a month or something, right? [00:17:54] We do it correct at least once a month. And then, and then we implemented the deep clean. [00:18:00] As well. That's right. So that was for the stays of 30 days or longer. We just go ahead and block off that day that they are checking out because the cleaners need a whole day to do a deep clean. Right. And we do those once a month anyway. [00:18:16] Yes, we do now. Yep. And, and those two things together. Yeah. Because even, and we host pet. . That's true. Which requires more cleaning anyway. Yep. Right. But it was, you know, the maintenance cleans those, those turnovers, those aren't deep cleans. No, they're not. They don't typically do baseboards. They're not cleaning your oven necessarily. [00:18:38] They're not doing all these extra things. Right. Right. Because you're not paying them to do that. You're paying 'em to do a turnover. Right. And plus, there's not as much time as you mentioned. . Right. And you know, those deep cleans are, they typically charge us twice the base rate. Mm-hmm. so that, that. Extra money that you know, we get from the guest, say the cleaner charges us a hundred dollars and we're charging the guest $125. [00:19:08] That extra $25 goes towards. Help and pay for those deep cleans too. Mm-hmm. , which may be something to reevaluate this year. It might be Maybe, maybe we need to raise our clean fees just a little bit. Yeah. To help pay for those, those deep cleans, because that is one we're doing deep cleans more often. [00:19:25] Yeah. Well, that's one of the things I monitor because in the, in our profit and loss statement, we have a cleaning income mm-hmm. line. And then we also have a cleaning expenses line. Right. Need to make sure, and I'm also always making. The income one's higher than the expense one or at least equals it. [00:19:39] Right. Don't we use a linen one too? We do, yeah. There's, there's a line on for that too. Because cuz we, because we use a line service, we use a linen service and, but we also charge guests for linens too. we do. Yeah. Even though it may not show up as two separate, but it does in our p and l. That's it does in our p and l. [00:19:59] Yeah. Right. To [00:20:00] know that, okay, we're actually covering that too. Mm-hmm. , right. Instead of just guessing. Right. But yeah, that that was something we did this year that that really helped. And by the way, we achieved Superhost again. Yes. So now that's an indication of those things that we've been doing are working. [00:20:18] Because it's hard to overcome even a four star review. Yeah, it really is. If somebody gives you a three, then it's like, oh God, I gotta get 25 star reviews to get over that. Tw you need 25 star reviews to compensate for a four star review to get to on Airbnb. Super host is a 4.8 overall. That's incredible. [00:20:37] And if you think about it, you could have a five star review and a four star review, and that's four and a half. Yep. And now you're not there. Yep. And even another five star review doesn't get you there. and another one doesn't quite get you there. Oh, you're gonna have 20, right? So you've gotta have a lot of five star reviews. [00:20:54] Yeah, that's true. Yep. So that's a, it's just, just the way it is. Mm-hmm. and I'm not sure super host matters that much anyway. Yeah. But it's nice that we got it and it's, it is nice to know that it's true. In part, it's because of the changes we made. Right. To recover from that. Right. So, so I think that there, that, there's a couple of things that we could work on with that is the system that we use to make sure that those deep cleans get scheduled mm-hmm. [00:21:24] Is, is a very manual process. And, and I think we could automate that a little bit in, in some task. But to make sure that they get done. But it's still probably gonna be a manual process with the customer experience specialist doing it. Yeah. Somebody has to Yeah. To know to do that. Yeah. Right. But it is it, now that we know that that is working for us, I think we should continue doing that. [00:21:52] And one of the, just to switch gears a little bit, cause I had this thought was. . You know, we're, we're [00:22:00] always looking for new units and we're always looking for more money. Right. And one of the things that I think that we could do better is expanding our credit facility. Cause I think that would've helped us get these new units up and running faster. [00:22:20] Yeah. That's something we haven't really paid much attention to in the business. Yeah. Like it's one of those things, you know, you should be doing. And, and we learned, actually learned a lot about business credit this year. Mm-hmm. , have we implemented a lot of it? No. But just knowing how it works is, is probably a whole nother podcast. [00:22:39] Mm-hmm. , but, you know, you, you hear about in business, oh, you're done in Bradstreet number. Well, it turns out there's about five to seven different places that you can report to in business credit. Yeah. And, and not everybody looks at the same places. Right. . So your, your business credit card likely doesn't report to Dunner Bradstreet. [00:22:56] It likely reports to Experian or one of those, right? And so we, we learned kind of these things that we could be doing. And, and some of it involves how do you spend your money, right? Do you spend it outta your checking account or do you spend it out of, you know, this credit facility and then pay that mm-hmm. [00:23:14] right? And sometimes it's, you're paying the same bills, but it's the way you route things, right? That can help you generate. Credit facility that doesn't rely on your own personal credit, right? That's more tied to the business itself. And I wanna say that's one of our goals for this year's to kind of get all that straight. [00:23:30] Yep. And the first thing that I need to do is make sure that our business address is the same. like everywhere. Yeah. And it needs to be exactly the same we found out. Yeah. Right. Exactly. Again, this is like a whole nother podcast, but you can't even be a period different. Yeah. Like if one's like 1 23 Main Street, Uhhuh spelled out, and the other one's MA 1 23 Mains St. [00:23:55] Right. Those are not the same address. Right. For credit purposes and PO boxes. [00:24:00] You don't want, those either are not accepted everywhere, so. Right. I'm like, crap, now what am I gonna do? Right. So I've been doing some research and we'll, we'll do a podcast after we . Yeah. Once we figure it out, we'll let you know. [00:24:14] Figure it out. . Right. But that is one thing that that is on, is a goal for us. For us this year is to learn, implement some of the things that we've learned about business credit. Mm-hmm. and expanding our credit facility so that we can. Expand more faster, cuz we already know that we could go get more units anytime we want to. [00:24:37] Yeah, we could probably go get 'em tomorrow. We could probably go get 'em tomorrow. But we've been recovering from this mistake we made last year. Yep. Right. And now here we are in January, slow season and it's caught up to us again. Yep. It sure has. Right. So, okay, let's fix it this year. and make sure we get those pieces in place so that, okay, next time, this time, next year, it'll be like, okay, no big deal. [00:24:58] But you know, I, I think it's, we are always getting better. It's like every single year we are getting better. So I, I think you can tell, can't you? And when you were looking at the p and l mm-hmm. though, the top line revenue just keeps growing every year. Yeah. By lot. By a lot. It didn't quite double this year because of the, the hiccups we had. [00:25:25] Sure. So I was trying to get to a certain number and we fell short of it, but we got really close. Yeah. And next year, that's exciting. Next year we're gonna hit it. No doubt. That's exciting because we'll have the whole year. Yeah. Right. So that's, that's interesting. That's going on. Even if we don't expand, I expect revenue to increase next year by at least 20%. [00:25:43] Right. So there's that. It's a goal. Yes. We just make sure that expenses don't increase by 20% as well, . Right. Got it. Okay. That's, that's the key, right? Controlling expenses. Yes. Yes. Well, that's [00:26:00] good. I think that we have some, we've learned a lot. We've learned a lot in 2022, and we have some really great goals for 2023, so stay tuned for, right, and, and one more thing. [00:26:12] Ooh, that's really exciting for 2023. We now have, as part of short term rental authority, we have our insider access group. Oh, that's right. So this, we've created an insider access members only private group. Right. So we have the Facebook group, we have the community that's free. We're still gonna go live on Wednesdays and, and talk to you guys. [00:26:32] But I, we also have some I don't wanna give away too much, but we're gonna have some other people join. Who are also expert operators, they're gonna be in there and the idea is that, hey, we're gonna jump on a Zoom call once a week. and Mastermind and collaborate and learn from each other. And and this is a separate Zoom call than the Wednesday night one? [00:26:52] Yeah. Well, Wednesday night isn't Zoom, it's live on Facebook and YouTube. Right, right. This is actually gonna be a private Zoom link that only people that are in that group can come to. It's gonna be smaller, more intimate and more interactive because instead of typing back and forth and chat, you can actually talk to people. [00:27:07] Right, right. Yeah, that's the best thing about Zoom. So that's gonna be, that's gonna be really exciting. I'm looking forward to that. If you're interested in. . You can DM us DM us the words insider access, either on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, even. We have a text number, but I can never remember what it is. [00:27:23] 9 8 0 8 8 8 85 41. Oh, there you go. Yep. So when you, so you can text insider access to. 9 8 0 8 8 8 85 41. Yes. I don't know why I can remember numbers. I haven't been able to remember a phone number since 1992. Maybe like when we had a landline. Right, right. I don't even know what my old phone number is. [00:27:46] I really don't. It's in my contacts. Right, right. , I don't know. I don't know. It's one of those things. It is. Well it's weird how your brain works, but yes, text insider access to 9 8 0 8 8 8 85 41. [00:28:00] And that will get you in the system to be part of the private members only inside our access group. And we are very, very excited about this collaboration that we're going to have with lots of other. [00:28:17] Operators that have been doing it for a while, so we're gonna be collaborating with them and we would love to have you, if you'd like to learn from the best. It's gonna be great. It's gonna be fun. It's gonna be really great. So it's gonna be a good 2023. It is, but you know, the, it's not just the, the Zoom call, it's gonna have that they're. [00:28:35] Once you join Insider Access, you're gonna have access to the course that we've created. Yep. All the templates, all the the Cs, all templates that we've got, all the checklists that we've got, the video, anything we add. The video library. The video library, and you even get a discount on one-on-one coaching with us as well. [00:28:52] That's true. So it's probably worth doing it just for that. Yeah. Really, because it's about half price. It's half. For, for the one-on-one. So if, if you want to come into the Inner Insider or access and be in that group setting, great. You join us. And then if you, hey, I need, I need some, you know, one-on-one help, we can do that too. [00:29:07] Then you'll get a discount on that. So come join us. Text that Inner Insider access 2 9 8 0 8 8 8 8 5 4 1. Excellent. Yes. Very good. Well, 2023, here we come. And we would love to bring you along with us because we are here at Short-Term Rental Authority to help make you the best operator ever. And we'll see you next time. [00:29:33] Onto the next, on to the next. [00:29:37]

Episode 19: Pricing Your Short Term Rental 101 and John is Officially a Lord [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey everyone. Welcome back to the podcast. I am Wendy Williams, along with my husband, John Williams , the man, the myth, the legend. I am now a Lord. Oh, that's right. So I got an early Christmas present . Because it came in the mail and you can't hide it. Right, right. In a big envelope. It came in a big, giant envelope and you're the one in charge of getting the mail. [00:00:28] Yeah. So I, I watch a lot of YouTube videos and I feel like I should be plugging this and I should have an affiliate link, but I don't . Right, right. I don't . But when you went to established titles and I now have a certificate, Proclaiming me as a Lord. I'm not calling you Lord. I'm just not. I am, I can now officially change my credit cards to Lord John Williams. [00:00:55] Oh my God. I hope you do that. Yes, that would be so, yeah. So if you don't know, it's you can, you can buy these, they're called souvenir titles, but you actually have. souvenir rights to, oh, whatever that means, a one by one plot of land in Scotland. , right? . And you get the deed to it. And then because you're now a landowner in Scotland, you are a Lord. [00:01:20] You are technically a Lord. So you now can refer to me as Lord. No. No. Well, not John Williams. But well you, that means you get to be a lady. Oh, well now, now that changes things. We can be like Lord and Lady, that changes everything. Yes, . It does. So you're gonna call me Lord, my my Lord, . Aha. Only if you call me my lady, my lady [00:01:45] All right, my lady. I feel like you should be kissing my hand when you do that, my lady. Well, I'm the Lord . Oh Lord. Well, I believe that I have created a monster. Yeah, but it [00:02:00] was one of those fun novelty gifts. That's cool. I'll put it right over top of my diploma. . I'm no longer John Williams. Oh. Graduate of Appalachian State University. [00:02:12] I am now Lord John Williams. Landowner in Scotland. , right? Oh wow. So . But anyway, there you go. There you go. So today on the podcast, the Short Term Rental Authority Podcast, we are here to help make you the best operator ever. So let's get down to the real business. This is pricing 1 0 1. This is the very basics of pricing. [00:02:46] So we are going to be talking about the pricing tool that we use, which we have mentioned before. What type of pricing we use, the numbers that you need to know and why you need to know them. So let's get started, shall we? This is something that we get asked a lot about by just about everybody because. [00:03:11] Pricing, I feel like is one of the hardest things to do in the short term rental space. Don't you think? It is. It's, it's one of the, the harder things because there, it's, it's not an exact science. Yeah. A lot of it, sometimes it's, it's a little bit of an art to it. Mm-hmm. and then there are different strategies. [00:03:30] Right. that go along with, well, how do I price? Right, right. And how do I, well, let's talk about the basic strategy. So that's, that's where we should start, is just the basics. We should, yeah. And I, I think that really starts with knowing your numbers. Okay. And when I say knowing your numbers, we talked about this before, but bear's repeating. [00:03:52] You need to know what is your baseline? Like, what does a night cost you? We call that your break even. [00:04:00] That's what we call that. Well, it's not in quotes. It really is your breakeven . Well, I'm, I'm saying that's what we call it. Well, that's what you call it in business, I think break even is your, but yeah, it's your breakeven number, right? [00:04:10] Yeah. But it's your breakeven number and it's basically, if no one stayed there, if you had this house, you had this apartment, you had this, whatever, you got your, yeah. Treat helps. What does, what does that thing cost? on a monthly basis to just have and operate, then that could be either whether you own it or whether you are leasing it. [00:04:35] Yeah, it doesn't matter. Doesn't matter. That's just what are your total expenses if no one stayed there. So here's the things it doesn't include. Cause that's probably easier to say. It doesn't include cleaning, right? It does not include cleaning. Cause nobody stays there, so there's no cleaning, right? It doesn't include supplies, right? [00:04:52] Because if nobody stays there, there's no supplie. , but there are certain things you still have to pay. You still have to pay rent, you have to pay your mortgage, you have to pay your electric bill. Your utilities. Yeah. Which are technically a variable expense, but in this case, we've treat them as a fixed expense because you don't turn off the power just because nobody's there. [00:05:12] Right, right. There's water. There's your insurance that you're paying. There's any software subscriptions that you have. Oh, that's, that's a really good point. You know, most of those charge per. or on an annual basis or something. Mm-hmm. . And you're paying that whether someone stays there or not. Right. So that's, that could be the, the pricing software that you are using, which is what we use as Price Labs. [00:05:38] There are others out there, right? Like there's Price Labs Wheelhouse and Yeah. Wheelhouse Beyond Pricing is another, there are many others I've discovered, but we use Price Labs. We find it to be fairly accurate in our area. , do you want to go down the road of tools? Well, yes, but just Price Labs. [00:06:00] Okay. [00:06:00] Well, when I hear the normal thing I would tell somebody is that Price Labs is a tool. You should be using it. What it does is it does what's called dynamic pricing. So instead of doing something simple like, Hey, my place is $150 a night every. Regardless of the night or doing something like, okay, well it's a hundred dollars during the week and it's 150 on the weekends. [00:06:27] What this tool does is it actually prices out every single night differently, differently just about, and it bases its pricing on, first of all, you give it a a base price to work. It may suggest one, and then what it does is either takes that base price and either lowers it or raises it based on a number of factors. [00:06:53] One of the primary ones being demand. So your holidays gonna be more your Monday and the middle of July, or not July, but January is gonna be. Right, using that. Cause that's our low season because January sucks. In general pricing days further away, meaning further out, or more days closer in or less, because it's tr what it's trying to do is get your days booked. [00:07:22] Right. And that, that kind of goes back to the what is your strategy of pricing. So in general, , we need to then first discover what our expenses mm-hmm. , right? So we know how low we can go. What does a day cost us? Really critical number to know it is because if you think about it, it, you're basically taking what would be a wholesale purchase. [00:07:49] Mm-hmm. meaning a, a whole year's worth of availability. Yeah. And you're dividing it up into. Probably and then selling nights. So it's, [00:08:00] it's much like the same thing as you would go to you know, a wholesale place like a Costco or a Sam's Club or whatever, and you would buy whatever it is in bulk. It could be water, it could be candy, it could be bullet paper. [00:08:14] It could be ice cream. Ice cream. Huh? The the ice cream lady that comes around. That's right. Yep. And sells it outta the truck. She buys those at Costco. Yep. But she buys them in bulk, so she gets a little bit of a discount. Mm-hmm. . And then for the convenience of, she pulls up in the ice cream truck and it's cold, and you just go out to the end of the driveway. [00:08:32] Well, the ice cream she paid 25 cents for is now a dollar 50. . Yeah. She just recently upped her prices. I noticed. . Oh, she did? Yes. Okay. Well, it used to be a dollar. Now it's a dollar 50. Everything's inflated. Everything's inflated. Everything's inflated. But the idea is you the ice cream truck lady, even the ice cream truck lady. [00:08:50] Mm-hmm. . That's sad. I know it is. But anyway, , what were you talking about? I was saying buy it. Buy it wholesale. Right? Right. Sell it retail. Basical. And it's the same thing that we're doing with our pricing. So we need to know what is that wholesale cost and it's your expenses. You got a formula for that? I have a rule of thumb for that. [00:09:14] Oh, okay. All right. A rule of thumb. Yeah. So the, the actual answer is what are your real expenses and do you have a bookkeeper? And do you keep track of that? Hmm. Ooh, right. So when I ask somebody, so a lot, a lot of times this comes up so, we'll, I'll have a coaching call. Somebody will book a coaching call with us, which you can do, by the way. [00:09:35] Just DM us on social media, the word coaching. Well, you'll get an automated response and you'll be in the system. But when I get one of those coaching calls, and a lot of times it's for pricing this time of year. Yep. Right? And the first thing I'll ask is, okay, well what are your expenses? You know, if nobody stayed there, same, same idea. [00:09:57] If nobody stayed there, what? What does this place [00:10:00] cost you a month? And somebody will tell me it's about 1800 bucks, or it's $2,000. And from the response, I immediately know that they don't know what their actual cost is because it's not, it's not an even number. Right. It's not an even number. Right, right. [00:10:17] I'd rather someone tell me it's $1,732 and 86 cents. Right. , because now I know that you actually looked it up and know what your cost is. Right. Can I, can I just stop you right there? Yeah. Because as a practical matter, I feel like. it, it's important to tell people that, that that is actually something that you should be tracking and, and your bookkeeper will hopefully be doing that for you. [00:10:49] So big, huge plug for go get a bookkeeper and, and if you're just getting started, there is a rule of thumb out there for. , right? So when you start a new unit is really what you're saying. Yes. Because it could be, Hey, we've been doing this for a while, right? If we go up, you know, open new units in a whole different market, we don't know either. [00:11:15] Yes. Like there are tools out there that we've talked about like air DNA and things like that, and we've talked about why that's not as accurate as it could be. So for a rule of thumb, if you wanna take a rule of thumb, take whatever market rent for that property. as a long-term rental on a per month basis. [00:11:33] So let's say, hey, normally, you know, if we, we put this house up and it was a long-term rental, it would, the rent would be 1500 bucks. And this, this holds true whether you own it or not, right? Just what's market rent. And then take that market rent and multiply that number by one point. . So if it was $1,500, I would multiply one by 1.3, I would get [00:12:00] $1,950. [00:12:02] you already know this. I do know this. I've done this calculation a lot, . And we say that because generally your fixed expenses are going to be about 30% of your rent more then Yes. So that, that's the. That's the rule of thumb. Is it gonna be exactly right? No, because it's a rule of thumb, but it's gonna get really close. [00:12:27] But it's gonna get really close after talking to people in all sorts of different markets, from everything from California to New York, to DC to rural Alabama, to Louisiana, to Oklahoma, you name it that that is generally true. To a, to a vast degree. And the, and I will give you a caveat. It assumes that you're paying market rent. [00:12:53] Mm-hmm. . So if you are renting the place and you're overpaying for it, then that'll skew your number. . So if they, but if that is true market rent, then that's about right. Mm-hmm. , and that's about what you can expect, right? So market rent times 1.3 Yes. Will give you your fixed expenses, rent plus fixed expenses roundabout within a hundred, 200 bucks, right? [00:13:15] And then what I do, then it would take that, cause I need to know how much the heck that cost me a day. Well, the average number of days in a month is 30, so I would take that 19, 50 or whatever it comes out to. or use your real numbers ideally and divide that by 30, and now I know exactly how much does each day cost me. [00:13:36] When this place is vacant, what does it cost me in dollars? Because remember, I can't sell today, yesterday, right? Or tomorrow I should say. You can't sell today, tomorrow, today. Tomorrow. Right. And yesterday's gone. And yesterday's gone. So if it doesn't sell, yesterday's Gone. Is that a song? Mm-hmm. . Yeah. It's, it must be an 80 song. [00:13:57] It is . Okay. [00:14:00] If I'm ever in a trivia thing and there's a music category, Wendy's on my team. Yeah. I, I gotta think about who sings it though. Yeah. I answer history questions. She answers. . Pop. Pop. Yes. Pop trivia. Pop trivia. Yes. But anyway, I'm gonna take those, the expenses of the month divided by 30, and that tells me what a day cost me. [00:14:20] Okay, so rent times 1.3 divided by 30. Yes. And that tells me truly what a day cost me. Now that's not the true cost. because that assumes a hundred percent occupancy. Occupancy. I, I was wondering where you were going with that. Right. So we've left out an expense, and that expense that we have left out is vacancy. [00:14:44] Vacancy, because you're going to have vacancy. You just are even on a long-term rental. If you don't account for vacancy, good luck, . Right, right. It's a, it's an expense. Right. So what we tend to do is, We shoot for 80% occupancy. So we would take that number and instead of dividing it by 30, which is a hundred percent of a month, let's divide it by 80% of a month. [00:15:10] And that's now 24 days out of 30 is 80% of it. Mm-hmm. . So that raises the what each night costs you a little bit because now you're accounting for vacancy. A little bit of vacancy. Right? Right. So now it. rent times 1.3 divided by 24. Yes. Right. And now, okay, now I've accounted for all of my real expenses. [00:15:35] Plus, well, a very real expense, which is vacancy. Mm-hmm. . Yep. Okay. I think a lot of people have missed that. Yeah. And you, and you may need to adjust that for your market. Mm-hmm. , you know, if 60% is your average over a year. right then. Okay. Use 60. Mm-hmm. use 60% of a loan, but that tells you what that night cost you. [00:15:55] Mm-hmm. , that's what you're projecting at least. Right? And so that's [00:16:00] important because the pricing tool is very good at getting you the high, the the higher end days. Like if it's Christmas, it's gonna raise the price. If there's an event in your town, it's gonna notice that there's demand and it's gonna raise the price. [00:16:14] But what it doesn't know is what your costs. , it doesn't know how low you can go. It doesn't know how low you can go. And you have to tell it that unless you tell it. And if you don't know your numbers, you can't tell it the appropriate thing. Right, right. And that's why it's important for you to know that. [00:16:32] Yes. So now you know, okay, here's how low I can go. And now that I know how low I can go, and then I realize that I can't sell today, tomorrow, tomorrow, that means that today should always be at my. . Yes. So if today is vacant, it should be at whatever I calculate at my minimum or perhaps even lower or per, I was gonna say, cuz I noticed sometimes it is lower. [00:16:57] Yeah, sometimes I'll put it lower because I would, cuz if I know that a day cost me, for example, 50 bucks, like I did the calculations, I figured out, okay, a day cost me $50. I would rather sell it for 20. then lose 50 Because if I sell it for 25, I only lose 25. Yeah. I mean, something's better than nothing. [00:17:16] So it's kind of like, would you rather lose $25 or $50? Right. Because that's what it costs you. Right? Right. If it says vacant, right. But at least in the tool, I can set that minimum cuz I know I can always do that. I know I'm always willing to break even. . I, I like the analogy of bananas on the shelf. Ooh, this is a good analogy. [00:17:35] Do this one. So when you're selling fruit, but I'm using bananas, they, they don't last forever. Right? They have a shelf life, right. And bananas. They sit out, they get brown, and eventually nobody wants to buy 'em. And then you throw 'em out. So if you can't, if you don't, then you can use 'em for smoothies. Oh my God. [00:17:55] You're gonna sell rotten banana strips. They go rotten eventually. That's true, right? . . [00:18:00] The point is that the grocery store will almost give you the bananas. Yeah. That are bad. Cause they're just gonna throw 'em in the trash anyway. Right, right. So the price gets lower and lower. The riper they are. Right. And so it is with your, your nightly rate as well today is really ripe and it goes rotten tomorrow. [00:18:20] Right, right. It's gonna go rotten tomorrow. So sell it for something. Yes. Something's better than nothing. And if you can sell it with a bunch of other days. you actually can reap some profit on, right? Sure. Right. But the, the goal is really for our first goal is always don't lose money. The second goal is, okay, if I gotta lose something, don't lose all of it. [00:18:41] Right? And then the third goal is, okay, now let's go make our profit elsewhere. Right? Right. So today is going to be at cost. At least say at least, at least at cost. But tomorrow's gonna be maybe a little bit. Right. And then the next day is gonna be a little bit more than that. Mm-hmm. . And the day after, that's gonna be a little bit more than that. [00:19:05] So it's incrementally, right. And if you look a month ahead, then okay, now those prices are way up. Mm-hmm. , right? Because they're a month in advance. Right. So that, that's the way it generally works. But what happens is people are afraid to go too low. Mm. because they're afraid. They're afraid. If I set my place for $25, then who is gonna stay there? [00:19:27] Yeah. Somebody that you don't want . Right. And I, and I get the sentiment, but there are ways to get around that that I won't get in that right now where you can actually use that $25 day to get a week or a two week long booking that you wouldn't have necessarily gotten otherwise because you were afraid to go too low. [00:19:49] Mm. Right. On a particular day. Right. So that it, that's why I say there's, there's a bit of science to it. There's a bit of an art to it. But if you wanna take something away from [00:20:00] that and you're using a pricing tool, go look at the calendar for one of your listings. And even if today is booked, it should tell you what did it calculate for today? [00:20:10] Mm-hmm. as a daily rate. So if today was vacant, what, what number is it showing you? And it ought to be at your cost. And if it's not, or. Or lower, but the tool is only gonna go to the minimum. Mm-hmm. , which we gave it as cost. Mm-hmm. , right? So it should be at cost. Mm-hmm. . And if it's not, then the tool's not set up properly and you might wanna jump on a coaching call. [00:20:34] So I can help you with that and get, get your tool optimized so it's actually working for you and not against you. Because if it's in those cases, it's actually working against you on the low end. Mm. . Yeah, and we, and we can definitely help you out with that. Let me, let me rephrase that. John can help you out with that. [00:20:53] I can help you out to a certain extent, but John would love to talk to you. About your pricing. I would, I like talking about that stuff. That, that is your specialty. You , you were talking to a student just the other day and not 15 minutes after you got off the coaching call. She got a seven. Yeah, she got a seven. [00:21:12] She got a seven night. Yeah, she got a seven night booking after y'all made those changes. So hop on a coaching call with us. We would love to, to help you out with with that pricing and that pricing tool and getting that tool set up and making sure that, first of all, You're using a pricing tool and you know why you're using a pricing tool and you know how to use it. [00:21:35] It's an expert tool that you need to learn how to use. Expert Lee as our mentor, Jay Massey always told us, and we can teach you how to do that. So we would, we would love to to help you out. To help you out with that. Did we cover the three things? We did Indeed. Okay. Yeah. You, you did a great job. My Lord. [00:21:56] My Lord. , my lady . [00:22:00] Yeah. Don't get you. I'm gonna be an affiliate link for that. Established titles, and we're gonna put it in the YouTube . There you go. There you go. I like it. YouTube description. Look for it. I like it. I like it a lot, . So we hope you found some value in today's podcast, and if you did go like and subscribe and you will get notified of all the fabulous podcasts that we have available so far, and the ones that are coming up in the future. [00:22:29] And I have a feeling that 2023 is going to be spectacular. So we'll see. . Onto the next. Onto the next. [00:22:44]

STRA Episode 18: How to Manage the Holidays With Your Short-Term Rental [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey everyone. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams with the Short-Term Rental Authority, your authority on all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator. Ever. And it's the holiday season. [00:00:22] The holiday season. Mm-hmm. , I dunno, the lyrics after that. . . Why do you think I'm wearing this fancy hat? , right? So if you're listening on audio again Last time Wendy had her beautiful Christmas ugly llama sweater on, who You call it ugly. Well, they're they're called that, aren't they like ugly Christmas sweaters? [00:00:43] You have on your ugly Christmas sweater this year? I do. It's, it's, so if you're listed the audio, you'll have to come to the YouTube channel and see the. Wonderful Christmas sweatshirt actually that I have on. It's doth Bader. It says your lack of cheer is disturbing. I find your lack of cheer. I find your lack of cheer disturbing. [00:01:03] Yes. So it's fabulous. Yes. And then if I put my hat up like this and then pull it down. . You look like a g Nome. I look like a gnome, a Nome for some reason. Wendy's into Nome. I really, they're everywhere. Oh, really? There's all these Christmas noms here. I'm a, I'm a big fan. Our Christmas tree topper is, is a Nome as well. [00:01:23] Well, no kidding. Everything's a freaking Nome down here. , but, okay. Either way. And they have names. I would, I'd like to tell you that , she's named. Oh, but that aside it's a holiday. Fun. This is our holiday holiday. The holiday episode. Holiday episode. So we are going to be talking about the, oh my god, there's a cat in a box. [00:01:44] Okay. Yes. We also are wrapping presents. . Right. The boxes. And there's boxes. So every time a box gets delivered, a cat gets in the new box. Right. And on the wrapping paper. Yes. It's ridiculous. It's a zoo around here. Yes. So we're going to be talking. The holiday [00:02:00] season in your short-term rental. So we're going to be talking about the questions that we usually get asked around this time of year, such as should I put up decorations in my unit? [00:02:14] Is there special pricing that I should do availability. How to make it so that guests can't check out on a holiday, for example Christmas Day. Because you don't want your cleaners to have to work on Christmas Day, right? Since we always clean on checkouts and those are the typical questions that we usually get asked this time of year. [00:02:39] So let's start with. Hmm. What should we start with? Let's start with decorations. Got it. So, yeah. So there's, in the past, and actually this question comes not only from operators, but it comes from guests too. Yes. Mm-hmm. , because sometimes they will ask, Hey, we've had that. Either do you have a Christmas tree up, for example? [00:03:05] Mm-hmm. . Mm-hmm. Or can we put one up? Can, can we decorate ourselves? Yes. Can we decorate ourselves? Mm-hmm. . Yep. And typically just as a general baseline, we don't decorate correct our places for the holidays, right? Because not everybody celebrates. Christmas. Right, right. Not everybody celebrates that holiday. [00:03:23] Correct. So there's, there's that. So we don't, we don't decorate, but we will allow people to decorate if, if they would like to, as long as they take it down and they, if they're using a, a live Christmas tree, then. They have to use a stand . Well, they have, that's cleanup, right? Yes. Yeah. So there's a little more to it there, but we do often have, especially in the the houses that we have, a lot of times it's either right, someone coming to visit family, right. [00:03:52] Or what, and having their celebration at the home, right? Yeah. They'll actually do it there because maybe they live in a smaller space, like a one bedroom apartment or [00:04:00] something. Right. And they want to have family, and so, house them there and then actually go there for mm-hmm. , like Christmas day and stuff. [00:04:08] Yeah. Stuff like that, which is really neat. It's really neat. I, I really enjoy. hosting that and being able to provide that service for people. Right. That makes me happy. Yeah. And we've actually talked about providing that as a service like this. Maybe, maybe this is something you could sell Uhhuh as an extra add-on, as an upsell, Hey, here's the holiday package. [00:04:28] Mm-hmm. , or here's the Christmas package. Mm-hmm. , or here's the New Year's package. Right. Cause we got New Year's coming up too. Yes. That. Thanksgiving not as much, but you could do some things there. But yeah, generally on decorations. I wanna say our general advice is don't provide 'em for one thing. Are you gonna have pictures of them and are they gonna be professional photos or are you gonna put the Christmas tree up and take it with your cell phone and say it's there? [00:04:52] Right? So there's that aspect of it. Just do it as an add-on upsell package. Yeah. If you want to do something, sell it. Yeah, sell it. I think that's a really great idea. I do too. Because I think there are people that would pay for that. I think so. Yeah. For sure. Yeah. Especially in, in the homes. Mm-hmm. if you're doing houses. [00:05:08] But I can see it happening in apartments too. So Yeah. Any, any type of, any, anywhere. Yeah. Rental. Yeah. Yep. I agree. So generally we don't but if somebody asks, we'll let them do it. Mm. and hey, maybe it's an idea. Sell that as a, as a thing. I think that's a great idea. I think that's a really great idea. [00:05:24] Yeah. So, so we, we also want to be considerate of the people that work for us as well, such as our cleaners and our customer experience specialists. And our operations specialists which we also call the runner because they're the ones. Do all the running around for us. You know, we don't want them to have to work on, on the holiday as, as well. [00:05:52] So we try to make it so that people, so that guests cannot [00:06:00] check out on, say, for example, Christmas or Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve or New Year's Eve or New Year's Day or Thanksgiving Day. Yeah. So one of the things I've discovered or we've discovered that we should be doing is when we bring on a new cleaner, for example, ask them what are, what are the holidays that you guys don't work during the year? [00:06:22] Right? And one of those holidays can't be every Sunday, right? , right. So that's actually one of our filtering questions. But as far as, you know, national Holidays go, or, or it could be 4th of July, it could be, you know, whatever Thanksgiving, you know, do they take off Thanksgiving? Do they take off Christmas? [00:06:38] Is it Christmas? . I mean, is it Christmas Eve or Christmas Day that you guys don't do? Or is it both? Is it New Year's Day or New Year's Eve? Cuz I always get confused like which one's the actual holiday. Right. Because everybody celebrates on New Year's Eve, right? Sure. . Right. But you're getting year's day off. [00:06:54] So I don't know. But e either way, that having that conversation up front will tell you, okay, these are the days that we don't want checkouts on. Yes. Because I'm not cleaning it . Right. And you definitely don't want me to clean it. Right. So it's, it's not only a courtesy thing, but it's also a, just a practicality thing. [00:07:12] Mm-hmm. of when do they work? Right. And you may have somebody that doesn't bother 'em at all because they don't celebrate Christmas. Right. Right. So maybe it's not a big deal. The, the technical, how do you do that is different than you might think because a lot of people, the first thing they think is okay, I'll make Christmas day a three day minimum. [00:07:31] And that's not actually doing what you think it's doing. It just means if, hey, if they book Christmas Day, they have to book three other days. , and then those days could be the two, the two days, days before, right? Mm-hmm. or the five days before uh, even or whatever. Right. So it doesn't actually prevent the checkout on that day. [00:07:48] Correct. So to do that, the, the only way I know of doing it right now is to go to the actual platform like Airbnb or vrbo, Airbnb or vrbo. Mm-hmm. . And actually you can set up what are called [00:08:00] rule sets that essentially won't allow a checkout on that day. So at the beginning of the every. We go through all of those holidays. [00:08:08] I know we're talking about Christmas and things, right, but there are other days during the year that we don't want that too, right? And so at the beginning of every year we'll go through and for the year set those rule sets up so that we don't have to remember to do it later. Cuz you never know how far in advance somebody's gonna buck. [00:08:25] So we set that up for the whole year and then we don't have to worry about it. And then next year we readjust because some days are always like December. 25th is always Christmas. Right, but it's on New Year's Eve is always January or December 31st, but it's on a different day of the week, right? Yes. [00:08:44] Whereas Thanksgiving's always on a Thursday, whereas Thanksgiving's always on a 30 Thursday. And that's important because when you're setting up those rule sets, it's not like you're saying you can't check out on the 25th, right? You're really saying you can't check out on a Thursday and Well this, this year, Christmas is on Sunday. [00:08:59] It's on Sunday. It happens to be that Christmas is on Sunday. And New Year's is on Sunday, I think. Isn't it always that way? No. Cuz it could be Monday. No, I mean they're always on the same day of the week. Cuz I don't know if that's true or not. It seems like it would be, but maybe, maybe not. I don't remember. [00:09:16] But either way. We want to set up those rule sets so that it applies for that year. Mm-hmm. , where Thanksgiving, for example, is always on a Thursday. Right? Right. So that one you probably don't have to, and, and we can show you how to do that and, and we would be glad to, to help you out with that if you'd like to message us and Yeah. [00:09:34] And, and get on a call. And we would, we would be happy to show you how to do. Yeah. And when Wendy says Message us, she means you can find us on Instagram, short-term rental authority. You can find us on Facebook, short-term rental authority, any of those places, message us and and we'll get back to you. [00:09:50] Yeah. So there's that. It's, yeah. Don't allow people to check out on holidays, right? Is is the general rule, right? And then there's a, a way of doing that that's typically on the [00:10:00] platform, but it's not your minimum stays that do it, however, , when we are talking about availability, we usually do set minimum stays for those holidays, right? [00:10:10] Because those tend to be the most expensive days of that month. So like for example, in December, it's kind of a slow month for us. Mm-hmm. normally, but. If you can get someone that books, you know, those three or four days around Christmas, those dates are, are elevated because we're using a pricing tool, dynamic pricing tool, which you should be using, and it will capture those higher days than what it does is it offsets for the lower occupancy and lower prices that generally occur earlier in the month. [00:10:42] Mm-hmm. . Right. So it's, it's important for us at least to set, you know, 2, 3, 4 day minimums perhaps. Christmas, new Year's, those types of days, so that you're not just selling Christmas Day. So you're also capturing Christmas Eve the day after and you know, maybe even the day before Christmas Eve. Right. And, and it helps with, I'm, I'm assuming that it helps also with people who actually do want to stay those longer stays, makes it available for those people. [00:11:12] That's true. And we, and we all always do that anyway. It's part of our pricing and availability. Strateg. is that we simply don't allow short stays beyond a certain window for us that's 10 days, but at the same time, I wanna make sure that that extends out for those days. Mm-hmm. anyway. And you can do that with Price Labs. [00:11:33] It's something that you know, we can show you how to do jump on a coaching call messages. But that, that is a way of. actually enhancing your revenue. Mm-hmm. during this time as well. Mm-hmm. , because at least for us, it tends to be, yeah, we get the holiday bookings, but what do we do with the rest of the month? [00:11:48] Right. Right. And so there's that. Right. That's all I have to say about available. , what was the next thing? Pricing. Pricing. . Well, pricing. I kind of just mentioned that a little bit, [00:12:00] but you want to take that. Pricing. Mm-hmm. . Well, you're usually the one that does that. . Okay. Cause I don't . See, I have my lane. [00:12:11] I will do the decorations. I stay in my lane and I do not deviate from my lane . Right. Okay. So I do the, you know, I, I'll do the, the personnel aspect of the business and I, I go get. . I make them look pretty and then I give them to you and say, here you go. Here's a new unit. Fill them. Are you, fill them up for me. [00:12:36] Fill them up, please. , right? And you are fantastic. About that. That is, that is your lane. You, you're the master. Yeah. So if you want pricing and availability and booking help, you are the master. Give us a coaching call as well. You are, or give us a shout. We have people more social are, are, we have coaching clients all the time that, that say, you know, I, the changes that we, that you made on our pricing, we got booked. [00:13:05] People say that all the time. You're 10 out of film. Right? Right. So generally when I'm talking about pricing, the, the pricing tool's gonna do a lot of it. So your dynamic pricing tools, again, it's a tool, but when we use Price Labs, there's others out there. Price Labs is wheelhouse we prefer or whatever, but there's wheelhouse. [00:13:24] There's beyond pricing, there's there, but the principal's the same, correct. What they're doing is they're raising and lowering your prices dynamically on a per day basis based on demand. And those holiday days are always high. . So the price is always above your medium or your median, your average, right? [00:13:43] So the pricing tool is going to capture that. If you're gonna do anything at all, you might add an additional percentage to that, at least further out because you've got time. Mm-hmm. , you've got time to get it booked. So you might as well book it at a premium and then you can always pull that back [00:14:00] as the date get clo gets closer. [00:14:02] But keep in mind as the date gets closer, your quote competition, which I don't like that word, but the other things, other units that are available in your area are, well, they're booked. Mm-hmm. . So you become more and more in demand because there's less and less supply, and that allows you to actually capture that. [00:14:19] So that is one of the strategies is kind of a last man standing type strategy. However, you kind of have to be careful about that because longer stays are a thing. and they tend to be booked further out. Mm-hmm. . That's true. So it's kind of a balancing act. You can be, you can price yourself out of those longer stays mm-hmm. [00:14:39] That you might've gotten, that would've been overall more profitable. Mm-hmm. , however, you can get a premium for those, you know, a few days around the holiday. . So it's, it's kind of a, there's a little bit of an art, there's a little bit of a science to it, and I bet experience has something to do with it too. [00:14:55] And experience knowing your market and, and ha when, when you start to operate year after year, you know, you'll, you'll tend to see those, there, there will be trends too, right? And there's certain metrics and KPIs that you want. , basically tracking, like on average, how many days in advance do people book in December, for example. [00:15:16] That's a great kpi. You know, how, what is your average length of stay in a December, right? What, what is you know, how, how many views to bookings? What's that ratio look like, right? And all of these kind of things. So you can start measuring that and seeing where you need to be and what you're actually trying to target. [00:15:37] with your pricing and with your strategy and with your availability, and it's probably a good idea to track that per month. You want to track it, it could be as granular as you want, right, but it, you're right, because each month is a little different, right? Because the, our, the industry seems to be very seasonal, not seasonal by [00:16:00] like winter, spring, summer, and fall. [00:16:02] or seasonal by month. Yeah. December's not the same as November. Right. And November's not the same as October. Right. And January and February are totally different, and every month is a little different. So as you operate throughout a year, now you have that data to go back and look at because it's always, you know, you, you can't come to me and say, Hey, is this a good number? [00:16:25] Because as one of my mentors, Jay Massey says all the time compared to what? . Right. You know, have to know what am I comparing it to, to know if it's a good number or not. Right. So if you have that past data, then the, the longer you operate, the better you get at it because you know what to expect. [00:16:41] Mm-hmm. and you know, what's abnormal and what's normal. Right. And, you know, post covid, it's, well, the data change, all the, yeah. All the data changed. So if you had data pre covid, well, during Covid, that wasn't relevant. Yeah. Totally. At all. And now we're, the world is in the, what we call the new normal. [00:17:00] Mm-hmm. coming into the new normal and now it's all different. Yeah. So your data is not as, you know, even if you've been operating for five years. Right. , well, you can discount the last three , right? . Right. And, and say, okay, we're kind of start over with our metrics and great. The data collection and see what's, what's happening in today's world. [00:17:20] Mm-hmm. , right? Mm-hmm. as far as that goes. Yep. So that, that's my pricing and availability. Long-winded answer to how you deal with that. Okay. And it really applies across the board. It's just a little more targeted when you get a, you know, a holiday. And I would say that applies even more to what we call a tent. [00:17:39] which is kind of like a holiday. Uhhuh. . Yeah. I was gonna, oh, that's, that's interesting. So a temp pole event, if you don't know, it's, it's like a, it's almost like a one time event that comes to your area. Like for example, we had the NBA All Star game here in Charlotte one time. Right, right. That that's something that they don't come to the same city every year. [00:17:57] Or if you're the city that has the Super Bowl this year, [00:18:00] Uhhuh. Yeah. Right. Or if there's, you know, whatever it is, it could be one of the political party conventions. Mm-hmm. . We have the DNC convention here in Charlotte. And that was a, what you call a tentpole event, right? So for those events, it's very similar. [00:18:13] We tend to do the same thing. So not only holidays with this strategy, but also those tent pole events that you have coming in. Mm-hmm. . Oh, that's really good. I, I hadn't, I hadn't thought about making that. Yeah. And, and another reason you should be using a dining up pricing tool, because it'll do that for you. [00:18:29] It'll catch it. Because you may not know. Right. You know, it may be the International Spatula Convention coming to your area and you're not that into spatula, so you don't know. Yes. But the pricing tool is gonna notice that, oh, the demand is cre increasing, there must be a reason, let's raise prices. Right, right, right. [00:18:48] That is i'll it to it really cool about, about the tool. But you know, it's, it's a, it's a tool. It's not a set it and forget it. Type thing. And it's something that you have to learn like, like Jay Massey says, it's an expert tool that you have to learn how to use Expert. Lee Lee, right? Yeah. And it, and, and we can help you with that too, right? [00:19:13] So learning how to use those dynamic pricing tools and. is, is a skill, and, and we can, it is okay. I I'm not gonna say we . John can help you with that. . Wendy can help you too. I can to a certain extent. That's true. That's true. You act like all you do is design places. And that's true. I that's not true. [00:19:35] That's not true at all. That's not true. I can help with a, to a certain extent, yes, but the, there is a strategy. to it, to, to using those tools. So if you want help with that, you'd let us know. Yeah. Dms, dms, social media. Mm-hmm. , we are all in this one from Facebook. Anywhere. You can find us all over. Yes. [00:19:57] The short-term rental authority. That is us. [00:20:00] You got anything else in your words of wisdom in your, say it in your doth Vader. [00:20:12] your lack of pricing is disturbing. . Your lack of dynamic pricing is disturbing. . That's funny. , the student becomes the master. [00:20:27] Okay. Yeah, I'm not, I'm not James or Jones. Sorry. . I don't know. It was pretty good. Yeah. You do have the Santa beard going on. Yeah. Well, if you wanna see my Santa beard, , maybe you should be wearing the hat. Oh, I'm already wearing a sweater. I just need my, I have the bowl full of jelly. Oh. Oh. It's perfect. If you made me a gnome, I can't tell. [00:20:46] No, but I. Oh, let me see. . Okay, now I'm a jolly nom . So again, if you wanna see the jolly Nom , head over to the YouTube channel and you can check it out. . Well, I hope you found some value and entertainment in today's podcast. Be sure to like and subscribe. We are John and Wendy Williams. This is Darth Vader. [00:21:12] And we will see you next. On to the next. Ho, ho, ho. [00:21:23]

STRA Episode 17:  How to Deal With Slow Season [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey everyone. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John n Wendy Williams with the Short-term Rental Authority, your authority on all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And today we are going to be talking about how to deal with slow season. Yeah. [00:00:27] I wanna feel like a a, the majority of us are probably dealing with slow season right now. Being the time of year it is. And being in the northern hemisphere, right? Yes. But his chili, hence the Christmas sweater. Yes. Which is hilarious, by the way. So if you're listening to this on the audio and you wanna see Wendy's, well, Christmas sweater, go check it out on YouTube. [00:00:48] It's over there and you can see it. See it in, all of it's, it's fabulous. So, , there's that. . But yeah, so slow season. How do we deal with slow season? How do we deal with slow season? Well, so I think it would be important to talk about maybe what is slow season and. , if you are just getting started, how do you know when your slow season is? [00:01:18] Right? So in this business it's rare that, well, it just never happens. You're not gonna make the same amount every month. It's not like long-term rentals. It's much more like a seasonal type business. And we say seasonal, we don't mean. Winter, spring, summer, and fall , right? We mean January, February, March, April, may, you have 12 seasons. [00:01:40] Actually, it's seasonal by month. Every month is a little different. And for us, just as an example in, in the Charlotte market, June, July, August are our best month. So it's, it's summer. People are traveling, especially the customer type. We serve families with children and pet. [00:02:00] There's a lot more of those during the summer and then September for us, it kind of drops off a cliff a little bit, mainly because people go back to school. [00:02:10] Right. That wasn't true during Covid, by the way. That's true. That's there was no school. That's true. So September wasn't actually a slow season for us. Yeah, during that time, but during normal times. September, it falls off October. It's not that great. November, it picks up a little bit because we have, you know, the Thanksgiving holiday and some holiday stuff going on in December. [00:02:29] We have some holiday stuff going on, so it's a little better, but then again in January it drops off and in fact, January is probably our worst month every year. I would say that's true. For similar reasons. Everybody's now back from winter break and they've gone back to work and gone back to school and the holidays are over and they've spent all their money. [00:02:47] Right? , so that's January. And then, you know, gradually as spring approaches, it gets a little better. And then we have this great summer, right? So we know what's coming because we've been in the market for a while. We know it's coming. Every January is gonna be the way it is. Every July is gonna be the way it is. [00:03:04] And so we've had to adapt and deal with it. And this is just the story of how we've been able to do it. And by the way, it's not, it's, those aren't always the same months as you were alluding to. So we have people that we've coached then, for example, Phoenix, Arizona. Where it's exactly the opposite. [00:03:22] Their slow season is summer because it's a thousand degrees there. Right. As hot as Hades. Right. And their, their high season is actually more winter. Right. Because that's where people go to escape from winter . Right, right. So they have like a snowbird season and all that. Right. So it, and depending on your market, your, your months might be reversed from us, might be different whatever. [00:03:44] But it's important to realize where you currently. And what you're anticipating coming up in the next 12 months. Right? So how do you, how do you predict that if you are going into a new market? That would be a, a good question. Like you, [00:04:00] you, or either you're just getting started, right? So one of those, one of the ways you can do it, frankly, is talk to other operators in your area. [00:04:07] And and they'll be able to tell you. Okay. Yeah, because we could tell you that here in Charlotte, July is a great month. J January is not right. That's, that's a very valid way of doing it. If you want to use more of like a data tool, that's something that an air DNA is good for. So we've talked about air DNA before in, in some depth and how it can be useful and it can be not useful depending on how you. [00:04:34] but that is the, one of the things that I find it to be pretty accurate on is at least the trend. So you can see, oh yes, July's a high month, January's a low month, and you can kind of see that trend graph and you can get an idea of, okay, here's my high season, here's my low season probably for what I'm doing in any particular area. [00:04:55] And that's in the seasonality tab. If you're on air dna. It's actually right at the top. Is it? There's no tab for it. It's, it's right at the top and it'll say, it'll have some generic statistics about your area, and one of those is a graph that shows you not only high and low resume, but high and low occupancy for the year. [00:05:15] And that's even if you're not using the free version. So you just put your zip code in and it'll tell you for that zip code, here's the, OR city. You could put Charlotte in and it'll tell you for that city or town what the trend is. So that's. You can get that free. Yes. So that is free data information. [00:05:34] Yeah. And then you have to, if you want the actual numbers, you have to pay for it. But as we've discussed before, the actual numbers aren't usually correct anyway. So, and if you're just looking for the seasonality, you don't need to pay for it. So that's, that's a data driven way to go say, okay, what's high season? [00:05:52] What flow season? So you wouldn't go to the seasonality tab, I don't think there is a seasonality tab. Oh. There used to be, didn't [00:06:00] there? There is, yeah. I mean, I just went over it with the, with one of our students. Oh, I don't know. I never, I never go to that tab. Really? Oh, I go there all the time. Oh, okay. [00:06:10] Yeah. Well, it's right at the top. You don't need to, oh, I didn't know that. I always play the seasonality tab. . Okay, well, perhaps, maybe there's a tab and I just haven't done it. Right. But there you go. But that, that is a data driven way to go figure. Just realize that the actual number it gives you, you take that with a grain of salt, right? [00:06:30] But you can see the trend, right? That, but that's really what you're looking for is. If I, if I know that in advance, then I can prepare myself. Right. So what are, what are some of the ways that you can prepare yourself for that that you know is coming your, the winter is coming, right? , right? What's that? [00:06:53] Maybe game it Throne for show. Thank you. Yeah, it's. Not Game of Throne. Is it? Game of Thrones? It is Game of Thrones. Yeah. Winter is coming. Winter is coming. Ugh. It was the best show ever. But anyway. So how do you prepare yourself If you know that winter is coming, what do you do about it? So, well, first of all, knowledge is power, right? [00:07:14] So even knowing that you are ahead of the game I think a another way to prepare yourself for that would be to get your money in order. And the way that we get our money in order is by using a money management system called Profit First. Mm-hmm. . And it's based on a book called Profit First. Profit First to Buy Michael Michael Witz. [00:07:43] And there's a. And because nobody can spell his last name. That's Macit is his last name. Oh, macit. Yes. Yes. But if you go to mike motorbike.com. Mike motorbike.com That's right. You can, you can find his information there as well. Yeah. So it's a, it's a great book and it's a, it's a good system. [00:08:00] Yeah. So, so the, the Profit first system is, It's kind of like the envelope system. [00:08:08] If you follow, what's his name? Dave Ramsey. Dave Ramsey. But it's for your business. So you allocate a certain percentage of all your money that comes in, right? So all your money that comes in from all the different OTAs, you got Airbnb, vrbo, and drug bookings, or wherever your money comes from. All goes into the centralized account and then you divvy it out. [00:08:34] A certain percentage goes in this account, a certain percentage goes in this account, a certain percentage goes in this account. So you, you have some money divvied up into all the, the different accounts, if you will. So mm-hmm. . So it's really a, it's a cash flow management system and it's designed to, basically work with human behavior. [00:08:58] Cuz what we tend to do is when we, when we need to spend on something, we go to our checking account, we look at it and say, is there money in there? ? If the answer is yes, we buy the thing and if there's not, we don't buy the thing, right? The problem is, if you only have the one account, there's money in there that should be allocated for other. [00:09:18] and just because it's in there doesn't mean that it's available for spending on this new thing. Right? So the whole idea is your, each account has a purpose. So there's one account that's just for the things that are involved with the unit. Meaning it could be your mortgage, your rent it's your utilities, it's your insurance. [00:09:36] It's, it's all those things. And we actually call that our unit support, unit support account. Yep. Because that's really what it is. And if you read the book, that's, they're gonna call it your op opex account op Short for Operating Expenses. Yes. So it's, it's the count where most things come out of. [00:09:52] Right? And the key to figuring out, well, okay, what percentage do I put in that account is to start to [00:10:00] look at your business, not on a month to month basis, but start looking at it on a yearly basis. Right. So you need to look at, on a 12 month basis, on average, how much of income do I spend on keeping the units running right? [00:10:17] And that's gonna come up to a percentage on a yearly basis, and it's probably gonna be somewhere around 70%, somewhere around there. Meaning if you bring in 10 grand, you're probably spending seven to keep the unit up and running. On an average basis. Right. But what that means is in July, you actually are putting more money in that account than you need to. [00:10:41] At least for us, because that's our high season, because our income's higher, but our expenses stay about the same. Mm-hmm. . But then in January what happens is that extra money is there because on average is an average, and it means we actually solved a January's cashflow problem back in July. . Right. So that's actually the key where you get, where I see people get stuck and they say, oh, please help is this time of year they say, Hey, I've got no money. [00:11:10] I've got no bookings. Right? What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do? Well, and it's hard to fix that problem now because it actually needed to be fixed for five months ago. Yep. Right? And so it's that cash management system and looking at your business on an annual. and coming and coming up with those percentages accurately, that will help you actually survive slow season. [00:11:37] So slow season for us isn't that big a deal because, well, we prepared for it back in July. Right, right. And that's just having a system in place of bank accounts and each account having a purpose. Right. Well, I mean that that helps you. The, the sooner you get started, the sooner that will be helpful. Yes, that's true. [00:11:59] Right. [00:12:00] So, so when should you start doing that? Immediately. Yesterday? Yes. I mean, even if you are going through a, a rough patch, a slow season, then you know, you still should go ahead and, and start that, that managing your money that way because it will help. And the, in the next low season. Right. So Right. [00:12:25] And there's a lot to say about that. That's not meant to be a whole get started ASAP explaining how to do that. No, but that's not, there's a more to it, but Profit first is the, maybe we should do a whole nother podcast. We probably should. That's a really good idea. Yeah. Cause we could talk about that for an hour. [00:12:39] I think so, for sure. Yeah. Excellent. So that's one way that you. You know, navigate through the, through the slow season. And I, I think that another way to to help you through that is not just managing your money, but also managing your calendar as well. Mm-hmm. and you are the master at calendar management. [00:13:07] So, and, and what I mean by that, A lot of times the, the way that we get through those January and February months is by getting longer bookings. Right. And that seems like a, oh, we'll just go get longer bookings. Right. Well, how do I do that? Right. Right. That comes to the question, you know, because you're the master at Yeah. [00:13:34] It's partially canor management and it's partially again, knowing your financials. So this is one of those things when. What you really need to know is what does a night cost you? Oh man, this is a golden nugget. So what we were talking about earlier is, hey, you know, my expenses are this. Well, if you take those expenses, meaning everything that it costs to have that unit, if nobody even stays there, [00:14:00] meaning you still gotta pay rent, right? [00:14:01] You still gotta pay mortgage, you still gotta pay utilities, you still gotta pay insurance. You still got software you're paying for probably. Netflix, YouTube, you know, whatever you pay on a monthly basis. So it doesn't include cleaning because that only occurs if somebody stays and that's passed through expense anyway, but includes all those things. [00:14:20] And then what you do is as a very rough thing you can do is divide that by 30. Cause that's how many average days there are in a month, right? So say I had. A place that you know, my rent's 1500 and I've got another, you know, $300, $400 worth of expenses. Let's just call it $500 worth of expenses. So I can make the, the math easy. [00:14:42] That would be $2,000. So 1500 in rent, another 500 in expenses, $2,000 that I would take and divide by 30. And now I know, okay, this place costs me x amount of dollars per day or per. . Right? And that's important to know because when I go to price, what I in high season is easy because you're just gonna get it booked anyway. [00:15:06] In slow season. What I really need to know is how low can I go and how, how, how much of a discount can I give? How, how much can I mark this place down? And that, that's actually the most important number. Because the first rule is don't lose money . That's what, so if I know what a night costs me, then I also know what it costs me if it's vacant. [00:15:27] And I also know what I'm making if I sell it. And I'm even willing to sell it at cost to avoid losing the, so say it costs me $50 a night to have the place, I'd rather sell it for 50, then not sell it at all. Right. And that's one of those things that happens in slow season cuz you were alluding to calendar management. [00:15:46] Okay. Yeah, I'm getting some bookings, but it's only the weekends. So I'm getting Friday and Saturday booked. This is a very common thing. Oh man. But I can't seem to sell Monday through Thursday, and even though you're making money on Friday and Saturday, you're [00:16:00] losing it all by these days sitting vacant. [00:16:03] So what you really need to do is figure out a way to, okay, how can I take this money that I'm making on the weekend and defend it by at least selling the other days at. and that's the, the mindset that you need to have coming in. And and what'll get in the way of that is ego and pride because you'll say, well, my place should rent for, well, it's not right. [00:16:26] Everybody else in the market is getting, but they're not . Right? So you got an, how low can I go is a really important number to know. Yeah. So that when the bookings that you do get that are profitable, you can actually. . And then the other thing that I do is I simply prevent people from booking weekends a certain number of days out. [00:16:48] So if you can figure out what your average lead time is. Ooh, this is another good nugget. Say so. So say somebody. When you get bookings, typically they come within say, 10 days this time of year. So people are booking, this is very common. It's empty. They book kind of last minute. , you know, you don't sell it for a lot because it was last minute, right? [00:17:11] So what we do, what I do with the calendar then is, okay, within 10 days is our metric. So within 10 days, I start allowing people to book one and two nights stays, meaning they can book a weekend, but anything beyond 10 days, they have to book at least three nights. And what that does is it keeps my weekends open. [00:17:31] So that that last minute person that's booking that actually wants a week or two or a month can book it because my calendar's open. Yes. Because I didn't sell a weekend a month ago. Right. For, you know, something and now I'm scrambling, scrambling to try to sell the rest of these empty days that are hard to sell. [00:17:54] Right, right. So that's how you get longer bookings being, knowing how low you can. [00:18:00] and then having, having the calendar available so that they can actually book it. And we get quite a few of those. We got a couple yesterday. Yep, we sure did. That will take us through December, January and February. So you can do that by using a tool? [00:18:14] Yeah. So we use a tool that's Price Labs. We talked about price slab before, and that's just an example of, you know, there's a difference between having price labs. Knowing how to use it to your advantage. So it's an expert tool that you then need to use expertly, and that's not all of it. There's some other things I do in there, but that's, that's the basics of it. [00:18:35] If you just did those two things, if you knew how low you could go and got there for the days that were harder to sell, and if you did a little calendar management so that you avoided those weekends being booked so far in advance, then you then now you've got a. You've got a shot at not losing money. [00:18:55] Not losing money, and actually being profitable during slow season. It's never gonna be as good as high season. But remember, I'm looking at this from a 12 month perspective, and what I'm really doing is trying to at, at the very least, defend the profit that we made in July. because I overall will be profitable for the year. [00:19:16] Right? Because we, because this is a revenue business. It's a revenue business, right? Yeah. So, and, and that's a really great mindset to have is okay, well, not so much what is my, my occupancy rate and my, my average daily rate? It's, it's those two things combined , it's, it's all of that combined. in a a 12 month period. [00:19:43] Right. So just like when I was talking about, okay, I've got a weekend booked, I'm willing to sell the rest of the week at cost just to defend my profit on the weekend. Mm-hmm. , you can expand that out in your mind to, okay, I got July booked. Right. I'm willing to give January [00:20:00] away at cost. so that I'd keep the profit from July. [00:20:03] That's a really great analogy. Right. So I'm just looking at it on a bigger scale, right? Yeah, yeah. But well, that's huge. I mean, and combine that with your profit First money management system, right? And all of a sudden now it's. Kind of becomes more stress free. Right. Well, you know, another thing to think about in, in the, in the low season is, is your listing. [00:20:29] And it's, oh, that's a good point. It's really easy for most people to get booked in in the high season, whatever your high season is. Yeah. Everybody's book, regardless of, of are you the best listing out there. But in the low season, That's where it really becomes apparent with an important to make sure that number one, you have really great design and if you need help with that, please let me know because I can help you to, to have really great design and then to have really great photography. [00:21:06] Cell phone pictures will not do it right, so you have to have good pictures, but then you have to have. Something for the photographer to take a picture of . Right, right. I mean, it can't just be like your secondhand stuff and thrown together. It needs to look professionally designed with professional photos and really. [00:21:35] Speaking to that customer. We've said this over and over and over again, is who is your target customer? Speak to them. Have your title. That is something that they value, right? Fully fenced in backyard, pet friendly, whatever close to the airport. Gig wifi. [00:22:00] Gig wifi. I mean, desk workspace is whatever your customer wants. [00:22:03] Whatever. I mean, whatever your customer, whatever speaks to your customer, have that in your title and make sure that you showcase those things in your pictures, especially. The first five pictures, those are so important. So yeah, we talked a lot about that in the last episode, but oh my gosh. So go back and listen to the listing review and, and we'll, we'll, yeah, we'll tell you all of those little details that, that you need to be, but it, in the slow season, it will become even more apparent if you don't have those things. [00:22:38] Have you thought about why I think. because people there, there aren't as many people traveling to your area in the slow season. And those people are, the people that are traveling are pickier. Well, they can be pickier, right? Because they can be. Yes. The the, it's a supply and demand. Yes, it is the supply. [00:23:04] So demand goes down, but supply stays the same. Correct. Which means that there's less people book. And they're gonna book all the best places first. Yes. And you need to be one of those best places. Right. Which means pictures, design and pricing. Those three things. Target customer and target customer. Yes. [00:23:22] Yeah. I mean, I, we, we cannot preach on it too much. Yeah. Because there are so many people out there that aren't doing that. And then they come to us saying, why am I not getting booked? And I'm like, my very first question is, who are you serving? I don't know. everybody. No. Who designed this? I did. I did. [00:23:43] Right. Who took the pictures? I did with my cell phone. I did. Right. And, and that actually ends up becoming the problem. Yep. Right? Yep. We see it all the time. So, so those are, are some really great tips and to help you navigate [00:24:00] the, the slow season. Number one. Do the, the. Go to Air DNA and that is free data to figure out and identify when slow season is. [00:24:11] When the slow season is right. And then do, start your profit of first money management, cash flow management system right now. Do that right now. Think about how low you can go so that you can, you know, sell those nights at cost if you have to. And then manage your calendar, like John was talking about. [00:24:33] Mm-hmm. , did I forget something? Marketing. Marketing. Just the last part. We talking about market. The, the pictures, the marketing. You know, this is the time that you need to be good at it. and you don't have to be good at it during high season. Right, right. And then you get, you, you realize what you're doing wrong when slow season comes wrong, [00:24:50] Right. So true. So avoid that if at all possible. And if you're you're currently in that situation, fix it. And if you need help with that, give us a call. That's what we do. Yeah, we do. We, we offer coaching. We do, you know, listing reviews. We will help you with your pricing. You know, we do design and, and set up and design whatever you need to help make you the best operator ever. [00:25:15] There you go. Here at the short term rental authority, , right? And if you need advice on Christmas sweater, you can ask Wendy. She has really great test taste in them. Thank you. Thank you very much. It's a lama. I know. It is. And it even has a. It has a tail on the back. It's ridiculous. It's ridiculous. I think it's fabulous. [00:25:35] I love ugly Christmas sweaters. Plus, they're so comfy, . They are. They are. Well, we hope you found some value in this episode and you also like. Ugly Christmas sweaters. If you do, we really, really, really want to see pictures of those in our Facebook group. So go ahead and post those in the Facebook group and become a member of our Facebook group, a short term loan authority. [00:25:57] We are doing a a [00:26:00] cash flow 1 0 1 board game tomorrow night. If you are local, please come and see us and come play the Cash 1 0 1 board game with us. Yeah, we do that the last Thursday, or last Wednesday. Wednesday of the month. Yes. Last Wednesday. Every month of every month. Yes. Because by the time you hear this episode, we'll have already done this weeks [00:26:17] Sorry, but last Wednesday of every month in Charlotte there's a meetup group for it. It's called Charlotte Cash Flow 1 0 1. It's called Cash 1 0 1. Cash 1 0 1 Meetup. Yes. And that's on meetup.com. All right, cool. Check us out. So come check us out and we'll see you again next time. Onto the next. Onto the next. [00:26:36]

STRA Episode 16: What to do When your Guest is a Karen [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey everyone. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John n Wendy Williams with the short term rental authority. Your authority on all things short term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And today we are going to be talking about what to do when you have a Karen and we apologize to everyone. [00:00:32] Named Karen. Yes, cuz I, I'm, it's, it's just a term, right? Yes. But I know some very nice Karens. Yes. In fact, your mother's named Karen. My mother's name is Karen. Yes. It's unfortunate, right? But it's basically what do you do with somebody who they, they tend to come in and they find every little thing that they could possibly find wrong. [00:00:54] Right? And you're thinking, well, there shouldn't be anything wrong. . Nothing's perfect. No. Like if you, if you went through our house, the cleaners just came today at our house. Right. . And I guarantee you I could go around and find something. Yes. Right. For sure. If I wanted to say something. We have a visitor. [00:01:12] Yes. Well, there's the culprit right there. Yes. Well, she's the one that makes things imperfect a lot times. With her shedding. With her shedding. But she's very sweet. She's very sweet. So what do you do? So let's, you wanna talk about like some of the. We're not recent. Well, we did have some recent Yeah, that's true. [00:01:31] Goings on, right? We did have one lady. Well, which one you wanna talk about right? ? Because you, you, you will have a Karen, you, you will have someone who. Likes to complain about every little thing, every little leaf that they find on the back patio. Well, that's what this lady's thing was, right? Yes. Like a lot of times that starts with, I feel like it's something that [00:02:00] initially they didn't, they saw it could be anything really. [00:02:07] There's always something that triggers it. Yes, I've noticed. And a lot of times it has something to do with the check in process or something like they couldn't get in the door. Like some, sometimes technology backfires or we forget to change it or, or something. Right. And they couldn't get in and it's, and it was that initial first experience. [00:02:28] And then now they go through and take pictures of. Dust in the corner and hey, there's a mark on the wall over here. And how come there's leaves on the back patio? Well, cuz it's fall, right? and there are trees outside. Right? That's, that's lie . Right? And so it, and, and so it kind of becomes this thing like this, this, well this one particular lady, that's where it was, it was like there were leaves on the, this is a town home, has a patio. [00:02:56] Yes, there are trees outside. It's November, October. In right, Charlotte, North Carolina leaves fall off trees no matter what you do, and she, and we have someone to come and do that. But we like to typically like to wait until all the leaves have fallen where the majority of the leaves have fallen off the trees. [00:03:19] Like mid-November is usually when that happens, right? So we have someone, you know, at least twice a year come and get up all the leaves and put down new mulch and make it look nice. But she, well, that was her initial thing. She want, she wanted it done. Right. I get it. I get it. Okay. It's fine. It's fine. We, and we, we did it. [00:03:44] We, we got it taken care of. We did. And that's usually our response to anything, you know, if there's a, a complaint or a concern or whatever. In fact, we even, that's part of our messaging the first morning is to say, Hey, , you know, let us know if anything's not up to your standards, we'll make it right. That type of thing. [00:03:59] [00:04:00] And this particular lady did not contact us until something like five or six days into her reservation. And she was supposed to stay a long time. Yeah, I wanna say about two months. Well, she was staying through Jan the end of January. Oh wow. Was it? Or maybe end of December. I think it was the end of December. [00:04:15] Yeah. Yeah, it was end. Cause I remember thinking it was through Christmas. Mm-hmm. , right? Yep. Which is, yeah, you're right. About two months or something like that. Yep. Right. And maybe. And once it was the leaf situation and okay, we're gonna send somebody out to do the leaves. But apparently she's lived with the leaves for five days or something and hasn't told us. [00:04:36] And then she starts sending this, these lists of. Other things, right? Like light bulbs were burned out. Yeah. There was a light bulb burn. Okay. So we sent somebody over with the light bulbs and the, the, the rug in the dining room was a tripping hazard for her husband who walks with a cane. Right. Which is, I'm like, well, why don't you just roll it up then, but, okay. [00:04:57] So we sent somebody over to get the rug up. Right, right. And then it was something with the, the toilet was clogged downstairs. . Right. She's like, did they, and, and kind of this tone, a lot of times it's, it's not even the complaint, it's the tone. Yes. Because we sent, we sent somebody to get the rug up and her response back to us was, did the lady tell you that the toilet downstairs has been completely unusable since we've been here? [00:05:22] Right. I'm like, No. And you didn't either, right? Like but you've been there for five days. I would, I would love, love to have known about it. . The previous guest didn't say anything. The cleaners didn't say anything and she didn't say anything for like a four or five days or something. Right. And you didn't say anything for four or five days. [00:05:41] And she didn't even tell us. She told the runner, right, who I then questioned and she said, yeah, I went, I used the pl, the plunger for them. And it went down. I'm like, okay, sounds like it's been solved, but maybe we need to send the plumber out. Right. And [00:06:00] then it was something with the refrigerator door. [00:06:02] Right? The refrigerator door didn't close properly. I don't think that's true. Cause now you're, cuz now that sounds like a valid complaint. Like if somebody said, Hey, the refrigerator door isn't closed properly. Like, why didn't we fix that then? Right. Cause it wasn't that. No, it was more like, . She felt like she had to push it too hard Okay. [00:06:21] To close it. Oh, okay. Like when she closed it, it didn't, she had to like actually close it. I don't know what to tell you about that. It's a door, right? Yes. You have to actually close it. . Nobody said anything about that either, but Okay. Bless her heart, you know? But it was, it was, it is. It's almost. , no matter what you did or how you tried to fix whatever was coming up, it's like, I fixed this. [00:06:47] Here's four more things I don't like. I fixed this. Here's five more things. Snowballs like It tends to snowball. It tends to snowball sometimes. And they are some people that no matter what you do, you can't satisfy them. That's true. You're just not going to be able to, and you know what? I think think sometimes it's just. [00:07:06] there's something going on in their lives and they're, they're just genuinely not happy people. I actually think that's what was going on with her. Yeah. I don't know, and I'm a psychologist, don't. Right. But to me it came across as she was just an unhappy person. She was angry and, and we were a soft target. [00:07:24] Yes. To complain to. Right. Right. And we have to respond to her. Right, right, right. And she knows it. Like she's probably in Walgreens yelling at them too. Yeah. Right, right. But they just told her to leave. Right. Like we we can tell people to leave, but which we eventually did. Yeah. So eventually she said, Hey, it's so bad I can't stay here. [00:07:46] And we said, fine. After about 10 days, I think she stayed for like 10 days. Right? Yeah. And we said, okay, fine. Here's our cancellation policy. Right. And, and she paid. And left. Yeah, sure did. [00:08:00] I'm glad I didn't have to deal with her until the end of December by Felicia. Right. But it's like, oh my gosh. Yeah. You know? [00:08:08] And then of course the people that stayed there before were like, this was great. Right. The people that stayed there after says, Hey, this is one of the best places we've ever stayed in. Right, right. So I don't really think it's was us. No. I don't think so. Sometimes it's not you, but you know, it is important to address issues as guests bring them up. [00:08:26] So the, the question that we like to ask ourselves is, is it within our power? Yeah. To, to do And does it break our system? Yeah. And, and those are the que And in this case, it, it wasn't our power to do and it didn't break the system. And so we did it. So we did it. But it's, it's almost like no matter what we. [00:08:46] Wouldn't, and sometimes that happens, right? Is satisfied. This person, sometimes there are people who will never be satisfied, and what do you do about that? Mm-hmm. , we had another one not too long ago where basically I, she's, I think her actual problem was she didn't realize that she had rented an apartment and not a house. [00:09:09] Mm. Yes. And so she showed up. Her reasons for not wanting to stay were kind of silly. Yeah. It was something like, Hey, there are people outside . Like, well, there were, there were people hanging out, hanging around outside, I think is what she said. Well, it's apartment complex, and it was lot of people that lived there. [00:09:30] Yeah. And they go outside at night sometimes. I mean, I don't think it was anything. The Ferris, it's a nice apartment complex. It is, yes. Right. I think it really, and she, and she said, Hey, I didn't realize this was an apartment. And sometimes I think you gotta replenish between the lines and realize that, okay, that's actually her problem. [00:09:48] Right. And, and so we let her, I think we gave her a refund. Let her go. I think we did because she didn't stay. She just came and left. She came and left. Right. . But it's, it's stuff like that, like often [00:10:00] and, and sometimes you know what it is, it's somebody that, in, like, in her case, it's somebody that's expecting Nordstrom's type experience, but they walk into your target. [00:10:11] Yeah. And they're like, where's my personal shopper? Yeah. And like, we don't do that here, man. Right. . Right. So it's all, but sometimes it's that, that's the actual problem. Is the expectation. Expectation you get the wrong customer. Yep. Right. It happens. It happens sometimes customer, and it happens sometimes, so you know it's not always your fault. [00:10:30] Sometimes it is. Sometimes it's like, Hey, the cleaners missed something and they shouldn't. . Right. Which is something that is within your power to address. Right. So address it and you correct it, right? Yes. Right. Yes. But it, you know, sometimes that's just the thing that sets off the rest of it, right? That little snowball effect. [00:10:48] Like if that had never happened, then they would've never contacted to begin with and these other things they come up with or would've never been even complaints. Right? Right. So that does happen. So, So you were getting to, what do you do about it? What do you do about it? Well, sometimes you can't do anything about it. [00:11:04] Right? I think we covered that. Right? And then what we do do is we, well, we use hospitable to manage our. messaging for us. And on that platform, you can do what's called Mark the review because we have the we, we have it set up so that it automatically sends a review or reviews the guest. There's a slide bar on there where you can mark it and it says Bad review. [00:11:40] And what that does is that pushes that review out to, I believe it's 14 days. Yeah. The point is it, wait, so you kind of skipped ahead to the reviews, cuz that's kind of implied, but that's what happens. You know, that's, that's what you're actually afraid of. It's like, okay, now this lady's gonna leave me a bad review.[00:12:00] [00:12:00] Right because of X, Y, and Z, that maybe isn't even my fault, right? If you think it's going to happen, right? So what do you, what do you, now you're talking about, okay, what do I do about this bad review that's coming? Yep. Right? So part of it is, exactly what you said is, I, I think the timeframe is, especially on Airbnb, it's like you got 14 days. [00:12:18] Yeah. 14 days to respond. And the thing to understand about that is your review, their review doesn't show up until yours shows up. Correct. So, so until you leave them a review, regardless of what they said, it doesn't show up. And if you can wait till the very last second before you leave your review, at least it gives you a two week buffer to then get someone else in there to leave you a review. [00:12:41] because the reviews aren't left in order of when they appear, they're left in order of the the stay. Yes. Right. So if this person stayed two weeks ago and someone else, you know, you can get three more people in there maybe in that next two weeks. Now their three reviews, even when this bad one shows up, are gonna be the top three. [00:13:00] Right. So it kind of varies together. One kinda gets buried. Yeah. And so that, that's a strategy you can use. So that the review doesn't affect you as much cuz you don't want the first thing people to read to be this place is awful because X, Y, and Z. Right. So that that's what you're talking about. Yeah. [00:13:19] Yeah. So you wait till the very last minute and using a tool like Hospitable does that for you automatically. Right. So you don't have to remember, oh God, it's 11 o'clock on the 26th. Right. , I need to go send that. You know, push that review through. Right. That happened two weeks ago. Right. Because you'll forget all about it. [00:13:35] Oh yeah, totally. Yeah. But, but that is a good strategy. So, but, but it is important to know that you have 14 days to respond and as, but. The guest review will not show up until you as a host, leave them a review as well. Right. So, so that is a strategy that [00:14:00] we employ. It's basically just part of our procedures. [00:14:02] If we even suspect someone may not leave us a very far star review. Yes. Right. For whatever reason, we just push them Right. And push 'em out two weeks. Yep. And, and wait. So that, that's a strategy for dealing with it. Yep. And then, okay, so say this lady with the leaves and all that, she's going to probably, if she leaves us a review, maybe they won't. [00:14:23] Maybe, right. So part of the waiting is I don't want to give them an additional notification that says, Hey, Wendy left you a review. Right. Right. So that's part of the waiting as well. But if she leaves us for review, what do we do about it? Right. So can we do anything about it? , we always respond to reviews. [00:14:45] That is one of the, oh, that's number one. Yeah. That that is one of the things that we have our customer experience specialists do is respond to all the reviews in no, no matter what ota. Online travel agents, see what they call OTAs, like Airbnb is an ota. VRBO is an ota. booking.com. As an ota, no matter what platform they come from, we always respond to reviews, good or bad. [00:15:14] Right. And that and that support the note that that's different from your review to them, right? That is, this is a, this is. You can leave a review for a guest, but you can also respond to a review from a guest. From a guest, right? And, and that's important because, later guests who are reviewing your listing will see the review. [00:15:38] Yes. But then right under it they'll see, hey, your response to it response. Mm-hmm. . And the key there is to make, to realize that, okay, I'm actually not writing it back to Karen . I'm actually responding to the next person that's going to read it. Yeah. The person reading it, the future guest. Right. So you, you want to write it in a way that usually it's, it's [00:16:00] something like this was an issue. [00:16:02] It's been resolved, it's no longer an issue type thing. Right, right. And that just gives, you know, a pot, a potential future guest, the feeling that okay, they're actually resolving the issues. If there were any, it's resolved now. You know, it's not all just one side of the story. Right, right. So you want both sides of the story there, but we try to give 'em the warm fuzzies then. [00:16:25] Yeah. And keep it short. Sure. Don't write a large paragraph. Well, And That's so funny because the, we, we coach people on, on how to, you know, operate their businesses. And this is one of the things that a lot of our students have a really hard time with, I think a lot of people do. Cause it's emotional, you feel attacked. [00:16:49] Exactly. It's, you feel personally attacked when somebody. Has bad things to say about something that you spend a lot of money making sure that, that it's set up well. It looks nice. The, you've got the, you've spent a lot of emotional energy on getting this listing up and running to a certain standard that you feel like is, is five stars. [00:17:23] And, and if you spend all this emotional energy on something and somebody comes in and, and says, no, it's, it's not five stars. Here's all the things that are wrong with it. You're like, what? No, that's not true. , right? Yeah. But you, you get, you feel emotionally attacked and you feel like, well, you wanna respond emotionally and you, you wanna write this? [00:17:51] All this three paragraph response to somebody. And that's really not the way to do that. You, [00:18:00] that's not the way to respond to . To, right. Cause they're what you want is their emotional response and then your very logical professional. Unfortunately, this person didn't have the experience that they wanted to have. [00:18:13] Exactly. And you know, we tried to fix these issues. Exactly. And they. You know, we're basically a pain in the ass. But you don't say that. Right. But you know, you want to contrast, you can actually use that against them actually. Yes. Because now they look like they're, cuz it's like, good review, good review, good review. [00:18:29] Wall of text about how bad the place is. Right. Emotional, emotionally charged. And then, and then your response to it saying, unfortunately, you know, yes, Karen had this issue. We, we resolved it in this way. It's no longer an. , Right. You know, we welcome you back in the future type thing. Right, right, right. [00:18:48] Or whatever. Right. We value guest feedback. Yeah. But it, it's short. It's sweet, it's professional. There's no emotion to it at all, and, and it, it's, it's, we're sorry that, that Karen had the, the, a less than five star experience. Here's how we address these issues. We welcome guest feedback and we appreciate the opportunity to, to resolve these issue. [00:19:18] From any guest, we, we hope that they have a great experience on Airbnb, , whatever. Right? Yeah. And, and then, and bam, you're done. Bam, you're done. And now you've kind of neutralized that at least. Wall of text, emotional thing that happened. Right? Cause there was a leaf on your backyard. Right. Right. So that, that's part of it. [00:19:40] That's a big part of it. And then the other part of it is sometimes you can actually have these reviews removed. Yeah. That's cause it is, it is affecting your, your star rating. That's true. It does. But that's a problem. It does. Especially if somebody leaves you a one star and you've got, even if you. What, 10, 20. [00:19:57] Well do the math. You need 25 star reviews. To [00:20:00] overcome that, you need 25 star reviews to overcome a one star review to get back to a 4.8, which is would be super host status. Right. Right. So, so a one star review, it does affect, actually pre detrimental. Yeah, it does affect because of the way the star ratings work and because it's almost like 4.8 is almost perfection. [00:20:20] Right. Like even a four star review, if you think about it, if you have a four and a five star review, you now have a 4.5 rating. Four and a half. If you have a four star and two five stars, now you're at like 4.7 or you're still not at super host. Right? Right. So it, you know, having even a four star review is, is one of those just mathematically until you have a ton of reviews, like we. [00:20:46] you know, once you've got a hundred of them, it's not as detrimental. Right? Right. Because you've got so many good ones. But especially at the beginning of a listing, that can be almost devastating to your star rating. Right? So sometimes you have grounds to have the platform remove the review, right? [00:21:01] Especially this is a case on Airbnb, you know, more, more than the others, I wanna say. . What you wanna do is go read the Airbnb policy. Yeah. Cause they actually have a review policy. They also have a content policy, and you want to review those and say, Hey, did anything they say or did this review that they wrote violate Airbnb's policy on reviews? [00:21:24] Like they can't call you names. Right. There's stuff like that. Right. It has to be relevant right to the stay. So if they say something, I don't know. The city of Dallas is dirty and it's awful . Right. And that's their review. Right. Well that has nothing to do with you. Right? It's not really relevant to, or the space, the the space. [00:21:43] Right. If it's something totally external or Right. You know, the, the cab drivers are rude in this area. Right. That's not relevant to your Right. Your listing per se. Right. Right. So there, there are certain things they can't come to you and say, Hey. Either you give us [00:22:00] $1,100 or we're gonna leave you a bad review. [00:22:02] Oh, that happened to us too. That happened. This was a lady that stayed a long time too. Oh, she did. She stayed for months and months. I think she, her stay was something like 146 days or something. Yeah. And her real problem was she wanted to leave three days early. Yeah. And we stuck to our cancellation policy. [00:22:20] said, sorry, you gotta pay for the three days, especially since you're just now telling us three days the day you wanna leave, type thing. Right, right, right. And she didn't like that. And she actually, and this is a good tip, she actually called Wendy and Wendy answered the phone. Right. So one of the things we always say is, because of these content policies and. [00:22:38] Things that people might violate. It's better if you can get them to say it in the messaging system. Yes. Keep it on the message. But in this case, the phone rang when you answered it, it was her. And she basically told you either she's like, Wendy, either you gimme $1,100 back or I'm gonna leave a really bad review. [00:22:55] Well, she was a host too. And she was a host and she knows better. And she, she knew, knew exactly what she was doing. She knew exactly what she was doing. Mm-hmm. . And she knew to call because she knew it would be off the record. Well, guess what? What she doesn't know is that we record all of our phone calls. [00:23:07] Yes. So it wasn't off the record, but Yep. And make sure that's legal in your state. In fact, it's probably better a good idea to just say, Hey, this call is being recorded. Then you're good. Right. But we actually had a recording saying that now whether you can use a recording is the evidence with the Airbnb is another story. [00:23:27] So let's say, you know, if you can keep it in the messaging. Then it's very easy to say, okay, here's the evidence, right, and here's the review. Right? And then you can get something like that actually removed. Removed. And you said you got an email here recently? Yeah. So apparently as we're filming this, this is apparently, yeah. [00:23:44] Yesterday, November, 2020, Airbnb actually has released. Winter updates is what they called it. Yeah. So they, they're updating the software. Right. But as part of that, they've updated the, the review policy. Yes. And they call it retaliatory [00:24:00] reviews. Right. So there's a new process for getting what they call retaliatory reviews removed from your listing. [00:24:07] Right. And that would be an example of one where like, Hey, because you didn't give me a refund, then I'm going to do this. Yes. Right. And in the past it's been hard to. It's almost like whichever rep you call. Yeah, pretty much, right? Some, some say this. Yeah. Some will say this. Yeah. You know, this kind of thing, right? [00:24:26] But I think they're trying to revise that policy and they said that, hey, even, even ones that had been in the past, We'll now go back and review. So we might be able to get this lady removed. Right. Cause initially they would not remove it. No, we tried it. They would not. We tried. So there, there you go. [00:24:42] That, so we haven't quite fully read through that yet, so I don't really have a lot to say about it. But it's there and they're aware of it. That it's, that it's actually an issue. Mm-hmm. . Yep. Well that, those are really great tips, I think. Yeah, I think so. It's, you know, when you get someone who's complaining. [00:25:01] basically try to resolve the issue in the most professional way you can. And you know, ask yourself those questions and then ask yourself those, the, is it, is it within my power to do mm-hmm. and does it break my system? Right. And that's with any request really. Right. Not even just problems, but it could be, Hey, do you guys offer bikes for rent? [00:25:20] Well, no, we don't. Yeah, right, right. So it's not something we normally do. It's just, and, and so we, we do that with every request, even if it's. Non-complaint. Right, right. Ask ourself those questions. Yeah. And then, and then, you know, you can, you, you can push that review back 14 days, I believe it. And so that it gets buried. [00:25:45] Mm-hmm. , that's a good, or it doesn't happen at all, or doesn't happen at all. If you can get it, it is possible to, to, well, I mean, they may not even leave you review. Well, that's true. If you push it out for two weeks mm-hmm. , then they're not getting that extra notification that's, that says, Hey, when do you send [00:26:00] your review? [00:26:00] You might wanna leave her one. Right, right. They'll think maybe they're just not gonna leave me one. And by the time they get the notification, it's too late. Right, right. So that's part of it. And then, oh, you were talking about getting it, remove. So it is, that is a possibility, you know, if you, if you get a bad review, it is a possibility you can get it removed if it violates one of the pop platform policies, basically. [00:26:21] Right. Or is retaliatory, which violates the policy. . Right. And try to keep everything in the messaging threat. Yeah. And try to keep everything on the platform. On the platform. Mm-hmm. Texting and calling and things like that. Especi. , especially if it's someone, you even have an, an inkling that they, that it's an actual complaint that you're dealing with, try to keep that on the platform. [00:26:46] Yeah, for sure. So a lot of times, even if somebody texts us, what we'll do is go back to the platform and respond. Or if they call, we don't answer the phone, it goes to voicemail. They leave us a voicemail. And then we'd respond back in the messaging center. So we've kind of always kind of redirecting things back to that channel. [00:27:03] Right. And you can kind of train people to talk to you there. Yes. Right. Mm-hmm. . So that's, that's a little tip and trick as well. Yep. Yep. Well, we dropped lots of nuggets today. I think so, yeah. That's a little bitty nuggets. Well, we hope you found some value in this episode. We are John and Wendy Williams with the short-term Rental Authority, your authority on all things short-term rental related. [00:27:26] To help make you the best operator ever. And I can subscribe. I can subscribe. Yeah. . Onto next. Onto the next [00:27:39]

STRA Episode 15: The four main things about your listing that will get you booked [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams, the short-term rental authority, your authority on all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And today, we are going to blow your mind with the four main things to consider to help get you booked. [00:00:30] So let's get into it because it. Very it goes along with how we do a listing audit. We get a lot of people come, come to us and say, Hey, can you review my listing? So we thought that we would give you some tips on. How we actually review listings and do listing audits. So what's the first thing that we need to consider here? [00:00:56] Well, I, I would say that you, you need to, Well, the first thing you need to consider is who's your target customer? So we, we've talked about that a million times, but it, it bears repeating because it's very important too, how you're going to develop the listing and who you're marketing to. Right? So in that context, You want to be using the listing to your advantage to attract the customer that you're actually trying to attract. [00:01:24] Right. That makes sense. But a lot of times we see that that's not what's actually actually happening. So these, these kind of main areas that we're talking about are like the first things we go to. And what I like to think about is in the mind and in the shoes of the customer that you're trying to attract. [00:01:43] You gotta realize what their process is in finding you. Mm. And here we're talking about the OTAs, we're talking about in context of, Hey, this is a listing on Airbnb, or this is a listing on vrbo. And the first thing I usually show people is, And it should be [00:02:00] obvious, but it is. Once you see it is the very first thing is you're going to show up in search. [00:02:05] So you're going to show up in a list with a bunch of other properties, and the only thing really, people have to go on because remember, this listing is your sales and marketing. You're not there to talk to this person. They've just found you in search. I think that is really. Let's not just gloss over that. [00:02:27] Okay. Because that, I don't think that a lot of people even have that realization or that mindset that, that your listing is actually. your marketing and your first touch, if you will, to the customer. Yeah. And, and all it's a sales process. Yeah. And that is really what it is. It's a sales process. Yeah. And it's a silent one because you're there on their computer looking at your listing. [00:02:58] Right? Yes. But there is a a sequence of how that goes, Right. That you show up in search, How do you get 'em to click on your listing and not the one right next to it? Right. Right. How do you even get them to stop scrolling? In the search, and that's the very first thing you wanna look at is, and because we are humans and we're visual, we tend to be looking at the pictures, right? [00:03:21] So as a consumer, you're scrolling through and you're looking at the pictures. Right? And I would say that it a, a lot of people, if you've ever gone to Airbnb or, or vrbo or any of those OTAs, And you're scrolling through those photos, what catches your eye? And that's just it. Yeah. Right. And that's, that's what you need to focus on is how do I catch my customer's eye? [00:03:58] And as a [00:04:00] designer, , I would say, Color is a really big factor in that. It is. Yeah. And, and having, I don't know if I'm going too fast here, but, and if you were gonna cover this, but having a, a really colorful first photo is, that's what people that's go, that's what's going to make people stop scrolling. Yeah. [00:04:27] And it bears, it bears saying that it's a photo. So it's that first. So you gotta think about what's my first photo? Is it attractive? Does it catch the eye? Is it it needs to be a statement, photo, right? Mm-hmm. . So oftentimes I see someone has as their first photo, a picture of a house Oh. Or something. [00:04:50] Yeah. Which beyond being. Other concerns with that? It's just like it's a house. Right? And that's not what you're selling. You understand? Right? Cuz this is not real estate. Yeah. What you're actually trying to attract is someone who wants the experience, right? So you're not selling the house, you're not selling the apartment, you're really selling the experience. [00:05:11] Now, there are times when the experience is, Hey, I want to be in a treehouse. Right? In those cases, maybe that is what you want to. , you know, if it's so, or one of those little tiny homes. Yeah. Maybe. But even then it's like, I, it's, it's not the home I'm after. It's the experience of it. Right. And so it's that first photo that you need. [00:05:33] And we call, we tend to call those our, our money shots because that's where you make your money. Yep. is in those shots. So you want something very specific, something that is going to not only catch the eye, but catch the eye of the right customer. Right. The one you are trying to attract. Right? Right. And so that's, that's, that's the first area is, hey, what's your first photo? [00:05:55] Does it, does it stop them scrolling? Does it make them want to click on the listing? [00:06:00] And then the other thing that you can see in in search is, well, you have control over your. Right. So Airbnb specifically recently changed this and they, it was first photo and then they used to show whatever your title was, right under that. [00:06:18] But now it just says, you know, two bedroom house in whatever city. Yeah. Or one bedroom apartment in whatever city or whatever. Right, Right. And then your title is below. , but it's not all of your title. Mm-hmm. , if you'll notice, if you go to search, a lot of the times it's, it's just the first part of the title. [00:06:36] Ooh, that's interesting. So that's the very next thing we're gonna look at is what is your title? And you get a certain number of characters, right? So you've got a certain amount of real estate there, no pun intended, to advertise your place. And again, get the click. That's what you're after in search. Get the click. [00:06:54] Mm-hmm. . So what you want in your title. Is features. Features that are important to the client that you're trying to serve. Right? And you want those features left to right. So the most important or is on the left, Yes. The mo, the thing that you really want to advertise to attract that customer you want On the far left of your title? [00:07:15] Mm-hmm. . So here's an example of a bad title. Cozy Cabin in the Woods, right? It doesn't re it's, it's kind of vague. It, it doesn't really tell me anything about the, the, the property and, and I'm not sure exactly who you're trying to attract. Cozy, to me is code word for small. It could be, but it's also vague. [00:07:41] It's very vague. And it's subjective. And it's like beautiful , right? That's another one. Like you see that all the time. Yeah. Or here's some, here's another mistake I. People make is they'll say three bedroom home. Well, they already know it's a three bedroom home because they filtered for that in search. [00:07:58] Right. So [00:08:00] generally I want things in the title that are not searched or not necessarily filters. Yeah. Or the main filters. Yeah. Like property type or number of bedrooms or, or whatever. Right, Right. I, here, here's a good lead in for like, for example, our client type are families with children and pet. [00:08:20] Who are coming to the area for reasons, right? That we, we have described in between housing insurance claim on their property life events. Right? But saying pet friendly and my title doesn't help me because pet friendly is already a filter, right? So instead of leading with pet friendly, I lead with Fenced in Backyard. [00:08:42] Pet in backyard. Yep. And that gets me the. , Right. Fenced in backyard. And then maybe the next thing is you know, gig wifi May, and then maybe desk workspace. Mm-hmm. or something. Mm-hmm. , you know what, Or like three TVs. Yeah. You know, because King beds. King beds is a good one. Is a good one. Yeah. Right. [00:09:03] Again, these are things that are attractive to our client, right? Mm-hmm. , right. So, It. That's, that's how you want to structure a title. You want feature, feature, feature, feature, and you want most important feature to your client on the left to least important feature on your right, because we, one, we read left to right and two in search. [00:09:27] If you notice, if you look at as a consumer, your eyes are drawn to picture and then you'll look down and see the first word and the title. And then you read left to right. Mm-hmm. . Right. So again, I'm after the click. Right. So now we've gotten people to stop scrolling on our listing with a great first picture. [00:09:47] Yeah. Right. That's got lots of color and it's a, you know, a, a picture of something that they are interested in. Mm-hmm. . Then we've got the, the title now they've [00:10:00] clicked on it, and now they've see, they see the title. But they only see a little bit of the title. Yeah. Sometimes. Yeah. Right. So now, now have they, have they clicked on it? [00:10:12] Yeah. Let's, let's say we've earned the click. Okay. So we did a good job in search. We had a great first photo. Lots of color right. Stopped 'em from scrolling. They've clicked on it. The title said Fenced in Backyard, and they said, That's us. And clicked on it. Yeah, clicked on it. Okay. So now they've clicked on it. [00:10:26] Now what do we got to work with? Well, now again, we, on the internet in a browser or even on mobile, it's top to bottom. Right? Right. So, So this is your listing here? Yes. Yes. So it's, it's now titles right at the top, and now it's your full title. Right. So now it matters what else you said. Right. But still left to right. [00:10:46] Mm-hmm. . So title's really important because now you've. About, I don't know, eight seconds to get this person to even wanna look at the rest of your listing. Right. Right. So you've got title. And you've got title right at the top. So title again, title again is important, and pictures underneath that. In the first five photos, the first five photos, so on a desktop, for example, you're gonna see five, your first five photos listed there with a button that says, Show more photos. [00:11:12] Right? And that's what people are looking at now, right? Or on mobile, it's you, you're, you're swiping. Mm-hmm. . So again, it's how many, They're gonna swipe a few times before they say, Eh, and go to the next one. Or they say, Ooh. Show me more. Right? So your first five photos now are going to be the next most important. [00:11:32] Yes. So you've got that first photo that is gonna be there anyway, because that's what showed up in search. Right. But now those first five photos because we're visual again, this is the next step in the sales process of, Hey, do I want to go any further? Mm-hmm. , right. And so those first five photos, one shouldn't be of the same thing. [00:11:52] Right? . So if the first five photos are all of the living room, right? Then you haven't told me anymore than you already told me [00:12:00] in search, right? Right. So what we do is we will have the first five photos be sort of a mini tour. of the property, and again, we're thinking what are the features Yes. That my client customer is looking for? [00:12:13] Yes. Wants to see. Right. So in our case, the the first five photos may include a picture of the fenced in backyard. Mm-hmm. or. A screenshot of the wifi speed. Mm-hmm. or a desk and like the workspace. Right. Or maybe it's showing the, you know, the, a bedroom, a living room, the kitchen. Mm-hmm. , the washer and dryer washing dryer's. [00:12:38] A good one or whatever. The first five things that Okay. Now I'm, now they're more interested. It could be a slim pool. Yeah. Right. Whatever it is, you know, That's for your client type. Yep. Because that's what you need to get them to even click, show more photos. Right? Right. And, and then after that it's okay. [00:13:02] Now let's take them on a full tour of the property. Right. But people are gonna go, once they click on your listing, they're gonna see your title. And then they're gonna see your first five pictures. Mm-hmm. . And then what are they most likely to do next? Probably if you've done a good job, they're gonna say, Show more photos. [00:13:20] Show more photos. Because again, we're visual. Yes. And so now once, once you have, have drawn them in with these first five photos. Now let's talk about the rest of your photos. Right. So you've got your first five photos, but you're gonna need at least what, 25 third or 30? Yeah, 20 to 30 is is probably optimal photos. [00:13:50] Yeah. So after your first five pictures, now let's talk about what the rest of your pictures look like. Right? And, and I, that's what I was alluding to is [00:14:00] after the first five. Cause those first five are your mini tour. It's your, Hey, here's our great features that we built this for you. Wouldn't you like to see. [00:14:08] And they're like, Yes, show me more. Right? And then now we're talking about order of pictures. Yes. So after the first five, I, I always suggest that, Okay, now let's start at the front door and walk through the property. Right? Because what you don't want is a jumbled mix of pictures so that it's confusing to your guest of what they're actually looking at. [00:14:28] Right? Like, like if you've got one. picture of the kitchen, and then your next picture is of a bathroom and your next picture of is of a bedroom. We don't, the, the customer doesn't understand the flow of the space. Mm-hmm. . Right. That's really what we're trying to do here is. after your first five pictures. [00:14:52] Your sixth picture is what do they see right when they open the door, for example? Mm-hmm. , right? Now, you're gonna take them on a tour of the, of the space. When they open the door, what is the very first thing they're gonna see, right? Mm-hmm. , maybe it's, maybe it's the living room. And then now you're gonna show them all your living room pictures. [00:15:19] Right. But when you say all your living room pictures, please don't take 10 pictures of your living room. No. Nobody needs to see 10 pictures of a freaking living room. Cause remember, again, a lot of what's going on is on mobile. And on mobile it's scroll. It's slide, I would say. And so if I see Max, if I see living room. [00:15:37] Living room, Okay. You told me that story already. Yeah, right. Like you're losing my interest three or four max of the living room. Yeah. And that's a lot. And if, but if there's a sleeper sofa, please pay. Please pull out the sleeper sofa. Make it up. Nice. Like, put the, put the comforter on the [00:16:00] bed, you know, pull the bed out, put the comforter on the bed, put the pillows on the bed, and then use those decorative throw pillows, design mode again, that you decorated the, the sofa with. [00:16:15] Like, make it up like a regular. So people can see it show because if it's not in the pictures, it does not exist. Yeah. That's a good rule for pictures that that's what you just said is a really good rule for pictures. If it's not in the photos, it doesn't exist. So I know you wrote it in your listing because people aren't gonna read. [00:16:32] I know you wrote it in your listing that you have a blender, but if you don't open the cabinets in the kitchen and show the blender Yes. People, it's not there. Yep. If you don't show towels in the bathroom, it won't, It's not there. Right. Right. So tour the property, but everything that's in in drawers show that. [00:16:52] Yeah. If there's something in the drawer, Right. Particularly the kitchen. Yeah, for sure. If you have a closet that has a stroller in it, open the closet and show where the stroller is and hangers and, and then pull it out and show it like a pack and place, show, you know, show where it is. Yep. And then show it put up. [00:17:08] Mm-hmm. , you know, assembled cuz that this is also. Your pictures not only marketing, but they're also later. Where do I find that? Oh, the, in the pictures that was in this closet. Oh, there it is. Mm-hmm. , right? Yep. All those kind of things. So that, that's pictures, That's order of pictures. We could talk a lot more about pictures in order of them, but that's a whole. [00:17:30] Right. Podcasting itself. So now people have, they've clicked on your listing. You've got a really great title, you've got really great first five photos. They said, Yeah, this looks great. Show me more. So they've clicked on view more photos. Mm-hmm. . And now they're like, Oh man, this place looks really great. [00:17:48] Now what are they gonna do? Well, they may just book it, They may, they may just book it. So, at any, any point in this process, it's, it's important to note that that may be the end of it, but it may not be. And [00:18:00] okay, now we need to go down the next garden path to get the booking right. Which is, Which is down the page. [00:18:07] Yes. It's the very next thing. It's your description. It's your description. Yep. And it doesn't show your entire description by the way. It shows the first part of it with, again, re, you know, show more just like the pictures that she only shows. Five with show more. Mm-hmm. , Right? So the very first thing you say in your listing description should, again speak to that. [00:18:27] And it, and the worst thing you can do is write a giant paragraph because people don't read, right? People scan. Right. Just like the, the pictures tell a lot of story. Your words now or where we're at. And you want that very first sentence to be a sentence that talks to your client. And then the rest of that thing should be bullet points. [00:18:48] Yes, it should look more like an outline. a book paragraph. Yeah. It should look like an outline. Right? And you're really bulleting here the things that would appeal the most to the customer that you were trying to attract. Right? That's a theme, isn't it? Mm-hmm. . So everything in here is what appeals to my client. [00:19:09] Yep. So we, we even put like black stars, Around the things we want to highlight. Yeah. Because that again, draws your eye to that. Yes. So they'll skip the paragraph and look, look at the things that I have stars around. Yep. Right. And again, it's hitting those same things. Here's the why, here's why speed. [00:19:26] Here's the, the distance it is. That, that's usually where we show distances Yes. To, to things that they are, that they would be interested in. That they would be interested in that why they're coming. Right? Yeah. Right. So to landmarks, Yes. That are important to your client. So if you're, if you're serving business travelers, for example, Put the convention center. [00:19:48] Yeah. Two miles to convention center, two miles to conven or, or medical travels. Put the hospitals on there. Mm-hmm. for example, or how, what's the distance to the airport? Or airport? Right, Right. All the, whatever is important to your client [00:20:00] type, but again, it's in bullet point. Lots of space in between words. [00:20:05] Yes. And sentences, no paragraphs. Right. Very none of that kind of stuff need a need. Yes. Yeah. Very scannable. Mm-hmm. with highlights of the things you really want them to know. Yes. Right, right. And that very first sentence needs to be enticing enough to even wanna read the rest of it. Mm-hmm. . Right. So, and there we usually use really colorful language. [00:20:26] Yes. Here. Yeah. So really descriptive adjectives. Descriptive adjectives. Okay. Coming from the English teacher. Yes. Yes. Okay. . Right, right. Colorful language. Yeah. So your description is, is last. So we went in order of picture, first picture, first half of your title. To full title, first five pictures, the rest of your pictures, and now the description mm-hmm. [00:20:55] and see how that's a, that's a process in the, in the way that people are actually using the platform. Right. And we're, we're all along the way saying, Hey, here's the features that you will, like, here's the features you will like. Right here's, here's. Distance to whatever that you're going to mm-hmm. [00:21:09] Right. And, you know, we also list everything, like, all the amenities in there too. Yeah. Like, like central. AC or something like that. What? Pots and pans. Pots and pans. The blender. The blender. There's a toaster. You know, all the things that, that our guests would be interested. A Craig K cups. Mm-hmm. , you know, that kind of thing, right? [00:21:32] Creamer. So then, and we also list all the, all those amenities too, right? So now after they've read their description, they're like, Oh man, this sounds really great. What are they gonna do next? Hopefully book it well, right? But But they might go read your reviews. Yes. Right, right. Next people are usually the next step in that is if they haven't booked it by, They're [00:22:00] gonna go check you out. [00:22:01] Yeah. And see what other people have said about this particular listing, right? Mm-hmm. . And that's one of the things, that's one of the reasons I think that a lot of people use Airbnb platforms like Airbnb. Yeah. Cuz they don't know you because Right. And not only that, it's it, it's a, it's social. That, that's the word that I was looking for. [00:22:27] Yeah. It's what has, what has other people's experience been like? Staying in your space? Mm-hmm. , right? So they want to know more about you because they, they, maybe they've never booked on a platform like Airbnb before. Maybe they're a new user and, and they don't, they don't know what to expect. Or maybe they are. [00:22:53] They, they do use a platform like Airbnb or VRBO a lot, and they've had all these different types of experiences and they, again, they don't know what to expect because there's no such thing as an Airbnb. Right. Like that, that could be anything. Right? You're, it could be anything. They wanna know what to expect in your listing, right? [00:23:19] So how do you control that though? Cause you don't write reviews, other people write reviews, right? So what, what do you do? Well, you create experience for the customer that you want to serve. Right? And I, I wanna say that's a big part of good reviews. The fact that you did attract the right customer mm-hmm. [00:23:40] and you are giving them the experience that they wanted and, and, and so part of getting good reviews is have good marketing that's targeted at the person that this place actually is designed to serve. Yes. Because that, that's where bad reviews usually come from. It usually is, yes. It's someone who walks into your property that either [00:24:00] doesn't appreciate the features that are there because they're not using them, It's not their target client. [00:24:06] or someone who it, it's kind of like a, a a Nordstrom customer that walks into a Walmart, Right? Right. Or a Target or, or, or a Walmart customer that walks into a Nordstrom. Right. Like the, there's nothing wrong with Walmart or Nordstrom. It's more about what your expectation was. Mm-hmm. when you walked in there, you know? [00:24:25] Yep. The Walmart customer's gonna say, Well, Nordstrom, I'm not paying 90 bucks for T-shirt. Right. But the Nordstrom Cub Store may walk into a Walmart and say, I'm not walking all around this store. I need somebody to help me. You know? And what, What's the quality of this t-shirt? Right. Right. So one doesn't appreciate the other, but they both make money. [00:24:43] Mm-hmm. . And you gotta think about that in terms of who you're attracting as well. Yeah. So reviews do, you're right. Has a lot to do with who you attract. Yeah. But there's one other component of a reviews that you can control is your response. It's your responses. Mm-hmm. . Yes. Yeah. I, I think the main thing to, to think about when you are, Well, number one, you should be responding to reviews. [00:25:09] Yeah. On, you could be responding to a good review or you could be responding to a not so good review. Right. Right. But regardless, you should be responding to reviews because people will read that. Yeah. And when you, when you are doing that, remember that you are. Talking to the guest who left the review necessarily. [00:25:29] That's true. You were talking to potential guests. Yeah. Who are reading the review, who are reading the review, and then they're reading your response to the review. Right. Cause that gives them an idea of what's the interaction like with this host. Yes. Yes. Right? Mm-hmm. . And so if it's a good review, you want to write something back. [00:25:51] You know, appropriate for a good review. Mm-hmm. that shows that hey, you are interactive with and you're appreciative. And you're appreciative of them, of them, of [00:26:00] them booky of choosing you. And you cared that they had a good experience. Yes. That you cared. It shows that you cared. Yes. Yes it does. And that goes a long way. [00:26:09] Mm-hmm. Sure enough. But what about a bad. Well, so that goes back to what you were saying, right? You're really writing a response to a bad review to the Not that person. Not that person. Right. To a potential guest. Cause sometimes that can be emotional. Mm-hmm. , like somebody leaves you a bad review and you're like, Oh yeah. [00:26:26] Oh it you, It used to really hurt my heart. Especially when it was something that maybe it wasn't even in your control. Like they were expecting one thing and it's just not what your product is. Right. Right. Or something. Mm-hmm. . Right. Or, you know, it, it was something about, you know, the neighbors did something right. [00:26:43] It had nothing to do with you at all, really. Right. That you couldn't control. Like the power went out or the power went out. Right. And it sometimes it is something you did. Sometimes, you know, sometimes it is, you know, we aren't imperfect, Right? Yeah. Like sometimes, I mean, we aren't perfect, we are imperfect. [00:27:00] Right. Like, we dropped the ball somewhere. Yeah. And so that calls, so it's mm-hmm. . So how do you respond then? , it's important to take the emotion out of it Yeah. When you are responding. So [00:27:17] don't respond with, with, Well this guest , you know, didn't they didn't listen and didn't read. They didn't read my des. If they had read the description, they would have sit, they would have seen that this was an apartment and not a house. Right. That actually happened when, Right. Yeah. Or something like that. [00:27:42] So take the emotion out of your response and just be very professional. And if they, for example, didn't follow a house rule, you know, maybe just state. [00:28:00] that as per our house rules, we don't accept parties, for example. Yeah. Or something like that. Yeah. Like I usually I will, I'll use language like this. [00:28:13] When I respond to a view, I will say something like, unfortunately, Oh, that's a good one. You know, Megan, I'm just making up the name. Unfortunately, Megan you know, experience wasn't up to her. Standards. We do use professional cleaning crew and you know, we, we, you know, we've addressed this issue and we fixed it, or whatever it was. [00:28:37] Mm-hmm. , right? Whatever the issue was, it's usually okay, we, we heard her, we've addressed it. This is what we've done. It's now not that way anymore. Right. Whatever it was. You know, a battery usually comes from something about cleaning. Yeah. Or something about you know, it can just be retaliatory sometimes. [00:28:56] Yeah. You know, they had a party and we don't allow parties. Right. Unfortunately, you know, Megan had 15 guests. Right. And we had to ask them to not do that. . Right. Right. And then people will understand that, okay, this isn't the norm. This is, this is what happened. Right. Type thing. Right. Or, you know, this is a norm. [00:29:17] It looks like they've addressed it. Right. The worst thing you do is just let it sit Sure. And not say anything. Sure. For sure. So, yeah, responding to your reviews both good and bad, or is, is critical. Mm-hmm. , I think mm-hmm. , Yeah. To a good extent. And I, and I think that, if a, somebody were to be looking at your unit and they're thinking about having a party then, now, actually the point too. [00:29:43] Yeah. They, and you've responded to this review. Now they're, they're almost put on notice. , we, we know that this is going down, we're watching mm-hmm. and it kind of tends [00:30:00] to deter people who are, have malicious intents that, that may want to Yeah, that's a good point. May want to have a party. Yeah. A good way to kind of deter that. [00:30:12] Right, Right. It's it, yeah. It's like, I better not book this place . Right. I'm really looking to have a party. , right? Yeah, yeah. Oh, they're gonna be watching me. That's a good point. So, I mean, not everybody that clicks on your listing, do you want them to book it, right? Yeah. Right. So you wanna be very clear about. [00:30:30] Very, you know, in all those other things we talked about too, very clear about, Hey, here's what you're getting. Yep. Here's what you can expect. Yes. If that's you, then please welcome, please, like, and subscribe to our listing [00:30:48] Totally. Five stars. We click again, , you know? Right, right. So, so hopefully with, with all those tips, now you've got the booking, and you've got the booking from the right person. Who's then gonna add to those reviews that we just talked about? Yes, exactly. Because they know what to expect. Yeah. And, and they know what kind of experience they're going to be having. [00:31:08] Mm-hmm. . Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Because you've thought about them. Yeah. And that, that's what really down to, That's very, that's the thing. You, and we've said it millions of times, that's where it all starts. Yeah. It all starts with you as the operator first. Thinking about who you're serving, like who do you want to attract, who do you want to attract in your space? [00:31:33] That's the very first thing to help make you the best operator ever. Yes. Is think about who you're serving. Yes. So hopefully that has been helpful and you have enjoyed listening to us ramble about all those things. Well, hopefully it has really been helpful. We, we do strive. To be helpful. . Yeah. And to, to add value. [00:31:58] Well, sometimes there's so much more. Cause I [00:32:00] could just sit here and talk about this for an hour. I know. And it's really hard to ring you in. Yeah, it really is. So I try to, I understand when he makes a list and she's like, We're talking about this, this, this, and this. Because you'll go off on rabbit holes and I just got to reel you back. [00:32:14] Hey man, you almost talked about sofa beds for like five minutes there. That's not true. It was not five minutes. I mean, one. But hopefully I enjoyed my tip about sofa bed. And leave us a comment. Did you enjoy the tip about Coke, sofa, bed? And if you did, like and subscribe to so that you can hear more tips about other things besides forbids, , because we have so much more to talk about. [00:32:45] We do. So , well hopefully you did and we will see you next. Onto the next . [00:32:54]

Episode 14: What to do About a Party in Your Short-Term Rental [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams with the Short-term Rental Authority, Your authority for all things short term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. [00:00:21] And today we are going to be talking. What to do if someone has a party in your unit and the insurance that is related to short term rentals and more importantly, how to prevent it from happening in the first place. Yes, Yes. Excellent. Well, there are several systems and processes. Processes, processes. I think that's right. [00:00:47] Actually. Pro. Oh, really? Processes, process. I really like processes because it makes you sound really smart. . So is this where you're like, how do you say that in English? , What's the English word for, Right, Right. , Maybe that's what it is. Maybe that's the French way to say it. Yeah, that's, that's always a trick, right? [00:01:06] I never can remember. But anyway, So let's talk about the systems. Let's talk about the process first. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Because that's, The main thing right, is you gotta have a process. Yeah. You gotta have a plan. You gotta have a plan. Cause it's going to happen. It's, it's going to, it's, it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when. [00:01:30] It's a matter of when and it's a matter of how are you going to deal with it. Yes. And knowing that beforehand Yes. Is critical. . But I will say that, you know, this is something a lot of people are afraid of. You know, this, this is one of the re big things that people worry about is, Hey, I have this big investment. [00:01:48] You know, what happens if a bunch of people show up and trash it? How do I get my money back? How do I right X, Y, and Z? Right? What about the neighbors? You know, am I get in trouble with the city? Like, right, there's all this [00:02:00] fear about it, right? And I just wanna say up front, For one thing, it's, it's actually kind of rare. [00:02:05] Yeah, that's very true. At least in our experience and the experience of other people we've coached. Some areas are more prone to it than others, depending on and different property where are, where or more prone to it than others as well. I would say that's true and it's, it's I know it, I know where you're going with that, but I also know that it's not just those properties. [00:02:23] Sometimes it's the area Yes. That you're in and, and the price point you're at and stuff like that. For sure. What's, what's number one? Like, what's the number one thing you should process that you should have in place to start with? And I would say it's your screening process. Oh, I was gonna say that too. [00:02:39] Okay. Cause I think that's the, that's your first line of defense. That's why you know, your platforms like your Airbnb and your VRBO and, and things like that are popular. In a way it's because they do have. in a sense, some screening built in, right? So there's, there's a, a review system. You can see if this person's had good reviews in the past, had good interactions with hosts in the past you can see you know, have they gone through the process to verify their ID with the platform, right? [00:03:11] So that's just another step of security and screen. And then beyond that, it's what is their initial first contact with you? You know, what is that message? A lot of times I feel like that can give you a hint as to who's coming and what is their intent. Right, Right. Because we typically ask people what is the reason for your stay? [00:03:34] Yeah. And that's something you can automatically do on a platform like an Airbnb where it actually has. At least for Instant book, there are requirements. So I would say that's one thing you want to do is like instant book is something you actually probably want to have turned on because that is, it gives you more exposure. [00:03:55] There are people that want to instant book, but on that platform it [00:04:00] also gives you the option to say, Okay, for Instant book, they have to meet these requirements. So for example, they have to have a verified identity. Mm-hmm. , which means. On the platform, they have uploaded a copy of their photo id. They have a verified email address and they have a, a phone number. [00:04:21] Mm-hmm. . And then you can also, there's another, there's like little sliders you can slide on or off. That's one option. Another option is do they have recommendations from other hosts? In other words, have they gotten positive reviews? Rec, In other words, they've stayed with someone else who said yes, they were a good. [00:04:39] Right. So that's a slider you can turn on. And then the third one, the reason I mentioned it was there's a third slider you can turn on that says well, it basically turns on a text box where you can ask them a question that they have to answer when they book. And ours typically is what's the reason for your stay. [00:04:54] Yeah. Please tell us about your stay. Yes. And, and there's a nice way to say that. You may say so that we can best prepare for your arrival, please let us know the. Reason for your staff. That's a good way to say it. Right? And that what that does, other than why are you coming, right? , Are you gonna have a party? [00:05:11] Right? Yeah. And a lot of people say no parties, and that's just, that's such a turnoff. It is. Yeah. It can be. Yeah. So, I mean, that should be something that's in your house rules, but, Well, we were gonna talk about that next, but Yeah. Gradually to get there. Okay, so it, we're talking now about screening and that first message, and that's how you can prompt that first message. [00:05:33] So that first interaction with what's the reason for your stay. If they say, Coming for my birthday, that might be a hint, right? Or if they say, coming for an event with, or you know, family reunion with my family. Now you might want to ask some questions, right? Are you planning on having it our place or you, Now I've got questions, , right? [00:05:52] So it's that initial interaction that can kind of start that conversation and I think that's a really important part of screening. [00:06:00] And I, I would, I would say that some people who. Going to have a part. Those that are more likely to have a party in your, in your place tend to be a little bit younger. [00:06:20] Sometimes. Yeah, sometimes. Yeah. So oftentimes, so I would, I don't know if there's really a way to prevent people, f young people from booking your place. Well, that's, Technically that's a function of your state law and maybe local law. Oh, okay. So there are actually you want to look that up to make sure you're actually in compliance because there are certain things that you can't just say, Hey, you gotta be 30. [00:06:49] Right? Right. Or you gotta be 25. I know people do it, but you might wanna look and say, Hey, is that even something. Applicable in my area, right? Is that something that I can legally do even though I'm doing it right? And then yes, on the on the platforms themselves or wherever you advertise, you can say, must be ex, you know, 25 or 21 or whatever your threshold is that you can, can do, you can actually make that a requirement in the rules, but there's no way to enforce that really on the platform. [00:07:25] And that's, that's the downside to relying on, like, say an Airbnb's ID verification. Yeah. They've done it, but they're not gonna share it with you, the host. No, they're not. That's that's the part that I don't like. Yeah. There's no way to really know. And even really, if you read their terms of service, it says, when possible we will Right. [00:07:47] X, Y, and Z. Right, right. Sure, sure. So I do, you know, if it was possible that time. Right, right, right. And it becomes even. Harry when it's someone coming from a foreign country because now it's a, it's a passport. It's [00:08:00] not a, a driver's license with an address on it. You know, passports don't have addresses. [00:08:04] Right. So it's, yeah, you can verify that to passport, but do you really know if that's that person's passport? Right. Right. And so there's, there's that kind of thing going on. And mostly I wanna say that it just, we don't have access to it as a host. Yeah, that's the problem. So you were asking about the age thing, like we don't really know. [00:08:23] Yeah, we don't really know. We can say you can't book it and we will have people ask like that's one of those first questions that can raise your suspicion maybe. Yes. Or just you just fighty senses. You need to do a little more investigation. Right. Cause we've had that first message be simply, is age an. [00:08:43] I'm like, well, if you have to ask, it probably is , right? That's a red flag right there. Right? So now I've got questions . Right? Right. So it's that that first interaction a lot of times will give you the thing even on age, but yet, But yet to say not everybody under 25. No, no, not at all. Gonna have a party. [00:09:02] And not everybody over 25 isn't right? No. Cause we've had both. Right. No doubt. So it's something to it, It's something to think about, but it's not an absolute Right. It's a, you know, I just wanted to bring it up because Yeah, yeah. It, it's, it is a thing. Yeah. And people think that, Yeah. Like that's, that's a concern. [00:09:20] Yeah, for sure. I wanna say especially for the well even initiated or like, a lot of times they just want to avoid that. Yeah. Cuz they're afraid of it. and there, I get why there, there are reasons to question that, but it's not a, I'm just saying, you know, you don't want to be discriminatory just because someone's 24 and not 25. [00:09:42] Right, Right. That's what is that magical though? , right? right. Well, so that is, that's the very first step in, in. Verify screening. Guess you know what? Ask them what [00:10:00] is the reason for your stay, right? Mm-hmm. , and then, and then maybe turn on some of those controls, right? So they can't instant book it unless they meet right. [00:10:07] Certain requirements. But you can't do that on vrbo. No. VRBO does not have that feature. No, it doesn't. Right? Right. So now you've got, you've added another platform. Now you've got a hole in your system. Yep. Cause you can't rely on that anymore. And you certainly can't when you go to booking.com. But let's, if when you move on to the next thing, the next process is now that you have asked them the reason for their stay, you can also put some things in place. [00:10:38] For example, house rules. In place. Mm-hmm. . And just so that people know that events and parties are not allowed in your, in your space. Yeah. So you should have a, a robust set of house rules. And we always say they should be in the format of here's the rule, here's the, here's the penalty. If you violate the rule, Right? [00:11:03] Meaning monitor. Or it could be, Hey, you gotta leave. Right? Right. So it's like smoke in the unit, $250 have a party. Immediate cancellation of reservation. Right. But no refund. With no refund. So, but that's kind of the format of house rules you want to have. And, and, and like you were saying in the spirit of you're in the hospitality. [00:11:28] Don't lead with the house rules and say, Hey, please go read all these rules, right? And here's this long list of things like you want 'em there, but you don't want to be aggressive about it necessarily. Yeah. It's a turn off. So it's always like, firm, this is our policy, it's business, but we are in the hospitality business, so don't go overboard. [00:11:48] and start scaring people away. Cause I see people go way too far the other direction too. Oh, totally. Right. And you, They wonder why they have a problem. Yeah. They're like, Why am I, why are people irritated with me? Why I wonder Because you, [00:12:00] you're aggressive, Right. And you come out accusatory, right. Is the word. [00:12:04] Yes. Yeah. Exactly. Exactly. And most people are, are, don't have mal intentions. No. They don. And most people are really great guests. You just wanna have. Those processes in place that for the few that do, but don't let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch. Mm-hmm. . But having that, the, having that in the house rules that says there's no parties, and if you do have a party, then you, you're gonna, your reservation will be canceled with no refund. [00:12:42] Yeah. In your household. Let's talk about that a little bit because it's, I, We don't just say, Don't have a party or this. Because the, If you have a rule like that, they'll just say, Well, it's not a party, we just have people over. Right. You gotta be real definitive of what exactly a party is. Right. So we don't actually say no parties. [00:13:01] Yeah. We say maximum occupancy at all times is. Such and such, whatever the max occupancy is. So if it's a place that holds six people, there should never be more than six people there. Correct. You shouldn't have more people at the place than it's on your reservation. Correct? Right. Anybody that stays after 10 o'clock is considered an overnight guest, and here's the penalty for unauthorized overnight guest. [00:13:24] That's a really good point, right? Like, that's really specific because you, what you don't want to get into is, Oh, they're not staying here, they're just hanging. Because then it becomes this ne nuance thing of, well, are they violating your rule or not? And you're kind of arguing back and forth. Right. And to me, somebody that stays till three in the morning was overnight. [00:13:45] Sure. Whether they slept or not. Sure. Right. So that's why we have that cutoff. Sure. So we say, Okay, here's the maximum of people that can be there. Here's the cutoff time for when you become an overnight guest. Here's the penalty for overnight. If you, if they're undisclosed [00:14:00] and hey, you know, don't show up with more people in your reservation than you're supposed to have. [00:14:05] And by the, And you can even go as far as say, Hey, if you're going to have a guest, that's fine, but let us know who and when and where. And it's all in how you phrase it, because that's a security issue. Like if you said you had two people on your reservation and all of a sudden I see like other three other people coming. [00:14:25] I'm genuinely concerned for your safety. Like, do you know these people are here? Right? Like, are, are they getting into your stuff? Or you know, did you leave the door locked or something? Like, I need to inquire. But that's not accusatory. It's more Hey, we noticed this. What's going on? Are you aware? Right? [00:14:44] And then here's the set of house rules. So that's how you can use those things in combination. prevent and head off any of, Well, we're really talking about the, about the worst thing that can happen as far as general things, you know, other than somebody dying or something like that. Right. But somebody coming to your house, having a big party and trashing it basically. [00:15:05] And disturbing the neighbors and possibly getting you kicked out and Yeah. You know, all these things that you see that happen. Sure. Well, okay, so but that's before arrival, right? Right. So, so now we've got it so that we've asked them the reason for their stay. We've posted it in the, in the house rules. [00:15:24] Mm-hmm. , here's the max occupancy. There's no more than X number of people that can be in the unit at any one time. If anyone stays after, you know, 10:00 PM for example, they're considered a guest. Here's the fee for undisclosed guests. Mm-hmm. , and here's what's gonna happen, right? Mm-hmm. . So we've got penalties in the, in the house rules. [00:15:46] So let's say someone violated those house rules and they, and it's, it's midnight [00:16:00] and there are. Lots of people in the unit. There's, let's say there's twice as many people in the unit. How do you know that there are that many people? And what kind of system do you have in place that lets, that notifies you of? [00:16:19] That's what's. Got it. So it, it shouldn't get to that place is the actual answer because there's a step in between that. Oh, what is it? So it's not just, we screen people and then they come and we don't know it. It is been implied that, Oh, we know who's coming in and out. And we do that through our, our door camera system. [00:16:40] And if you have any other entrance to the property, like some of our properties are houses, you want some sort of vi video surveillance on any. . Cause what people will do is they'll just go around the back. Right. And you wanna see, so you gotta have video surveillance on all the entrances. Yes. And so part of our pro check in process is when somebody comes, we verify. [00:17:01] Did they show up with the number of guests that were on the reservation? You know, so if it was booked by you know, a lady and her two kids and like five dudes show up with a keg, Right. That might be questioned. Calls for concern, which has happened to us. Yes, I mentioned that specifically because it happened in that, in their case, I think it was a giant bag of weed, but Okay, whatever. [00:17:23] Yeah. Like, you know, you show up with a beer pong table, like now we know your intent. Right. And bef, and now I don't have to wait until midnight Sure. When there's 25 people there, because now I can intervene at the moment of discovery. Right. Because, Because we have someone watching the cameras that verifies their ID and has their reservation. [00:17:50] They know who's supposed to be coming, what that person should look like and has. A And did the number of people check [00:18:00] in that said they were gonna be checking in and does that look like that person on that id? Yeah. And does, does their behavior match what they said they were coming for? Right. Right. So there's there, that's your second line of defense. [00:18:14] It's your check-in process. It's your pro, and you alluded to, Hey, I've got processes that, hey, every day at this time we check this. Or every day there's a check in. We check as they check in, are they good? Right. And part of that's, you know, were they able to get in? Like I wanna know that too. Sure. But part of it is verifying who they are and you know, what are they bringing in and all this other kind of stuff. [00:18:39] Right. So we've actually headed off those. That's probably why we haven't had a bunch of them. Yeah. Because when they show you kind of. When they show up, what's, what's about to go down? Right? And then later on, as you know, maybe even the right number of people check in, but then you, you know, more people show up. [00:18:56] More people show up. Mm-hmm. , Well, that's the time to kill the party before it gets started. Sure. But to your point, point, there's somebody monitoring the cameras. Yes. That's the, So that's actually the next step. The system. Yeah. So the, the, the system is that you, well, first of all, you gotta have cameras. I mean, that's necessary. [00:19:16] Yeah. And, and we go further than that and, And put the whole security system in there. Yeah, for sure. Because another indicator of that might be, well, how many times is the door opening and closing? Yep. We get notified of that as well. Right. If it's opening and closing and opening and closing, then that might be an indication something's going on, which can happen cuz people will come and they'll cover your. [00:19:38] Oh, that's, And now you need a backup. Mm-hmm. , you need backups. Like, okay, well is the door opening and closing a lot? We can see that. Yeah. Or the windows opening, closing, we can see that. Yep. Right. And that's an indication that, well, first of all, they covered the camera and two, now the doors in or windows are opening. [00:19:57] Okay. That's the, that's a sign. Right? Right. [00:20:00] And then this more alludes to what you were talking about, like, how do I know what's going. . Well, we also put inside the units we use a product called Noise Aware. There's another product that they're called Minute that's similar. We like Noise Aware better for various reasons, but what it does is it monitors the noise level inside of the unit, right? [00:20:24] It doesn't monitor. It can't, It can't record what you say. Yeah. That would, You don't wanna do that. That's illegal . Yeah. Right. You don't wanna record inside the unit at all in any capacity. There's nothing inside the unit that records. It. Records, right. But it's recording. Loudness is decibel level. Decibel level is what It's recording, right? [00:20:45] It, It's recording the decibel level inside the unit. Mm-hmm. . So you set it to a certain threshold. And it notifies you if it goes above that threshold. Yeah. And and they even have a sys automated system in there where if it crosses a threshold, it will actually contact your guest on your behalf. Oh, that is so cool. [00:21:03] Yeah, we, we actually use that because we've got staff and we other people to do it, but it does have that feature, what I think, which I think is really cool. That's neat. Noise Aware does. Yeah. Yeah, it does. But it's another alert to say, Hey, there might be a problem. You know, it could be that it could not be a problem. [00:21:22] Right. Maybe they're watching a loud movie or something. Right? Sure. But it, it alerts you to say, Okay, I need to investigate further what's going on here. Right, Right, right, right. And I'll, I'll point out also that it, it can also be in your defense. So say a neighbor says, Hey, this place is always really disruptive and loud, and it's not. [00:21:42] Now you've got the actual evidence to say, Well here's the record of the noise level. Cuz it, it keeps that too, and to say, Well, you know, during this period of time there, it wasn't allowed Right. Or it was Right. It's very objective evidence, either in your favor or not, but it, it, the primary purpose is to alert you if there's a [00:22:00] problem. [00:22:00] Right. So that's yet another line of defense. Sure. So now we've got the, the noise monitoring. Mm-hmm. inside the. We've got the, the doorbell cameras on all the entrances. Mm-hmm. , we've got the security system that will tell you when the door is opening and closing. And even the, if the windows are, are being opened and closed. [00:22:24] Yeah. And if somebody smokes in there, the alarms and if somebody smokes in there. Yep, that's right. Yeah. Yeah. So we can, we can monitor that as well. And what's cool? The security system that we use is Vivid. Mm-hmm. . And what's cool the about Vivid is you can see all of that in one app. Yeah. So it's all one central location for all. [00:22:46] And you can even see the thermostat. Yes. So you can see all sorts of things. You can see if there's movement inside the the property. So you can tell if it's vacant or not. Sure. Right. Just through that system without even having the cameras. So there's multiple backups to multiple backups. Right. That's kind of, you never wanna have. [00:23:04] Single point of failure. Yes. And then, and then there's a third device you can use that it's called Party Stopper. We do not actually use this in our unit. Oh, okay. And we could. Okay. And what it does is it alerts you to how many devices are present. Mm. I've heard of that. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. That was really cool. [00:23:22] So if all of a sudden you see like 30 cell phones in your apartment or something, you know, hey, something's up. So it can see what kind of device. Or how many devices are connected to the network? That's, that's the idea. Yeah. Mm-hmm. , That's really cool. Yeah. And it's called Party Stopper. Mm-hmm. . Ooh, that's cool. [00:23:39] So it's, it's yet another backup to a backup. Right. So it's not that you use one system and not the other. It's like, Hey, use all of these mm-hmm. so that you know if one of them, you know, your internet goes down. Well, Noise Aware doesn't work anymore. Right, Sure. For example. But Viv still does because it has cellular backup, which is why we don't use Ring Doorbell cameras. [00:23:59] [00:24:00] Oh. That is a nugget right there, because there's their single point of failure internet, right? And you cover the camera, you have nothing else, right? So it, it's those systems together that help you prevent and detect, because really you should be the first person to know it shouldn't be. Oh yeah, for sure. [00:24:19] Hey, your neighbor calls you and says, Hey, this thing's going down. Or your landlord calls you and says, Hey, what's going on at Right. 2 46 Main Street. Main Street. Right. Like you should know before they know. Right. And if you're using those systems together and you're monitoring them, well see, I think that is really big monitoring. [00:24:39] Yeah. You have to monitor. Yes. And if it's you right now, . Mm-hmm. , like you don't have a, a customer experience specialist. Then it's you and you should still have a process. Yes, you definitely should still have a process, but you have to follow your own process. Yeah. And that, and it's you at first, and we talked about that a lot. [00:25:03] So do it. Build your system to say, And ours just in the beginning was every day at 1130. change the door, change door codes. But we're also checking all the systems. Yes. Are they all up and running? Yes. Right. Is everything as it should be. Yes. Review the footage from the previous 12 hours or 24 hours or whatever. [00:25:22] Right. Say, was there anything going on that we need to address? And then once check out or that's check out. And then once check in happens, you do the same thing. You're monitoring the same thing. Mm-hmm. like, who's coming? Are they the right people? And then monitor everything else too, to say, Hey, is everything else good? [00:25:38] Sure. Like, look at the thermostat. A well, I was thinking multiple units, but you're right. Yeah. Thermostat and everything else, right? Mm-hmm. like, are the batteries low or mm-hmm. in the front door lock or something like that. Right? Right. So you're, you're monitoring everything, but then that becomes the process that you document. [00:25:56] Yeah. Then when you have someone else doing it, you've already [00:26:00] established, this is how we do it. And this is the importance of it because it prevents these types of things from happening. So a lot what we're talking about is not really how to deal with it so much, it's how to prevent it to deal, begin with. [00:26:12] Mm-hmm. and you know, that screening and then the technology is a big piece of it. Yeah. And the monitoring. Yeah. That's, that's really big too. I think that's so, so now to now to your point. Now, so. So now let's say like despite all of that, despite all of that, now you've detected there is a problem, there is a party going on and this is happen and it can happen quickly. [00:26:37] Oh yeah, for sure. So they can, they can check in, everything looks fine, and then all of a sudden cars start arriving. Yep. And people start getting out. Yep. Six at a time and all of a sudden your noise aware is going off and you see the doors open and closing and you check the cameras and Sure. Driveway in the yard's full of people and you're like, Well, how did, what, what's going on here? [00:27:00] What, what do you do? What do you do? Right? So what's the procedure once that happens? Okay. And I wanna say some of that is procedural, and some of that is, again, relying on the technology that you've pre-planned. to set up. Right. Okay. You're putting me on the spot here cuz it's been a hot minute since I have reviewed this. [00:27:18] So p well that's not true because you had to get rid of somebody. Well, that's true. Not for a party. That's true. It was, it was actually an overstay. She was, she didn't check out on time. So these ki times of procedures are basically like, how do I remove somebody from a unit? Yeah, right. In general. Right. [00:27:32] But in this context, it's like we're using it. Context of the party. So the first thing that we do is we message them through the messaging system and, and say, Hey, we've noticed that there are more guests than stated on the reservation, or something like that. Or yeah, you're right. Our member of our security team has noticed that, has notified us that there's more guests than stating yes than stated on the reservation. [00:27:57] Currently we see X. Yeah. Can you please [00:28:00] advise? Please advise. And then we give them, Five minutes to respond or something like that. Yeah, it's a short period of time. It's very short. It's very short. And if they don't respond within five minutes, I believe we call 'em on the phone. Well, it gets escalated to a text message. [00:28:15] Okay. So we text them. Yeah. And then if they don't text within text back and within five minutes, then we call 'em on the phone. Then it gets escalated to a phone call. Uhhuh . Right. And if there's no response, And you still may not have a response. Right? Sure. Cuz they're having a party. They're busy. Yeah. or the people that rented it might not even be there anymore. [00:28:35] That's exactly right. That that's happened. That's happened. Yeah. Yep. So if that happens, , then we do, we set off the, the alarm. Then what? He doesn't know their own processes. This is hilarious. I don't, I shouldn't have, I was giving you an opportunity. It's been so loud. It's been so long. But you're getting it right. [00:28:57] So, yeah. So you're going to, basically, at that point it comes down to are they on platform or not? And if their own platform for example, like an Airbnb, I'm gonna contact them and oh, we gotta contact them first. And it's not for help, just saying No, no, no. It. Here's what's just about to go down. What I'm just about to do. [00:29:14] Here's, I'm just letting you know what I'm gonna do. Yeah. . Cause they're not gonna do anything. But what I'm not asking permission. I'm telling you Yeah. They're, they're just gonna call 'em too. Sure. Yeah. I mean, and we've already done that thing. So, But, but to, here's something that we need to point out is you need to message them in through the messaging platform. [00:29:39] So, You have documentation that you've done it. Yeah. Because when you call Airbnb, they're gonna say, Have you done that? And you say, Yes. Here's the evidence that I've done that. Right. It's in the messaging center. Yeah. So that's, that's kind of the, you know, it's, it's a nuance of communicating with the platform. [00:29:57] But yes, they wanna see documentation and [00:30:00] evidence objectivity. Sure. And, and, . Okay, I am recording all this on my camera and I have my noise aware data, and I have my other stuff. Yeah, they're gonna wanna see that too. Here's actually what happened, right? Mm-hmm. , But, but to, to the point I'm calling them to inform them of what's happening and, and that I'm about to in this reservation. [00:30:23] Because that, for this reason, because they've broken this house rule. Yeah. And they've got 25 people up in there having a party. And we clearly say no parties in our Yes. House rules. Right, Right. So it it's, I always find that interesting when, cuz people, you're, you tend to think, Hey, I'm gonna call them and they're gonna help me [00:30:41] And they, they might right, they, they might make a phone call but depends, realize they're somebody in a cubicle farther away than you are probably. and they don't have the Airbnb police to send down there. Right, Right, right. So, I mean, they, they, they just can't. So they, they're there to notify and say, Hey, your guest that came through your platform, here's what we're about to do because of this. [00:31:06] Right. And then you execute the next part of the plan, which is ultimately notifying them once again. If this doesn't end in the next 15 minutes and all these people aren't out, and I say 15 minutes specifically, cuz don't let this go on for an hour. Oh no, don't give people two hours to leave. Oh, no. Uhuh. [00:31:29] Or an hour, it's, it's like 20 minutes, 15, 20 minutes max. Then the authorities are gonna come, and then because we have that security system in place, we can remotely set that alarm off just for a minute and then turn it. And letting them know that, hey, the sound you just heard, , if you're not out in 15 minutes will become constant and the authorities will arrive and you will be removed from the property. [00:31:56] And to do that, you're going to want to stage [00:32:00] someone. Yes. This is critical. So it's either you or it's your representative within five minutes of that place. Yes. So that they can now meet the authorities if that becomes necessary at the property. Yes. Because that person that meets them there will need to have certain documentation. [00:32:18] Yeah. And to be able to explain what's going on. So we've had to do this before. So the alarm goes off the, the police officers arrive within seven minutes because it's a verified alarm. So it's not like, Hey, I called the sheriff's department on the phone. No. They got a call from Viv saying, Hey, there's an active alarm at this property. [00:32:40] They come within seven minutes and then, And that's why you wanna be staged close by. Yeah. You better have somebody there. Yeah. And. When the, the police come, you, you, you explain to them that this is a guest in your property. They are no longer welcome to stay. They are now trespassing on your property. [00:32:59] Would they please help you? Right. Remove them. Right. And that, that's the key word. And that's trespassing. Yes. Because realized that the, Here's another thing people get tripped up on, is realize the police only deal in criminal. So have these people violated a law? Cause if you just say, Hey, they're renter's off of Airbnb. [00:33:23] Right. And I don't want 'em here anymore. Oh, their, Their first thought is gonna be landlord. Tenant. Yep. Sorry. We can't do anything. You need to take them to court and get them evicted. Yep. Because we only deal with, That's a civil case. We only deal with criminal. Right, Right. Now, sometimes they will actually help you, like, they'll go in and say, you know, we can't make you leave. [00:33:42] But we highly advise that you do. That's true. But, and, and that can be helpful too. It's, it's more of it feels like you're always educating in this business, but you kind of wanna be there to educate and say, Hey, here's, here's the, here's the thing. They're violating. They're not tenants. They never were tenants.[00:34:00] [00:34:00] Here's our lease. They don't even have a key to the place. They have no lease. There's 25 people here having a party. This is my space. They guests, I've asked them to leave. They won't please help me. And that's gonna be your best chance for getting the authorities to actually assist you in ending this thing. [00:34:22] Now the fact that the police even showed up is going to get people to leave. Oh yeah. For sure. Cause a lot of times they're, they don't want to be involved with that at all. Right, Right, right. Like at all. Right. And this probably isn't the first time they've been to a party and a police showed up. [00:34:37] Right. . So they know you leave when the police show up. Right. And, and that that's the ultimate, But that's the, that's the nuclear option. I mean, once you go there yeah. You, you gotta be prepared for that. And the, and, and then it's a little more serious. And now you've, you, that's, that's your ultimate nuclear option. [00:34:55] So we don't put, pull that button there a lot. No. Right. You usually don't have to get to that point, but it's nice to know that it's there if you need it. Yeah, yeah. Because you've got teeth. Yeah. Because you've got that system in place. And you've got a way to have the authorities, people that they, That's what you really want, people that they fear. [00:35:18] The authorities, the people that are licensed to have the firearms . Yeah. Right. And put you in jail. Right. Right. That, that's who you, that's who you want on your side, not necessarily your local rent. Acop. Right. I've seen people do that, but do they really fear them? Not really. Cuz they know they can't do anything to 'em. [00:35:34] Yeah. Right, right. Well, let's, let's say that you called the cops. The, the, they've been escorted out and now they've trashed the place and damaged something. Okay, let's, let's say they've, let's say they've done some, like somebody's punched a hole in the. Okay. Like it's, it's got it [00:36:00] got that far. Somebody punched a hole in the wall. [00:36:03] Yeah. So it, it depends is the answer. So if there's, if there's a platform like on Airbnb there's air cover, but we all know how great that is. Right? Okay. If you've ever dealt with trying to get something covered, then that's just a pain in the butt. But it's. It's there. That's what it's for to a certain degree. [00:36:22] But we also have on top of that our own insurance. We recommend proper dot insurer. Proper dot insurer. So if there is damage above whatever deductible is for that, ours is like a thousand dollars. But if it goes beyond a thousand dollars, then it becomes an insurance claim of property. Right. And they're going. [00:36:43] start covering the damages in the, and the monetary stuff to fix it. Right. So it depends on how extensive it is. Mm-hmm. . But I will say our main goal is get it back up and running. Yeah. For sure. Right. So our main goal isn't sitter. [00:36:57] Around and dick around with, Ooh, I shouldn't said dick around, but mess around with Airbnb and you know. Yeah. Get those claims processes started. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. And document everything. Because remember, you have the documentation, you have the noise aware, you have the pictures of what it looked like before, don't you? [00:37:14] Cuz your cleaners do that. Hope so. Yeah. And now you have the pictures of what it looks like now, and you have the communications you've had with the guest. You have the fact that, hey, the police showed. , Right? That's a police report. And you have all these things that now you can package and say, Here, here's what happened. [00:37:32] We'd like this reservation canceled and our calendar opened back up so we can rerent these to someone else. Right? And now our job becomes, okay, call our cleaners and say, Hey, you gotta clean a job tomorrow. That's the main thing. Yep. Get this place up and running. Clean. Or the maintenance or maintenance hate. [00:37:48] You've gotta hold a patch tomorrow on the wall. Yeah. , Hey, we've gotta order a new table and get that over there so we can get, because the idea is like get this thing back up and rented and ready to go again and turned over. Right? That's, [00:38:00] that's the main thing. And then secondary to that is recovering damages either from the guests themselves through the resolution process on Airbnb or through the insurance process on V R B O. [00:38:12] Cause it's a different process over there or through your own insurance or you're planning on doing this if it's, We even take direct bookings. So if we had a direct booking, we charge their credit card that's on file. Yep. And we have an agreement with them that says we're gonna do that. Right. So we, we've done these steps in place to where we have teeth, we have the legality to do it. [00:38:37] And hopefully you shut all this down in a, in a short period of time. , it wasn't really a problem for anybody else. And it could actually make you look good. Yeah, for sure. We had a, a student, a lady that we coach in Chicago mm-hmm. that recently had this happen and in her case it wasn't a party though, it was a Lady of the night. [00:39:01] Oh, that's, that's right. That had set up shop in a lady of the night, set up shop, and from beginning to end, I think it took her. , Well, from, for, for her, her first suspicions that something might be going on to realizing that it was going on to getting this lady out was, I think she said like four hours. [00:39:23] Mm-hmm. or something. Which is a long time actually. Yeah. But it's, it was only four hours of it. Right. You know, it wasn't overnight. And she found out the next day because somebody complained, but her, her, the, she's doing the rental arbitrage model and her landlord said, Hey, great job. Well, he just gave her another unit. [00:39:41] Yeah. Just gave her another unit because she proved that yes, she could handle herself. She could handle it. Mm-hmm. . address any problems. Not that problems aren't going to happen, that, but that she has the systems and processes and wherewithal to address them. Yeah. [00:40:00] And handle them in a systematic manner. [00:40:02] Yeah. And I say systematic because that becomes more and more important as you scale. Boy, not the truth, right? Cuz now you've got 15, 20 of these things and what are your procedures and what are your people going to do? So it's not a, oh my God, they're having a party. What do we. , it's, it's, here's our, here's our escalation process, here's our procedures. [00:40:23] We very calmly know what we're going to do and hope we don't have to get to the end of it. And normally you don't, normally you never get to the place where the cops actually come. That's true. But if they do, you can get there. Yeah. Right. And knowing that you can get there makes the rest of this very calm. [00:40:40] Cuz it's like a, if you don't, this is what's gonna happen. Yep. Right. So I that. The process, the procedure, that's how you prevent it. Recovering from it is get the unit back up immediately file any claims with whoever you're gonna file them with and move on with your day. Right. And get more units. [00:41:00] Yep. Get more units and, and know that Okay. To the next I've done the one out of 200 people that do that. Right, right. In fact, I think we've, we've had to remove people well, that way. Twice ever. I wanna say that's true. Out of hundreds of reservations. I can't think of, I can't think of any other, but, But a big piece of that is because of the screening. [00:41:25] Yeah, yeah. Because the screening, so that it never gets there. So we're always like prevention first, screening first checking when people check in, having your devices in place, having your escalation method for communication, and then ultimately having your process for. And you put all those things together and all of a sudden you don't really, Parties are an annoyance. [00:41:48] It's really an annoyance. Yeah. Anymore than it is a Hey, am I scared of it? Right. You know, it becomes a. instead of, I hope they don't. It's a They better not. Yeah. . [00:42:00] I wish somebody would. Right, right. I wish somebody would have a party. Who is that? That was Cedric the entertainment. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. I remember that. [00:42:08] Yeah. I don't wish, I don't wish, I don't know. It's, I don't hope I don't. I wish. I hope they don't do that. It's like I wish they would. That's right. Right. . I wish somebody would, I hope nobody has a party in my unit, , which somebody, I wish somebody would have a party in my unit. Right, right, right. That's funny. [00:42:29] Yeah, so that's it. That I think that's. Let's, Well, did you have anything to add to that? I think we covered it pretty much. I don't think anything else cuz it was, That's really great. So we hope that you found some value cuz we dropped some major nuggets in this podcast. So be sure to like and subscribe because we have. [00:42:48] So many nuggets to drop in future episodes. So come back and see us again and we will drop some really great nuggets in the next couple of episodes. Oh, we've got some really great ones coming up cuz we have guest speakers coming to, Ooh, guest speaker, guests coming to talk to us. So I like it. [00:43:08] Thanks for joining us and we will see you next time. Onto the next, onto the next. Nicely done. [00:43:16]

STRA Episode 13:  How to Get Started in Short-Term Rentals [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams with the Short-Term Rental Authority, Your authority on all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. At today's podcast, we are going to be talking about how to get started in short term rental. [00:00:28] I think that's really great. That's a really good topic. It really is. So the, the short answer is go to our website. Sign up. No, I'm just kidding. [00:00:38] I'm just kidding. Shameless plug. Right. So we were actually, we were actually rereading, or I'm rereading You're reading for the first time. I have never read it. Yeah. This is my first top. Yeah. So this is a book by. Michael Gerber, Michael Gerber, and the book is entitled The E Myth Revisited. So super good. [00:00:55] If you're a business owner, especially a small business owner, I highly recommend this book. But Wendy and I have been, well, I'm rereading, she's reading, but I've spent a long time since I've read this book, so a lot of it feels new to me anyway but we're currently on chapter six, six of that book, and he was talking about Well, first of all, maybe we should explain what the book is about. [00:01:15] So what is the The E Myth Revisited? So it's a, it, it talks about the why a lot of small businesses fail and what to do about it. Okay. So, but in this specific chapter though. The thing that struck me the most was the concept of starting a business, a as if it's complete, as if it's mature already. And I, I had never really thought about that before. [00:01:58] I always thought that you [00:02:00] had to move through these. phases, I guess, if you will. Yeah. Cause he does talk about that. He talks about the infancy of a business and adolescent, and then adolescent. Mm-hmm. and then it has a maturity. Right, right, right. And, and then this last chapter he was talking about that you know, these companies that you've, we've all heard of that are wildly successful, like IBM and Disney, Apple and Disney and things like that. [00:02:28] They actually started the business. as if they were mature. Right. So what does that mean then? So they, they had the, the owners of the business, the, the person who started the business had a clear vision of what they wanted the business to look like when it got done. Yeah. So they, they already had the foresight. [00:02:57] Or it, the, the vision of, of, well, first of all, what, what they wanted the business to be. Okay. What they wanted to look like. How did it act? How does it act? And, and what does it do? Okay. So I thought that was really interesting. So, So how does that apply to, right. I, I was, I was thinking about that in, in this respect, and I feel like the way that it applies to this concept is if you are first getting started, and we kind of did this too. [00:03:40] Mm-hmm. , we created a, a vision. For our business and, and, and what we, what we wanted the business to do for us personally, because we all go into business for a reason. What do you [00:04:00] hope that your business will do for you personally? And I think the answer to that is very personal. Yeah. And it's. Make as much money as possible. [00:04:10] No. Like that's too vague. It's way too vague. You need a vision. Yes. You need to know how much money. Exactly. Yeah. Like where you're going. Right. So coming up with. exactly how much money you, you need to do whatever it is you wanna do, right? Because you gotta think about that first. What are you trying to do? [00:04:33] What are you trying to accomplish? Maybe what you want your life to look like, for example. Mm-hmm. . And it's not all about the, He talks about how it's not all about. The revenue generated, either. It's not like, Okay, how much money do I wanna make? It's what's the culture of that business when you walk in the front door? [00:04:54] Who are the people that are working there? You know, what's their disposition? Is it very formal? Is it very informal? Is it, you know, are people happy? Are people. Serious, or, and you gotta kind of think about that culture of your business too, right? Like what do you want it to look like and act like is kind of what you were saying in the beginning. [00:05:17] And some of that is gonna drive your, how you present to the public. Mm-hmm. , you know, how, what, what. Are you actually building here? You know, when someone thinks of Queen City Suites, what? What hits their mind? You know, and you, and you know this, when you think. . Well, when I think of Apple, I immediately get a opinion of what that is, but it's because they took the time to think about what it was gonna be. [00:05:45] Right. Right. And And that's how you get started. Sure. And I would, I would argue that's how you get started in any business. Yeah. Not just a short term rental business. Yeah. And one thing is to realize that, well, we've talked about this before too, but this is a business [00:06:00] that was really hard for me to. [00:06:02] understand for a long time. One of my mentors Jordan Payne over at the Kingdom Real Estate, shout out to them. Even back when we were in the fix and flip business and when we were, you know, even when we were wholesaling and all, all these other things we've done, he kept saying to me, and, Well, not me, but every. [00:06:21] That was, he was mentoring, Hey, this is a business. You have to treat it like a business. Right? But what does that mean? What does that mean? And I, and I always struggled with that because I didn't really have a blueprint or a formula or a example even of what of that business looked like was. Yeah. [00:06:43] Yeah. And, and a lot of it's stuff like that has nothing seemingly to do with. Short term rentals or, or anything, but it's something every business needs, like bookkeeping. It's like a big one. That's the one everybody skips, like how many people we coach and they've, they've got, you know, 4, 5, 6, 7 short term rentals. [00:07:04] So they're well on their way and they don't even have a bookkeeper. Oh my goodness. I, that gives me heart palpatations. Just thinking about it. And, and now is that the, is that the vision for your business is, Oh, well we just don't do bookkeeping. or Wendy does bookkeeping? No, Wendy does not do bookkeeping because when Wendy does bookkeeping, it's twice a year [00:07:25] Right. You know, you need the, you need bookkeeping. Like, yes, every business does, Right? But so many of us skip that part, or we're trying to do it on a spreadsheet or something. You know, you need. Oh, you need a bookkeeper and you know, QuickBooks or something, you know, some kind of counting software. Things like having a crm, customer relationship management system where you have a place to put customers and their emails and their phone numbers and things like that. [00:07:55] Like these are core things in your business. Do you have [00:08:00] standard operating procedures? Yep. That's a big, huge. You know, are your pro, are all of the things that go on in your business, whether you're doing them or not, is that documented? Right. And he was talking about, and we were debating this. He was talking about how do you know, because it's one thing to have a vision, right? [00:08:20] And to be building this thing and starting this thing, right? Cause we're really talking about how to get started. It's thinking through all of those pieces. But how do you know when you're done. . Right? And what does that mean? And what does that mean? What does that mean to be done? Because you, you're telling me, okay, I need a vision cuz to get started, I need a clear vision of what I'm doing. [00:08:43] I need to realize now the pieces that need to be in place to make that happen. Right? Like some of them are more obvious like bookkeeping, but then there's some other things that aren't as obvious. Like, well what are all the SOPs I. . Well, those are gonna develop over time Sure. Based on things that happen in your business. [00:09:02] But I guess the point is how do you know if you're, if you're trying to get a vision to where I'm trying to go, how do I know when I'm there? Well, I would say that the answer to that is why is that you have to ask yourself, why are you starting this business in the first. Okay. What are you hoping that this business will accomplish for you? [00:09:22] Can you gimme an example? Yes. So one of the things that my vision is I would like to own a, Can I say it? Sure. A bud and breakfast. Okay. Can I say that? I guess. Okay. You just did. I mean, you can cut that out, right? ? Yeah. But then everybody's gonna wonder what it was you wanted. . Should I say a bud and breakfast? [00:09:50] Or a bed breakfast? Yeah. But I'm gonna challenge you. I know where you're going, but I'm gonna challenge you. Okay. All right. So one of the things that, that I [00:10:00] personally want and is in my vision story is a bud and breakfast. Though one of the things that we cr that we created Queen City Suites to do for us is to help us purchase a bud and breakfast on the lake type property. [00:10:22] So I know I need about 10 million to get this bud and breakfast up and running. Okay? And here's my challenge. That's another business that you're talking about. It is indeed. Right. So vision doesn't go beyond that. Like why are you starting that business then? What's the vision for that one? So for that one, I'd really just want to, to create a really cool space and experience for people to what end? [00:10:56] Because it. , That's where I want to retire. . Okay, So you're building a retirement community? Yeah. , where people come stay at the Lake and hang out. Yes. And hang out. Yes. Interesting. Okay. Because you wanna stay there because I wanna stay there. Okay. Yes. Interesting. All, I mean, that's my ideal retirement space. [00:11:20] Right? Okay. Right. That's where I, I want to live on the lake and I want to. have that experience every day, and I want other people to be able to enjoy it too. But I enjoy hosting people. I mean, you know this. Yeah. That's one of the reasons that we got into the short term rental space to begin with. Yeah. [00:11:43] Was I really enjoy being the hostess. Yeah, I mean, I love to decorate and, and host parties and that's what makes me happy. Mm-hmm. , right? So why not combine those things [00:12:00] and make that a an experience that I get, not just I get to enjoy, but many, many, many other people get to enjoy as well. Yeah. And I remember when we had this discussion with. [00:12:15] or meant toward Jay, He said, But Wendy, that's not what I meant when I asked you that question. He said, What do you, what do you really want? And then you said, Oh, well, I, what I really want is a Cadillac Escalade that costs $1,500 a month. Like we got down, it was like a hundred thousand dollars car or something. [00:12:35] I do want that too. Right. So that was, that to me was more of a, a. An answer of what you're really wanting rather than this other thing. Cuz that's something you're gonna go do to make money. Like, that's not like, what are you gonna do with the money I'm going to? Right. You understand? I, I wanna purchase a a, a place on the lake. [00:13:02] Yeah. What are you gonna do with the money that thing makes? Well, even if I'm assuming you're just not, even if it didn't make money, I want to buy a house on the lake. I want to live on the lake. Right, But you're serving other people. You're building another business, are you not? Yes. Okay, so what are you gonna do with that money? [00:13:18] That's why I keep asking. I'm going to buy cash flowing assets to create generational wealth for myself and my family. Okay. That's what, And I'm gonna live on the lake and buy a boat and some kayaks, and I'm gonna travel. . I think that's getting closer to the actual vision. Okay. Personally. Right. Well, that's an interesting thing to do is to actually think about what you want, like what do you want your life to look like? [00:13:51] Yeah. And to have these kind of conversations. Yeah. Where you kind of have. , think about it a little bit and dream a little bit. Yeah. [00:14:00] Because a lot of people don't even allow themselves to dream. Right. And we, we've learned that playing the the cash flow 1 0 1 game. Yep. , If you haven't played casual 1 0 1, you should, That's fine. [00:14:10] We'll probably do an episode on it if we haven't already. It's fine. But the, one of the first things you do in that game, and the idea behind that game, if you don't know, it's, it was created by Robert Kiyosaki, the same guy that did Rich Dad, Poor Dad. And, and it's meant to be a tool of learning. So, you know, you were a school teacher and in education, you know, this, that the, the more things you can incorporate. [00:14:34] Seeing it, speaking it, doing it, doing it. Mm-hmm. doing it, you learn a lot more than you do just hearing it. Sure. For example, or just reading about it. And so that was the whole point of the game is like, do it right. Which is probably why I remember it. But one of the first things you do in that game is you choose a dream and they're not stuff like, Hey, I want to own. [00:14:55] A skyscraper that makes money. Like that's not what your dreams are in that game. Your dreams are run for mayor or build a school for kids that wanna be entrepreneurs. That's the one I like to pick. Oh, I like that. Be a jet setter. That's the one. Yeah. I travel around the world. Mine is go see all the seven Wonders of the world. [00:15:14] Yeah, that's one of them that's on there. Yeah. That'ss one I always pick and I, there's one now that I like that's golf around the world. Oh Lord. So I can pick that one right. and then they have price tags associated with them. Right. So the, the idea of the game is you try to eventually land on that spot and have the money to purchase it. [00:15:32] So now you've purchased your dream. Right? Right. And one of the lessons in that game actually is cuz you also have a profession. So you can be anything from a janitor to airplane pilot, airline pilot, medical doctor, everything in between. Right. . And when you look, even when you're an airline pilot, right? [00:15:50] When you look down at what your salary is and then look and see what your dream costs, it's almost like you can't even see how you're gonna get there. Right. Well, you know, I [00:16:00] knew, I knew going into it that I needed $10 million to purchase my but and breakfast. Right. But that almost sounds fantastical, doesn't it? [00:16:10] It did. It used to. Okay. Yeah. But now you see the path there. Yes. Yeah. Mm-hmm. . And that's, that's what the, a lot of the vision is about, is figuring, figuring out that path, right? Mm-hmm. . Right? Right. But you don't have to, you don't have to necessarily know the path right now, I think when you're first getting started. [00:16:32] even allowing yourself to dream about that life that you would like to have. That's how you get started. Mm-hmm. , what, what do you want your life to look like? You're, if, if, if money were no object and you could do anything you wanted to today with anybody you wanted to do, do it with, what would you be? . Mm. [00:16:58] That's that. And thinking about that perfect day, I know what my perfect day looks like already. Yeah. And, and letting that be something that's achievable. Yeah. Right. And then you go to work on, Okay, let's get this thing started. And then how, and, and I don't know if we ever answered the question of how do you know when you've gotten there? [00:17:19] Right? So what, how do you know when, when is your business done? And I would answer that and say, it's done when I can. . Oh, that's interesting. Yeah. It's done when it's, it no longer requires you, me. Mm-hmm. meaning there, yes, I'm the CEO of the company, but there's a salary associated with that. And you need to figure out what is the salary of this company or the salary of the CEO of this company. [00:17:47] What does that mean? And once you get to the, get to the point where, okay, you can actually pay yourself. and everybody else that's involved has a salary that is commensurate with the position. [00:18:00] Now you can actually remove yourself and hire somebody. Yep. Right. And the business is still profitable. That's what I would say. [00:18:06] That's what I would say. That's when you're done. Yep. Or that's when it's fully baked. May not be done right. You can still grow. Sure. Right. All companies grow, but at that point it. Its own autonomous entity that kind of grows on its own with the people inside of it, but it doesn't require the founders anymore. [00:18:28] Yeah, Right. And I would say that's actually the end point. And then working back from there, you say, Okay, well what's the first thing I need to do? And one of the first things you need to do, , well figure out what kind of business this is, what customers are you serving, and then that we've talked about that before. [00:18:47] That kind of leads you down the path of, okay, where and what type of property? And then how are we gonna serve all these people? What's the operations behind that? You know, what are the pieces that need to be in place to make it all work without me being involved? Even though I'm involved in the beginning, I'm really just filling a job that. [00:19:08] The company can't quite afford to. Right. Somebody is eventually gonna get, be put in that position. Yeah. Cuz this, again, this is a business, this isn't right. Passive real estate investing. Right. Right. You know, this is an operations business, right. That is a hospitality business that serves a client base and it knows who it is, it knows who it serves. [00:19:30] It's very specific about that. And it knows what the hierarchy, what the people are, what all the positions are. It. Standard operating procedures. It has processes, it has bookkeeping, it has attorneys, it has CPAs, it has, you know, all those ancillary things that you need in a functioning business. Like what would you expect an Apple to have? [00:19:54] What you'd have to expect. I have all that Sure. Right. Training, like when you bring on a new person, like [00:20:00] is there a training program? Mm-hmm. , Right? So there's a lot to build. , but knowing that that's what you're doing, that's, that will bring you back to, Okay, how do I get started? And I think one of the best ways to get started actually, and now I'm gonna start plugging myself, but the, because this is what we did. [00:20:15] Go get a mentor. Yeah, go get a mentor. Why re why reinvent the wheel? Yes. That that will, That's because it's going to put you so much further ahead. That's what I was about to say. . I mean, it's not a shortcut per se, cuz you still have the work to do. No, it's not the, not an easy button, but it does keep you from doing things that aren't important and focuses on the things that are, because it's easier to see the end goal for someone who's well closer to the end goal. [00:20:48] Right. Right. Than just getting started. And yeah, you can go to YouTube University and you can, you can do all that stuff too. I mean, this is on YouTube. It's the information out there. The problem is everybody has different perspectives and you hear one thing over here and you start doing that, and then somebody over here says, No, don't do that. [00:21:06] Do this. And it's because they have two different game plans. They have two different ways of getting there. So if you can get on one track with one person, and at least duplicate what they've done. . Now you're at a point where, okay, now I can go experiment and do my own thing. Mm-hmm. , right? But you, you kind of want a process. [00:21:24] You want a blueprint to follow. You want a plan. And that's what we've put together to help people at least get started, get to a pretty good sable company to the place where then they can start making those decisions about, okay, how, where, where am I trying to go? Because everybody's vision's different. [00:21:46] Right? Everybody's trying to get to a slightly different place. Yeah. But that's the first step, like to to, to wrap it up, is it would, I would say that the, how do you get started [00:22:00] is figure out where you want to go. . Yeah. Have a complete vision. Have a complete vision of what you want your business to look like. [00:22:07] What is a, what does your mature business look like, and what does your life look like with that mature business? That's exactly what I was gonna say next. Right. What does, What is your. personal, everyday life look like, and how does your business fit in there? How do you fit in with that business there? I mean, you may not fit in at all, right? [00:22:31] You may just have a meeting with your COO once a week or once a month, and or you may sell it, or you may sell it, but you gotta have something that's sellable, right? Mm-hmm. , right? A house that's been on Airbnb isn't sellable. It's sellable as a house. , but where's the business that I'm buying? Right, Right, right. [00:22:53] So you, you want to create the operations, the business. You want to have it autonomous, you want it fully baked at some point so that hey, you don't even have to have those meetings with your CEO because you don't own it anymore. Yep. Right. And you actually had something to sell. Right. Perhaps, Or you could franchise. [00:23:10] You could. Yeah. That's what hotels do. Yep. But that's a whole other podcast. I know. , That's interesting. , that's a whole other podcast. There's so many things that could, could be done. I know, I know. It's so exciting to think about. I know. But you know, I, I like to I like to think bigger than myself, Right. [00:23:27] Because I eventually want to franchise my butt and breakfast. Okay. I think it will be really cool to. To own a whole bunch of, but and breakfasts all over the bud, but, And breakfasts, bread and breakfasts I guess. I don't know. I don't know how you say that, plural. I don't know either. , I'll just worry. B tie bread, br, but, and br tie, but, Okay. [00:23:51] Well, we hope that you found some value in this podcast about. how to get [00:24:00] started in a short-term rental business, I guess, is really kind of for any business at all really. Yeah. So, but we hope you found some value. If you did, click that like and subscribe button, and we will see you next time. Onto the next. [00:24:16] Onto the next . [00:24:18]

Episode12 Why Does Design Matter and How to Get it Done [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys, John and Wendy Williams here with the short-term Rental authority, Your authority for all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator. Yeah. So today's episodes gonna be a little bit different because Wendy just returned from Dallas, Texas. [00:00:23] Is that right? The, the low, the long Longhorn State? Lone Star State. Lone Star State, yes. They do have Longhorns, Yes. In Texas. But it's the Lone Star State. Yes. The Lone Star state. Yeah. It. Gorgeous. You'd never been to Dallas? I've never been. I've never been to Well now you anywhere? To Texas. In Texas. Oh really? [00:00:42] Mm-hmm. Never. Never to Texas. Never been to Texas. That was my first time in Texas and I loved, I loved Dallas. It was gorgeous. Got it. But you weren't there for pleasure. No, I was there for, Work. Work. Oh my God. Yeah. So there's some stories to tell there, I'm sure. But so I, I, I had the idea. I was like, Hey, you know, why don't I interview you because this is some, one of the services that I'm gonna say we offer, but really you provide is you know, we've done this a lot and this wasn't one of our units. [00:01:13] You were down there setting up units for a client. And it's not the first time that's happened. That's something you. And it's not the first time you've been outta the state doing it either, is it? No, because we, we've been down to Louisiana. Mm-hmm. And you've done some remote mm-hmm. . But as far as being on site, this, this is probably the furthest one away. [00:01:30] This is the furthest one away. The, Yes. Yeah. So I kind of wanted to talk about the, I'm just gonna interview you a little bit Okay. And talk about this should be interesting. I, you know, cuz I think there were some particular challenges on this one because it was, So many. And you know, just the, the amount of work that goes into setting up a unit if you're, you know, des you, cuz you're designing it, you're not just setting it up, you're designing it. [00:01:56] So take me all the way back to, you start this [00:02:00] process way before you even go anywhere, right? So tell me what, what does that look like? What do you need as a designer? Well, I need a heads up is what I need. What do you mean? Well, when we coach people, I always tell my coaching clients, before you even sign a lease, mm, you need to double check your designers availability. [00:02:34] because you really want that to coincide, right? So for example, let's say your designer needs two weeks of planning before she can even get on site mm-hmm. . So you, you call her and, and say, Okay, well I want, when is your availability? And your designer says two weeks. You start the lease two days before your designer can get there. [00:03:07] Mm-hmm. . And we need at least two days before because we need power and we need internet. And it's preferable if the security system can get install. Before we get there, I mean, it's okay if it gets installed, like the day that we arrive. Why is that? Is it easy to access to? It's just so much easier to access. [00:03:31] So much easier. And there's another thing, there are so many people coming in and out that all I have to do is give them their own code. Right? And if I, if I'm in one unit, Let's say I'm doing multiple units, like this time I did three units. Mm-hmm. , Let's say I'm in one unit [00:04:00] that's not anywhere near any of the other units. [00:04:04] I can give the TV installation person their own code to go to another unit. They need to go install some TVs at another. and I can give them their own code and they can just go on in and I don't even have to be there. Yeah, that's a practical thing. One of the reasons I always think about putting the security system in there first is because, well, I'm gonna have all this furniture in there, so I'm wanting, wanting to protect the assets, right? [00:04:34] So I don't want stuff in there. And then it'd be just free for all. Right. So I'm thinking security. You're thinking practicality. Interesting. Okay, so you need lead time is basically what you're saying is what I'm hearing is Yes. Hey, you can't call me and say, Hey, come tomorrow and set up. No, I, I will say no because there's not only planning, there's ordering, right. [00:04:53] There's things you have to order. Well, and especially nowadays, the lead times for a sleeper sofa at least three weeks, unless you can get it. locally. Right? Okay. So there's, so there's some planning that goes on just from a, Right. So give your designer at least two weeks. Okay? Heads up. So what do you do then? [00:05:24] So say we've got that two weeks and I call you and I say, Hey Wendy I've got these three places. I need 'em done. You know, the leases start in two weeks, they'll say, What, what do you do first? Okay, so first thing that I do is I ask the client, Who are you serving? Okay? Because that, that's, that's going to determine everything that goes inside the unit. [00:05:51] Interesting. Right, So for example, this particular client is serving families who [00:06:00] are coming to Baylor Medical Center, which is literally across the street. I mean, it could not be a better location for families coming for. Procedures at that they're either coming to support someone who is having a procedure done or they want a person in the family is the one having the procedure. [00:06:23] So knowing, knowing that I know what specific things need to. In the unit, Does it affect the design at all? A little bit. How? Well, for example, somebody who is, is having a procedure is going to need to rest. Mm-hmm. probably during the day. Okay. A lot. Right, Right. So that means blackout curtains are gonna be really important. [00:07:04] Okay. So they can block out the light while they're sleeping during the day. Okay. Right. Also the, the person that is there to support them, let's say the, the the children are in one room. They're gonna need a, like a TV probably, and good internet. So they're gonna need a tv. In that, up in a bedroom. [00:07:33] So that's how you decide whether you're gonna put TVs in a bedroom or not? Yes. Okay. Yeah. Interesting. Yeah. So the other person, let's say the, the father is the one that's getting the, the procedure, maybe the, the significant other is working remotely. They're probably staying for a little while. Mm-hmm. [00:07:56] Right. So that, that person's gonna need a desk. . [00:08:00] Okay, so I'm what I'm hearing, So when I say design, cuz I'm not a designer, I think what colors are things, I'll put that, do that later. What? What everything is. But you're talking functionality. Yes. Okay. Right. Cause that's where it starts, right? I mean, color can come later. [00:08:19] Right. So I a color comes from the, the artwork Okay. That you, that you choose. Right. So I, I need to know what large furniture items, do I need? A sleeper sofa? Mm-hmm. , Is that, is that going to be important to your customer? If so, that's where I start. Got it. So are you, are they, is the client telling you this. [00:08:43] Or are you inferring from, Hey, here's who you're serving. This is what you need in your, No, that's, Are you, I guess what I'm asking is, are you coaching them on, Hey, you need this in your unit? It depends on if it's a coaching client or not already. Got it. So if, if it is a coaching client already, I will tell them what I think they should do. [00:09:05] Mm-hmm. . But if not, I will ask the question, do you want a slipper? So if a yes or no, But you're still asking that person who do they serve? Yes, always. Okay. Because everything revolves around that. Okay. Interesting. All right, so I'll move on from that. So you've asked them who do they serve now what? Now? I start with the largest furniture items. [00:09:31] So if I need a sleeper sofa, I will call around the local. Places and see if I can locate a sleeper sofa. Okay. So you're looking for the, I think what I heard you said is not necessarily large, but harder to find. Harder to find. Yeah. Yeah. So if I need a sleeper sofa, cuz I know that that's, that's the hardest thing to find, find right now. [00:09:55] It didn't had, hasn't always been that way. Right. Yeah. It's just been co been since Covid. [00:10:00] Yeah. That's one of the things that's changed. Supply chain stuff. Supply chain stuff, yeah. Yeah. So your lead times are longer or you're having to. Work harder to find the same thing. Right. Cause you can't take it for granted that it's just there. [00:10:12] Right. Like what? Like I used to, Yeah. Okay. Makes sense. Makes sense. Right. So the sleeper sofa is, is really the hardest thing to find. Yeah. I wanna say you skipped a step. Oh, what is it? Don't you need a floor plan? Don't you measure? I do. Yes. Before you order anything, I do. I need measurements. So I wanna say that what I've seen you do is actually plan everything out on paper. [00:10:33] Yeah. So you don't just go in and start ordering. Like, No, I wanna say that's a, something that a lot of people do it, especially if they're gonna set up their own units as. basically just start ordering stuff. They're like, Hey, I know I'm gonna need this. I know I'm gonna need that. No, no, no. Right. You, you don't do that at all. [00:10:50] You plan everything out. So I've, You've got a spreadsheet yes, that has everything that you're gonna buy. The entire budget totaled up how much it's gonna cost, and I'm guessing that you receive payment as well. Before you start any of this. Yes. Right. Cause I remember that was an issue on this one. [00:11:06] Mm-hmm. was the timelines were compressed. Mm-hmm. , and it wasn't even getting the stuff in. It's like, well, I need. Payment so I can even order the stuff. Yep. With this particular job, it was right. Payment. So there's, there's time there too. So you need all this prep time you need. Right. Not only, hey, I, I gotta get the money so I can order the stuff. [00:11:28] Right. And that's not always the quickest thing. Depends on how people pay. Right. So if someone pays you, and this is like a little bit behind the scenes, but if you pay someone with a credit card, they don't get that money that day. Oh no. It takes, It goes through the merchant processor and then it finally hits your bank account. [00:11:46] Yep. And so that $10,000 that you sent us, Will dwindle down to like in Monday 97 too, by the way. Well, yeah. They take their fee out of it. Yeah, but that's up to you is to Right. You know, it doesn't have anything to do with [00:12:00] the consumer, but it, There is a time delay. There is a time delay that affects the, That's, and that's one another reason that we need a. [00:12:07] You know, the, at least two weeks. Mm-hmm. lead time is that will take the, the pro processing, the payment and receiving the, the things that you order. So let me ask you this. When you're planning out, when you're designing a space, let's say it was one of these, like one of these, Cause you had two one bedroom apartments, I believe, and a two bedroom apartment and a two bedroom apartment that you were doing what size. [00:12:33] Oh, let's see. Roughly the two bedroom was 1070 square feet. Okay, so about a thousand. The one bedrooms were 830 square feet. Okay. So for those that size place, how long does it take you to design it on paper? Oh, like what planning goes into it before you start ordering. Okay, so once I, I get, Well, let's just talk about the floor. [00:12:59] Okay. Just by itself. So it's not, it's not just, Hey, here's, here's the floor plan that the apartment complex gives you. Cuz you can find that on the website. Well, sometimes they don't have one either so and Right, but I, And that's fine, but I need to know which way the doors swing. . Mm. I need to know. Do the door swing out this way, like the entryway door, does it swing out this way? [00:13:33] Or do you open it up this way towards you? Or does it swing this way? Or does it swing to the left? Does it swing to the right? I need to know that information. Why? Cause if you put something there, it might not open. Exactly. And what if the TV has to be right there? Okay, so, I mean, I can't in a bedroom, right? [00:13:50] Mm-hmm. , like if I'm going into a bedroom, I don't wanna. hit the tv. Mm-hmm. . So I need to know which way the [00:14:00] doors swing left or right, and in and out. Right. That's, that's a biggie. The other thing with the floor plan is I need to know exactly where all the outlets are. Oh yeah. That can be a thing. Right. [00:14:13] That way I know if there's, if there's an outlet, if there's only one outlet in a bedroom, I'm gonna have to get extension cords. Or like where, where does the TV go or where did that will affect where the TV goes, right? Yes. Sure. Or where, where can I plug in lamp? Yep. Or, or all these kind, Right. Stuff like that. [00:14:33] Right? Yeah. Yeah. The, so the I need to know where the windows are. Mm-hmm. and how high the ceilings are too. Mm-hmm. , cause this, these units had 10 foot ceilings and I did not know that. Well, I thought I was told that they were nine foot ceilings, actually. Okay. That's what my client told me. Okay. No, no. [00:14:54] They're 10. 10 foot ceilings. And why does that matter? Because length of curtains. Oh. Because it looks really stupid when your curtains are too short. Okay. Is that a technical term? It does, but I wanna say like size of artwork and stuff probably is, That matters too, right? Sure, yeah, for sure. So you need not only the floor plan, but you need the measurements. [00:15:19] I need the exact measurements and yes, the measurements of any doorways. Yes. Where all the outlets are, yes. Where the windows are. because you've, why, because you've run into this before Oh. So many times where you're like, Oh, I didn't know. I need to know that now I do. Exactly. Right, right, right. So now that we've done it so many times, I know, I know what to look for now because, because what, what I do is once I get that floor plan, now I can start, I, and I'll, I'll actually draw it out on paper. [00:15:51] Okay. Well, this wall is, is 11 foot. And here's the, the outlet on this side, and [00:16:00] here's another outlet out over here. Okay, well, well, I've got 11 feet to work with and I know that a sofa is 80 inches long, for example. Well, how much do I have enough room for? For two end tables? Can I only put one end table? [00:16:17] That kind of thing. Yeah. Like where am I fitting the desk? Cause it needs to go in there. Exactly. Yeah. That kind thing. All kinda thing. Yeah. Okay. Right. So how, so going back to my question, how long does it take, How long does it take to do that process for the size that we had? Okay. Well, fitting in the furniture pieces and, and drawing it out like that and figuring out where the sofa's gonna go and how many end tables you. [00:16:46] You need and, and where the desk is gonna go. That really doesn't take very long. I wanna say that only takes less than an hour to figure out per unit. Okay. So that's just placement of items? That's just placement, yeah. Okay. Right. But the next step of that, that's the time consuming part. What is that step that is, The actual design of what it's gonna look like, because you always, always, always start with the artwork first. [00:17:23] So is that what you do? Yes. Are you talking about colors and things? I'm talking about colors now. Now. Or to what I think design is, but Okay. . Oh no, there's so much more. So you get there, you find a piece of art. Yes. And then you use that as inspiration for I do the rest of the unit, so, Correct. Tell me about that piece. [00:17:41] What is the. Cause I have these words in my head, like I search cohesive unit. Right, right, exactly. You know? Exactly. Because you want all the colors to flow, You mean throughout the entire unit? Throughout the entire space. Mm-hmm. , that's what makes a cohesive design, is that the colors flow from one [00:18:00] unit to the other, for example. [00:18:04] And you mean one room to the other? From one. Got it. One room to the other, right? Mm-hmm. . So for example, , I, I look for a, a large statement piece to go over the, the the sofa, right? Or over the bed. Okay. I'll like art, you mean like, or something? Mm-hmm. . Yes. Yes. So that's where I'll start. And that search. [00:18:33] Hours. It takes hours to find, really find a really great statement piece. Okay. And when you say statement piece, what, what do you look, Why does it take so long? Because it's just a painting. Like why don't you just pick one? Well, , well this is a designer thing, so I'm, I'm really looking for something that has at least three. [00:19:05] coordinating colors. Okay? And, and it could have some, some neutral, what I call fluff colors, Okay. To go in it, right? Mm-hmm. . And the, the neutral colors are black, white, gray, beige, ivory, white. I already said white. You know those neutral brown, Okay. Those kind of colors. But I need at least. Three other coordinating colors. [00:19:35] What, like red, blue, green. Yes. Orange. Right? Pink. Pink. I, We've got a pink unit. Yeah. Right. So for, Oh, you did purple this time too. Yeah. So for example, in, in one of the units that turned out so gorgeous, I cannot wait. I cannot wait for everybody to see this. You know, I chose, A statement piece behind the sofa and it [00:20:00] has like that eggplant, purple color. [00:20:03] Okay. Navy blue and teal in it. Interesting. Okay. Oh, it is gorgeous. And it has, it has some cream and some white and some gray in it too. Right. Okay. So I use those throughout the space, but. The three colors from that painting. Now I know now I can take one of those colors and maybe paint the wall behind the, the one of the beds, one of those colors. [00:20:38] So that's what I did. I painted one. Oh no, it had the, it was the mustard yellow, that's what it was. This unit had the eggplant, mustard and teal. Okay. That's what it was. So I took the mustard out of that painting and painted the, the accent wall behind the, the master bedroom and the master bedroom. [00:21:00] That color and then you can pull another one of those colors, maybe, maybe the teal. And that's what I did. I pulled the teal out of that painting and put it in the guest bedroom and then I pulled the purple out of that painting and put it in the dining room. Got it. So what about cause I know we've talked about this having because we're thinking of how. [00:21:22] Well, not only does it how, how does it look when someone walks in? Cuz you want that wow factor. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. Right. So talk a little bit about that. Like, when they walk in the door, what, what do they see? Mm-hmm. . But then there's also the. marketing part of it. Mm-hmm. meaning what are your pictures going to look like? [00:21:39] Right. And I wanna say that that's one of the things that I've seen you do is Oh yeah, for sure design, not only for who's in the space, but for what the pictures are going to look like. Cause you need those, Well, those money shots I call 'em that stop people from scrolling. Right. Well, that's one thing that I think that I have.[00:22:00] [00:22:01] it, I have that no other designer has because we are operators ourselves. Mm-hmm. , and we have, we already know what the money shots need to look like. Mm-hmm. , whereas a lot of short term rental designers are not also operators. Mm-hmm. , but that's what we have. . What? What do you, What's the word I'm looking for? [00:22:28] That's our value add in the marketplace. Yeah, that's an advantage. I bet nobody's ever asked them who they serve either before they start setting. I wanna say that's true. Cause I've noticed there's a lot of things that can look good in person. Yes, they coordinate. The colors are all nice, but in pictures that doesn't translate very well. [00:22:48] Because it's, Yeah, it all matches and it looks good, and I'd love to live there, but it's not stopping anybody from scrolling. Right. So you're, I'm, we're usually looking for something bold. You're talking about that statement piece. Mm-hmm. , you know something interesting. Yes. That's, And that's why's say, Ooh, what's that? [00:23:08] That's why we paint accent walls. Yeah, because that, that really pops outta the page, doesn't it? Oh man. I don't know if, if you have never scrolled through Airbnb or vr. Take a minute and do that. Yeah. And just look at the, see what stops you, what stops your eye. And I will guarantee you that it's color. [00:23:26] Yeah. Because you are very visual. Most things, most units on, on those platforms are just very, beige and gray. And, and they, they don't stand out. Well, they're not designed well. There's that, they're not designed. That's, that's a big piece. Not professionally anyway. But if you, when you, when you find some place that actually has an accent wall in any color really?[00:24:00] [00:24:00] Red's best and that, ugh, I found my new favorite mustard yellow color. Oh gosh. Okay. It is fabulous. We are using that one in one of ours, but something like that, that really catches the eye. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. Yeah. So I, I already know this so I, I know, I know the purpose of, of the design and the purpose of the design is, the guest experience, right? [00:24:32] Mm-hmm. , first and foremost, and it is to get people in the door. Mm-hmm. , right? So you, it needs to, I already know what our money shots are. , Right? They're the straight on shot of the sofa and the straight on shots of the bed. Mm-hmm. . And that's what I keep in mind when I'm planning all this out. So for example, the one of the units I did a a gorgeous lime green. [00:25:05] accent wall. Ooh, lime green. Okay. Oh, it looks great. And I guarantee you it will stop you in your tracks when you see it on Airbnb. Okay. Interesting. And then I hung the artwork is black and white. Okay. And it looks amazing. Okay. I can't wait to see the pictures. Oh, it looks amazing. You worked so hard, you didn't take any pictures. [00:25:28] I worked so hard that I did not get a chance to take any pictures at all. Yeah. So there's that. Okay. So yeah, that, that was just my thought is, hey, I, you know, if you have, because you should be taking professional photos. . Oh, no doubt. So somebody's gonna come in and take pictures of that. Mm-hmm. and really good photography highlights. [00:25:50] Really good design. But it also highlights really bad design. Yes. . And you can tell. Oh yes. [00:26:00] When someone doesn't have that kind of training or experience even, you can tell. Yeah, you can. Cause it's not cohesive that it's not so, So te now we talked about the pictures. So when you walk in, are you thinking about that too? [00:26:13] Oh, definitely. Like when they walk in, what's the first thing they see most definitely. Right? Well, when, when we are coaching people, we often tell our own clients, when you go look at. what you, what you really want it to have that wow factor when people open the door is you really want to be able to see all the way through to the end of the unit. [00:26:42] Mm-hmm. , that's preferable, right? Because that really creates the wow factor when people walk in, right? Mm-hmm. , nobody wants to walk in and see a wall really. Right? You really don't. And if you do put a piece of artwork there, really. So there are some places that are more conducive to design than others? [00:27:03] Yes. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, I've noticed some of those. Those stranger layouts. Yeah. It's hard to make them look good. . Well, we have, Cause the layout's weird. We had one. The living room had a, a wall and it came out like normal. It wasn't like a normal straight wall. It came out normally a little for a little bit and then it like angled this way. [00:27:30] Like towards the floor? No, like towards the, the, Well it was like a, this, like it angled out. No. Yeah. Like it angle. it, it, it was, it came out straight like this and then it angled a little bit. Okay. So what was the challenge there? Well, I had to find somewhere to hang the tv. Oh, so it was a layout problem for Yeah, that reason, right? [00:27:52] Like, so now the, like, where am I gonna put the, So I originally, I didn't know this , [00:28:00] right? So the, the, So I hung the TV on that angled part and then put the desk over. The part that was not angled. Okay. And so I had to push the sofa back, get rid of one of the, the end tables and, and the accent chair. So your design changed on the fly? [00:28:20] Yes. Okay. Interesting. All right. You just got that look like that's, that was a lot of trouble, but, And that was just one. Yeah. So, Okay. So now that you've, we've kind of covered, Okay. We've designed it. We've planned it. Now you guys actually go put the thing together, right? And we're, and we're what, like halfway into the podcast? [00:28:45] Oh my God. There's like a lot of work. So quickly. Okay. Quickly what, what does, does that look like? So you got all the stuff. Okay. You arrive, It's all there, right? Hopefully, hopefully it's all there. Well, hopefully. Okay. So unless the. I better, unless the post office delivered it Right. , When you got some stuff that did not come because the post office did not deliver. [00:29:06] Oh, the post office. Yeah. So anyway, like Joey's on Joey, on friends. Right. So you take inventory, I guess. Yes. So when we, Well the, Okay, let's back up a little bit. We don't have to teach the whole thing. It's in the course. Right. You've, you've done this. You have to, you have to, but prior to doing that, you have to plan it all out first. [00:29:30] Mm-hmm. , because you have to paint first. You have to paint before you can get the furniture delivered. Mm. Okay. Right. I mean, I don't wanna paint. So it's scheduling around, It's, you have to schedule things in order. So day one, when you get there, you schedule the paint. Okay. Cause, and then the, the next day, that's when you want all the furniture to be delivered. [00:29:54] Okay? Okay. On, on the next day. And then the day after that, then you [00:30:00] can do schedule the people to hang the TVs. Cuz you have to have furniture. To in order to hang the artwork. Mm. Right. Yeah. Like I, I like to know exactly where it's going. Exactly. Yeah. Right. So paint furniture, and then you can do all the TVs, hang the artwork, hang the curtains and, and that kind of things. [00:30:27] But so that, those things need to be scheduled in advance. Mm-hmm. . So, cuz you need contractors for that. Yeah. So you got people coming. Right. So you have to do, that's, that's one of the another reason that you need a, a good two week lead time for that. So a week in advance, that's when I schedule all those contractors to come mm-hmm. [00:30:49] Okay. So I give them a week lead time. Mm-hmm. , I, I've noticed that they need at least that. So when, when we get there now all we have to do is find the boxes. Wherever the crap they are. If they're an Amazon lock, ugh, that was a disaster. Amazon Lockers and the, and the postal service. So now that everything is on site mm-hmm. [00:31:14] then you can start putting it in the where, where it needs to go. Like this goes in the living room, this goes in the bedroom, this goes in the kitchen, right? Mm-hmm. . And then while one person setting up the kitchen. You can have somebody else setting up the, the living room. And that's usually what I do. So while they are working, hanging the artwork in the living room and the hanging the curtains in the living room, I'm setting up the kitchen. [00:31:42] Got it. Okay. Right. So I can still be available if they need me. and they usually do. Cuz I'm very specific about how I want my TVs hung. Yeah. And how I want my artwork hung. Well, you should be. Yeah. And my curtains, I'm very particular about that. Yeah. So, so [00:32:00] that, that way I can make myself available. I'm still busy. [00:32:04] I'm, I'm, No, I'm gonna take that back. I'm still productive and efficient with my time. Mm. So that I I can be there on site. Why? And still manage all the contractors that I've got. Right? Yeah. And then there's the shopping that you inevitably are gonna have to do. Oh, it's inevitable. It's inevitable. Just go ahead and, and pull that Tom in, because it is always something always. [00:32:36] Like a pillow's missing or guarantee comes broken or, or something just doesn't come at all. Something doesn't arrive at all. Yeah, because it came from the postal service , apparently. Poor postal service. I know. Bless, bless. But, okay, so now you've done all that. You've, you've gotten everything done that you said, That takes about three days or so. [00:32:58] It takes, it takes two days to set up a one bedroom unit. And three days to set up a two bedroom unit. Okay. Fully. And then it's turnkey. It's done. Yes. And everything's, And then, And then somebody's like cleaners and, and then the cleaners come. Photography comes, But that's not you. Right. Okay. That's not, Got it. [00:33:19] I do not do cleaners and I don't, do not do photography. Right. I don't clean. You don't want me to clean anything? No. No we don't. We've already talked about that. Yeah. I do not clean. It's, yeah, . So anyway. You don't want me cleaning either? No, apparently not. Cuz the place was a disaster when I got home. Yeah. [00:33:37] Oh you mean, Yeah. Well we actually cleaned this. She's talking about our house. That we actually cleaned, believe it or not, before you got home. And she's like, This place is a disaster. I'm like, Well, you should have seen it before you walked in the dorm, . It was really a disaster. Oh, you did a good job. Yeah. [00:33:57] Thank you. Good job. Good job, Mr. Mom. Yeah, I had to [00:34:00] pay the kids too, , pay them to help me. And, and what's funny is I forever rework, I was, I was teaching them about real money versus paper money. Uhhuh, . And I shouldn't have done that because they demanded to be paid in silver dollars. You had to give them silver coins. [00:34:17] Yes. That's funny. Which are like 20 bucks a piece. That's funny. But whatever. I don't want your paper currency. No, they didn't want my paper currency. We want real money. We want real money. So I had to pay them in silver. I love it. Yeah. That's funny. So there's that. But anyway, That's funny. , that's funny. [00:34:31] Anyway so that, yeah, that's a lot of work. Yeah, it's a lot of work. That's a lot of work. It's a lot of work up. It is. It is indeed. And so you don't wanna be putting in that work if you're. At the end, you're gonna have great design so that then you can have great photos, then you guests can leave you great reviews, right? [00:34:47] Yes. Yeah. So you can get those, those reservations that you're looking for. Mm-hmm. . Awesome. Okay. Yep. And that's how it's done right there. All right. Well that was interesting and I guess you're ready for the next one. So I onto the next, if you've got units you want to set up or get. [00:35:04] am a. [00:35:48] Oh, and Thomas Crowler. What are you gonna say? We're talking about I'm hungry. We could do[00:36:00] [00:36:01] setting up a unit. Yeah, but it's more than that. Like you just got back from Dallas and it's one of the services you offer and like how did that go? [00:36:19] Yeah, so let me handle that part. Don't say what we're gonna talk about. I'll do that part. So you wanna do the intro? No, you do the intro. Just don't tell 'em what we're talking about. Got it. Okay. Okay. So I'll just do, Hey John, winning Williams short term role authority, where we Your authority? Yeah, I need to do that part. [00:36:37] Okay. Blah, blah, blah. Mm-hmm. , and then stop talking. Mm-hmm. . Got it. , I'll be happy. Okay. [00:36:50] Oh, my camera stopped. Why did it stop? I don't know. Just work here. You want me to set it back up again? I don't know. Is it just gonna stop again or are you outta space or something? Probably more than likely. All right. We'll just go. Okay. [00:37:07] you ready? No, but we'll do it again. Okay. Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams, your aor. Hey guys, John and Wendy Williams here with the short-term Rental authority, Your authority for all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator. Yeah. So today's episodes gonna be a little bit different because Wendy just returned from Dallas, Texas. [00:37:36] Is that right? The, the low, the long Longhorn State? Lone Star State. Lone Star State, yes. They do have Longhorns, Yes. In Texas. But it's the Lone Star State. Yes. The Lone Star state. Yeah. It. Gorgeous. You'd never been to Dallas? I've never been. I've never been to Well now you anywhere? To Texas. In Texas. Oh really? [00:37:55] Mm-hmm. Never. Never to Texas. Never been to Texas. That was my first time in Texas and I [00:38:00] loved, I loved Dallas. It was gorgeous. Got it. But you weren't there for pleasure. No, I was there for, Work. Work. Oh my God. Yeah. So there's some stories to tell there, I'm sure. But so I, I, I had the idea. I was like, Hey, you know, why don't I interview you because this is some, one of the services that I'm gonna say we offer, but really you provide is you know, we've done this a lot and this wasn't one of our units. [00:38:26] You were down there setting up units for a client. And it's not the first time that's happened. That's something you. And it's not the first time you've been outta the state doing it either, is it? No, because we, we've been down to Louisiana. Mm-hmm. And you've done some remote mm-hmm. . But as far as being on site, this, this is probably the furthest one away. [00:38:43] This is the furthest one away. The, Yes. Yeah. So I kind of wanted to talk about the, I'm just gonna interview you a little bit Okay. And talk about this should be interesting. I, you know, cuz I think there were some particular challenges on this one because it was, So many. And you know, just the, the amount of work that goes into setting up a unit if you're, you know, des you, cuz you're designing it, you're not just setting it up, you're designing it. [00:39:09] So take me all the way back to, you start this process way before you even go anywhere, right? So tell me what, what does that look like? What do you need as a designer? Well, I need a heads up is what I need. What do you mean? Well, when we coach people, I always tell my coaching clients, before you even sign a lease, mm, you need to double check your designers availability. [00:39:47] because you really want that to coincide, right? So for example, let's say your designer needs two weeks of [00:40:00] planning before she can even get on site mm-hmm. . So you, you call her and, and say, Okay, well I want, when is your availability? And your designer says two weeks. You start the lease two days before your designer can get there. [00:40:20] Mm-hmm. . And we need at least two days before because we need power and we need internet. And it's preferable if the security system can get install. Before we get there, I mean, it's okay if it gets installed, like the day that we arrive. Why is that? Is it easy to access to? It's just so much easier to access. [00:40:44] So much easier. And there's another thing, there are so many people coming in and out that all I have to do is give them their own code. Right? And if I, if I'm in one unit, Let's say I'm doing multiple units, like this time I did three units. Mm-hmm. , Let's say I'm in one unit that's not anywhere near any of the other units. [00:41:17] I can give the TV installation person their own code to go to another unit. They need to go install some TVs at another. and I can give them their own code and they can just go on in and I don't even have to be there. Yeah, that's a practical thing. One of the reasons I always think about putting the security system in there first is because, well, I'm gonna have all this furniture in there, so I'm wanting, wanting to protect the assets, right? [00:41:47] So I don't want stuff in there. And then it'd be just free for all. Right. So I'm thinking security. You're thinking practicality. Interesting. Okay, so you need lead time is basically what you're saying is what I'm hearing is Yes. Hey, [00:42:00] you can't call me and say, Hey, come tomorrow and set up. No, I, I will say no because there's not only planning, there's ordering, right. [00:42:06] There's things you have to order. Well, and especially nowadays, the lead times for a sleeper sofa at least three weeks, unless you can get it. locally. Right? Okay. So there's, so there's some planning that goes on just from a, Right. So give your designer at least two weeks. Okay? Heads up. So what do you do then? [00:42:36] So say we've got that two weeks and I call you and I say, Hey Wendy I've got these three places. I need 'em done. You know, the leases start in two weeks, they'll say, What, what do you do first? Okay, so first thing that I do is I ask the client, Who are you serving? Okay? Because that, that's, that's going to determine everything that goes inside the unit. [00:43:04] Interesting. Right, So for example, this particular client is serving families who are coming to Baylor Medical Center, which is literally across the street. I mean, it could not be a better location for families coming for. Procedures at that they're either coming to support someone who is having a procedure done or they want a person in the family is the one having the procedure. [00:43:36] So knowing, knowing that I know what specific things need to. In the unit, Does it affect the design at all? A little bit. How? Well, for example, somebody who is, is [00:44:00] having a procedure is going to need to rest. Mm-hmm. probably during the day. Okay. A lot. Right, Right. So that means blackout curtains are gonna be really important. [00:44:17] Okay. So they can block out the light while they're sleeping during the day. Okay. Right. Also the, the person that is there to support them, let's say the, the the children are in one room. They're gonna need a, like a TV probably, and good internet. So they're gonna need a tv. In that, up in a bedroom. [00:44:46] So that's how you decide whether you're gonna put TVs in a bedroom or not? Yes. Okay. Yeah. Interesting. Yeah. So the other person, let's say the, the father is the one that's getting the, the procedure, maybe the, the significant other is working remotely. They're probably staying for a little while. Mm-hmm. [00:45:09] Right. So that, that person's gonna need a desk. . Okay, so I'm what I'm hearing, So when I say design, cuz I'm not a designer, I think what colors are things, I'll put that, do that later. What? What everything is. But you're talking functionality. Yes. Okay. Right. Cause that's where it starts, right? I mean, color can come later. [00:45:31] Right. So I a color comes from the, the artwork Okay. That you, that you choose. Right. So I, I need to know what large furniture items, do I need? A sleeper sofa? Mm-hmm. , Is that, is that going to be important to your customer? If so, that's where I start. Got it. So are you, are they, is the client telling you this. [00:45:56] Or are you inferring from, Hey, here's who you're serving. This is what you [00:46:00] need in your, No, that's, Are you, I guess what I'm asking is, are you coaching them on, Hey, you need this in your unit? It depends on if it's a coaching client or not already. Got it. So if, if it is a coaching client already, I will tell them what I think they should do. [00:46:18] Mm-hmm. . But if not, I will ask the question, do you want a slipper? So if a yes or no, But you're still asking that person who do they serve? Yes, always. Okay. Because everything revolves around that. Okay. Interesting. All right, so I'll move on from that. So you've asked them who do they serve now what? Now? I start with the largest furniture items. [00:46:44] So if I need a sleeper sofa, I will call around the local. Places and see if I can locate a sleeper sofa. Okay. So you're looking for the, I think what I heard you said is not necessarily large, but harder to find. Harder to find. Yeah. Yeah. So if I need a sleeper sofa, cuz I know that that's, that's the hardest thing to find, find right now. [00:47:08] It didn't had, hasn't always been that way. Right. Yeah. It's just been co been since Covid. Yeah. That's one of the things that's changed. Supply chain stuff. Supply chain stuff, yeah. Yeah. So your lead times are longer or you're having to. Work harder to find the same thing. Right. Cause you can't take it for granted that it's just there. [00:47:25] Right. Like what? Like I used to, Yeah. Okay. Makes sense. Makes sense. Right. So the sleeper sofa is, is really the hardest thing to find. Yeah. I wanna say you skipped a step. Oh, what is it? Don't you need a floor plan? Don't you measure? I do. Yes. Before you order anything, I do. I need measurements. So I wanna say that what I've seen you do is actually plan everything out on paper. [00:47:46] Yeah. So you don't just go in and start ordering. Like, No, I wanna say that's a, something that a lot of people do it, especially if they're gonna set up their own units as. basically just start ordering stuff. They're like, Hey, I know I'm gonna need this. [00:48:00] I know I'm gonna need that. No, no, no. Right. You, you don't do that at all. [00:48:03] You plan everything out. So I've, You've got a spreadsheet yes, that has everything that you're gonna buy. The entire budget totaled up how much it's gonna cost, and I'm guessing that you receive payment as well. Before you start any of this. Yes. Right. Cause I remember that was an issue on this one. [00:48:19] Mm-hmm. was the timelines were compressed. Mm-hmm. , and it wasn't even getting the stuff in. It's like, well, I need. Payment so I can even order the stuff. Yep. With this particular job, it was right. Payment. So there's, there's time there too. So you need all this prep time you need. Right. Not only, hey, I, I gotta get the money so I can order the stuff. [00:48:41] Right. And that's not always the quickest thing. Depends on how people pay. Right. So if someone pays you, and this is like a little bit behind the scenes, but if you pay someone with a credit card, they don't get that money that day. Oh no. It takes, It goes through the merchant processor and then it finally hits your bank account. [00:48:59] Yep. And so that $10,000 that you sent us, Will dwindle down to like in Monday 97 too, by the way. Well, yeah. They take their fee out of it. Yeah, but that's up to you is to Right. You know, it doesn't have anything to do with the consumer, but it, There is a time delay. There is a time delay that affects the, That's, and that's one another reason that we need a. [00:49:20] You know, the, at least two weeks. Mm-hmm. lead time is that will take the, the pro processing, the payment and receiving the, the things that you order. So let me ask you this. When you're planning out, when you're designing a space, let's say it was one of these, like one of these, Cause you had two one bedroom apartments, I believe, and a two bedroom apartment and a two bedroom apartment that you were doing what size. [00:49:46] Oh, let's see. Roughly the two bedroom was 1070 square feet. Okay, so about a thousand. The one bedrooms were 830 square feet. Okay. So for those that size place, how [00:50:00] long does it take you to design it on paper? Oh, like what planning goes into it before you start ordering. Okay, so once I, I get, Well, let's just talk about the floor. [00:50:12] Okay. Just by itself. So it's not, it's not just, Hey, here's, here's the floor plan that the apartment complex gives you. Cuz you can find that on the website. Well, sometimes they don't have one either so and Right, but I, And that's fine, but I need to know which way the doors swing. . Mm. I need to know. Do the door swing out this way, like the entryway door, does it swing out this way? [00:50:45] Or do you open it up this way towards you? Or does it swing this way? Or does it swing to the left? Does it swing to the right? I need to know that information. Why? Cause if you put something there, it might not open. Exactly. And what if the TV has to be right there? Okay, so, I mean, I can't in a bedroom, right? [00:51:03] Mm-hmm. , like if I'm going into a bedroom, I don't wanna. hit the tv. Mm-hmm. . So I need to know which way the doors swing left or right, and in and out. Right. That's, that's a biggie. The other thing with the floor plan is I need to know exactly where all the outlets are. Oh yeah. That can be a thing. Right. [00:51:26] That way I know if there's, if there's an outlet, if there's only one outlet in a bedroom, I'm gonna have to get extension cords. Or like where, where does the TV go or where did that will affect where the TV goes, right? Yes. Sure. Or where, where can I plug in lamp? Yep. Or, or all these kind, Right. Stuff like that. [00:51:46] Right? Yeah. Yeah. The, so the I need to know where the windows are. Mm-hmm. and how high the ceilings are too. Mm-hmm. , cause this, these units had 10 foot ceilings and I did not know that. Well, I [00:52:00] thought I was told that they were nine foot ceilings, actually. Okay. That's what my client told me. Okay. No, no. [00:52:07] They're 10. 10 foot ceilings. And why does that matter? Because length of curtains. Oh. Because it looks really stupid when your curtains are too short. Okay. Is that a technical term? It does, but I wanna say like size of artwork and stuff probably is, That matters too, right? Sure, yeah, for sure. So you need not only the floor plan, but you need the measurements. [00:52:32] I need the exact measurements and yes, the measurements of any doorways. Yes. Where all the outlets are, yes. Where the windows are. because you've, why, because you've run into this before Oh. So many times where you're like, Oh, I didn't know. I need to know that now I do. Exactly. Right, right, right. So now that we've done it so many times, I know, I know what to look for now because, because what, what I do is once I get that floor plan, now I can start, I, and I'll, I'll actually draw it out on paper. [00:53:04] Okay. Well, this wall is, is 11 foot. And here's the, the outlet on this side, and here's another outlet out over here. Okay, well, well, I've got 11 feet to work with and I know that a sofa is 80 inches long, for example. Well, how much do I have enough room for? For two end tables? Can I only put one end table? [00:53:30] That kind of thing. Yeah. Like where am I fitting the desk? Cause it needs to go in there. Exactly. Yeah. That kind thing. All kinda thing. Yeah. Okay. Right. So how, so going back to my question, how long does it take, How long does it take to do that process for the size that we had? Okay. Well, fitting in the furniture pieces and, and drawing it out like that and figuring out where the sofa's gonna go and how many end tables you. [00:53:59] You need [00:54:00] and, and where the desk is gonna go. That really doesn't take very long. I wanna say that only takes less than an hour to figure out per unit. Okay. So that's just placement of items? That's just placement, yeah. Okay. Right. But the next step of that, that's the time consuming part. What is that step that is, The actual design of what it's gonna look like, because you always, always, always start with the artwork first. [00:54:36] So is that what you do? Yes. Are you talking about colors and things? I'm talking about colors now. Now. Or to what I think design is, but Okay. . Oh no, there's so much more. So you get there, you find a piece of art. Yes. And then you use that as inspiration for I do the rest of the unit, so, Correct. Tell me about that piece. [00:54:54] What is the. Cause I have these words in my head, like I search cohesive unit. Right, right, exactly. You know? Exactly. Because you want all the colors to flow, You mean throughout the entire unit? Throughout the entire space. Mm-hmm. , that's what makes a cohesive design, is that the colors flow from one unit to the other, for example. [00:55:16] And you mean one room to the other? From one. Got it. One room to the other, right? Mm-hmm. . So for example, , I, I look for a, a large statement piece to go over the, the the sofa, right? Or over the bed. Okay. I'll like art, you mean like, or something? Mm-hmm. . Yes. Yes. So that's where I'll start. And that search. [00:55:46] Hours. It takes hours to find, really find a really great statement piece. Okay. And when you say statement piece, what, what do you look, Why does it take so long? Because it's just a [00:56:00] painting. Like why don't you just pick one? Well, , well this is a designer thing, so I'm, I'm really looking for something that has at least three. [00:56:18] coordinating colors. Okay? And, and it could have some, some neutral, what I call fluff colors, Okay. To go in it, right? Mm-hmm. . And the, the neutral colors are black, white, gray, beige, ivory, white. I already said white. You know those neutral brown, Okay. Those kind of colors. But I need at least. Three other coordinating colors. [00:56:48] What, like red, blue, green. Yes. Orange. Right? Pink. Pink. I, We've got a pink unit. Yeah. Right. So for, Oh, you did purple this time too. Yeah. So for example, in, in one of the units that turned out so gorgeous, I cannot wait. I cannot wait for everybody to see this. You know, I chose, A statement piece behind the sofa and it has like that eggplant, purple color. [00:57:16] Okay. Navy blue and teal in it. Interesting. Okay. Oh, it is gorgeous. And it has, it has some cream and some white and some gray in it too. Right. Okay. So I use those throughout the space, but. The three colors from that painting. Now I know now I can take one of those colors and maybe paint the wall behind the, the one of the beds, one of those colors. [00:57:50] So that's what I did. I painted one. Oh no, it had the, it was the mustard yellow, that's what it was. This unit had the eggplant, mustard [00:58:00] and teal. Okay. That's what it was. So I took the mustard out of that painting and painted the, the accent wall behind the, the master bedroom and the master bedroom. [00:58:13] That color and then you can pull another one of those colors, maybe, maybe the teal. And that's what I did. I pulled the teal out of that painting and put it in the guest bedroom and then I pulled the purple out of that painting and put it in the dining room. Got it. So what about cause I know we've talked about this having because we're thinking of how. [00:58:35] Well, not only does it how, how does it look when someone walks in? Cuz you want that wow factor. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. Right. So talk a little bit about that. Like, when they walk in the door, what, what do they see? Mm-hmm. . But then there's also the. marketing part of it. Mm-hmm. meaning what are your pictures going to look like? [00:58:52] Right. And I wanna say that that's one of the things that I've seen you do is Oh yeah, for sure design, not only for who's in the space, but for what the pictures are going to look like. Cause you need those, Well, those money shots I call 'em that stop people from scrolling. Right. Well, that's one thing that I think that I have. [00:59:14] it, I have that no other designer has because we are operators ourselves. Mm-hmm. , and we have, we already know what the money shots need to look like. Mm-hmm. , whereas a lot of short term rental designers are not also operators. Mm-hmm. , but that's what we have. . What? What do you, What's the word I'm looking for? [00:59:41] That's our value add in the marketplace. Yeah, that's an advantage. I bet nobody's ever asked them who they serve either before they start setting. I wanna say that's true. Cause I've noticed there's a lot of things that can look good in person. Yes, they coordinate. The colors are all nice, but in pictures that doesn't [01:00:00] translate very well. [01:00:01] Because it's, Yeah, it all matches and it looks good, and I'd love to live there, but it's not stopping anybody from scrolling. Right. So you're, I'm, we're usually looking for something bold. You're talking about that statement piece. Mm-hmm. , you know something interesting. Yes. That's, And that's why's say, Ooh, what's that? [01:00:21] That's why we paint accent walls. Yeah, because that, that really pops outta the page, doesn't it? Oh man. I don't know if, if you have never scrolled through Airbnb or vr. Take a minute and do that. Yeah. And just look at the, see what stops you, what stops your eye. And I will guarantee you that it's color. [01:00:39] Yeah. Because you are very visual. Most things, most units on, on those platforms are just very, beige and gray. And, and they, they don't stand out. Well, they're not designed well. There's that, they're not designed. That's, that's a big piece. Not professionally anyway. But if you, when you, when you find some place that actually has an accent wall in any color really? [01:01:13] Red's best and that, ugh, I found my new favorite mustard yellow color. Oh gosh. Okay. It is fabulous. We are using that one in one of ours, but something like that, that really catches the eye. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. Yeah. So I, I already know this so I, I know, I know the purpose of, of the design and the purpose of the design is, the guest experience, right? [01:01:45] Mm-hmm. , first and foremost, and it is to get people in the door. Mm-hmm. , right? So you, it needs to, I already know what our money shots are. , Right? They're the straight on [01:02:00] shot of the sofa and the straight on shots of the bed. Mm-hmm. . And that's what I keep in mind when I'm planning all this out. So for example, the one of the units I did a a gorgeous lime green. [01:02:18] accent wall. Ooh, lime green. Okay. Oh, it looks great. And I guarantee you it will stop you in your tracks when you see it on Airbnb. Okay. Interesting. And then I hung the artwork is black and white. Okay. And it looks amazing. Okay. I can't wait to see the pictures. Oh, it looks amazing. You worked so hard, you didn't take any pictures. [01:02:41] I worked so hard that I did not get a chance to take any pictures at all. Yeah. So there's that. Okay. So yeah, that, that was just my thought is, hey, I, you know, if you have, because you should be taking professional photos. . Oh, no doubt. So somebody's gonna come in and take pictures of that. Mm-hmm. and really good photography highlights. [01:03:03] Really good design. But it also highlights really bad design. Yes. . And you can tell. Oh yes. When someone doesn't have that kind of training or experience even, you can tell. Yeah, you can. Cause it's not cohesive that it's not so, So te now we talked about the pictures. So when you walk in, are you thinking about that too? [01:03:26] Oh, definitely. Like when they walk in, what's the first thing they see most definitely. Right? Well, when, when we are coaching people, we often tell our own clients, when you go look at. what you, what you really want it to have that wow factor when people open the door is you really want to be able to see all the way through to the end of the unit. [01:03:55] Mm-hmm. , that's preferable, right? Because that really [01:04:00] creates the wow factor when people walk in, right? Mm-hmm. , nobody wants to walk in and see a wall really. Right? You really don't. And if you do put a piece of artwork there, really. So there are some places that are more conducive to design than others? [01:04:16] Yes. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, I've noticed some of those. Those stranger layouts. Yeah. It's hard to make them look good. . Well, we have, Cause the layout's weird. We had one. The living room had a, a wall and it came out like normal. It wasn't like a normal straight wall. It came out normally a little for a little bit and then it like angled this way. [01:04:42] Like towards the floor? No, like towards the, the, Well it was like a, this, like it angled out. No. Yeah. Like it angle. it, it, it was, it came out straight like this and then it angled a little bit. Okay. So what was the challenge there? Well, I had to find somewhere to hang the tv. Oh, so it was a layout problem for Yeah, that reason, right? [01:05:05] Like, so now the, like, where am I gonna put the, So I originally, I didn't know this , right? So the, the, So I hung the TV on that angled part and then put the desk over. The part that was not angled. Okay. And so I had to push the sofa back, get rid of one of the, the end tables and, and the accent chair. So your design changed on the fly? [01:05:33] Yes. Okay. Interesting. All right. You just got that look like that's, that was a lot of trouble, but, And that was just one. Yeah. So, Okay. So now that you've, we've kind of covered, Okay. We've designed it. We've planned it. Now you guys actually go put the thing together, right? And we're, and we're what, like halfway into the podcast? [01:05:58] Oh my God. There's like a lot of work. So [01:06:00] quickly. Okay. Quickly what, what does, does that look like? So you got all the stuff. Okay. You arrive, It's all there, right? Hopefully, hopefully it's all there. Well, hopefully. Okay. So unless the. I better, unless the post office delivered it Right. , When you got some stuff that did not come because the post office did not deliver. [01:06:19] Oh, the post office. Yeah. So anyway, like Joey's on Joey, on friends. Right. So you take inventory, I guess. Yes. So when we, Well the, Okay, let's back up a little bit. We don't have to teach the whole thing. It's in the course. Right. You've, you've done this. You have to, you have to, but prior to doing that, you have to plan it all out first. [01:06:43] Mm-hmm. , because you have to paint first. You have to paint before you can get the furniture delivered. Mm. Okay. Right. I mean, I don't wanna paint. So it's scheduling around, It's, you have to schedule things in order. So day one, when you get there, you schedule the paint. Okay. Cause, and then the, the next day, that's when you want all the furniture to be delivered. [01:07:07] Okay? Okay. On, on the next day. And then the day after that, then you can do schedule the people to hang the TVs. Cuz you have to have furniture. To in order to hang the artwork. Mm. Right. Yeah. Like I, I like to know exactly where it's going. Exactly. Yeah. Right. So paint furniture, and then you can do all the TVs, hang the artwork, hang the curtains and, and that kind of things. [01:07:39] But so that, those things need to be scheduled in advance. Mm-hmm. . So, cuz you need contractors for that. Yeah. So you got people coming. Right. So you have to do, that's, that's one of the another reason that you need a, a good two week lead time for that. So a week in advance, that's when I [01:08:00] schedule all those contractors to come mm-hmm. [01:08:02] Okay. So I give them a week lead time. Mm-hmm. , I, I've noticed that they need at least that. So when, when we get there now all we have to do is find the boxes. Wherever the crap they are. If they're an Amazon lock, ugh, that was a disaster. Amazon Lockers and the, and the postal service. So now that everything is on site mm-hmm. [01:08:27] then you can start putting it in the where, where it needs to go. Like this goes in the living room, this goes in the bedroom, this goes in the kitchen, right? Mm-hmm. . And then while one person setting up the kitchen. You can have somebody else setting up the, the living room. And that's usually what I do. So while they are working, hanging the artwork in the living room and the hanging the curtains in the living room, I'm setting up the kitchen. [01:08:55] Got it. Okay. Right. So I can still be available if they need me. and they usually do. Cuz I'm very specific about how I want my TVs hung. Yeah. And how I want my artwork hung. Well, you should be. Yeah. And my curtains, I'm very particular about that. Yeah. So, so that, that way I can make myself available. I'm still busy. [01:09:17] I'm, I'm, No, I'm gonna take that back. I'm still productive and efficient with my time. Mm. So that I I can be there on site. Why? And still manage all the contractors that I've got. Right? Yeah. And then there's the shopping that you inevitably are gonna have to do. Oh, it's inevitable. It's inevitable. Just go ahead and, and pull that Tom in, because it is always something always. [01:09:49] Like a pillow's missing or guarantee comes broken or, or something just doesn't come at all. Something doesn't arrive at all. Yeah, because it came from the postal service , [01:10:00] apparently. Poor postal service. I know. Bless, bless. But, okay, so now you've done all that. You've, you've gotten everything done that you said, That takes about three days or so. [01:10:11] It takes, it takes two days to set up a one bedroom unit. And three days to set up a two bedroom unit. Okay. Fully. And then it's turnkey. It's done. Yes. And everything's, And then, And then somebody's like cleaners and, and then the cleaners come. Photography comes, But that's not you. Right. Okay. That's not, Got it. [01:10:32] I do not do cleaners and I don't, do not do photography. Right. I don't clean. You don't want me to clean anything? No. No we don't. We've already talked about that. Yeah. I do not clean. It's, yeah, . So anyway. You don't want me cleaning either? No, apparently not. Cuz the place was a disaster when I got home. Yeah. [01:10:50] Oh you mean, Yeah. Well we actually cleaned this. She's talking about our house. That we actually cleaned, believe it or not, before you got home. And she's like, This place is a disaster. I'm like, Well, you should have seen it before you walked in the dorm, . It was really a disaster. Oh, you did a good job. Yeah. [01:11:10] Thank you. Good job. Good job, Mr. Mom. Yeah, I had to pay the kids too, , pay them to help me. And, and what's funny is I forever rework, I was, I was teaching them about real money versus paper money. Uhhuh, . And I shouldn't have done that because they demanded to be paid in silver dollars. You had to give them silver coins. [01:11:29] Yes. That's funny. Which are like 20 bucks a piece. That's funny. But whatever. I don't want your paper currency. No, they didn't want my paper currency. We want real money. We want real money. So I had to pay them in silver. I love it. Yeah. That's funny. So there's that. But anyway, That's funny. , that's funny. [01:11:44] Anyway so that, yeah, that's a lot of work. Yeah, it's a lot of work. That's a lot of work. It's a lot of work up. It is. It is indeed. And so you don't wanna be putting in that work if you're. At the end, you're gonna have great design so that then you can have great photos, then you guests can leave you great [01:12:00] reviews, right? [01:12:00] Yes. Yeah. So you can get those, those reservations that you're looking for. Mm-hmm. . Awesome. Okay. Yep. And that's how it's done right there. All right. Well that was interesting and I guess you're ready for the next one. So I onto the next, if you've got units you want to set up or get. [01:12:17] I am a. [01:13:47] Oh, and Thomas Crowler. What are you gonna say? We're talking about I'm hungry. We could do[01:14:00] [01:14:00] setting up a unit. Yeah, but it's more than that. Like you just got back from Dallas and it's one of the services you offer and like how did that go? [01:14:19] Yeah, so let me handle that part. Don't say what we're gonna talk about. I'll do that part. So you wanna do the intro? No, you do the intro. Just don't tell 'em what we're talking about. Got it. Okay. Okay. So I'll just do, Hey John, winning Williams short term role authority, where we Your authority? Yeah, I need to do that part. [01:14:36] Okay. Blah, blah, blah. Mm-hmm. , and then stop talking. Mm-hmm. . Got it. , I'll be happy. Okay. [01:14:50] Oh, my camera stopped. Why did it stop? I don't know. Just work here. You want me to set it back up again? I don't know. Is it just gonna stop again or are you outta space or something? Probably more than likely. All right. We'll just go. Okay. [01:15:06] you ready? No, but we'll do it again. Okay. Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams, your aor. Hey guys, John and Wendy Williams here with the short-term Rental authority, Your authority for all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator. Yeah. So today's episodes gonna be a little bit different because Wendy just returned from Dallas, Texas. [01:15:36] Is that right? The, the low, the long Longhorn State? Lone Star State. Lone Star State, yes. They do have Longhorns, Yes. In Texas. But it's the Lone Star State. Yes. The Lone Star state. Yeah. It. Gorgeous. You'd never been to Dallas? I've never been. I've never been to Well now you anywhere? To Texas. In Texas. Oh really? [01:15:54] Mm-hmm. Never. Never to Texas. Never been to Texas. That was my first time in Texas and I loved, I [01:16:00] loved Dallas. It was gorgeous. Got it. But you weren't there for pleasure. No, I was there for, Work. Work. Oh my God. Yeah. So there's some stories to tell there, I'm sure. But so I, I, I had the idea. I was like, Hey, you know, why don't I interview you because this is some, one of the services that I'm gonna say we offer, but really you provide is you know, we've done this a lot

Episode11: How to Scale From 1 Unit to as Many as You Want Without Working Harder [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John n Wendy Williams from the Short Term Rental Authority, Your authority on all things short term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And today's podcast we have massive, massive value for for you. Today we are going to be talking about how to get not just one short term rental, but. [00:00:36] As many short term rentals as you want without creating more work for yourself, without working harder. Without that, the, That's the key, right? Without working harder. I like it. Yeah. Yes, I like it. Cause that tends to be, what happens is you get one and then you get two and it's twice as much work and you get three and it's twice as much. [00:00:55] Worked is twice a word. I think it is. Once, twice. I don't know Anyway. But the idea is that you don't want that to be linear. Cause at some point you get burnout on it, and then you just can't scale anymore. Oh, the burnout is real. Or more often what happens is you're like, I'm done with this. Right. I don't wanna do this anymore. [00:01:14] Yeah. So that's what happens. Sell it all good. Yeah. And you can sell it to us. So we're, we are going to cover four main components of this concept. First of all, we're gonna talk about the foundation that you're going to need because we liken it to building a house, sort of as the analogy. John likes analogies. [00:01:36] So we're gonna be talking about the foundations of it, of your business first, and then we're going to be talking about marketing. . And then we're going to be talking about acquisitions, how to find it. And then lastly, we will be talking about cash flow management, how to fund it. So let's start at the beginning with the [00:02:00] foundations of it. [00:02:01] Now the found, the foundations are. The, the basics, right? If you're, if you are thinking about building a house, you have to build a good foundation on which to build the walls and the roof, right? You don't build the roof first. You have to build the concrete slab first, right? So let's talk about what that means. [00:02:26] And there's a couple of components about with the foundation that, that we thought were most important and they are automation. Documentation team members the tools that you're going to need, and bookkeeping and accounting, very, very important. So let's talk about automation first. . Yeah, so automation is probably one of the first things you're gonna do in your business. [00:02:55] It's the, it's the, it's the one thing that you can do right up front. And a lot of these things we're talking about are truly, they're all foundation in a sense, meaning the. When you build a skyscraper, you need a deeper foundation. So the, the more you intend on having the more solid these things need to be. [00:03:14] But yeah, automation is one of the very first things you can do, and it's one of the first things that we did. It's you can automate a good portion of your messages. You can automate a good portion of your pricing as far as that goes. Dynamic pricing. You can even automate your cleaners to a extent, meaning they're not robots, but at least they get scheduled automatically and there's, there's a tool for that. [00:03:37] And all those kind of things. So that's, you know, when you're thinking about the operations part of this short-term rental business, that's where all the activity is. And as much of that as you can automate. Especially in the beginning, it's less that you have to do for one and two, it then offloads those tasks that truly need to be done by a human to the human [00:04:00] right. [00:04:00] So automation is a big piece of a big, big piece of it. Right. And I like the, the automation aspect of the things that are repetitive, right? Like mm-hmm. , like the, there are, there's seven messages that go out to the guest. And that's not including if they ask you a question, Right? Right. That's just a standard reservation's. [00:04:22] Just a standard reservation. Right. So automating those, those repetitive tasks and, and we automate anything that can be automated, we like to automate because it frees us up for doing things that, that, you know, bring in money. Right, Right. And while computers do, can make mistakes, they're not as error prone as humans. [00:04:45] so they don't forget to send the message. Right. Or they don't Right. See the message come in and then they're sleeping. Right. You know, the, the computer's always awake. Yep. So even in the middle of the night when it's one in the morning and you, you don't have 24 7 coverage yet and you're asleep. [00:05:02] you're still, your customer's still getting a response. Right? Right. And that's super important. Sure. Yeah. When they're in the checkout line, especially on the, the messaging side of it, that's a lot of the business, a lot of it. So the, the next a aspect is documentation. And here we're mostly talking about SOPs. [00:05:22] And SOPs stands for standard operating Procedures. It's how you do the things in your business and when you're first getting started. And I wish that somebody had told us this Document, everything, whatever you are doing, write it down and we'll talk about some, some tools that you can use when you are documenting those, those systems and those processes. [00:05:55] But, It doesn't matter. Write it [00:06:00] down however you are doing it. Write it down because it's going to be fluid anyway. Things are always changing. I feel like we are always. Updating our, our SOPs because we learn different things in our business. Mm-hmm. and we have to adapt and, and change in, in certain ways, but it's really great to have. [00:06:27] Something to start with. Right. Especially if you are going to be turning it over to somebody else to do eventually, then they have to know how to do what you're asking them to do. Yeah, and I wanna say that's the easiest part to skip because it doesn't feel like your customer's asking for it. So it's not like messaging you can't skip, you have to answer the customer. [00:06:54] But documentation you can kind of let slide. and you'll say, Well, I'll do it later. I'll document it later. So, and later never comes. Yeah. So, so quick tip, you were going give a tool and tip, Quick tip. When you're doing something, get yourself a screen recorder. That's a really great tip. There are free ones. [00:07:14] There's Loo is a popular one. Vimeo has one. Beyo has one that there's, there's, I think we've mentioned this before, but screen records yourself doing the things, even if it's something. And make it easy for you to do so. So that all you have to do really is click a button and then go do what you're gonna do, and then click stop and you've got your video. [00:07:32] At least it's videoed, and now you can take that later and have it written out. Mm-hmm. , which it should be at some point, very detailed. Extremely detailed so the six year old can do it. But at least now you started the process of documentation. Yeah. So that's one of those things you can do right in the beginning too. [00:07:50] Mm-hmm. , when you're building that first listing on Airbnb, document, record it so that you can then later pass that along to someone else and then over time you'll [00:08:00] refine, Okay, this is really how I want that done. Right. Right. You alluded to that as well. Right. But that those, that documentation and those SOPs become the procedures. [00:08:10] That then lead to the next thing in the foundation, which is turning it over to somebody else. Yeah. Your team members. Yes. Right. So, So it's not necessarily that you are going to be documenting all these things. You will in the beginning, but after a while. You're going to be bringing on some, some people to help you, and that's one thing that they can do. [00:08:36] If you record how you want things done, then all you have to do is give that video to the, your, your team member that you have, that you have hired and say, I want you to write an so P for this document, this procedure, so that. Anybody can, can follow that procedure. So having, having that first step done makes it so much easier when you have to give it away, right? [00:09:11] Yeah. And we, and if you get in the habit of doing that, it becomes a habit, right? It just happens. And eventually you wanna make that the culture of your company so that you're not the only person producing these video. . So a lot of times, you know, we have this thing in our business where if something comes up that's gonna come up again, which most things do, assuming it's not a one off thing, then whoever does that job, it's their responsibility to then document it. [00:09:39] Right? And so these SSPs grow over time, and in the beginning you may dece it and set the example, but later on you're not actually even the one creating the videos. Right? Right. You're the. has just set the, You have an SOP for how to create sop? Yes. Actually, we have an SOP on how to create an [00:10:00] sop. Yes, yes. [00:10:01] That detailed. But that is, that is in essence what your business is, is how you do your business, and that's the procedures. All has to be documented somewhere and. So we talked about team members. So let's talk about some, some things that, some tools that you're gonna need to do your job. So for example, you need somewhere to collect all of those SOPs, some. [00:10:31] some, some program to, to compile all those SOPs into. So you just have one place that your SOPs live. Yeah. And you want them electronic, You want them in the cloud somewhere? They, Yes. They don't need to be handwritten on your desk. Yeah. We, Oh, it's better than not having it. But a lot of the team members that we talk about tend to be virtual. [00:10:53] Yes. Right, Right. And hardly anybody, Well, we don't have an office, so nobody comes into the office. Right. . So you, you want these virtual, We, we started out using Trello. It's a, it's a place to start. Notion is another one of those notion. Mm-hmm. notion.io. I like a lot. You like Asana? Asana is for project management. [00:11:12] It's not for documentation. Gotcha. So you wouldn't use that for your documentation. So that's one thing is use the right tool for the right thing. Mm. . Right. So Asana would be an example of a tool you would use to schedule tasks for your team members to do. Mm-hmm. . So one of those tasks might be go create this, so P, but then the SOP lives in. [00:11:32] You know, a Google Drive or something, or you know, somewhere online, Trello or someplace like that. Yeah. So, so having a place to to house your SOPs is, is a great place to start. Got you have to start somewhere, right? Yeah. And then you need a way to communicate right. With it your, with your team members. [00:11:50] Right? So, So you want to get part of that, not working as hard as getting the stuff off your phone. Yeah. Maybe that is huge. So text messaging, you don't want to, you don't want to be [00:12:00] text messaging cleaners and have that be the procedure. You want a centralized communication that everyone has access to. [00:12:06] Slack is a really good tool for that. Yep. So central communications, and then occasionally you need to make phone calls. Still get that off your phone. Use a, a voice of IP type service. We use Dialpad. There are others. RingCentral, there's all sorts of solutions for. . But it, it basically, now you've got a business that has a phone number and an internal phone system, and you have your internal communication system with Slack and you have your place to put your SOPs with Trello and your documentation or maybe Notion or wherever, all that, all those things are. [00:12:38] Your employee handbook, all all of those kind of things, these are tools that your team needs to do their job. Yep. Right. All right. And then the other thing about of in the foundation section is, and this is just basic, laying the foundation so that you can, you know, build onto it later, is somebody has to do the books. [00:13:03] And hopefully, even if you know how to do the books, getting that off your plate is so critical. I cannot tell you what a great feeling it is to not have to do the books anymore. Yeah. And it's not only not having to do them, but it's, Do you have good numbers? because you're, you're, you're counting in your bookkeeping. [00:13:29] When I was doing it, we did not have good numbers. Yeah. Because you'd wait like three months and then catch it up. Right. And in this business you need, It's terrible. Our bookkeeper now, it's reconciled weekly and monthly. All right. So each week we know where we stand. You know, what expenses are out there, What's coming in income wise, You know, are we meeting our numbers? [00:13:49] Those types of things, because it's from that knowledge that then you can make business decisions. Mm-hmm. , right? You need somebody basically that turns data. , which is [00:14:00] what the books are, data into information, which are reports that you can run and say, What's my profit and loss? What's, you know, what, what do we have as far as inventory goes, You know, what, what's on our balance sheet? [00:14:13] It's, it's those types of things. And that's foundational for any business really. Yeah. But accounting and bookkeeping in this business is not simple. it is not. And so you need somebody that understands it's complex how to turn that data into information. Just a quick example. You may get a $3,000 payout from Airbnb that hits your bank account, but in that $3,000 or four different reservations, four different cleaning fees, whatever other numerous fees are in. [00:14:47] Right. And, and somebody has to break that all out and categorize it so that you know where the money went and where it's, where it's coming to. Yeah. Right. So it's it's it's work. It's work It, Sure. I wanna say the bookkeeper was our first hire. Yeah. I wanna say that's, that's the first person one of the, that we first people we brought on. [00:15:07] That we brought on, Yeah. Yeah. So for sure, Oh boy. It is just so crucial so that you can make those, those really good businesses business decisions. And I cannot, I can't even, It, it makes me want have heart palpitations. Just thinking about having to do those books again. Yeah. Right. And it's just not Yeah, me too. [00:15:29] You were horrible at it. Not I was horrible. I mean, no offense, but No, it's not like I was doing it. I can't complain . Right. But yeah, that's true. You can't complain. You weren't doing it. So the the next thing, now that you have a really great foundation, you've got all, all those things taken care of, now we can start building. [00:15:49] The, the walls, so to speak, right? If you were using the building the house analogy, now we can start building the walls and, and [00:16:00] one wall that's gonna be important is going to be how are you going to be doing your marketing? What? OTAs are you going to be using? And OTA stands for online travel agencies and we use OTAs like Airbnb, vrbo. [00:16:18] booking.com, booking.com. There, there's many out there now that you know what they are. 40 plus, right? So, yeah, so, and more than that actually. And, and you're, you may not start off having your own direct booking website, but that's definitely a goal right? Is to, is to get those, get those direct bookings, cuz. [00:16:42] Very profitable, but anything else you wanna say about marketing? Other than the, the, the platforms are doing the marketing for you in a, in a, in a big sense. So that is a, you know, that's why you tend to see people lean on them early on, especially because that's a whole thing, like getting yourself in front of customers, running ads. [00:17:03] PE do people know you exist even? And so being there is what, what they're actually doing for you. Now, they're taking a piece of it, a percentage to do it. So you gotta consider that. But it's even on the platforms, there are ways to market. You know, it's, it's how, what pitchers do you have? It's what title is in there? [00:17:23] What does your description look like? Mm-hmm. , right? Yeah. So even when you have a listing on an ota, Yes, they are advertising you in a pool, but how do you stand out of that pool? And so now that you've gotten this other stuff out of the way, you've got your documentation and your automation and your team members and your bookkeepings being done and all those kind of things, now you can start focusing on things like marketing. [00:17:46] And then eventually when you have repeat guests, now we can take them direct. Yep. And save them money and make more money in our. And start building up that. So it is kind of, see how it's kind of freeing you to actually do the things Oh, working on your [00:18:00] business. Yes. Not in your business. Yes, yes. Right. [00:18:04] So the next thing is acquisitions. And this is. How to find business, right? Cause we said one is how many as you want, right? Right, right. So how do, how you gonna get the next one? How you gonna get the next one? Right? So now you can start focusing on, okay, well I've got this one. How did I find this one? [00:18:26] And you've documented how you found it. Now you can go out and maybe refine that process a little bit. Now, now we can start talking about all sorts of acquisition strategies, right? Are you gonna be doing the rental arbitrage model? Are you going to be purchasing the property? Those kinds of things. [00:18:50] Yeah. And how are you gonna, you know, Fund it is part of it. Well, that's the next thing because that's what you gotta start thinking about is, okay, if I'm a hundred sounds great, but what, what are my capital requirements for that? And like you, like you said, part of that comes into strategy. It's much lower barrier entry for your rental arbitrage if you're gonna be buying it. [00:19:10] Now you've got the real estate component as well. And so you start, you know, kind of planning out, okay, what is our strategy? How many per month? What does that look. Is, is it the business is gonna be self-funding this, because after a while it does, it becomes kind of a snowball mm-hmm. to where, you know, you get 10, 12 of these, all of a sudden it's, you start picking them up quicker because the, the cash flow from the business is actually generating that. [00:19:35] Those, or it could be generating your down payments is too as well, right? Yes, for sure. Yeah. So that, that's, but it's, it's something you wanna start thinking about and have an active pipeline of. Acquisitions not only customer side, because if you're doing a good job in the previous step in marketing, all of a sudden you're gonna have this inventory problem where there's way more demand for your product than you have. [00:19:57] And so the next step is let's acquire [00:20:00] more of them. Yes. Right? And so that, that's what we're talking about in, in the acquisitions process. Right? And, and then in the, in the cash flow management part is how do you fund it? How are you going to go from one to the, how are you going to get the next one? [00:20:18] Right? So now that you know how much it costs you to. To, to get that one. Now you have a baseline almost of, of what it's gonna cost you to get the next one. And then, then the next one. And the next one. And we use a a cash flow management called Profit First. Mm-hmm. , It's based on a book by Michael Michael Witz called Prophet First. [00:20:43] I think it's Malowitz Miit. But even he says, nobody can pronounce my name, so I believe his website, if you go to Michael Motorbike, it actually like motorbike. That's right. He'll actually go to his right website. Yeah, right, right. So whatever his last name is, it's a really great book, but it's called Profit First and it's a. [00:21:00] It's kind of like the, the envelope system for your business. So every dollar has a purpose and you, and you, you almost spend it on paper first, right? So it's, it's, okay, well this much money is coming in though, now I can allocate it to all these different things. And we have different, different. Accounts that we send that money to, right? [00:21:29] In certain times of the month. But we could do a whole podcast on that . And one of those is acquisitions. But that's what happens, right? So you've built the foundation again, right? You've got your team, you've got the, the machine. You've started your marketing, now you've got acquisitions coming in, you, you're generating more properties. [00:21:48] Inevitably, now you have more cash. And managing that cash flow is what you're talking about. Yeah. And that's unique. That's a big piece in and of itself, just to make sure that well during high season when you're [00:22:00] your hand over fist in it, that when you get the low season, you have some to get through the low season. [00:22:05] Right. , Right? And then you, you need to divide that up and say, Okay, what part of that is going to pay, you know, your owner? What part of that is going to, for acquisitions perhaps, what part of that is going to you know, just operations in general, and then what part of that is maybe in reserve? And then we gotta set aside some for taxes. [00:22:23] There's always taxes. Always taxes. Although in the beginning, kind of void that. Another, another podcast episode. But it's that that cash flow management then becomes something that really requires your attention. Right? And it's a good thing that you're not stuck messaging guests. I, I was just about to say that. [00:22:41] Doing your own bookkeeping and right. Worried about marketing and all these other things because now cashflow management becomes the thing that can get overlooked if you haven't set those other things in place, right? Because, and it's a huge piece. Now you're working on your business, not in your business, and now that you're not doing all those foundational things, now you have time and your time is freed up to, to work on those. [00:23:10] important things of getting more units, right? Right. So, well, we hope that you have found some value in this. Now, if you want to know exactly how to do all of these things, we can help you. And here's what you do. You're gonna text S T R A, that's S t r A to this phone number nine, eight, zero. 8, 8, 8, 8, 5, 4, 1. [00:23:45] Again, text, s t r a to 9 8 0 8 8 8 8 5 4 1 and we can, What we're gonna do is we're going to send you an [00:24:00] E. It's the three things that you need to know when you're first getting started in short term rentals, but it'll get you in the system and we can we can help you out and we can teach you how to do all of these things and even more to help make you the best operator ever. [00:24:21] Onto the next, onto the next. [00:24:24]

STRA Episode 10: How do I Protect my Investment if STR Regulations Change? [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. [00:00:07] We are John and Wendy Williams, the short term rental authority, your authority for all things, short term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And we have a question from Todd Fleming, from Ohio, and his question is. how do you protect your asset if regulations, regulations change? [00:00:35] And I thought that was a really great question in that we should address it on the podcast. So we get this question a lot, you know, are Airbnb's legal? Can I do Airbnb? What are the Airbnb regulations? That kind of thing. So I thought that we could talk about that. And what I'd like to talk about first is, so here's what we're gonna talk about today. [00:00:57] We're gonna talk about a mindset shift that a lot of people. Don't realize that they need to make about regulations. Then we're going to talk about the different types of regulations that there are. And then we will address the, how do you protect your asset if regulations change aspect? Right. I think his was more of a, Hey, if I go invest in some area or so. [00:01:27] what do I do? If it, all of a sudden they change it, like it's allowed now, and then they change it. How do I protect my investment? Right. Which is a valid question. Sure. Right. But we'll talk about that last. Okay. Yeah. So, so let's talk about first this mindset shift that people need to make. Regarding regulations and, and you were talking about it earlier and it was really good. [00:01:55] So regulations don't tell you [00:02:00] what you can't do. They tell you how you can do it oftentimes. Yeah, so I, I would just say that, that it is a way to go look at the regulations is. not what it's telling me. I can't do, but it's it often is telling you how you can do it. Right, right. That there's a difference in, and I think that's why you called it a mindset shift. [00:02:22] It is because it's a mindset shift. You, you kind of have to go into it with that perspective perspective. And you know, one of the things we always say is make sure you're actually reading the ordinance itself, you know, go find the actual ordinance because. Here's the thing, I think this question comes from a place of fear. [00:02:42] It comes from a place of misunderstanding a lot, obviously. Yeah. And it comes from Facebook groups that you're on and things like this, like, oh my God, they're, they're banning short term rentals. What we, or they're banning Airbnb or whatever. Right, right. And, and what are we gonna do about it, or I'm afraid that, Hey, they're gonna do that where I am. [00:03:02] Or, you know, I would never go, you hear things like this, like, well, you can't, you know, you can't do it in, in Los Angeles because it's so honors and I'm afraid, you know, we have a lot of students and coaching clients that are in the California market and they're constantly worried about. Hey, are they going to bring that here? [00:03:23] Gonna bring that here? Cause there's a lot of markets where right. It is regulated Los Angeles being won a lot of Southern Californias that way. You don't see it as much in your vacation type destination. So I was thinking like you know, big Bayer national park and, and stuff like that. Those those markets tend to, or like in, on our. [00:03:44] Side of the country, you know, your Myrtle beaches or your, you know, places like that, that are vacation destinations. Don't typically have this problem because it's just, it's been that way all along. Right. And the, the economy depends on it. Sure. So we're mostly talking [00:04:00] about, you know, your Metro areas, your cities, your, the big cities like places we operate C. [00:04:05] You know, you're at your, Atlanta's your, you know, your cities is really where this in towns that aren't traditional destinations for leisure travel, right. That that's usually where these come in. so, and, and you talked about it just a second ago, is the, the ordinances. So let's talk about the different types of ordinances or regulations. [00:04:36] So we've got the city or the town ordinances, which you should definitely research first, before you get started to see what you can do. Right. It's not talking about. What you can't do look at it as, okay. How can I operate within the confines of the law? What are they telling me that I can do? Mm-hmm and, and so you've got the city ordinances, and then within that, if you have an HOA, you've got the HOA CCNRs that you'll need to look at. [00:05:16] And then within that, Yeah, you've got the, the specific landlord regulations too. So some landlords are, are, are more minimal than others. Yes. Yeah. So that's a good way to put it. Yeah. Right. So those three things that are, are the, the three types of regulations or ordinances that you need to look at. And you can have statewide ordinances too. [00:05:41] That's true. Yeah. That's coming to play here in North Carolina, actually. Uhhuh . Yeah, that's true here recently. That's true. Mm-hmm mm-hmm so, so looking at that and you can do a simple Google search and, and just say short term rental regulations, Charlotte, North [00:06:00] Carolina, or short term rental ordinance. [00:06:03] Tampa, Florida, mm-hmm, , you know, just short term rental ordinance or short term rental regulation, and then your city or town and your state. And that will bring up a lot of results. But here's the specific thing that I think it's important to look for is something.gov. Would be the most valid search result that you are looking for because it is government [00:06:37] Yeah. Well, what you're really saying is don't read news articles. Don't read news. Yes. Avoid news articles. Yes. Cause that's what you're gonna get mostly on a Google search. Right? Exactly. And the news article very rarely is informative. In other words, they're well, it's. truth. Well, it is true. It's not that it's a fake news article. [00:06:59] No, the problem is that they are looking at it from, it's not true ordinance. Well, they're, it's not the ordinance itself. Right. They're looking at it from the perspective of what can't you do. Yes, exactly. Right. And, and keep in mind that they think Airbnb is a verb. Right, right, right. There's, there's a lot of, you know, we're in the industry and to us, we know that. [00:07:20] Airbnb is just a marketplace there's and short term rentals has been going on for hundreds of years. You know, it didn't get invented when Airbnb right came. Right. So it's, it's been going on forever. In fact, it used to be encouraged. Yes. Especially when you buy, were buying a house. Yeah. Like in the 18 hundreds, that was a thing. [00:07:40] Yep. That's right. You know, it was actually easier to get a mortgage if you had a short term rental on your property. Right. Cause it was, it was the income, extra income. Right, exactly. And that's still true actually to a certain degree, but the, the point is that there, the, a lot of the times the regulations and the hype. [00:07:58] Around it [00:08:00] comes from a non-industry perspective. Meaning that's it's. People don't really, I hate to say it this way, but they don't know what they're talking about. They really don't. They're well, they're not in the space. They're not in the space. They're not operating this space. It would be kind of like me trying to tell you how to chop up a, you know, be a butcher or something. [00:08:18] I'm not a butcher. I don't know anything about it. Other than it's meat, any, I think you chop it up with the Cleaver. right. And there's blood involved and I don't wanna be involved in that. all. Right. Sounds horrible to me, but I like stay right. thank you, butchers. Yeah, but the, you know, it's, it's it's so it's, it's an it's ignorance is the word, but it's not meant to be negative necessarily. [00:08:41] It's just, it's just, it just is what it is a non-educated point of view. Yeah. Right. And so, so I, I, can I bring my examples out? Yeah. Oh yeah. Go ahead. Okay. when you search for that. And I, and I picked the city of Atlanta because they recently passed some short number ordinances and it's been kind of a buzz. [00:08:59] We have people in Atlanta too that, that do this and operate. And it's been kind of a buzz because, well, when you Google search it, you're gonna find, well, here's the news article for you. And the, the big headline is city of Atlanta cracking down on Airbnb short term rentals. About 4,000 short term rentals could no longer be allowed to operate in Atlanta because of a new ordinance cracking down on who's able to rent out their home. [00:09:27] Right. Right. And it goes on to tell you that basically you can only have two of them. You have, one of them has to be your primary residence, which means you have to live there. And now there's this whole well now I can only have two of a max, how am I gonna scale that and make that a business? and well, I don't even live in Atlanta, so now I guess I'm out of business. [00:09:50] Right, right. Like, and, and the news, that's what the news article says basically. Right. And then they interviewed some people that were short term rental operators in there, [00:10:00] like this lady who has a duplex and her primary residence, but she can only use one half of the duplex. and her primary resident. [00:10:09] Right. And, and you have to get a license and it's, it's not honors. Really. It's 150 bucks, I think, for the permit. Oh, that's not too bad. And, and that's fine. But, but that's what it is. That's, that's the type of information you're going to get from a news article. Okay. So what I did was I, I took the news article and I said, okay, well, let's go read the ordinance. [00:10:31] So, so I pulled up the actual ordinance. That's what you really need to do because this is the actual rules. Right? Right. So, and what it basically comes down to when you're reading an ordinance, you'll find that they start out with a lot of wear as is. You know, it's lawyers write these things, right? [00:10:47] So you get this, whereas, you know, thousands of Atlanta residents rent their homes on a short term basis. Whereas, whereas, whereas whereas, okay, fine. Skip the whereas is and get down to, and what you're really looking for. Right up front. The definition is what's the definition. Yeah. What, what is a short term rental appear? [00:11:06] How do they define a short term rental, correct? Yes. Like what is it? What is, first of all, we need to know what we're regulating, right? and it says in here it's got the intent ah, definitions, short term rental means an accommodation we're in exchange for compensation. Yeah, we do wanna get paid. A residential dwelling unit. [00:11:30] So we'd need to define that as well. Right. But for now, we'll just assume we know what that is. A residential dwelling unit okay. Is provided for lodging for a period of time, not to exceed 30 consecutive days, not to exceed 30 consecutive days. 30 consecutive days. Yeah. So they they're talking Yoda speak, cuz they're kind of saying it backwards, but what they're really saying is if you. [00:11:55] Do it for less than 30, if you do it less for, if you, if you rent out a [00:12:00] space, I'm just gonna use that word for less than 30 consecutive days, then, then you're not considered a short term rental. No, it's the other way around then you are considered a short term rental. Yeah, they just said it backwards. [00:12:10] Gotcha. So you said it the way that makes sense to most people, right? If you rent it for less than 30 days, it's a short term rental. If you rent it for 30 days or more, then it's not anymore. Which means the rest of this doesn't apply to you. Right? Right. So if you do an extended stay model, then you don't fall under the shortterm rental guidelines. [00:12:32] Right. Extended your mid consider. I think people are starting to call those midterm stays now midterm stays. Yeah. But yeah, if you, if so long as you have 'em in there for 30 days or more, the rest of this doesn't apply to you, which means this news article is wrong because. It didn't say anything about whether it was on Airbnb or not, or whether it was on VRBO or not, or where I advertised. [00:12:59] It just said, how long did they stay? Right. And that's the definition. So what it's telling me is I can have an Airbnb, an Airbnb. I can have an Airbnb in the city of Atlanta so long as people stay for 30 days or. So what happens if I want to rent it, rent it out less than 30 days? Well, in that case, it's gonna tell me how I can do that. [00:13:27] Okay. Tell me how I can do that. So the way I do that is I need to obtain a license. Okay. It does say that I can be a renter and obtain a license. Okay. It says that I must have a primary reside. In the city of Atlanta. Okay. And I can home share that one. So I can, it has to be your primary residence. [00:13:47] So you have to live there. So I guess I could rent out a room in that home. Okay. And then I can have a second one. Okay. That is totally just for short term rentals. Okay. So, and it says here that you can't [00:14:00] have more than one primary resident. So basically it's saying me, John can have one primary reside. [00:14:07] and an additional short-term rental. Okay. And then I have to get a license. I have to pay $150 for it. And I have to, there's some things I have to do, like have a way for people to contact me 24 hours a day. Okay. Right. Sounds like a phone number or a messaging. Yeah, so, but there, it has to be posted in the unit. [00:14:31] So the name and contact information of the registered agent is what they're calling it. Ah. Gotcha. And it has to be posted in the unit. I'm sorry, the short term rental agent. So the agent is a person or organization, so it can be an LLC. Okay. Designated by the owner or the long term tenant of a short-term rental on the short term rental license application. [00:14:50] Gotcha. Such a person. Shall be available for and responsive to contact at all times. So it can be my team. Okay. It can be queen city suites. That's the agent. Got it. And that's it. That's pretty much it that's it. Yep. Yeah. There's no other requirements in here that I saw. I didn't yeah. You know? Okay. I may have missed something. [00:15:10] Somebody's gonna say no, but it's this other thing too. Yeah, basically. You have, you have to tell how many parking spaces you have and they can't violate the Nora's ordinance. And well, we don't wanna do that anyway. That's that's pretty much it that's it. You have to have written rules posted in the short term rental that include Them acknowledging that they won't exceed, violate the laws as opposed to noise. [00:15:33] Acknowledgment of the maximum occupancy is limited to two adults per bedroom. So that is an additional requirement. Okay. Two adults per bedroom. Yeah. So if we had our two bedrooms there, we couldn't put a sleeper. So in right. And say we host six, we could only host four. So they've limited it occupancy two per bedroom. [00:15:49] You have to notify everyone around it. So if this is a house or an apartment, you have to notify all the neighbors for a certified mail that you've applied for the license. Oh, okay. [00:16:00] Interesting. And that's pretty much it just little stuff like that. So, so you can, you can operate in, in the city of Atlanta and. [00:16:09] Technically, if I were going to operate there, I would simply go to 30 days or more stays. Yeah. Then you're not gonna and avoid the rest of this altogether. Right. Probably. And I'm, and I might, well, I don't live in Atlanta, so, but if I lived in Atlanta, I might I'm apply for a license and then have one that's short term. [00:16:27] Like I could do that. So it hasn't told me I can't do it. Right. It's just told me how I can. Right. And, and that's the way I looked at it. So if you're in the city of Atlanta, Simply go 30 day more stays and you'll be fine. I would say that that's probably the case in the majority of metropolitan cities, the majority. [00:16:47] Yeah. There's a few places that I've seen exceptions to that yeah. Where they really make it difficult. Yeah. But it usually comes down to length of stay length stay. Yeah. And the reason for that is there's a lot of people that rent month to month mm-hmm well, they can't do away with that. And they're trying not to. [00:17:05] you know, make it illegal to rent month to month, right. And at the same time control. So it comes down to length of stay. It very rarely comes down to where your customer comes from. Mm-hmm . Now I will say there are some exceptions to that. Baltimore is one of those. Oh yeah. Baltimore has written theirs in such a way that it does matter where they come from. [00:17:26] I feel like it's gonna be challenged if somebody challenges it, but they're basically theirs is 120. Interesting. If you use an online travel way for them to pay, like they made it very vague. It didn't say Airbnb. Oh really? Yeah. So there's some, it's all how they pay online. Yes. It's about, that's interesting. [00:17:47] Yeah, they were very, I, I think they were trying to be, what they're really trying to say is if you come through everything B you have to stay for 120 days or more. Gotcha. Okay. With that. And, and they're trying to get around the problem [00:18:00] of. Month to month, but you know, there's an argument to be made that well, we pay our. [00:18:05] Rent online. Right, right. For the, for lots of people do for sure. So how do they, I don't know. I think that could be challenged and it'd be difficult to, to get around it. But that's interesting for now. That's the way it's actually written. Huh? Yeahinteresting it's one of the few places it's actually that way, most places it's, it comes down to length to stay. [00:18:25] And it's something that's doable, right? 28, 30, 31 days. Right? Sure. And so there, because there are people who. Need to need a place to stay 30 16 all the time, 90 days. So in fact, a lot of our reservations are just that. Yeah, I know. So, so don't be discouraged by, yeah. By that. If you, if the, if your ordinance says, well, you know, you, you, you have to do 30 day stays are more the, just know that that's doable. [00:18:56] I mean, there. Yeah, we should probably do a whole podcast on that, that need that, that type of stay. So, and, and we get 'em all the time. Yeah. And I know people in those markets and that's what they focus do very well. They do Seattle. We've got some, some Seattle's one of those some coaching clients in Seattle that do places very near that way. [00:19:17] Denver mm-hmm they do very well in Denver. So places like that in Philadelphia, Indianapolis. Yeah. I don't think Indianapolis actually has a restriction, but there just know that there are lots of people who need that type of accommodation. So, so we've covered the, the city or town ordinance. [00:19:40] Let's talk a little bit about if you're in an HOA and your HOA has. They're called what you need to look for. If you're, if you're in an HOA, what you need to look for are the CCNRs. And that stands for covenant. Yeah. You just set yourself [00:20:00] up, not to know what that means. Restrictions you're the one that's licensed yours. [00:20:05] No, right. I really should know. It's been a hot minute since I've. Yeah, but basically it's the rules, but it, that those are the rules that, that are going to. Cover that type of, of information, not just the bylaws. I think the bylaws are just, the bylaws are something else. It's how though HOA is organized, right? [00:20:24] Like it's gonna have a president and it's gonna have a secretary, right. That's not what, it's not the rules. It's not the rules, the CCNRs, covenant, something and restrictions that I can't remember what it is, but feel free to let me know if you know what it is. Right. let me just cut that out. Cause right. [00:20:41] Get off the fat jokes. F, but we actually do have some short term rentals in an that have an HOA and well, first advice would be avoid HOA. Yeah. Avoid condo associations, avoid HOAs, avoid areas that have that. Oh, condo associations are the worst. Yeah. I mean, not any worse than HOAs. It's. You call it a condo association when it's a condo, that's the only difference. [00:21:10] Yeah. But they're why do you say they're the worst? Well, because they're, I'm thinking of it as [00:21:21] a lot of times they're in vacation destinations, for example, beach. Oh, well, those are the ones where I would, that that's the exception to the rule for me that are, are typically vacation destinations, but those are the ones that might actually be okay. Yeah. I would say that's the exception because it's typical, right? [00:21:45] It's it's like a, a common thing to do in that area, right? Yeah. Like everybody has a short term rental at the beach. Like all the condos at the beach are, yeah. There are buildings term rentals that are condo buildings where like they're. Vacation rentals. Cause they're, but if you're, [00:22:00] but if you're not, then you really need to watch out if you're, if you're looking to short term rental a condo, because they're, they're definitely going to be some restrictions in the, in the condo associations, for sure. [00:22:15] Yeah. Well, even if there aren't the risk is that they'll change it. Mm. Yeah. See. Right. Cause an HOA is just a, a group of six people that. volunteered a lot of times just to do it, cuz nobody else would want to right. Nobody supposed to be on the board, you know, and then they can propose amendment amendments and things that get changed. [00:22:36] And condo associations are very much the same way. Mm-hmm yeah. Now typically the group passed a vote on, right. I was gonna say. the fact that it's there at all is usually driven by who's on the HOA. Now, if you could control the HOA mm. Or you can control the condo association, meaning you own most of the condos in the building, then maybe it's not as much of a risk. [00:22:57] Right. That's interesting. But it is a risk and it's something you want to mitigate first by just avoiding it. Sure. And two, by reading the current rules, right? You gotta read the rules, but realize they can change. And one of the, a, one of the HOAs we're in right now is proposing to change. The rules to, and it's a time again, they're saying, Hey, you can't lease a property for less than 30, less than six months. [00:23:22] Oh, six months. Okay. Six months, the neighborhood we live in is 12. Right. So it makes it very difficult. Well, is it possible? Yeah, but I would rather go to lower hanging fruit, you know? So in those cases you end up having to. Generally mm-hmm or go back to a long term rental model, right? Mm-hmm so that's a risk. [00:23:45] So I would just stay out of them to begin with. so that's how you mitigate your risk there. right. Is just avoid them. Right. But it's hard to avoid your local government and it's hard to avoid your state government, you know? So in those cases, I think that's really what [00:24:00] more people are more concerned about. [00:24:01] Mm-hmm cause that those you can't avoid, you know, they're going to do it and they are dominion over you, right. Yeah. Right. Well, you can't avoid the, the landlord either. I mean, if you are doing the rental arbitrage model, then. You have to, the landlord's gonna give you a lease. True. Right? Like there, there are some apartment buildings that just won't let you do it. [00:24:24] Yeah. I just don't. Yeah, basically it did. And it's okay. Next. Right. So you just don't operate there. Yeah. Please don't operate under the radar. You don't want to go to business on no. Any of these scenarios, by the way. You don't want build a business on hiding no, that is poor ethics, right? It's it's poor ethics, but it's also not a very good business foundation. [00:24:45] I mean, and that's just risky. It's a house of cards waiting to come down, right? Oh boy. Yeah. It's only a matter of time. So I actually enjoy operating in areas that have regulations. I was gonna say that, well, you say it then. Well, because it takes out a lot of competi. Well okay. For that reason, but it also gives you more certainty. [00:25:07] Well, that's true too. So if you're in an area like Charlotte, that has no short term rental regulations, so it's kind of a free for all. Yeah. Now you have to worry about what if they put some in. well, now that, and I don't know what they're gonna be. Well, now that brings us nicely to Todd's question. Right? [00:25:26] What do I, how do you, how do you mitigate your risk or how do you protect your asset is actually the way he said it. Mm-hmm if, if regulations change right. Well, at first I would point out that there's very few indu, well, there's no industry, there's no industry. That's not subject to regulation risk. [00:25:49] there's not a single one. Well, yeah, that's a really good point. Great example. The government says, okay, car companies, your average fleet now has to get 35 miles to the gallon, [00:26:00] right? That's a regulatory risk. They're not set up for that. They make most of their money selling big Ford trucks. Like that's a regulatory risk to. [00:26:10] right. And so their job now as a business, as entrepreneurs, I guess, is to navigate that. So as entrepreneurs, that's what we do. We navigate changes. Things always change and there's always regulatory risk, no matter what industry you're in. That's true. So there's that but a lot of what we advocate is the, the systems and processes that you put in place. [00:26:34] Should be anticipating that like this noise section of this ordinance here says, Hey, you know, we're gonna find you if. Your gas, violate noise, ordinances. Mm-hmm and a lot of times that's gonna come from well, neighbor complained and said that you were loud. Right? Right. So one of the things we put in all of our units is a noise monitoring device. [00:26:57] Yes. And it, it monitors testable levels, 24, 7, 365. Yep. So one, we know if it's happening and we can put it in a stop to it before it becomes a violation. And two, we have the evidence to defend ourselves. If it didn't happen. Right. If they say, Hey, they were loud at one in the morning, what are you gonna do about it? [00:27:19] We can actually go back to the device and say, well, actually the decimal levels were this inside the unit. Right? Right. And so if you, if you get caught cutting corners and skipping kind, some of these, these steps that are in place, then all of a sudden new regulation, now you've gotta put the cost out to do that thing. [00:27:39] Or you get a violation, right. And it says in here, I think if you get more than three in a year, they take your license away. Mm. So there's, there's that? So you gotta, part of it is having the systems in place. Other things I've seen in ordinances are around health and safety. Like you, you have to keep a record of. [00:27:58] When the batteries are [00:28:00] changed and the battery levels in your smoke detectors and the smoke detectors. And we do that. Well, the system that we have does that right for us. So since we use a security system, that's integrated into the smoke detectors and the carbon monoxide detectors, we actually can see that remotely. [00:28:14] Yeah. So we already have a record of that. Yep. That is kept already. So if the regulation changes, it's kind of like, cool. We already do that. Right. Right. So, so having these things in place, you know, already yeah. Having a team in place, having a number that okay, here's where you can call, if you have a problem. [00:28:34] Well, we kind of already have that. Right. And we have that 24 hour here's contact information stuff. Right. Mm-hmm we already post that so that the guest knows where to contact us. Right. Right. So a lot of these things you can do preventatively so that you don't get caught flat footed when the regulation comes, cuz it's probably coming. [00:28:54] It's prob some form of regulation is coming sometime. Sure. Whenever there's money involved, , , that's funny. The government gets involved, right? because they always want a piece of it because the demand is there that it's not short term rentals are not going away. Yeah, no, there's no way that genie is out the bottoms. [00:29:11] There's no way it's already become established in our society of the lives. Yeah. The demand is there. And it always will be. And people aren't just gonna say, oh, well, I guess we'll go back to hotels. That's not what's gonna happen. No, it's not for sure. The demand is there and the industry will provide, find a way to provide it. [00:29:28] No doubt about it. So there's that. So don't, don't assume that, Hey, if they would they say. Crack down on Airbnb in Atlanta, that it won't go back the other way at some point, because the demand is there. Yeah. For it. And we saw that actually happen in Anaheim, California. They came out pretty draconian restrictions and then kind of eased back off of that because there needed to be a balance there mm-hmm [00:29:54] Yeah. And frankly, the, you know, Atlanta didn't go full. [00:30:00] Crazy on it. right. They just said, here's how you can do it. Right. Right. I feel like most of them are that way. Yeah. They are because they've seen what's happened in other places. So as time goes on, these kind of things are gonna get way more predictable because they're going to be more, I'm gonna use uniform, the word uniform mm-hmm even though they're that's true. [00:30:21] Different localities. Mm-hmm I feel like that's true. Like they're all gonna require you to have the noise thing. You know, you know, check the battery levels on the smoke. You have a contact, have a contact. And frankly, if you're operating correctly, you're already doing a of those things anyway. And I think that's the whole point of, of this mm-hmm if you're operating correctly, you should already be doing those things. [00:30:46] So if the regulations change, you're not stuck. Saying. Okay, well, crap. I gotta put this system in place. You're already doing it if you're operating correctly. Yeah. You know what? I think one of the biggest things that we can do as operators to protect our investment is, is simply to educate. Mm. Yeah. [00:31:06] Cause a lot of the times the, the city council or, you know, whoever's making these decisions. They're not in the industry. Right. And they just don't know that and they read headlines like this. Right. They, or, or something like it, like something's happened at an Airbnb and they're like, oh shit, what do I do? [00:31:27] Right. Yeah. Like there was a shooting at an Airbnb. Yes. Right? Like you used to see those headlines. When I think the Ford Explorer made SUVs popular. And when they first came out, you would see these headlines that says SUV. in an accident, SUV mows down pedestrian or something, or SUV kills a child or right. [00:31:47] Yeah. Nothing about like, Hey, somebody was driving the thing right. That actually did that. Right. Right. And, and you see that in, in this instance too, because frankly people aren't educated. They, [00:32:00] they think Airbnb means party. They think Airbnb means vacationers, right? They think Airbnb means, oh my God, there's gonna be these people next to us that we don't know who they are. [00:32:13] Oh my God. And they're gonna constantly coming in and out. Right. Or when, when it's, they don't know, we live in a neighborhood of 500. we don't know half the people that live our here. Oh God, I wouldn't. Oh, well it could be somebody either third. That's a criminal. Well, you know, somebody can buy a house in the neighborhood without a credit. [00:32:31] I mean, well, they probably get a credit check. Well, without a background check, that's true. There's no background check required to buy a house in your neighborhood's true. That's a very, and you don't know who they are and you don't know what friends they have coming over and what their record is. Right. [00:32:44] But we don't think about those things because. It seems normal to us. And a lot of times there's this irrational fear of something. That's actually a better situation because it's more controlled rather than somebody, anybody can just it's. It would always be it's like anybody can just come in our neighborhood and buy a house. [00:33:06] right. That's true. But, but there's, there's not much concern over that. There's this concern over? Well, anybody could just stay there. Right. But no, we actually do guest screening and we actually do run background checks on people. Oh, go figure. And we do look to see, see that they have good reviews. And so those people are probably gonna be better neighbors than potentially someone who's gonna buy next to you. [00:33:27] Mm-hmm . But in, in, in, I think educating the public and educating. Elected officials on yep. Not only the benefits, but how it's some oftentimes better for the community. Because it, it actually can raise property, manual values, which that's another thing, you know, you, you see this back and forth, back and forth of two things that can't be true at the same time. [00:33:55] right. Like, Hey, there's so many short term rentals that it. [00:34:00] Decreasing housing stock and making the price of everything go up. Right. And now there's, you know, we're gonna get rid of 'em so that we can have more affordable housing in the area. and then at the same time you have people saying, well, we have this short term rental in our neighborhood and it's negatively affecting our property value values. [00:34:17] Right. So, which is it like, are they going up or down? , you know, which, which thing are you talking about? Right. Right. And, and both of those things can't necessarily be true at the same time. So a lot of it, I think is, is it's a need jerk reaction. It's a fear misunderstanding, frankly, of what. A good short term rental really is. [00:34:38] Cuz there are people that just allow anything right. And don't control their properties and don't keep them up. [00:34:45] And that's why I actually like the idea of some regulation that says, okay, you guys, you need to be doing it this way. So I would rather see regulations, frankly, that say, Hey, here's the stuff you gotta have in your unit. Mm-hmm, , you know, here's the control you need to be able to have of your property. Here's the you know, you can't just have 20 people in a one bedroom apartment. [00:35:07] And then on the flip side of that, The police department, frankly, let us be able to call them and say, Hey, we have people in violation of the short-term rental ordinance that are in our unit. Can you please help us with that? Right. And, and not tell don't tell me, well, there's nothing I can do about it. [00:35:24] Yeah. Cause that that's, that's what would really make rentals from my perspective, better for the community. Mostly if we could get assistance from the city, when there is a problem. so not only can, you know, instead of us having to go over there and take care of ourselves, at least have some teeth and some backup to say, Hey, what you're doing is actually gonna get you escorted out by the Charlotte MC brick police department. [00:35:53] Right. That would be really great that that would make the quality of the neighborhood [00:36:00] better. That would make short term rentals more of a benefit to the community. Then a detriment sometimes. Right. And I will say the vast majority of guests are fine. So it's that one in 10 that you get and that's the one you need help with. [00:36:14] Yep. And being responsible operators. We only, we don't want that either. No, goodness gracious. No. , you know, I, I value the quiet enjoyment of my yes. Neighbors. I, I value, I have a large investment in that place. Yes. You know, I don't want somebody tearing it up either. Right. For sure. I don't even want 'em smoking in there. [00:36:34] I mean, we, we wanna be good neighbors, so it's in our best interest to operate that way. Please help us with that. So that's the kind of regulation I would rather see actually. Yeah. Mm-hmm, . But unfortunately it, it often comes down to, okay, well, we're gonna restrict the number of that you can have or how close together they can be. [00:36:56] Doesn't make any sense. Or, and it's, it's not really the, in my opinion, it's not really the proper solution for what I think they're trying to get at. And I was mostly concerned with safety and security, I would say. Yeah, it's always trash, trash noise, trash noise. And. Safety. Yeah. So it's, it's those three things, and those can be addressed if you're operating a system. [00:37:20] Yes. Like, like we advocate and that we were taught and that we teach others and that we teach others. So if you, if you wanna know more about that system follow more of these videos, if you like this like, and subscribe. Do you have anything else you wanna say about that? No. Okay. I felt like we were kind of in a natural yeah. [00:37:37] Place to finish that. Yep. Okay. It was really great. Great, great information. We hope that you found some value. Please do like and subscribe. If you'd like to hear more and we will see you next time onto the next, onto the next. [00:37:52][00:38:00]

STRA Episode 9: Should I Use a Property Manager for My Short Term Rental? [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey everybody. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams with the short-term rental authority, your authority for all things, short-term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And today's podcast. We're going to be talking about whether or not you should have a property manager. [00:00:27] So we're going to talk about situations where it would be appropriate to have a property manager and then situations where it may not be as lucrative to have a property manager. That's a good way to say it. Yes. A good, a lucrative, not as lucrative, right? Yes . So let's start out by saying. What is a property manager. [00:00:55] Oh, that's good. Cuz I would just assume that everybody knew what that was, but okay. Right. And I, and I think a lot of people, especially if you're coming from the real estate investor space, well then you definitely know what that is. Right? You, you already have an idea of, of what a, what a property manager is. [00:01:15] Right. It's someone who. Manages your property for you. Right. But in the short term rental space, what is a property manager? And it's it's, I would say it's basically the same thing. Yeah. There's more to do. There is there's way more to do. Right. But it's someone who has the listing. For example on, on any of the, the OTAs, the, the platforms, Airbnb, VRBO, et cetera. [00:01:45] And they are responsible for the guest experience. That's probably the best way that I can put it. Yeah, I would say they're very similar in a, in a, in a 10,000 foot view. So you hire a property manager, whether [00:02:00] it's long term rentals or short term rentals, you hire them. I'm gonna call them tenants just for now, but you hire them to find the tenants. [00:02:07] You hire them to collect the rent. You hire them to take care of any maintenance that needs done coordinate all of that. It it's way for you to be cleaner. Hands off. Well, not we'll cleaners. Yeah. In both sides. Right. Cause you have to be turnover. Sure. Yeah. So they're handling the turnover typically when one tenant leaves and another arrive. [00:02:28] The, the biggest difference in the, the short term rental space is that happens more often, right? right. So it's it's instead of once a year, they're finding a new tenant it's it may be every couple of days that you're having to find a new or turnover the property. Right. Right. So there's, there's a lot more activity that goes on in short term rental property management. [00:02:50] And for that reason, short term rental property management typically is more expensive than. Your long term rental property management, just because there's so much extra work involved. Right, right. And typically not always cause you can negotiate anything, but typically property management is a percentage of gross revenue. [00:03:12] In other words, top line revenue before expenses, usually property management is a percentage of that. Whatever that number is, monthly gross revenue. Okay. Right. Mm-hmm yeah. And that's how they make their money. So in a long term rental, if it rents for 1500 at least in, in our area, it's very typical that a property manager would make 10% of that. [00:03:29] So they would get $150 and minus any other expenses. And then you, as the owner would get what's left over. Whatever's left, basically. Yeah. And then it's your job to go pay mortgage taxes, insurance, that kind of thing. And the short term rental world it's same thing. It's just that number is higher, right? [00:03:48] So on a $1,500 rent, you might make three. As a short term rental a month gross. And then typically property management, at least around here is taking 15 to 20% of that [00:04:00] off the top. Yeah. So they're take, so if it's three grand, just we'll just say it's 20% now that's $600. and you have down 20 and minus expenses. [00:04:12] Right? Right. And then you take what's left over and do the same thing, pay your rent, pay your mortgage, pay your right, whatever utilities, all that kind of thing. And then, and there are companies out there who will do that for you. Yes. Right. And so in the, in the short term world space like evolve. VA Casa Uhhuh. [00:04:29] Those are some of the big ones. Those are some of the big ones. And then there are local people that do it too. Yes. Right. There's lots of people that property manage. Mm-hmm and now we're talking short term mental side only that do that. Just keep in mind that in most states technically to be a property manager, you're supposed to be licensed if you're doing it for other people, for somebody else. [00:04:48] Yes. And now there's that gray area in there where people are doing that in the short term rental space. It's called co-host. Where they are essentially acting as a property manager, but they're not always necessarily licensed. And I feel like that's something that's gonna come into play at some point legally, but for now it's just something that's happening. [00:05:08] Yeah. But that you see those too, you know, that nobody's really regulating it or looking at it right now. Right. Yeah, but that's, what's going on there. That's that's the world of property management, right? So that's what a property at a high level manager is. And that's what a property manager does. And there are some situations where it may make sense for you to have a property manager, for example if you have a, if let's, let's say that you own. [00:05:38] Condo at the beach, for example, and you don't live there and you don't live there. Yeah. But you want to use it, right? Maybe it's a, a second home for you or, or a house at the lake or, or so let's say, and you own it. And you, you own it because you want to use it. And then [00:06:00] when you're not using it, you. [00:06:03] rent it out. Mm-hmm to on, on Airbnb or VRBO or wherever. Right. But you don't necessarily want to manage it yourself because you may not have time to do that, right? Yeah. Because it is a bit time consuming. So, well, I wanna say in that scenario, there's two things coming into play. One of those is, well, you only have the, one of. [00:06:31] right. So it's to, to your point, like spending time doing that, and it's not your ma it's not your business, right. It's not your business. It's kind of like, it's your vacation home. But the second part of that, that I think is even bigger is you don't live there. Like for us, if we had a condo, a condo at the beach, or even two or three well that's three hours. [00:06:54] and you may not have the local contacts or you might not have the, and, and wonder if, what if it's, Hey, I have a condo in Florida and I live in New York that New York place. Yeah. Right now I'm even further removed from being able to do that. Yeah. Right. Especially on, on a, if it's something like to your point, Hey, I, this is just my vacation home and I want to rent it out so that it offsets some of my costs, but really the goal isn't necessarily. [00:07:22] Make money, right. It's to it's just to have a place have, have it so you can use it. Mm-hmm whenever you want to. Right. Right. So in, in that case, having a, a property manager may make sense for you. Right. However, , if you are looking to actually start a short-term rental business, and this is your business, and you're looking to make money doing this and maybe not have just one, but a whole entire portfolio of short-term rentals. [00:07:59] Now [00:08:00] we're now that property, that 15, 20%. Is gonna get really expensive. It does. And, and we just know from our experience operating and coaching other people and, and looking at the numbers that typically if you're doing the math, right, we'll talk about that some other time. But typically your expenses run somewhere between 70 and 80% percent mm-hmm of gross revenue. [00:08:26] Yep. Which means if you make 10 grand that month, somewhere between 7,000 and $8,000 of that is expense. in, including the rent you're paying or mortgage, you're paying insurance, insurance, you're paying utilities and all that utilities you're paying. Right. Any, any kind of thing you're using. Right. And then if you then go pay a property manager, 15 to 20%, well that eats up the rest of it. [00:08:49] Yep. And, and what I've, what we've found is that a lot of people who end up going down that road soon, discover that, oh, well, I'm not actually making any more than I would have. How if I'd just made it a long term rental or very little more. Right. And they, you think you're giving away 15 to 20%, but it's really 50% or more of your actual short term rental side of the income, right? [00:09:18] Right, because we've already talked about separating the real estate from the short term rental business. Right. And it's yes. So yes. And, and so those are two separate businesses, right? So I'm only talking about what does the short term rental side of it generate? Cuz I remember this isn't real estate investing really. [00:09:35] Right. Even if you own the real estate, that's the separate kind of thing. Totally separate business. And that thing does rent. Even if it's a beach house, it has a market rent as a long-term rental. It just does. Yep. And that you have to start at that number. And then the short term rental is how much more do I make? [00:09:51] Yep. How much more on top of that? Yes. Right. And that's only looking at it as, okay. This is a for profit business. Mm-hmm when you, when you have your condo at the beach that you just [00:10:00] want to go to, then that is not as important. Right. So then back to, okay, well, I can just put property management and I don't really kind of care and really kind of break even, and trying to break even anyway. [00:10:10] And just have this condo that's gonna appreciate over time. Right. And that I get to use. Sure. Right. So that's a whole different play. That's a whole point of it though. Right? Mm-hmm . And, but if the, if you're, if your strategy is, well, I wanna create a, a large portfolio of short term rentals, then that's the. [00:10:31] In that instance, it would make sense for you to create your own short term rental property management company, which is what we. coach other people how to do, and to be clear, that is managing your own portfolio, managing your own portfolio. Yes. So you're, you're now not in that gray area of, even if you're not licensed, Hey, you're not doing it for someone else. [00:10:54] You're doing it for yourself. So in yes. I wanna say probably every state in the union, we're talking to the us here. It, you can manage your own properties. That's perfectly fine. It's when you start doing it for someone else that that licensing requirement comes in mm-hmm right. But, but to your point, yeah. [00:11:08] That's When you, when you start building out a portfolio, well, it's cheaper to, to run it yourself for one. And what we teach people to do is, well, you're not really doing it yourself. You're building a team, you're building the, the software infrastructure. You're building the automations, right. You're building all of these things. [00:11:29] And one of those true benefits of that. Is not only is that where actually the money is made in the short term rental business, it's in the management, it's in the, providing the service cuz that's the value to the marketplace yeah. Is providing the service. Sure. And if you try to outsource that, well, there goes the value. [00:11:49] Right. And not to mention what you mentioned earlier that that may have slipped by, but when you use property management, typically. Their [00:12:00] website, it's their customer. It's loss of control. It's not only loss of control, but it's loss of value because the value of the business is who are your customers? [00:12:09] Yeah. What's your customer list. What's your brand, right? Yep. And when you turn it over to property management, typically now it becomes evolves customers. Yep. It becomes vacation customers. It becomes local property managers, customers, and. now you don't have anything to sell, but a property cuz you have no customer list. [00:12:32] You have no real business there. Yeah. Right. And that's valuable in and of itself. Right. So I, I always find that humorous when, for example, you see a house for sale, right. That says, Hey, it's been a great Airbnb. It's made this. Right. Right. But we used property management. So. So you're, so I'm not buying the Airbnb business, right. [00:12:59] Or the short term rental business now really I'm just buying a house. Right, right. That somebody else has run as an Airbnb. Right. But I don't mean to talk down to that person. I'm just saying that they, they don't have any value in the business. There's there's no, there's, there is no business. There's no reviews, right? [00:13:16] That come with that. There are no, well, there's no systems. There's no customer list that comes with that. I mean, how, how you run your business is your business. Yeah. And we're, we're currently reading a book called the ETH. Revisited. That's so good by Michael Gerber. Yeah. And he talks about that. [00:13:33] Yeah. It's really good. The, the value in a business is actually the systems and processes and, and all of that kind of thing. Like how you do what you do. Yeah. And you always want to start a business with the thought of, even if you don't ever feel like you're going to, but with the thought of selling it and do you have something to sell? [00:13:52] Right. And then to me, that's the biggest disadvantage to using property management is. If I decide to sell, I [00:14:00] don't have a business to sell. All I really have is a piece of property. Yep. Yep. Right. And, but that, that's what we do is we coach people on how to run that business, how to create those systems and processes and how to hire and train and fire all the, the team members that you need. [00:14:24] so that you can work on your business and you're not in there in your working in your business. You you're just kinda managing the manager so to speak. Yeah. I wanna say that's one of the reasons, one of the big reasons people go to property management is because they're afraid of all the work. Well, you know, even if you, cause it sounds like a lot, have a property manager, you still need to. [00:14:48] Know how to manage the property, know how to manage, manage the property manager. Yeah. Like how do you know if they're doing a good job? Yeah. Right. Really. Right, right. So, but yeah, I mean that, that's the, that's the thing is that, but that's why people do it though. Sure. I mean that, of course, cause that seems like a, a lot of work that seems like, well, that's a totally separate business. [00:15:08] It is, it is a whole, whole separate business. I mean, it's a whole, it's a totally separate skill set. I mean, I mean, the automation's involved. And the knowledge that you need to know is something that you have to learn. You have to teach yourself those things you do, or have somebody teach it to you or have someone teach it to you. [00:15:28] Yeah. You have to learn those things. But I guess where I was really going with that is it's not as daunting as you think. Well, not when you have a guide. Yeah. I mean, it's, I mean, if I were out there doing it myself, I would just be like, oh my God, am I, am I doing be starting it to zero? Yeah. Am I, what am I, what am I doing? [00:15:47] Right. Really having a, having a mentor in the space is, is going to make or break your for success. Well, that's what we did. It's not like we, nothing is nothing is new [00:16:00] knowledge. Right. But we, we had mentors. Yes. We had other people we leaned on. Yeah. And we learned how to do it correctly and then added some things to it on our own and kind of refined what was good for us as a business. [00:16:12] And now we have a complete system package. is it? I don't feel like it's that hard anymore. Yeah. Well, it was when we first got started, but to get started, it was, yeah, I can. I remember that. It was. Yeah. Yeah. But it's, it's not as, it's not as bad as you, you might think it's not worth giving up 20%. No, not at all. [00:16:31] It's to have somebody else to do it for you, in my opinion, it's easy, but it's not simple. Well, it's simple, but it's not easy. It's simple, but it not, not easy. Yeah. I know what you meant. Yeah. But yeah, it was the other way around. It's it's simple. But it's not easy. Yeah, it does. It does take work. It does. [00:16:47] Don't get me. Don't get anything wrong. It does. But, but a lot of that is up on it's on the front end. Yes. It's getting it set up. It's getting the business, you know, stood up mm-hmm and getting all those processes in place. But once you do that, it's easy just to plug properties into it. Yep. You know, you don't have to redo that every time you sign another lease or just plug 'em into buy the property or, or whatever you're gonna do, you're now plugging them into the system. [00:17:10] Yeah. That then goes to work for you. Yep. Right. And that's where the value is in the short term rental business. Yep. Yep. Very good. Excellent. Well said. Yes. So there, so to sum up there, yes. There are some reasons you might want to use a property manager. We advocate for basically building your own property management system and to do that, you need well, you need properties that are close to you for one thing. [00:17:34] We've talked about that. Yeah. Yeah. Which we've talked about before. So, you know, my advice would be if you're, if you're starting out don't go all over the country and have one house in Florida and one in Texas and one in Oklahoma. And because what you're doing is you're setting yourself up in a situation where you have to use property management. [00:17:53] And then as you have 10 or 15 of these, that becomes very expensive and you have no business at the end of it. [00:18:00] Right? Yep. And that's where people kind of stop doing it and sell all the properties. Right, right. Yeah. Excellent. Oh, well, we hope that you have found some value in this podcast and if so, like, and subscribe, and we'll see you next time onto the next, onto the next. [00:18:19] Nice. [00:18:20]

Episode 8: How Many Nights do I Have to Have Rented to Break Even? [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys. Welcome back to the podcast. The short term rental authority podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams here to make you the best operator ever. [00:00:15] And today's topic is how many nights. per month, do you have to get it rented in order to break even right. And the answer to that is, and the answer is, it depends. John's answer to everything it depends. It truly does. But here's, here's what you need to figure out. You need to figure out what are your expenses? [00:00:37] So what are your, what are your basic expenses? Meaning if no one stayed there. at all that place still costs you something, right? We call it fixed expenses, but yeah. It's your fixed expenses. Yeah. And the reason what he said, eh, is because, well, you're figure here, I'll tell you what they are. They're your, what the place would rent for per month as a long term rental. [00:01:00] It's your gas, electric. Your utilities, water, all utilities, right. Which are technically variable, meaning they aren't exactly the same every month. Right. They're just not, but we include them as fixed expenses because we have to pay 'em regardless. You still have to pay something for electric. You don't turn it off when it's vacant net, right? [00:01:21] Yeah. Internet's more of a, I know what that is every month. Cuz it's the. Unless you have a plan that goes over data or whatever, but the, the idea is I, I need to know what all of those expenses are and it doesn't, here's what it doesn't include. It doesn't include cleaning. It doesn't include these other things that you are actually charging a fee for when someone is staying there. [00:01:43] Right. So it's just your fixed expenses. It's your rent? It's your. Utilities utilities. It's your insurance insurance. It's your, any software subscriptions you have that you pay either way. It's those things, and you add all that up and now you have a monthly [00:02:00] number, cuz truly that's what break even is it's right. [00:02:03] How much am I paying every month? How much am I paying every month? And how much do I have to make to break even mm-hmm to bring that back to zero. Right? Right. So. the question really becomes is, well, how much do you charge per night? Mm. So if you're, if your fixed expenses were, you know, $2,000, just to make it a round number and make the math easy, if you charge $2,000 a night, the answer is one, right? [00:02:32] if you charge a thousand dollars a night, the answer is two. If you charge $500 a night, the answer is I need four, cuz I'm trying to get to 2000. so it's very dependent on what is your nightly rate and the challenge becomes that your nightly rate? Well, at least it shouldn't be it should not be the same across the board. [00:02:56] Right. And it's very seasonal. So when I say it depends, not only does it depend on what are you charging per night? It also depends on when, in other. here in, for example, in our market, our seasonality is January's our worst month, June, July. Our tend to be our best months. So the number of nights we need to break, even in August, because we're charging more per night is actually less than it is in January, right? [00:03:26] Because we have a certain number that we have to get to, to break even that month. And if we're able to charge. That average daily rate char, if we charge more on that average daily rate, then we don't need to get it booked as much. Correct. And, and so average daily rate with that term it's or ADR, what that is, is what on average. [00:03:52] do you charge per night because every night's different weekends are different, even if it's just, Hey, it's this price during the week and this price on the [00:04:00] weekend, or it's this price in January and it's this price in July, right. It changes. Right. So your ADR actually changes per month. So how do you, how do you get to a place where, okay, I know I'm going to be able to make it. [00:04:14] And what we suggest is start looking at things over a 12 month period. Yeah. So start looking at average. Instead of trying to, trying to say this month, it's this and this month, it's this eventually you will figure that out as you have data, but you almost have to be operating for a year to, to know what your numbers are. [00:04:32] Yeah. I think that's a, a really interesting mindset shift that, that a lot of people need to make that are thinking about going into the short term rental spaces. yes, you do want to, to make money we're in business to make money, but it's important to, to think about it in think bigger, think, think, think of it in a year's worth in, in terms of a year instead of a, a daily rate. [00:05:05] Yeah. And so what you're looking for now is now what you can start doing is aver. out over the whole year. Right. And that's why you, why that's why you need to make that mindset shift. I think. Yes. Yeah, because it's, it's hard to say. That's why I said it depends. Cuz I had said, well, is it January? Or is it July? [00:05:24] Right? Right. So you need to have that mindset of, oh well. Okay. And I I'm let's look at bigger time periods. Let's let's make it let's let's go bigger here. Right. So the question was what's my average daily rate and the, and the real question is, well, what's your average yearly rate. Yes. Right. Is the real thing. [00:05:45] That's the real S what's your average daily rate over a year's period. Yes. And now you can start getting into, okay. On average, I need 13 days of the month rented to break even. Right. Right. But that probably means that in [00:06:00] January you need 20. And in July, maybe you need seven, right. But it averages out to 13. [00:06:06] Yes. So you're, so you're looking at, as long as you're looking at it over a long period of time, you can get more accurate with what mm-hmm that actual break even number is. Yeah. So I think that's a really great nugget. What you just said was mm-hmm the, it just shifting your mindset a little bit to. Not focus on so much about the, the, the average daily rate. [00:06:28] Think of it as a average yearly rate, right? Yeah. Which essentially comes down to an average daily rate, but take the yearly amount, take amount and divide it by 365 if you want. Okay. So if that's the case, then where, how do we even get started? Let's let's talk about. the tools that you can use to, to come up with that number. [00:06:56] Right? Cause that is a problem like that. It's, it's way easier to come up with that number if you've been operating for a year, right. Or even six months. Cause at least you have six months of data, but if you, if you're just starting and this is your, you know, only property of that type in this area, you have to have some way of figuring or at least estimating. [00:07:18] out to figure out, okay, what on average? And by the way, it's like, Hey, what you're really asking is does that sound reasonable? Can I get half the month rented and break even, or whatever that number is? Yeah. I think that is at the actual question that people really want to know the answer to. Right. Cause I always ask, why are you asking? [00:07:37] Well, I I'm afraid. do well. Right. And that's the concern is the fear that I'm not gonna get it rented. Yeah. And how do I estimate that? Yes. So yeah, here, here's a, a, a way to estimate that there's a tool out there called air DNA air DNA. Yep. And it's a subscription service you're going to want to pay for at least a month of it. [00:07:59] That's the [00:08:00] only way you're gonna get all the data you need. What it does is it looks at all of the reservations in your area on two platforms, Airbnb and V R B O. And it will come up with averages for every, say, two bedroom in that area and say, Hey, here's the average revenue for two bedrooms in your area. [00:08:24] But, but not all two bedrooms are created equally. Right? They're not. So you can, they're not even if they're next door. Yeah. And air DNA doesn't know that part. That's the problem. So the, you can't while it's all the data, that's the good part about it. The bad part about it is it's all the data. Right? so if I, for example, if what you're really looking for are, because remember, we're trying to figure out what is the annual revenue for. [00:08:54] The two bedroom I have. Well, I don't know yet because I don't have data. So I'm gonna go out to the market and look at other two bedrooms and what you have to do with a tool like air DNA is realize that 78, 80% of the data is actually junk and it's not useful to you. So what you have to do is go find true comps, cuz you're true. [00:09:13] Comps are not necessarily just other two bedrooms. Right? We've talked about this. It's not about the real estate. It's also about, are your photos good? Were they professional or did you do cell phone photos that affects profitability? Did you have it designed or did you let your cousin do it? Who bought stuff off Facebook marketplace? [00:09:33] The, you know, these things come into play. How long has that listing been up? In other words, is it someone who. Has this two bedroom that they make it available all year and it's only for guests or. is it the place they actually live in and they only rent it out when an event comes to town and then they go on vacation. [00:09:54] Right. But, but both of those types of properties are on air DNA and air [00:10:00] DNA doesn't know the difference. Right. And it's just gonna say two bedrooms do this. So what you have to do then is go in that area, open up air DNA, pay for an area. Usually it's a zip code or a city, and it will show you all the little dots on the. [00:10:16] and guess what you're gonna have to do, and you're gonna have to click on those click on every single one of those and click through to the listing. And here here's what you're looking for. And air DNA will tell you some of this and the listing will tell you the rest. So, oh yeah, this is good. So here's your three criteria for a true comp you're looking for a property that's been available at for at least 300 days to the last 365, 3 available for at least 300 days. [00:10:41] out of the last 360 out the last 365. So I'm looking for some, somebody that's actually it's been operating for a year, essentially. Right? Mm-hmm I'm looking for, does it have reviews? I mean, active reviews for every single month in the last year, like recent reviews? No, I mean every single month in the last year specifically, because I want to know that okay. [00:11:01] It was available, but were people actually staying there? Yeah. Right. That's that's your that's you have to click through the listing to find that. You know, does it have reviews? Is it truly an active listing? Cause it could be on there. And if it has no reviews in the last year, then it's not a comp, right. [00:11:18] It wasn't truly available for some reason, right. People weren't staying there. And the third criteria I'm looking at is, is it truly comparable to the property? I'm looking at meaning if, if it has a pool and mine does not, then I may expect it to actually make more money than. right, right. Or am I planning on doing professional photography, but this one has cell phone photos. [00:11:44] Well, I would tend to do better than that property. Right. And so, so I'm looking at the amenities. I'm looking at the quality of the listing. I'm looking at frankly, it's location. If it's, you know, on the lake, that's different than being two streets back, right. That's a [00:12:00] good point. So I'm, I'm looking for something and, and what I'm really trying to find is who's, who's the top of the market. [00:12:06] Because it will show you their annual revenue, as long as it meets those criteria. Who's at the middle of the market and who's at the bottom of the market and I'm gonna get a range there. And then I'm gonna go back to my property and be very true to myself and say, where does my property fall in that spectrum? [00:12:28] Hopefully we're not ever in the bottom of the market. Right. Cause we're at least gonna have good photos. Right? at. But that will tell you what the bottom is. You know, even if you do poorly, I know I can beat that. Yeah. Here's what he can expect. Yeah. But like I said, the top of the market may not be you because maybe that's recently renovated and has a pool and right. [00:12:48] A great location and you don't. Right. But if you have all those things, then, okay, that's your, that's your cop, but it's gonna give you a range in there. And I like to pick something in the middle, cause I know always I can always compete in the middle. Right. Just being an experienced operator. . And now that I have that yearly revenue number from that kind of middle ground, now I can back that into, well, I can simply divide by 12 and get monthly average revenue. [00:13:13] So you take the yearly number and air DNA will tell you what that year it's. It's gonna tell you yearly revenue. Yes. And that remember that's what, that's the mindset shift that we're, that we're trying to. Talk about and, and teach you about, so you take that yearly number and divide that by 12, and that at least gives you a monthly number and that will at least give you a monthly number, right? [00:13:37] Yes. And if I simply divided that by 30, it would tell me what my average daily rate was. Right. Because remember, I know it's not gonna be a hundred percent occupied, but the revenue has taken that into account already. Sure. Right. Right. So you take the yearly average. Divide that by 12, that will give you a monthly average. [00:13:58] And you can take that monthly [00:14:00] average and divide that by 30. And that will give you an average day, an average daily rate that then now I can say, okay, now that I know what my expenses are, I can simply take my expense average expenses, divide that by the average daily rate. And then I'll tell me on average per month, what I need to do to break. [00:14:22] but again, then you kind of look at seasonality and you know, you're not gonna do that exact number every month. You're just not right. Right. Hopefully that's just break even hopefully do better than that on average. Well, we're not in business to break even. Right. But that that'll, that'll give you an idea, but at least it'll give you an idea. [00:14:37] A start. That's a good starting point. If you're just getting started and keep in mind, it's just an estimate. So it's, it's not gonna be exact. Right. And there are other things that come into play. Like I, it's not gonna be vacant. We're gonna have cleaning. We typically charge a little more than the cleaners charge us. [00:14:53] So there's a revenue source there, right? So there are other revenues early, late check-ins pet fees. Yep. All those kind of things that Aird a isn't considering, right. Extra cleanings that are actually sources of revenue as well. But you can almost just treat those as icing on the cake and kinda leave 'em out of the equation. [00:15:09] Sure. I think that's smart to do, because we really were just choose, you know, talking about average daily rate. Right, right. The, the, the, the room rate mm-hmm, what we charge for the room. So air DNA is a great tool that, that you can use. And we've just explained how to use that. And you also have another really great. [00:15:32] for people. Oh, another source of figuring out that uh, yes. So here's, here's another way you can kind of estimate what the average daily rate is call up your local extended stay and it has to be an extended stay hotel. Yeah. You're looking for a place that has a kitchen at that's that's the primary criteria. [00:15:50] So you're, you know, extended stay Americas, a large one you're, you know, Candlewood suites. There's different brands of these extended stay hotel. And you're looking [00:16:00] for a hotel room with the kitchenette. Cause that's the closest they're gonna get to what we do, right. And simply call them, don't go on the website. [00:16:08] No, don't go on the website. Like simply call them and get a quote for an actual two months. Stay say, I wanna stay September 1st through. November 1st. Yeah. can you tell me what the bottom line rate is on that? Cause they're gonna add all their fees in and all their other stuff. Mm-hmm and then simply divide that by two, cuz you asked for two months and that'll tell you what they're charging per month. [00:16:32] Yep. And that should be, and, and, and the reason I go there is because, well, they spend a lot of money. They have data scientists and analysts and their, the professionals in your market. So I want to know what are they, what's their average daily. over that two month period. And how does that compare to what I'm doing? [00:16:51] Right. So get a two month or a 60 day quote. Yeah. Cause that, yeah. Cause you're gonna get their, you're gonna get their best rate. Yeah. If you ask for a two month quote. Yes. Yeah, exactly. So get that number for the 60 days. Divide that by two, that will get your monthly for them. And then divide that by 30 and gives you at least what their average daily rate. [00:17:15] Right. So it kind of gives you a sniff test of, you know, where it, it is what I'm doing comparable now. Obviously they're one bedroom hotel rooms, in fact, they're studios really? Yeah. With a kitchen net. Yeah. So that's more apples to apples with like a studio apartment. So if you've got a four bedroom house, you should make more than that. [00:17:37] But it at least gives you on a room by room basis. What, what they're doing. Oh, that's good. That's good. On the room by room basis. Mm-hmm mm-hmm yeah, I like that. So, so those are two ways that may help you. Yeah. It's another data point to, to determine that information. So anything else? No, it's just all about knowing what your [00:18:00] base expenses are. [00:18:01] Yeah. That's that's number one. Because you have to know what breaking even looks like for you, for you, and then figuring out what historically has that market done. And then with those two numbers you can kind of back into, okay, what's my average number of days that I need to have booked to at least break even. [00:18:21] Right. So that, again, we're looking at 12 month period, we're looking at averages, but that's about as close as you're gonna. To coming up with what, what is break? What does break even look like for me? Right? Mm-hmm good job. Nicely done. Excellent. Who are a wealth of information? Well, you are too. I am well, we, we hope that you found some value in the information that we have shared with you today. [00:18:48] If so, be sure to like, and subscribe and we will see you next time onto the next, onto the. Nice. [00:18:58]

Episode7:  How to Afford the Initial Investment in Your Short-Term Rental [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys, John and Wendy Williams here with the short-term rental authority here to help make you the best operator ever. [00:00:14] And today we are going to talk about. How to fund your initial investment. Cuz we get asked this question all the time, all the time. Yes. So what we're gonna be talking about is we will talk about exactly what that means. And we will talk about what that cost is. So we'll give you some numbers. We'll talk about what we did and, and how we funded our business in the beginning. [00:00:41] And then we'll talk about some other, other ways to fund your business that we've learned since then, since we got started operating, and then we'll talk about at the very end What, if you are purchasing the property. Cause a lot of people do that. Yeah. Like if you, if you saw the title of this podcast, you might be thinking, how do I buy the property? [00:01:03] Right. And that's not what we're actually talking about at the beginning. We're talking about, okay, I have the property now, what, what's the, what's the setup cost for the, the short term rental side of it. And I think that applies whether you bought it or whether you rent it or however you acquire. Right. [00:01:22] Is the end of the conversation. What we're actually talking about is how do you set it up and what's the cost for that and how do you fund that piece? Mm-hmm right. So, so let's talk about that. What, what are we talking about when, when we say how much does it cost or how did you get started? How did you fund it and, and what does that mean? [00:01:45] What are you actually funding? Yeah, I say, I wanna say furniture is an obvious. So you've gotta buy furniture in our system that we teach you, you need a security system and, and we encourage you to [00:02:00] buy that equipment, but it, you could finance it, right. It could be an operational expense. It might not be a setup expense. [00:02:05] You do need, however, you do need those initial supplies. So you, so you're gonna have to do toilet paper. You're gonna have to do bots K cups. You're gonna have to do. Sugar, you have to do, you know what, whatever those consumables are, you know, stockpiling those at least for your first one. It's if you're, if you're renting the place, it's probably security deposit up front. [00:02:29] So you need to count for that. It's it's all those things that get you to the place where. you can actually list it. It can have, it's a photographer. Mm-hmm it may be a designer. It should be a designer actually. So it, it there's, there's all these costs that you occur before anyone shows up so that it place is rentable. [00:02:52] as a short term rental. Right? So it's all those things. And, and what we tell people that we, that we coach is to budget at least $25 a square foot. I, I wouldn't say anymore than that. No, that, well, that's a measure. It's really don't go over that amount. Right. So don't go over $25 a square foot because you're you're you should be hiring a. [00:03:19] And that designer is going to charge you around. You should budget $20 a square foot for the designer. And so the, the other, but that includes the stuff they're buying too. Yes. That includes furniture. It includes the furniture. Yeah. And it should include some designers have, have the, have you purchased the TVs yourself separate from. [00:03:43] Some designers will purchase the TVs for you, but that should cover. everything as far as furnishings and, and design go, right. But the other $5 a square foot, that's [00:04:00] what you're gonna use for your, your supplies, such as K cups and toilet paper and paper towels and sponges and dishwasher, pods, and dish detergent and, and everything else, because there's not. [00:04:16] The unit that you have to think about, there's also your supply closet that you have to think about too. Yeah. In your linens. I wanna say we spent a lot on women. Oh my gosh. Linens. Well, cause you need four sets for bed. We've talked about that and everything, but that's linens is a huge expense. I was about to say expensive, but that's where your other $5 goes. [00:04:36] Yes. Let's let's budget for that. And hopefully you have some, I think you should, if you, if you budget $25 a square foot, you should have some left over, but I would rather you over budget. Yeah. And come under budget for sure than getting a, get in a situation where I, I don't have enough money to complete it. [00:04:57] Sure. Yeah. For sure. Right. Or I, now I have to cut corner. right. Like not hire a professional photographer because I don't have the $300 to pay that person. Right. Right. Totally. So I, that, that $25 really is a top end. It's a, don't go over that per square foot, rather than a go spend. $25 a square foot. Of course cut costs. [00:05:21] We're all entrepreneurs. We should be cutting costs, but do not cut corner. Oh, those two things are different. So there's things that Wendy mentioned, like hiring a designer, getting a professional photographer you know, those types putting in the security system. Yeah. That's where I see personally people make mistakes because they. [00:05:41] Try to save money. Mm-hmm on the front end. Yeah. And for us they're non-negotiables and, and really what they're doing is they're cutting corners and not costs. Yeah. And that, that hurts you in the long run. You, you lose way more. Cause I know there's somebody out there saying $20 a square foot. That seems expensive. [00:05:59] So for [00:06:00] a thousand square foot place, you're telling me I need 20. well, the guy, the guru over on, I'm not gonna mention his name cause, but I saw on his as day, he said it was only five grand to set up a one bedroom apartment. No way. There's no way you can do that and have it still look nice. You're right. [00:06:24] You're right. But you can do. Oh, yeah, no doubt. There's no, there's no, but it's gonna look like you spent $5,000. It is. Yeah. That's gonna look like it. And if you get, guess what that tells your customers that I, that you don't care that I am a cheap I'm cheap and I don't care. Yep. Mm-hmm right. That's right. [00:06:44] Your customer. And that's exact customer customer over time. That will cost you money. It will. If I could tell you anything is don't skimp on the front. Do not skimp. Yep. You will lose more money than you are saving. Yeah. It'll feel like you're saving a dollar, but you're gonna lose 10. Yep. And when you get a good photographer in bad design, like stuff you bought off of Craigslist or Facebook marketplace, it's gonna look like it. [00:07:12] It really is. Everybody can tell, so that that's a nugget for you do not skimp. So believe me when I say, if you're doing this right. And you're following the system that we teach. It sounds it, you should be spending somewhere around $20 a square foot and you should be budgeting for 25. Cause I want you to have that buffer. [00:07:31] So then when it comes out to be 22, you're not scrambling. Right. And you can thank us later. yes, yes. And if you're, if you're that person that says, well, I didn't that's that money for five. Great. Go for. We'll beat you every time. Yep. we'll beat you every, on the long, in the long term, we'll beat you every time. [00:07:49] And I want my students to be set up for success. Yes. Amen. Right? Not to say, Hey, here's the cheapest way you can do it. No, that's not worry about, that's worry about here's the no, and I'm all for [00:08:00] again. I'm all for cutting costs. I'm not for cutting corner. and that's what that ends up being. Yep. Cause you're cutting corners. [00:08:06] That's right. So I'll get off my soapbox in that one. Okay. So so let's talk about how we funded our business. Yeah. So now we're said, okay, it's a thousand square foot, cuz that was actually our first one. It was a, it's a two, it was a two, two house. Yeah. Smaller house was our first one. Obviously it's only a thousand square feet or it was 1100 square feet actually. [00:08:26] Just about the first one. Yeah. Almost. Yeah. And, and what we did, we. Good credit. So we got an American express card. Remember we went to Lowe's hardware. We did. Yeah. Yeah. We went to Lowe's hardware and got a, a Lowe's American express card. right, but it wasn't in our personal name. No, it was in our business name. [00:08:47] It was, it was in our business name. Yeah, actually, you know what I did was you probably don't even know this. What I did was I went on nerd, wallet.com. Okay. And I searched for the top five business credit card. and all I did was start at the top and I applied for the first one. And then I waited to see if we would get approved for that. [00:09:15] And then I moved on to the next one. Interesting. That's what I did. Okay. Yep. I went to nerd wallet, right. So, but that's something you may not realize if you're in the, in the, in the, if you're looking at this as real estate, kind of beating that drum again, like you might not realize that, oh, there's actually business credit out. [00:09:34] So if I had my LLC, if I had my Corp, even if it's new, yes. You're going, and, and you alluded to that, cause you said that we had good credit. They're gonna qualify you based on your individual credit score, but they're gonna put the credit in your business name and it's gonna report to your business credit, which you should do from the very beginning. [00:09:55] Yes. We learned that as well, too. Yep. You want to be building business credit all the [00:10:00] time. , but that's how we funded it. Like it's 20 grand. How do we come up with 20 grand? I think it was two credit cards. Yeah, because we, the first one gave us like 10, 10, and the other one gave us like 15 or something. [00:10:16] Right. Something like that. Yeah. Yeah. And so that's how we, yep. That's how we did it. Came up with the funds. to buy the furniture and buy the security system. And mm-hmm, all those other things. Yep. And there are advanced things we could, you're like, there's certain things you can't buy in credit cards. [00:10:31] Yeah. You can you, you certainly can. for a lot of you. You're probably thinking, well, credit card debt's bad though, right? Oh, debt is a four letter word. Why would well, especially credit card debt, especially credit card debt, but that's a, because it's high interest. That's an interesting mindset shift. It is, but, but is important when you, when you sign up with these cards, initially, the, the, you can get these introductory rates where there's 0% for. [00:11:02] 12 or 18 months, 12 to 18 months. I wanna say that's what happened. And that's the cheapest money you can get, man. 0%. Yeah. And this business generates enough cash flow to pay off that card before you incur interest, if you really want to, I don't know why you would, but okay. Well, you can sure. What could just save the interest. [00:11:20] That's why you would do it. Sure. I understand that. You're gonna go from zero to 25 mm-hmm but Wendy, Wendy knows that that's not actually important is what she's saying. . But it may be in the mind to somebody that heard credit card debt. So I'm trying to help them. Okay. Right. I'm trying to encourage them. [00:11:36] Well, I'm trying to say that debt is not necessarily a four letter word. Right. And especially credit card debt because, well, there's, well, you always want the cheapest interest rate. Well, that obviously that's a no brainer, but what I'm saying is there's most people can qualify for some kind of credit card. [00:11:55] Yeah. Now, if you can't and your credit challeng. [00:12:00] Credit challenge. Well, that's what it's called. I know. It's just funny. If you're, if you're credit challenged, what would you say? If you have bad credit Uhhuh okay. Maybe I'm using a PC word. I don't know, but if you're credit challenged or you have bad credit, if you wanna say it that way and you're like, Hey, I can't qualify for that. [00:12:21] Then another way to fund it is have cash. like, if you have cash in the bank now, you know that, Hey, I only need 20 grand. I know that. I said only to a lie to you, but there, there you, that is an option. You can sell fund cash and then you don't have the interest payment. Yep. Even better. Right. True enough. [00:12:42] Yeah. And then if that doesn't work, there's there's also the, the private money route. So that is a skillset, I will say, that's it is indeed. That's harder obviously than indeed applying for a credit card. Yes. Or going down to the bank and applying for line of credit or here's another idea for you. [00:13:02] If you have a personal residence already that has equity in it, which it should, because as, as of this recording, real estate prices are in a bubble, I believe, but they're high. So if you bought. Sometime ago you probably have equity. You probably could get a line of credit or something on your, your personal residence. [00:13:24] That is a way to go. That's cheaper money. But if you have to go the private money route, which means friends, family, acquaintances, that kind of thing. That's a whole other discussion. It can be done. It's a skill set though. It's not a I know how to write and fill out application right. So I don't wanna kind of get into that, but I just wanna say that is a source of funds. [00:13:45] It is. And we've had quite a few students that were, that were able to. To raise private, private money from private money limits. Yes, they were, it was either friends, family, or somebody they attracted to their idea or, or whatever. Right. And then [00:14:00] the, you know, you have to have the right conversations and know how to structure those things. [00:14:04] Right. You know, it's that kind. That's why I didn't want to get into it. Right. Exactly. But it is, it is something that students have had success with as well. Yeah. Yeah. It is a, it's a whole nother podcast long. Yes. So long lengthy podcast by itself. Separate maybe a four part series, right. yes. So, so now that we've covered all that and you know how we funded our business and you there's some, are there any other. [00:14:30] I can't think of any other options besides the ones that you've said, not if you, if you're just starting out. So if you have none, if you're at zero, those are kind of your options. However, if you've been operating for a while, that's true. Yeah. Your business, hopefully you have it. One like an structure, like an LLC, an S Corp or corporation or something. [00:14:54] Your business has revenue. and because your business has revenue, now you start qualifying for other things that have nothing to do with your personal credit at all. They have to do with your business makes five to 10 grand a month, right? That in fact, as you, as you have more units, you have way more cash flow, cuz it's a very cash flow, heavy business. [00:15:21] And remember, they're not looking at typically your. After expense number, they're looking at your pipeline revenue number, right? Right. So if your payout for the month was 20 grand from Airbnb, let's say, so you that's the only place you list. If you got paid 20 grand on Airbnb this month, they're now qualifying you on, oh, your business makes 20 grand a month. [00:15:45] Right. And now you qualify for those type of product. So once you get started, once you get past the, okay, the only thing I have is a credit card, realize that if you have the, the mindset that, Hey, this is a [00:16:00] business and it's not really about the real estate, which we've talked about a lot, then now you start applying. [00:16:05] You start not well, you applying of course, but qualifying for business, business, credit, credit, and business lines of credit that are really based on what the business. How does the business reform, and it has nothing to do with your personal credit at all at some point. And so we've been able to fund ourselves that way as well. [00:16:28] Right. You know, our personal, but that's after you've gotten started and yeah. And you've gotten some, some bookings and you're starting to make money. Yeah. You know, what else? You know, what else? That I was just thinking about was, you know, if you pass your, your what, if you are purchasing the property, right. And you already talked about that a little bit, but there's really no difference. What do you mean when you say there's really no difference? Well, in my mind, because it does cost more, right. If I buy it, I have to pay more. Yeah. But you're still you're setting at that point. [00:17:08] If you are purchasing the property, that's a whole separate business. It is the, and the short term rental business is a whole separate business. Those are two separate businesses. They really are. So what you're really saying is if you buy the property, do a good real estate deal mm-hmm and take the short term rental out of your mind, take that revenue outta your mind. [00:17:32] Make sure that the real estate deal that you were doing is a good real estate deal, own its own. And that it's profitable own its. And then consider putting your short term rental business in there and then make sure the short term rental business own its own paying fair market rent to your real estate business is profitable, own its own.[00:18:00] [00:18:01] And that's how you actually protect yourself. That's how you protect yourself from doing a bad real estate deal because you thought if I just did the short term real. Right. But the problem is a lot of times, oh, we see this so often that doesn't, it goes away or, or it doesn't become the thing. And now you're stuck with this bad real estate deal that you, you have to scramble to get out of. [00:18:23] Yep. Like you don't want that. Or you have this bad real estate deal that only works because you have this short term rental business over here, that subs is subsidizing. right. And, and you lie to, and, and it, and that's actually lying to yourself because it's, it's, it's, it's forcing you to hold this bad real estate deal because you think you're making all this money over here where really half of that's going to subsidize the real estate. [00:18:55] And now this actually becomes a unprofitable short-term rental business. Cuz if you actually charge true market rent to this. then it wouldn't survive. Right. So if you, so that's a rule of thumb. If you're, if you're a short term rental business, even if you own the property, if it could not afford to pay market rent on the property, then it's in, then it's not really a profitable business, cuz it's not about how much you make. [00:19:26] Right. It's about how much more did you make? And it's about making good decisions on each side of that equation. Right? So here's something I, I may have mentioned this before in a different episode, but here's something I, I heard cuz we're in different Facebook, real estate groups and somebody was actually just, you know, be moaning the fact that one of their favorite restaurants was closing down. [00:19:49] Oh, we did talk about this. We did. Yeah. Cuz we talked about olive garden. No, no that it wasn't, it wasn't about olive garden at all. Okay. That was a whole different conversation we talking about. Oh it was okay. Yeah. This one was. [00:20:00] I don't remember this one, then this one was their, it was that their favorite restaurant was closing down. [00:20:05] And I believe it was in Nodi area, which is the arts district of Charlotte. Right. Cuz it's a local real estate group. And what they were saying was and they posted like the news article to it. And the, the news article was all about this restaurant had to close down because their landlord raised their rent and they couldn't afford to be. [00:20:27] anymore. So they just decided to close the restaurant down, cuz they weren't gonna be able to be profitable with the rent increase. And as a point of, you know, fact, somebody else commented on it in that thread. Who's another real estate investor in the area that I respect. And he said, well, you know, actually the rent increases is in line with current market rent. [00:20:52] You know what they were paying before. From 10 years ago and they've just never been raised. And that's actually what the piece of real estate's worth. So it's not like they're gouging them. They're just bringing it up to what it's, what actual market rent is current market rent. Yeah. And then a little bit, you know, there are other comments and a little bit later another person that I'm a, you know, acquaintance with in the real estate investing world. [00:21:17] But she happens to be a licensed realtor. She chimed in and. This is why I always encourage my business owners, like a restaurant business owner to actually buy the property that they're operating their restaurant in. Interesting. So that, that can't happen. well, she, she needs to listen to the podcast. [00:21:42] Right. But that does make logical sense. Like it's not a, if you saw that comment, Normally, like, I didn't see anybody else protest what she said. Right. But they don't understand that there's two separate businesses. Yes. It, it, so that's the whole point. Like the, the restaurant actually isn't [00:22:00] profitable. [00:22:01] That's actually the point, right? If they own the real estate, they should be charging. They're gonna be charging market rent, regardless of who's rent. Not my point. What I'm saying is what she was saying was if that restaurant has bought that building, then they would still be in operation today. Mm-hmm [00:22:21] Yeah, but that restaurant would be, actually be a lie. Yes. Because they're not considering because, because what they, what they could have been making, like not considering what they could be renting that space for. Yes. In, right. And when you consider that and realize that that's actually an opportunity. [00:22:43] oh, of running the restaurant in that building. Mm-hmm your foregoing market rent. Mm-hmm and it can suck you into thinking, oh, I actually have a profitable, profitable business. Right, right. When you don't. Right. And what you, a, what you actually do is have a profitable business at the expense of a bad real estate. [00:23:07] Ooh. So where you're making it over here, you're losing it over here. Mm-hmm and you don't do the math in your head to say, oh, that's actually a, a negative situation. Right. But how would you know that if they weren't separate, that's why we advocate separating. Right. And, and it is very obvious when you're in the rental arbitrage model, because you're only on one side the equation mm-hmm [00:23:30] So it's very clear to us whether. queen city suites is profitable. Right? Sure. But even if we own the building, it would be very clear to us is queen city suites profitable because, because queen city suites doesn't own any real estate. Right. But even if we own the underlying real estate, that's the whole point. [00:23:49] Right. There's another separate business that actually owns the real estate. Yeah. And actually it in the places that we're in today, I, I did the math. It would not make sense for us to buy them. Yeah. That's interest. Yeah, [00:24:00] it wouldn't because the, the rent that we pay is, would not support the purchase price. [00:24:06] Right. $1,500 in rent a month does not support a $350 thousand dollars purchase price. Well, that is the market right now, so, right. So you gotta consider that. So it would actually be to our detriment to purchase the property, to purchase the property. Even if the mortgage payment was less than. And that's hard. [00:24:26] That's hard to wrap your mind around, is it not? Yeah, for sure. Because, but it's because you're only looking at it as a monolith, this single thing. Yeah. Instead of realizing that, oh, it's actually a real estate deal and it's actually a business separate from that. And that's why I like using the restaurant thing because that it, for some reason in our heads that makes it clearer to understand that, Hey, maybe I don't need to own the building that my restaurant's. [00:24:56] in fact, most restaurants don't right. Sure. So, okay. That, that's what I have to say about the real estate side. Okay. Do you have anything you wanted to add to that or? No? Mm-hmm okay. Well, we hope we have, you found some value in this episode, if so, click that like and subscribe button and we will see you next time onto the next on to the next. [00:25:20]

Episode 6: How to choose the right Property for your Short-Term  Rental (AKA Airbnb) [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Hey guys, welcome back to the podcast. This is the short-term rental authority podcast, where we help you become the best short-term rental operator ever. And today's topic is how to choose the best property for your short term rental business. Yeah. I wanna feel like we get this question a lot. We get this question a lot. [00:00:27] Yeah. So we thought that we would. Talk about it. So I think that the main thing, if you take away nothing else from this podcast, the, the main thing that is going to help you be successful in finding the best property is to think about who your customer is first. Yeah. We, we advocate that a lot, a lot. [00:00:54] That's the way we were taught. Yes. And. It's something you don't hear a lot. I want to say in the space, it's more, and I hear this a lot from people that come in that are new to space and are asking for coaching and their real question ends up being, where can I make the most money? Ooh. Yeah. Right. And, and that's a. [00:01:20] It's a, it's a, I understand why the question comes and we're investors and entrepreneurs, and that seems like a natural question. Like where can I make the most money? Right. But the, the answer to the question is, is, is a little more mindset thing than it is a we analyze the market and you should go do three bedrooms. [00:01:42] which I've heard before I too, I've heard that too. Yes. Yeah. So, so that's what we're going to be talking about in the podcast today. So always there's mindset associated with everything that we do, right. So we'll talk about the mindset about it. [00:02:00] And then there are three things to consider when you are. [00:02:06] Thinking about what property type you're you're going to be choosing. And those things are your avatar. Who are you serving? Yep. The, the location and the the property type itself. And I'm talking about, is it an apartment or is it a house? So those are the three things to consider. So, yeah. And so can I interject just a little bit? [00:02:32] Cause I had a really cool thing, so, okay. We were listening it, it, it was my birthday this week. And, and you gonna take to you? Yes. And so we went to traditionally in Wendy's Val family, we, we go to their house and. You know, we, they combine birthdays is what they do. Right. So if I had a birthday and somebody else had a birthday that was close, right. [00:02:52] And then somebody else that was close, we kind of celebrate everybody's birthdays together, which I think is fun. Cuz we all get together and grill out. Everybody gets present. Well, not everybody that had a birthday close gets present. Right, right. It is fine. And that kind of thing. So I can actually kind of enjoy that. [00:03:10] on the way there we were trying to be good parents and instilling in our children. Teenagers. Mind you? Yes. So we have a 15 year old, 15 year old and a 11 year old, 11 year old. And I decided, okay, I've got a captive's audience here. Yes. What I'm gonna do, cuz it's an hour and a half drive. I'm going to. [00:03:37] Play the audio version of rich dad, poor dad by Robert Kiyosaki. I'm sure a lot of you have read this book or if you haven't go read rich dad, poor dad. A lot of people got started there. It was the inspiration for their real estate journey and investing journey and all this kind of thing. But, and, and I, it's one of those books that I like to reread from time to time, at least once a year. [00:03:59] That is a good one, [00:04:00] but I want to pass that along right. Financial literacy idea. Believe me, I'm going somewhere. So. I was playing the audio book in the car and we, and it's an hour and a half. So we got through first two, three chapters, something like that was, we got through like chapter four or five, well, on the back back. [00:04:20] So I made a list it on the way back too, right? Yeah. That's good. And I could tell they were kind of interested in it. Yeah. Cause they didn't, especially on the way down there, both of them were, they did not complain too much yep. About having to listen to this, but. Whatever, and maybe it'll soak in, maybe it won't, but the point is one of the things that I cuz every time you li re re-listen to something, you pick up, always pick up something. [00:04:43] Yeah. You always pick up a little nugget that you didn't either didn't hear first time or you wasn't forgot about, or it wasn't relevant or yeah. Yeah. Cuz sometimes I think you hear things and it's like, all well that's not real immune. Right. But. One of the things in that book that I heard today was if you're going to build a skyscraper, you need a really good foundation. [00:05:07] In fact, the foundation needs to be deep. Yeah. You'd gotta dig a big hole. Like it's deep in the ground. Mm-hmm for a, for a large building like that. If you're building a single family house, maybe it's just a concrete slab. that goes 12 inches in the ground. Right? Because there are different types of structures, but what a lot, the analogy he was giving and the reason he was telling that was what a lot of people try to do is pour a six, you know, the, the, the slab intended for a single family house, but they're trying to, but they're trying to build skyscraper on it. [00:05:44] Yeah. And that's what get rich quick is. Yeah. So it's it. the, the foundation matters. So you need to build the foundation that's relevant to the thing you're trying to build. Yeah. That's really good advice. And that, I like [00:06:00] that analogy that translated to what we were just talking about. Picking your customer avatar first. [00:06:07] Yes. Because that ends up being that deep foundation. Mm-hmm that then you can actually build an empire on, oh, that's good. Because there's tons of people that they'll just go out and do all these properties, buy the stuff, but they didn't build the deep foundation and it crumbles. Yep. So it's kind of like I got, I got rich quick. [00:06:30] I did this thing. I have a hundred units. And then all of a sudden it, two years later, it all comes crashing down and I have a certain student in mind. I know you do. Yes. I know that that happened too. yes. Yes. So we've seen it firsthand. Yeah. And, and we, we try to tell people. the right way to do things, but not everybody listens. [00:06:53] True. True. So please listen to the video, if you wanna be successful long term cause this is, this is that deep foundation. Yes. That you really need to internalize. Yes. And do. So that you really can build us that skyscraper. That's not gonna topple over. And I think, I think what he called it was the leaning. [00:07:10] You don't want the leaning tower of pizza, the leaning tower of pizza, you want the right Rockefeller center or, or whatever the skyscraper you're talking on. Right. Right. So, and I think mindset goes along with that too, is, is building the right foundation. And, and what you said before, About the people who are just going out and, and, and just getting any property that they possibly can, you know, and, and not thinking about. [00:07:39] Who they're building this business for there. Yeah. And thinking about your customer avatar first, who's going to be staying there. And what is their experience going to be like, where are they going to be most comfortable? And that's always where we start. Right. So let's talk [00:08:00] about, and maybe give some examples of, of what that looks like. [00:08:06] All these things fall into place. Once you, once you determine who your customer avatar is, everything else just falls into place. Right? So let's take, for example, the customers that we do, right. Well, we're talking about picking the right property, but yes. Right. So, well, the first thing to pick the right property, to pro to find who the property is for. [00:08:34] True. Yeah. so, so, so let's give some examples. So let's start with the, our customer. Avatar is families with children and pets who are relocating to the area in between housing or have an insurance claim on their personal property. Right? So if you're thinking about people with families, with children and pet. [00:09:01] do they want to stay in a one bedroom apartment? Probably not. Probably not. Probably not. What do they value most? And this is a really great question to ask yourself, what do they value most? What are the things that they value most? And I think that people, families with children and pet. One of the things that they value most is privacy and security, security. [00:09:39] They want a, a safe place. Yes. We get that question a lot. A lot from people who inquire mm-hmm safe. Is this a safe neighborhood? Yes, we get that a lot. Now side note, you can never just say something safe because well, crime happens everywhere, right. But. You get what they're asking? Yeah. They're they're asking, is this in a bad area? [00:09:59] Right? That's what they're [00:10:00] really asking. Right. And we know this. Yeah. Cuz they have, they have kids, they have dogs, dogs. They have exactly, you know, this family type. So if I was choosing a property for that person that now gives me an idea of, okay, if I'm a local expert on the real estate market and what areas are quote good and quote bad, then I'm really shopping for them. [00:10:24] And I'm looking for properties that okay, they're gonna, when they get there, they're gonna say, yes, this is a really great, great place. Yes. And I feel safe here. Right? Mm-hmm , you know, with all the co caveats of will crying happens everywhere. Right? It does. So, so one of the things, and, and here's a really great nugget for you. [00:10:48] One of the things that we look for. And in looking for a safe space is we, we don't want to be around any kind of check cashing place. We don't wanna be around any place that has a lot of graffiti other than. There's a really cool air hip area of town in Charlotte called NoDa. And it has some graffiti, but it's, it's fits the area. [00:11:21] It's not, yeah. It's more like trendy artist. Right, right. It's not what you would think of as like graffiti. Right. It it's it's, you know, it's not gang signs, it's not gang signs. Right. But it, yeah. Right, right, right. So and abandoned cars. Things like that, that, you know, people begging on the street, for example, you don't wanna be in those types of areas, cuz that's going that, that does not give any kind of reassurance to, to a guest there. [00:11:54] They're gonna pull up and, and say, Ugh, for that type of avatar for that type of avatar. [00:12:00] Right. Right. And, and just, that's just the way it is. Oh, that's just the way that's what your customer is expecting, but you have to start with who's my customer. Yeah. Always to even know that. Right. And it's, it's not only the property itself, but it's what do you have to drive through to get to the property? [00:12:16] Yes. A lot of the students that we have are in bigger cities, Have these homeless problems. Yeah, that's true. And we get that question from them. You're like, is this something that is detrimental because if you come from out of town and you're not used to, cause I feel like if you live in an LA or if you live in a and I mean, Los Angeles not lower Alabama, right? [00:12:41] I mean like Los Angeles or if you're in Seattle, Seattle is or Portland or Portland or. You know, any major city, any bigs, New York, whatever it, we even have that in Charlotte. Yeah, we do in certain areas yeah. In certain areas. So that becomes a concern of, okay, if I've got somebody that's coming and they're not from a city where they're used to that, is that something that's gonna be detrimental to them in their experience? [00:13:12] And the answer is probably, yeah, it is. because it's not something they're used to. Right. You know, if you're coming from, you know, rural America and you're not used to a city atmosphere, then you see that and immediately you think, okay, I'm not in a good area. I'm not in a good area. And I've got my baby with me. [00:13:32] Yeah. Right, right. Cause it is the family with children thing that we serve. Yep. Exactly. And you start to have these thoughts. Yep. So you have to think of everything through the lens of. who is your customer? And then I would even go a step further and say, sometimes it's educating that customer on what to expect. [00:13:55] Oh, now that's really interesting. Let's talk about that. Yeah. So it's setting [00:14:00] expectations. So mm-hmm so if you're, this may be a nugget for you, cuz we like to throw this out, but one of the things we've seen to mitigate that is after book. Because you kind of can't do it before, cuz you can't take pictures of homeless people on your listing. [00:14:17] Right. But if you, after booking, if you have an experience where, okay, here's how you get into the property, here's the check-in process. And perhaps you provide a video of that. maybe we would use you. We would use Wendy because she's a female and we would film her. walking to the property maybe at night even, and saying, here's where you go. [00:14:42] Here's how you get this. And then yeah, those other things are in the background. But if you can see that and ex and know that before you're coming, it sets the expectations for what, what you're going to experience when you're. No. That's interesting. So instead of somebody showing up and, and this is the first time they've ever seen graffiti or whatever it is, a homeless person or whatever homeless person or, or whatever, at least they're now prepared that, okay, I see that that's gonna happen, cuz I've seen the video of the check-in process and it doesn't seem that big a deal because well Wendy's doing it right. [00:15:24] And. that becomes a way to, okay. It's not so much of a shock mm-hmm to say that that occurs. Yeah. That's a, that's a really good nugget. That's that's an interesting thing that we've seen a way to mitigate that problem. Yeah. Yeah. Making a video of the check-in process. Mm-hmm I think a lot of people like that and they do it's informative too. [00:15:45] Yeah. Because it's, here's how you get in it. It is. But especially for, for families, with children, because. They tend to book farther in advance. They do they plan, I think because they have [00:16:00] to plan out everything. Right? When you have children, you, you know, you, you really have to plan out stuff and you plan around school and all that. [00:16:07] Yeah, for sure. Yeah. And, and I think that and we've noticed too that our customer, the, the families with the children, they like to have their check-in instruc. Like three days before they, before they get here at a minimum. Yeah. Because they, they wanna know the address because they want to, they've got plans to go see grandma and, you know, they wanna know how far away grandma's gonna be or, or where's the grocery store or where's the grocery store gonna be. [00:16:37] And, and, you know, they, they really plan their trip. So things like that, giving their, their check-in instructions early is, is another little nugget that we've noticed that, that people really like. So, but that's our avatar. Right. But so if you're doing business travelers, it could be totally different. [00:16:54] Right. So, so, so it it's all about knowing who your customer is. Yes. Right. And that's, again, going back to building that deep foundation. Right. So that, okay. I go not wide. But deep. Yeah. Right. And get really deep into who do I serve really know them really on a personal level. Yeah. And now I'm picking the properties that serve them. [00:17:17] Yes. And, and we always say you should have more than one avatar. Yes. Right. So I think that moves into the next thing. Yeah, it does. So you should always have more than one. We say we should have at least three, at least three. Yes. And you know what? That has served us well, getting through COVID. and all sorts of things, but no more than five, because once you get over five, oh yeah. [00:17:39] Five, then now you're vague. Yeah. That's too many. Right. So you don't wanna say, Hey, I serve everybody. Yeah. Well, when, when you, so three to five, when you, when you are, when you try to serve everyone, you end up serving no one. Well, you end up being generic and it's none. And you end up being commodity. Yes. [00:17:56] And now you're competing on price. Now you're competing on price and now you're [00:18:00] calling us saying, well, we're not booked. We're not getting booked. Yep. Can you please help us with our pricing? And I'm like your pricing. Isn't the problem, actually, exactly. Your pricing is that your, your problem is that you don't know who your customer is. [00:18:14] and you did not build it for them because you didn't think of that first. So please think, think of, for your customers first and build it for them. Yeah. And that answers a lot of questions that you actually have, and it actually answers the question of what kind of property do we serve or what kind of property do we want. [00:18:32] Right. And that goes to the avatars because you want to pick at least three and you were talking about this earlier. Is you need three to five that that can be served by the same property type. Yes. Right. So families with children and pets are probably going to want a, a larger space. Yeah. Two or three bedroom, right? [00:18:54] A two or three bedroom, probably a house, a single family house or a house, or at least something that's pet friendly. Yeah. Yeah. And, and if you could get something with no carpet. yeah, that that's the way to go. If you're pet. Yes. Is no carpet and children too. Right. But, and fist in backyard steals the deal. [00:19:13] Oh yeah. It so totally does. And no stairs. Yes. That is that's money right there. But so like a, a, like a, a two bedroom, two bath single family ranch with a fenced in backyard is the perfect. Place for a, for families with children and pets. that we've got. Yeah, that, that's what we've that that's kind of our bread and bread. [00:19:37] That's our bread and market C Mar Charlotte market. Yes. That's been fantastic. Yeah, it really has uh, that it's but houses are good. They can, yeah. Townhouse can. In fact, we have somebody staying with us right now. Yep. That has pets. Yep. In one of our townhouses, but again, it's pet friendly. There's no carpet. [00:19:57] Yep. It's. Nice [00:20:00] area. Yep. You know, when they arrive, they're gonna feel. okay. I'm in a safe space, right? Well, there's people walking their dogs yes. In the neighborhood pushing strollers in the neighborhood. So people see that and they're, they're like, okay. I'm, I'm, I'm in a great, yeah. And that's how you earn a good review. [00:20:16] Right. And that's how you get the next one. Yep. Right. Cause they said, Hey, we came with our, our infant and our three pets and it was a wonderful experience and it was a great neighborhood. Yep. So you don't even have to tell 'em the reviews would tell them and it's because we thought about that and, and built it for them. [00:20:30] Yep. And then that's why we chose that property. And specifically was because of the, the neighborhood and it was, it was a really great neighborhood and we actually have. Had two houses and right. But going back to property type, what, what I was trying to get at is don't pick avatars that are okay. I wanna first serve families with children and I wanna serve traveling nurses. [00:20:56] Right. And I wanna serve business travelers and I wanna serve people coming for weddings. Yeah, no, because that same property type cannot serve all of those different people. Because your, your families of children, like we were saying are two to three bedrooms. Your traveling nurse is probably more like a studio, right? [00:21:16] Or maybe even a room mm-hmm cause they're budget. Your business traveler depends on who the business traveler is. Cuz we talk about that in other episodes, but you wanna be very niche, but assuming that's a single business traveler that all starts, starts ING like a studio one bedroom and not a two bedroom. [00:21:35] Right? So when you pick these three to five avatar. Pick things that overlap as far as the property type and the location go, and then you'll be picking the right property for the person you're trying to serve. So for example, if you're, if you wanna serve families with children and pets, then, then you could also serve the, the military families too. [00:21:58] You could, if you, and this [00:22:00] is goes into the next thing. Location, where do they want to be close to? Right. And that's the other part of it. Yeah. Yes. Right. So if you're going to be serving families with children and, and, and pets and the military, you're going to have to be near a military base, like true. [00:22:18] We are not near a military base. So that, that, that avatar's out of the window. It's, it's off the chart. It's it's off the table. It's off the table for us. However, if you are near a, any kind of military base, it doesn't matter what it is. Yeah. I would say within what, 30 minutes or so. Yeah, 30 to 60 minutes, 30 to 60 minutes of a military base, a military, then that closer to better, but great avatar to serve. [00:22:46] Fantastic. And then you can also serve the families with children who are relocating to the area or have an insurance claim. So it's things like. So if you have a if you wanna serve the let's say you wanna serve the, the, the people who are coming into town and you have a big theater near you. [00:23:13] and, and people come to town and stay that work at the theater. And cuz they'll stay for a long time. You mean like the people that are coming in to, to like the performers, the performers, production, the props people and the makeup artists and the costume artists and, and all those people that, that put on this, these theater productions, you know, they, they last for a while. [00:23:39] So if you are near a large theater, You know, you're, you're going to want to be near that theater. Right, right. Or sporting events if you're doing sporting events. Yes. That's a good one. Medical traveling medical professionals. Cause it's not just traveling nurses that that's true travel. Right. It's if, especially if you are [00:24:00] near a specialty hospital, like a, like a cancer hospital, Or even a plastic surgeon, we have a student that is has, is near a plastic surgeon down in Florida. [00:24:13] And if you go through plastic surgery, you have to. Recover for quite some time. You do. Yeah. So people have people who are going for plastic surgery need a place to stay for a long time, but they want to be near that plastic surgeon's office and they want to be near that hospital. Right. So we usually tell people. [00:24:35] Try to find something within three, to, to five miles of, in a, in a radius of whatever that is, whatever your, what we call your point of interest is. Yeah. Right. And then you need to figure out, okay, what are the other two to three avatars that would also be served by that location? Because it always, it is probably near something else too. [00:24:57] Right. Like a convention center or convention center, or it could be sporting event sporting event, or it could be whatever. Yeah. Whatever it is. Mm-hmm and then now you have overlap and you're not so dependent on just this one type of, you know, traffic that comes through right. Business travelers, for example, didn't travel during COVID much. [00:25:18] Well, there's that like, cuz that can happen. Yeah. Like one thing goes away. Right. And then you need the next thing and you've you wanna make sure that you've picked the property that can. the two or three, right. Or to five. Right. And so that, that's how you actually protect yourself is by having a property that can serve three to five and still be niche down enough. [00:25:42] Cause that that's actually the fear. Yeah. The fear in nicheing down and picking an avatar is, is it comes from a place of fear of, well, if I do that, then I'm afraid I won't get enough bookings. Yeah. But here's the, here's the deal about that? Okay. you're gonna get [00:26:00] all that business. That's true. Yeah. So, I mean, people, you put, you build it for them and they are scrolling through Airbnb or VRBO or wherever, and they see that place and it is in the right location and it has all the things in it that they're looking for. [00:26:22] They're gonna be like, oh my God, they're gonna choose you. They're gonna choose you. Yes. Regardless of price to a certain degree. Yes, actually. And, and I will say one of the most profitable things, one of the most profitable ways people come to you is through insurance claims. Mm-hmm . It is, it's. And if you don't know what that is, it's okay. [00:26:41] Somebody had a house fire or somebody had, you know, the pipes burst or whatever it is. They, they can't live in their house and they have homeowners insurance and they tend to be local. Cuz that's what that is. And they, they need a spot to stay in. well, they're not paying for it. The insurance company is so they're literally picking you based on, did you build this for me? [00:27:06] Yep. Is it something that speaks to me? And you can almost, I mean, you can almost set your price. No that's true. Would based on what the insurance company will pay, they have yet to tell us. No, but you can almost set your price. Yeah. And keep in mind that it's not the insurance company that's picking you. [00:27:27] It's the, it's not the person with the money. It's the person that needs the stay. Yep. And they have to agree that, Hey, we will stay there. And those are some of the most profitable clients you can have. Yeah. They really are. And because we built it for them. they pick us. Yep. Every single time. And the, those are some of the, like I say, a fourth time, some of the most profitable bookings you can get. [00:27:53] Yeah. Yeah. They really are. so, so I, I know it works. I know that's the way to do it. I know you [00:28:00] should be picking your avatar first and picking the property then. Yep. That serves that avatar. Right. So there's to, to recap, here's the things that. To consider when you are, are thinking about, if you're asking yourself, well, where, what property should I pick? [00:28:18] So the first thing of course is your customer avatar. Who's going to be staying there and remember the riches are in the niches here also. True. So the, the more niche you can get, I know it sounds counterintuitive. It, it is, this is really that's the secret sauce. It really is. It's the secret sauce. Yes. [00:28:43] And it sounds counterintuitive, but it works. The, the more niche you can get. In your three to five avatars, you will get all of them. Right. They're going to pick you every time because it speaks to them. Right? So the next thing is the location. Where, why are they coming? What do they want to be close to and be about three to five miles in, in that radius of where they're coming to. [00:29:18] And then the last thing. The the property type itself, think about where are they going to be most comfortable and what do they value most? Right. So, or if they value safety and security and privacy. Then then think about that when you're going around, looking for properties, you know, are, and the space, the size of the space, you know, families are gonna want more space because they're, there's more people there. [00:29:50] Right. And if you're serving business travelers than. , you know, maybe there's just, just one or two of them in, in a studio [00:30:00] or a one bedroom, little apartment and, you know, maybe they value being able to work out when they get, get off of work and they, and they like the gym mm-hmm right. Because we have some of those too. [00:30:12] So, so thinking about all of those things, Is going to be key when you are looking for the, the right property for your space. So well said. Okay. Very good. Excellent. Well, we hope we found some value in the information that we provided here. This is John and Wendy Williams with the short term rental authority, where we help make you the best operator ever. [00:30:41] And we hope that you will like, and. Excellent. Okay. Onto the next, onto the next. Yeah, [00:30:48]

Episode 6:  Part Two of How Not to Stay Glued to Your Phone on Vacation [00:00:00] [00:00:05] Welcome back to the podcast. This is part. Of how to not stay glued to your phone while you're on vacation. Yeah. So we, we did the first part of that last episode at the lake lures at the lake lure, we were on vacation and so fabulous. [00:00:21] We were thinking that's a very timely subject. Like let's go on vacation and not have to worry about being glued to our phone. Right. Cause you hear that a lot and you can't, and it is true. This business, you can do it on your mobile device. Like that's one of the. Advantage advantages to the way we have things set up is it is all virtual, but. [00:00:41] At the same time when you're on vacation, you kind of just wanna be on vacation and not be glued to that phone all the time. Yeah. Cause we've had that experience before, too. Yeah. Because when I'm floating around on the, on my floaty float, yeah. You don't want your phone in a bag or? I don't want John. I got John a beaver float cause he like. [00:00:59] Beavers beavers are a very noble animal and, and they're awesome. And I don't know. What's funny about that at all. Nothing. It was, it was glorious, but anyway, and I did have a beaver float. Yes. I'll have to post a picture of that, cuz it was great. Yeah. But what we wanna talk about today was. how that, how that works right. [00:01:21] Is how are we able to do that? And we talked last week about the team team members that we have in place. So mm-hmm, this week we wanted to talk about what the team members actually did, how we trained them to do the things, what they do and the tools that they use to get it done. Yeah. So there's three parts of that. [00:01:44] It's. Training. Yeah. It's great that you have team members, but you need the training. Yes. Training. Yeah. And then the second part was the, the systems and processes. Right. Which is like how to do the things they do, right? Yeah. So there's a system, there's a process. There's a so [00:02:00] P for everything dare I say standard operating procedure and then it's okay. [00:02:04] Well, what tools do you actually use to facilitate that, right. Those processes, right? Yeah. So training is, we started with that. I feel like that is very foundational because if you are going to take the time to have bring someone on your team and, and you want them to stay there for a long time, right. [00:02:30] Mm-hmm so, and by the time you get done, Training them, it, it takes a little while. I wanna say a couple of months to, to train someone up really good really well. And that is the foundation that you can build upon to, to have them stay. to like what they do to enjoy the job because they feel supported. [00:02:58] Right. So let's talk about the training process and can they even do the job, right? Like how do you want it done? Yes, because that's one of the mistakes we we made in the beginning is we brought people on and didn't, didn't not really train them. Yeah, just kind of gave them the tools. Right. Which we'll talk about. [00:03:15] Right. I see. But there was no training on what, what is, you know, how do we want it done? Right, right. And you need to think about that in your business too. How do you want it done? What's the, what's the culture there, right? Well, you know, I think that's really key. and the, the way that we started was we were actually the ones doing it. [00:03:38] That's right. And we built the, the systems too. Yes. And we ran the systems ourselves. Yes. So that's really step one, but yes. Well, let's go back to training. Yes. Right. So training process in our company is, so we've got there's four steps to the training process. So the first one is, watch me do it. Mm-hmm so the second one is do it with [00:04:00] me. [00:04:00] Mm-hmm the next one is do it by yourself and then the fourth one is, teach someone else. So let's go over each one of those, just touch on each one of those and how we do each one of those in our business. Yeah. And you used to be a waitress, so you're very familiar with that process. And I think a lot of people would be familiar with that too. [00:04:19] If you've ever been to a restaurant and had a waitress or a waiter in training. You've actually seen this going on. May not internalize it. Yep. It was going on. Yeah. So what's so the first thing you get is you get this job is watch me do it. Yeah. So they're basically walking around with the experience person. [00:04:38] Yep. Essentially watching them take orders and watching how they enter the orders. Cause you have to go back to the kitchen and enter them. Right. Mm-hmm and then. They're they're literally just following them around. Right. That's that's watch me do it. So, so in our business, watch me do it is a, a lot of it is over zoom. [00:04:58] I would say mm-hmm yeah. Some of it's over zoom. And another way to do that is simply make a video of you doing it. Yes mm-hmm. so any time that's a very simple thing. You can do simple start documenting these processes. Yes. Is every time you're doing something, no matter how mundane you think it is or how easy it. [00:05:16] just record it, screen record it. Yep. There are tools out there for it. Loom is one very popular one loom.com, L O O M. Yep. That, that one works very well. Veo, if you've ever, they're kind of like your competitor, YouTube, maybe Vimeo, V I M E O. Yes. They have a tool free tool for doing it. I believe you can do it with Google drive. [00:05:35] I mean, there are tons of screen, you know, sharing tools. And if you just install one of those and just make it a habit of every time you do something, record it. Yep. At least you have that. Yeah. Yep. Right. And that's so, so easy to do. Just click that, that record button and just record yourself doing it. [00:05:55] Mm-hmm and so that's the. Watch me do it. And to your point, [00:06:00] sometimes it is okay. Let's get on zoom and, and do it together. Yeah, it is right. And then, but then you record that too, right? Sure. Yeah. Right. For training purposes, this call will be recorded for training purposes. Yes, . Well, it's true. So that's the, the, watch me do it. [00:06:18] And then the do it with me is a lot over. That that is where zoom probably we use that the most in, in zoom as the, is the, do it with me. It can be. Yeah. And then another way we've utilized that is we'll talk about one of the tools later, but basically we use a tool called slack, which is our internal communications. [00:06:39] So for a while there, for example, when the customer service people were responding to a. , they would actually write out their re what they were going to say in slack, in, in there mm-hmm and then we would either say, yeah, that's good. Or, or change that or change this before you send it. Right. Mm-hmm so that was a way for us to do it with me. [00:07:00] Yeah. That didn't involve zoom, right? Yeah, yeah. Yeah. That was really good. And we'll, we'll talk more about slack here when we talk about the tools. So that is watch me do it, watch me do it. And that was do it with me. Mm-hmm and then the third one is do it by yourself. Mm-hmm and, and all this entails is you've been trained and now go to do the job. [00:07:22] Basically, you go do the job and we are just here to kind of manage things and answer questions as needed and you know, that kind of thing. Right. Help guide, guide the process. Right. So mm-hmm and a lot of that is, is done in slack too. So and then the third, the fourth one is train somebody else. Mm-hmm [00:07:49] So now that you have trained someone and, and this is going to take several months, it's gonna depends on the job you're talking customer experience. Yes. [00:08:00] But our cleaners don't take months. Well, the cleaners don't right? Yeah. So it depends on, on who it is, what the job is. Yeah. I would say, but. I would say that for most customer experience people, it's gonna take them a couple of months to that's true. [00:08:14] Yeah. Yeah. To, to really get feel comfortable in the position. Mm-hmm, where they don't have to ask you a billion questions. Mm-hmm like, can I say this? Can I say that? So now that you have someone that. competent, competent, and, and knows a little bit about how the, how the role works and the tools and the processes of things. [00:08:39] Now they can go train somebody else. Right. And you're not having to do it, which I love that. Yeah. And another thing we have them do a lot of the times is actually create the documentation for us. So even if we're making a video say, yeah, we may make a video of, Hey, here's how to do this thing. And then it's their job to actually watch that video and write it out in text. [00:09:05] Mm-hmm. And then that also gives you feedback of, did they really understand the video mm-hmm cause it's kinda like read this book and write me an essay mm-hmm so let's watch this video and write, write out the procedure, right? Step by step. Yeah. That, so here step one. You're step two. Here's step three, as detailed as possible. [00:09:22] Yeah. Right? So that now you have it documented not only in video, but in, in written form. Right? Cause people learn different. and you know, that person truly understood what it was, cuz you've now read through that and said yes, this or no change, this, that type of thing. Mm-hmm . So that, that ends up starts building your documentation over time. [00:09:44] And then that becomes a training tool as new people come in. Yeah. And, and yeah, that, that's great that, that you are not the only one that is creating those. Those those SOPs, those standard operating procedures. Mm-hmm [00:10:00] so, so let's talk a little bit about that next, cuz that leads us nicely into the, the second thing that we were gonna talk about, which is in fact, these systems and the processes, like what do they do? [00:10:13] Right. Mm-hmm so if depends on the job, right, right. So let's, let's break that down into. The different team members that we have in place. Right. So let's start with the customer experience specialist, then we'll talk about the operation specialist and then we'll talk about the cleaners. Okay. Yeah. So let's do it that way. [00:10:34] And we're separating processes from tools. Is that right? Yes. Correct. Okay. Those are easy to confuse. Yeah. Yes. So the that's so a really good thing to talk about. So why don't you. Talk about what the difference between those things is. Got it. So your processes tend to be the thing, the, the, the, you know, the, the thing that's getting done, it's the, the process, meaning for example, if someone let's go to the customer experience side, if someone inquires and asks for a discount, the process ends up being okay. [00:11:11] Here's what we asked. so we may ask them, what discount were you looking for? Right. Or we may say, what was your budget? Right. You know, there's lots of responses you could have, but that's the process, right? And then we have, you know, basically a list we go through to determine, you know, we can give you this off. [00:11:29] We can give you this off, or there's no discount available. And, you know, how do you determine that? Well, there there's an SOP for that. Mm-hmm , but that's different from the tool of how we're actually communicating with them, right. Or where those procedures are stored. That's a tool mm-hmm, , it's not really the process. [00:11:49] Right? So the tools tend to facilitate the processes and make those processes easier. Another example would be the cleaners. Obviously their job is to come. and have a [00:12:00] checklist and that's the process. And then if there's a problem, they report it to us. But the tool then becomes what facilitates that, what facilitates the checklist, what facilitates the quality control, what facilitates the feedback to them. [00:12:15] Right. Right. And that tool could brain from anything from, Hey, I call them on the phone and schedule them all the way to, well, I'm using a tool that automates that process. Like we do. Right. So that that's the tool, right? Yeah. So, and they're very closely tied together. Cause sometimes the processes enter this in the tool. [00:12:33] Right. right. But it's not the main thing it's the, the tool can change. The process tends to be. And I think the, the tool will change as you grow and scale too. We've noticed that that happens, happens true. And your process has changed as well as you fine. They, they, yes. As you were fine over time, certainly did not start off with. [00:12:54] Well, same things we have today. Yeah. Yeah. Well, the extensive systems and processes that we use today, for sure. So it, it is very, it is very much a, a fluid thing to, yeah, it's an iterative process. Always going to be. Changing and mm-hmm and growing and, and making it better all the time. And it usually comes from some mistake. [00:13:16] Yes. Or something that happened that was experience. Yes. Not perfect. Right. Which is probably the wrong thing to say. Cause it's hard to be perfect, but it's something that, okay. If we had this, then this wouldn't would not have happened. Right. Right. Right. And then that becomes a procedure or that becomes a okay. [00:13:32] What tool do we need to make sure that procedure gets followed? Cuz sometimes it's that. The procedure didn't did not get followed. Like they didn't, there was something on the cleaning checklist that wasn't done. So what tool can we use to make sure that happens? Yep. Right. So that's just an example. Yeah. [00:13:50] So let's talk about the. how to okay. Of it. So, and let's start, we're gonna do the customer [00:14:00] experience specialist, then we'll talk about the operation specialist. Then we'll talk about the, the cleaners. So, and if you're talking about the, the customer experience specialist, now, this person is, we've talked about this last week, but this person is the, really the glue that holds. [00:14:20] This business together. Yeah, there's a hub. I think they remember there's a hub of a wheel. Cause they, they are the ones that are responsible for things like. messaging the guests. Mm-hmm, communicating with the guests. They're responsible for communicating with the cleaners. They're responsible for communicating and organizing and scheduling any kind of maintenance that needs to happen. [00:14:45] Mm-hmm so this person is really a key role in your business. So how do they, how do they do their job? Mm-hmm is. so is all SOPs, I would say. Yeah, it is everything in the business should be. Everything is, everything should be documented is, is SOP driven. It is. Yeah. So, so that they know exactly what to do and how to do it. [00:15:17] And it all starts with SOPs. Right? So that's an example of a procedure. Say the cleaners coming clean and this just happened. And the, they, they discovered that the blinds are yep. Broken and they report that back to customer service customer experience team. Now what, that's their procedure they're done. [00:15:41] They don't fix blinds. So what's the customer service to do well. Their procedure is reach out to maintenance and, and relay that, Hey, this needs to be. and then find out and coordinate for them to go, you know, fix that before the next guest comes. Right. Or if they're not gonna be able to, to then, okay. [00:15:59] [00:16:00] Reach out to the guest proactively and say, Hey, we know this is a problem. Is it okay if maintenance comes after you arrive to fix it? Right? So they, they end up communicating with all three of those pieces that don't necessarily directly communicate with each. and they, they need to be in the middle because it's a customer driven customer focused experience. [00:16:21] So they really need to be in a, in a, in a large sense so that they know what's going on so that they can anticipate, okay, a guest comes and they tell you, the blinds are broken. Well, you already know. Right. Or you've already reached out to them hopefully, or whatever it is, whatever the, whatever the problem was. [00:16:39] That was just an example. But they, they are the. So that's, that's an example of a procedure. Do you wanna talk about the tools yet or like how they do their job? I, I feel like that would be a natural progression of things. Okay. Well, I'm just saying, did you want to talk about the other team members first? [00:16:55] Did you want to talk about cleaners? Did you wanna talk about, well, it would make more sense if we, you did the tools to go along with that. Okay. So for our communications internal communications, I mentioned earlier, we use a program called. It's free. It's very much like messenger. It's kind of like a group chat if you will. [00:17:15] And there are different channels, so you can break up these chats into, so is this one big, long group chat like you might have on your phone, like with a text or something? They're actually different channels. So we have a channel for cleaning where we only talk about cleaning. We have a channel for each property where we only talk about. [00:17:33] Things that are associated with that property in that channel. So it helps you organize your communication as well. And then we have an internal team. We have an operations channel where it's really us and customer experience. So because they are the hub that tends to be the only people in there. The cleaners are actually in there. [00:17:51] We have a cleaning channel. That's where they can talk back and forth through the cleaners if need be. So that that slack [00:18:00] communications channel is great because you're going to have more than one customer experienced person eventually anyway. And what you need is a centralized place so that when the next person comes on shift, they now have access to all the communications that have happened. [00:18:15] Yep. So it's part of, that's not organized, so it's all transparent. It's also all informed. Everybody's informed. Yep. And it's organized and it's. now there is a paid version of it that eventually you're gonna want as you scale. But it's, I, I like to start with tools that are free especially when you're just starting out. [00:18:34] Well, every penny counts. Sure. And a lot of large corporations use slack. It's not like it's, that's true. You know, it's, it's a well functioning product. So slack is our internal communications. That's how that would have happened. So the cleaners may have reported a problem. They may have notified customer service in slack. [00:18:53] Rather than texting. Right. Cause that, that is now stuck on your phone. Yep. Right. So we've remember, we don't wanna be, nobody knows about it. The phone, we want it out here somewhere. Yeah. So it's in slack. They talk to customer service in slack. Customer service can talk back to them and actually perhaps even talk to maintenance, maybe there's a maintenance channel in there, or it may be that your operation specialist, which is the person that goes out to the unit when somebody needs to go out, that's. [00:19:19] You know, a maintenance issue or a cleaning issue, maybe it's something they can address and, and go do, cuz it could be something like the cleaners. Just tell you, Hey, we don't have any more toilet paper. We'd love to put some out for you, but you don't have any. Well, now that becomes a, that comes back into customer service customer service then would talk to the runner or operation specialist and say, Hey, can you take some toilet paper over there? [00:19:42] Cuz the cleaners didn't. right. So it becomes your hub of communication. So slack is a big tool that we use. Yeah. Like all the time, every day. All the time. Yep. Now for the cleaners they, we actually have a program. We call we call we that is called turnover. BMB that we use there, there are several, there's another one [00:20:00] called properly. [00:20:01] We happen to like turn over BMB. , but what it does is it allows us to not only automatically schedule cleaners, so you can hook this thing up to your calendar. Yeah. So that when they're in, cuz you're always cleaning on checkout, always on checkout. Oh that's part, day of checkout. You can actually have it automatically schedule you're cleaner to come on checkout. [00:20:23] So now you've, that's a piece of automation actually that helps you not have to call your schedule your cleaners. Right? Right. Remember, I'm trying to get away from my. And it also, because it's automated, it eliminates or helps to eliminate mistakes. Like we forgot to schedule the cleaner. Right. And what it also does, it allows them to verify that yes, they're coming cuz they accept the cleaning job. [00:20:48] Yep. And then when they're cleaning, it also provides them the checklist. Yes. That then they can check off and then it allows them to upload pictures of the things they. So now we've in this one and it pays them automatically too. It will pay them automatically. So in, within this one tool, we have documentation that things got done. [00:21:11] We have the procedure of how to get it done. We have the scheduling done and we have a way to quality control it. Remote. by having them put those pictures in there and then automated, I thought of it because they can actually also report problems in there. Mm-hmm yes, they can. So if not slack, they can put it in turnover. [00:21:30] Yep. And mark that as a problem. And then customer service again, would get it from that channel. So turnover B and B is a big one for the cleaners that we use for our operations specialist. We actually scheduled them on a calendar and we automate that through. Through Trello and a and a in Zapier. [00:21:48] So Zapier is a program that allows you to tie programs together that aren't necessarily connected otherwise. So what it does is it ties our calendar to a tool called [00:22:00] Trello, which is free as well, which is free as well. And it assigns a due date for them to go do tasks when things need to get done. Like for example in our houses in Charlotte, well, somebody has to take the trash down every Sunday and Monday, depending on the place that gets scheduled for the runner to do. [00:22:17] Somebody has to in the, in the Charlotte properties, the runner goes to every checkout, cuz they're also the one running the linens back and forth to, to the linen service. So they get scheduled for every checkout. Inventory inventory is on there as well. Yep. So Trello become. Actually, we do all of our documentation on Trello as well. [00:22:36] All the SOPs are housed all the, the SOPs live there. And, and again, that's just the tool. You don't have to use Trello, but it's what we use. And it's free again, which is what I, I like to always start people on something that's free. And you may graduate from an eventually, but it's a great tool. So tho those are the three main ones that we use a lot as far as. [00:22:57] the operations of the business beyond, you know, pricing and some there's some other tools that we use for other things, but as far as operations and getting everything done, it's mostly turnover, B and B and Trello, and then, and slack. And then the third, I would say the fourth one, that's a big one is a program called hospitable. [00:23:18] And what hospitable is, it's now the communication to the gas. Because remember they're not in slack, right. But we are on multiple platforms. So what it has is it has an, an integrated inbox so that if something comes in from Airbnb or it comes in from VRBO, or it comes in direct, even mm-hmm, , all those communications are there in centrally inbox, inhospitable, and it has an automation component as well, so that it can automatically send out, for example, thank you for your reservation when someone makes a reservation or thank you for your inquiry when somebody makes an inquiry or here are your checkin instructions two days before, or the first morning of we [00:24:00] say, I hope everything's okay. [00:24:01] You know, please let us know if anything, all those automations are done through hospitable and it gives the customer service a way to have that unified inbox and respond when they need. Because not all communication can be automated. Right. For example, that's very true discounts. Yes. We can generically respond to discounts, but we can't approve or deny them. [00:24:23] We still have to communicate, or they have a specific question about certain things that, well, that's a main, how far is this from? From wherever they're going, right. Or, you know, can I park my RV in your driveway? You know, those types of things are manual. Can I bring a chicken? can I bring a chicken that's happened? [00:24:42] We did allow it for a pet fee. We did. We, we did chickens. Aren't that bad. We've had a pet chicken pet chicken. But yeah, so those that's, that's one of our big tools as well. That's that's really helpful in the business. And in, you know, in the course material, we have a lot more detail on actually how to use all of those. [00:24:57] Right. We can coach you on exactly how to set all this up. Yes. And how it all works together. Cause they are tools, but you have to set them up properly and correct. And. Learn how to use them expertly, let them all hook together properly and all those kind of things. Yeah. Yeah. So that's the major tools that we use, I would say to facilitate those processes. [00:25:16] Very good. So we hope that you found some value in this episode be sure to like, and follow and we will see you next time onto the next, onto the next. [00:25:31]

  Episode4: How Not To Stay Glued to Your Phone On Vacation [00:00:00] Welcome back to the podcast. And you will notice that we are. Not in our regular location. We are not, we are on vacation. We are on vacation at the lake and I got lake hair and I don't care so is that even rhymes? Right? We're a beautiful lake lore, North Carolina. Oh, it is gorgeous. Yes, I, this is our first time here. It's it's a great place to come. Just plugged to them. Love lake lure. We're actually staying in. Short term rental short term rental, of course, that we booked off of VRBO. Yeah. This one came through VRBO and in the background here, so we can't show you the house, but we're sitting out back and you might see some wildlife. So this morning we saw some. I got to see some deer. You saw some deer. I wasn't up yet. Some mama deer and a baby deer. Yeah. And then later on we were, it was kind of comical actually, cuz we were inside and Wendy he's like, I think these are peacock. There's peacocks out here. And I was like, they were, they were, I don't think there are peacock, but so we came out and they were wild turkeys still. Cool. Yeah. They were still cool. Still, still wildlife. Right. And then we have to be conscientious in this part of the country because there are black bear. So if you put your trash out, right, and it's not in a container that a bearer can't get into. You might get bears. Yeah, yeah. Can have a visitor at night. Yeah. So you might see some wildlife if is we do have a video version of the podcast, by the way, if you're listening to this on the audio, please come and check us out on YouTube. And you can see what we're talking about. But yeah, it's a special place of, and we've been out on the lake all day. Ugh. So nice swimming and floating and tubing and doing all those great. And that's what we wanted to talk about today. Yeah. Like how do you do that? Right, right. When you have all of these units and we've got people checking in today and we've got people checking out today and we've got potential problems that come up and I, one of those [00:02:00] wanna say, that's one of those things that, well it's happened to us in the past where we've gone on vacation. And while it's great to say. I can run everything for my phone. Well, yeah, you can, but you really don't want to, when you're on vacation, do you? No, no, no. Do not. do you really wanna be glued to your phone? I haven't even looked at my, I don't even know where my phone is. Right. And it's, and it's glorious, but I, I remember that it's happened to us before where oh, yes, for sure. Every time it buzzes, you're like, oh my God. Oh my God. I hope it's nothing bad. Did something happen? Right. Right. And it's how do you get to the point where. It's not so much an issue and you can actually go on vacation and actually enjoy it and enjoy it. Yes. Right. And not be glued to that phone. So that, that's what we wanted to kind of bring you today because it was very timely since we are on vacation. And there you go. So, so by the time you get done with this video what we hope you will have gotten out of it is exactly how to do. From our perspective and how we've been able to achieve that and how we coach other people to do the same thing so that when you go on vacation, you're truly on vacation. Mm it's. Glorious. Glorious. Yes. And I'm gonna drink my drink. It's cuz you can. Yes. . So what was the first thing we had kind of had three topics that we wanted to go over. Right? So, yeah, so there were, there were three things that we felt like were, were the most important things that we have in place that that allow us to, to do things like that. And the very first one was team members. Right. They're somebody else is doing the things, right. That's that's true. It's not us. Right. so team members is one the, the how to do the things, the, how, how the team members do the things yeah. Processes, right? How do you, what do they do? And some of those are automated too. They are. And then there's a lot of automation in that piece. Yeah. And we can talk about [00:04:00] that. And then the systems, how, what tools do we use? That allow the people to do the jobs, to do the things. Yeah. That's a big part of it. Those were, those were the three main things that allow us to be out here in the right. Mountains of North Carolina where frankly cell cell phone service is spotted. It is, yes, we do have wifi. Yes. At, at the short term rental here. Yes. That's not bad. Yeah. We were gonna do this at the lake, but then we thought, well, you know, there's, I'm not sure there's really. Good wifi down there. That's not what happened. She's lying to you. That is not what happened. I just didn't feel like dragging all the stuff down. That's what happened. That's really, that's the truth. We got down to the beach. That's so true. And we were floating around and we were like, you know what? We can always do this when we get back to the house. So we'll do the podcast when we get back. Okay. That's true. But it would've been a great shot. Maybe, maybe we'll do some more of so gorgeous, short videos or something on just so gorgeous where you can actually see the lake. Cause it really is a beautiful area. That's really is. That's an idea we should do. So let's talk about the team members that we, that we use. And you were talking about, the team members are really broken down into two different categories. They are. Yeah. So you've got the, the boots on the ground type people. and then you've got the virtual people, right? Yes. So let's talk about the boots on the ground type people. So we've got the, the two boots on the ground. People are, of course the cleaners mm-hmm and then we also have the person called an operations specialist. That's the, that's the technical definition. Right. But we call them our runner and the runner also does quality control for us. Right. So let's talk. The, the cleaners and the, the operations specialists. Mm-hmm yeah. So the cleaners is the one that's obvious [00:06:00] because you have to clean every time something turns and it, Amy. Yeah. Every time there's a turnover you have to clean. Right. And I think one of the, the things that we see people do a lot is they put a lot on their cleaners. Yeah. They make their cleaners do the linen, do the laundry in the. Yeah. And, and that can be a thing if you were. So I, that was one of my things that I was like, you should not, if at all possible be having your cleaners do laundry for a number of reasons. One of those is it takes longer. It does. And number two, you're cleaning it in a not commercial environment. And what I mean by that is the, the residential. You know, washers and dryers that we have, don't clean as well as say, outsourcing that to a commercial linen service that has access to the types of one, they can do more loads at a time. That's true. So it actually ends up being more efficient and two, they have access to the types of cleaning products that you don't necessarily as a consumer mm-hmm because they, they wash and bleach with. Commercial grade washing and commercial grade bleach that regular people like us, we don't have access to those types of things. Right. And some of that has to do with the temperature that it's that's washed at and not to mention that they have machines that fold it. Oh man. And like genies. Yeah. So it's, it's, it's a higher quality, if you will type of laundry. And it helps you with your consistency and your qu quality control quite a bit. And not to mention now your cleaners are freed up to be able to do more turns in a day. Mm-hmm and that's, that's one of those things that I think's particularly important when you start scaling, because it does take a that's an hour. Yeah. How long does it take you to do laundry? Oh, two hours [00:08:00] to wash and dry mm-hmm but at least two hours. Okay. So that's two hours of time and I know you have that five hour block. But they also have to clean. So how many turns can they actually do in a day? And so if you have a place that's fine, but if you have 10 of them or 20 of them, that starts becoming an issue and it becomes more of a efficiency thing. If nothing else. Not to mention the quality to out start outsourcing that. Well, you know, another really good reason that we do that is to also have another set of eyes on the linens because it is the, the cleaners. If, if they go to the cleaners and, and the, and there's a, a stain on them, then the cleaners will the, the laundry mat. Commercial grade laundry mat. When you say go to the cleaners, you meant the linen service, the linen service that's when they go to the linen service, then the, there there's a set of eyes on that on that stain there, the, they look for those things, right? And then once they get to, you know, back to the, to the cleaners and the cleaners are putting 'em on the bed, that's another. Set of eyes on the, on the on the linens too. And that goes for towels too, right? Yeah. So that goes back to single point of failure yeah. On anything and on, on anything, not only the job that they're doing, but the that's another set of eyes on quality control. Yeah. Mm-hmm well, I think that's a really good point. Yep. Yeah. So that is, that is one of the things that we do. So. So now you've introduced cleaners, cleaners clean. I got one more thing I wanna say about that. Okay. Go for it. So, and here's a little nugget for you. Ooh. We get four sets of linens for every unit that we have and for every bed and for every bathroom. So I'm talking about. . If you've got a one [00:10:00] bedroom place, then you need four sets of sheets, four sets of pillow cases, and four sets we use duvet covers, right? Cuz they're a lot cheaper to, to clean the comforters among other reasons. And then we have four sets of, of towels that we have per bathroom and there's two sets. Towels in the, in the bathroom. So that's like, I mean, it's a lot of linens. It is, there's a lot, a lot of linens and we do that because there's one set on the bed. There's one set in the closet. That is for guest use only because we all know that people are leaky. People are leaky, right? Hashtag people are leaky, hashtag people are leaky. Yeah. And, and, you know, sometimes stuff happens, right. Especially when he serve children. Yeah. That is one of our clients. So it's really great. It's a really great guest experience when the baby wets the bed and there's an extra set of linens in the closet. So, well, that's one on, on the bed. Okay. One on the bed, one in the closet for guest use. Only one of them is dirty at the laundry mat. And one of them is for oops. Somebody ripped or ripped our sheets or, or it stained or, or used our sheets to stuff in the vent, in the bathroom. So they could smoke. Oh, that's never happened. Oh no. That's never happened to us. Or it's a holiday. Or it's a holiday and the laundry mats closed mm-hmm Yes, but anyway, that that's a little, no good that I want that I wanted to, to drop in there for you. Okay. Yeah. Extra, extra nuggets. Yeah. When you drop. So we got the cleaners, we got the laundry mat. And so the other boots on the ground is, is what we call the runner mm-hmm or the operations specialist, if you will. Yeah. That's the, and that's our person that goes to the unit when somebody needs to go to the unit that doesn't involve turnover. So it's the, the [00:12:00] wifi doesn't work and I don't know how to reset the modem. Somebody has to go. It's the we don't have enough toilet paper. Can you bring, please bring some more it's the, you know, whatever it is that that happens all the time that somebody needs to go for some reason that doesn't involve cleaning and that ends up being a runner now in our houses, because we've mentioned in the past, we have single family houses. But we also have apartments. Now, those run differently in the single family houses, the process tends to be that the runner goes to every checkout mm-hmm . So not only are do the cleaners come, but the runners coming and that person is actually bringing the clean linens they're taking the dirty linens away. They're also doing inventory. And that person may be the person that's doing quality control for you as well to say, did the cleaners do everything that they were supposed to do when they came mm-hmm because that's we have enough cups. Do we have enough plates? Yeah. Well that's that's some of them get broken that's beyond cleaning. Yeah. Right. So it's also the other things, like you're supposed to have 12 plates, right. But there's only 10 because the last people broke two of them and didn't tell you, no, that never happens. It came across the channel today. We didn't have to deal with it, but we see everything that's happening. The blinds were, were torn up at one of the places, right. And the quality control person actually found that the cleaners didn't miss they, I guess they missed it. They didn't say anything about it. Mm-hmm but quality control tent came and found it. Yeah. It's nice to, so again, it's that redundancy and having that other set of eyes mm-hmm yeah. In addition to the cleaners clean, the runner runs. Yep. Right. And the, the linen service does linens. Right. And so we have this separation of powers, if you will. And they all overlap each other and they do overlap. Right. So, because, you know, cause you did say that it's an additional set of eyes, more eyes on it, the better. So the, on the cleaning checklist and we do have a cleaning checklist and we'll talk about [00:14:00] this in just a second, but there are things that are on the cleaning checklist that are also on the operations specialist checklist too, because. Those are really important things that a lot of people miss. Right? So that's quality control. You're talking about the cleaners coming clean and of, well, I shouldn't say of course, but if you don't, they should have a checklist and a very detailed one that goes beyond clean the living room. Or clean the bathroom, right? Well, obviously, right, but you need very specific instructions, right? So every room has 10 to 20 different things that you actually need to do. Yep. Like dust the ceiling fan. Yep. Do the blinds. This is exactly how many towels go on the rack. Yep. And that kind of thing. And then the quality control person is actually coming behind them with that exact same list to. Did this get done? Did this get done right? Did, did this get done? And then that becomes a very objective way to provide feedback, right? If something didn't get done did not get done right. Or you know, they just missed it for whatever reason. It's, it's very, we like objective versus subjective. Right? So we'd rather have someone say, Hey, item six on the list in the bathroom. Wasn't completed rather than you didn't clean. Well, right. because that's a very vague thing to say. Right. And frankly, if, if it's not on our list and a cleaner, doesn't do it. That's our problem. That's our problem. Mm-hmm . Yeah. Okay. So it's, it's imperative that we have detailed lists and you know, that that is something, then we have quality control go through that list. That is something that we've had to refine over the years. Yeah. And you would, our checklist, our cleaning checklist did not start out that way. Yeah. It, it was not comprehensive, but. That's what had to happen was every time something happened you know, a guest found something, then, then we put it on the cleaning [00:16:00] checklist and then we told our cleaners and another thing. And here's another nugget for you. You have to train your cleaners. Oh yeah. You cannot get somebody from. Turnover B, B or properly or wherever they came from and expect them to know how to clean your place, your place, your place, because it is your place. And first of all, it's your responsibility to have a checklist. Because if you don't have a checklist, then they don't know exactly what to do. Yeah. And it's their responsibility to follow it. Yes. It is their responsibility. That's an agreement. And then it's our responsibility to make sure that was done. Yes. But it's not fair to them. It isn't, it is not, they did not do something and it wasn't on your checklist. That's on you. Yes. And we always that what's on us. Always. It's train our cleaners. To the first three times they clean for us. We have the quality control person go behind them. Yes. And all they always say, you know, this section six. B B , you know, was, they didn't put a, a hand towel on the hand towel ring in the downstairs bathroom mm-hmm or whatever. Right. And then they take a picture of it and that gets sent to the cleaner. And then the cleaner, you know, either has to go back and, and fix it. Or do better next time do better next time, right? Yeah. But if it is your responsibility as an operator to number one, have a checklist and number two to train the cleaner. To clean exactly the way that you want them to clean. Yeah. And then quality call becomes accountability. Yeah. Accountability. You need to build, build accountability. Must. And again, it's one of those it's, there's no single point of failure, right? You must. So I think that's important. Yeah. Well, how do the, let's talk about this next?[00:18:00] How does the, how does it work when the quality control person, for example, found the blinds? That were messed up in, in one of the houses. So I think you're moving to the other. Yeah, I'm moving to the, okay. Cause we said there were two, we talked a lot about the boots on the ground. Yeah. Yeah. So let's talk about the virtual now. Mm-hmm so, so now that we've talked about the cleaners and the operation specialist and the quality control and the laundrymat now, how does that information get fixed? Right. What do they do with that information? Yeah, hopefully. Texting you? No, no, they're not texting me. they're not. They used to cause that wouldn't, that wouldn't mess up your vacation. They used to text me. Yeah. But that doesn't happen anymore. What happens now is. The, they, we use a, a, a process, right. And, and a system that we'll talk about that in just a second. I don't know if we're gonna get to that, but go for it though. The, a virtual assistant or the operations or the the customer experience specialist. Yeah. I don't like calling them virtual assistant. I don't, everybody does, but they're not, that's really something that it's really customer service. It's a, it's a job customer service. It's it's customer service. It just so happens that that job does not have a physical location. Right. So she doesn't have to, this person doesn't have to be there. Right. So you're really not looking for virtual assistance. No, no. You're because virtual assistance is something else. It is. It's like, okay, I have tasks need done. Yeah. And I have a virtual assistant that helps you. That's not what, this is so much more than that. This is remote work. Yes. It's somebody that works remotely because those jobs don't need to be on site. Right. So they're well, here's a bunch of things that don't need to be on site, responding to a guest through the. Responding to a guest via text, taking a phone call from a guest, for example contacting a maintenance person to go fix those blinds that the [00:20:00] quality control found or the cleaners found. Right? There's, there's lots of things that do not involve. I have to be physically there. Well, they're more of like the middle man, right? They're they're actually the glue that holds this business together. Yeah. And that's the person you don't wanna be? I think a lot of people that's what they're, I don't wanna be that person anymore. I dunno if I said this in the beginning, but it was like, okay, I can work anyway, cuz anywhere cuz I can do it off my phone. , but you've just given yourself a role in the business. Yeah. Now you're working in your business, your customer experience on your business is what you actually are. Yeah. You've created that job for yourself. So you need to put somebody else in that job. Yeah. And the whole point is they don't have to be on the ground. And I know somebody's out there saying, well, I can't afford that. Oh yeah. That comes back. I know somebody out there is saying that. Yeah. And let me tell you, you can't afford not to have this person that's correct. Because guess who. Guess who checks the cameras when guests check in and, and finds out if there are extra guests that check in that aren't stated on the reservation or they bring a pet and they're not supposed to. Yes, yes. And guess what we charge for that. Yeah. So, and now she's just paid for herself. Yeah. So the, your customer experience team ends up being. ends up paying for themselves. Really? They do. They really do. They really do. They really, we thought that too, from the things that we did, they find we did, and it's not only the fine side. It's not only, Hey, you brought a pet and you weren't supposed to, and now you owe us 200 bucks. There is that, but there's also the, okay. Somebody reported the blinds needed to be fixed or what happened the other day that would've been a bigger deal. Like. The water was off. Oh yeah, that's right at one of the apartments. That's right. The, the water didn't work in one of the, in one of the apartments bathrooms. Mm-hmm and that's one of those things that, Hey, we're on vacation. We might not catch it. And then nobody called maintenance and then your [00:22:00] guest shows up and now they have a bad experience and they leave you a bad view. And how much did that cost you? Oh, over. Oh, my, you just did a big one. So it's not only those hard costs, but it's those soft costs that you feel like aren't really cost, but they are. Yeah. That, that hurt you over the long run. Where if you just had somebody there to respond, you could have headed that off before. Oh, I got another one issue. Yeah, go for it. What if the air conditioner stops working? yeah, that, that happens here in the south a lot, all the time or heat, or if you, if it's the winter time. Right. And there's nobody to check the temperature cuz we have, that's one of our processes yeah. System for this and a process for this. Right? The, the temperature inside the unit is comparable or, or is comfortable depending on the temperature, you know, outside. Right. So it's summertime, right? And it's really hot outside, especially here in the south. And the temperature inside needs to be about, I don't know, 70, 68, 70 degrees is normal for, for this time of year, but it's sometimes it's 90, 95 degrees outside. And if the temperature inside is like 85 degrees, you know, that's a. And something's going on with the, the H V a C that you should probably get somebody to come check out before the next guest checks in at four o'clock. Right. And, and you, the worst thing you can have happen is the guest shows up and they're the one tells telling you that there's a problem with the unit mm-hmm . And that's one of those things that your cleaners may have missed. Yeah. Just because, yeah, it did not happen until they left. Oh, that's interesting. So once, once a day and before check in one of our procedures, and [00:24:00] this is part of the systems that we have, because we can do that. We can see the thermostats remotely. Does the inside temperature match what the thermostat is set to. Yep. So if the thermostat in the summer is set to 72 degrees Fahrenheit and the actual inside temperature is 85, problem, problem is probably happening. Yep. Right. Or it could be, just be the opposite that the last guest said it to 80. Or turned it off completely or turned it off completely, which happened to us recently. It did like who does that? And then the guests show up and, and it's hot in there and they're like, why didn't you? Right. Why is the air not on? Right. And we can, because of the systems and processes we've got in place. We can turn that on remotely. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So we have to talk about, I think we've dropped enough nuggets on that one. I think we've talked. I think, I think we've talked. We may have to continue this. We may have to do a part two. We may have to do a part two. We may even have to do a part three. Yeah. So what were the next two that we were gonna cover and what? So we did the, the team members first and then we have the systems. No, then we have the processes and then we have the system still. Right. So I don't think we kind of touched on some of them a little bit, but we could, we've got so much more to talk about there. Okay. So maybe we should break this into three. Oh, that's good idea. So we've talked this, we've talked about the team members that you need and why it's so important to have them, because remember, this is a team sport. And, and again, you're building a business here. Yep. Yeah. And you don't wanna have to work in. Yeah. Especially when you're on vacation and that a whole reason that you're building a business, it really is. So it can, that it can allow you to go on vacation like this. I mean this, all this time and investment and money that you put into your short term rentals, don't become a slave to them. And go, and it's very apparent when you're here at lake lure and you're just trying to swim. Right. And you're, you're thinking, ah, I gotta go into, into shore and see my phones ring and have right that's horrible lake care and not care. Hey lake here and not care. That might be the top, the title of this episode. I'm not sure [00:26:00] I got lake here and I don't care. I got lake here and I don't care but we do hope that you found a lot of value. In this episode, we dropped a lot of nuggets and we dropped a lot of information on you. And if you did find value on it, like, and subscribe. to the channel and stay tuned because we will be doing a, a part two, because we've got so much more to talk about this. And I think that this topic is, is though the whole reason that people start a short term rental or any business. to begin with. Yeah. It's time. Freedom. Yes. It's freedom of time. It's freedom of time. And that's, that's really what this episode was about is how to start getting that time back. Yes. How to start getting that freedom back. Yep. Again, check us out on YouTube. I don't know if anybody saw bear back there please. Behind us. I hope not. Cuz that means there won't be a part too. Probably but, but but I don't think, I don't think. No, probably not until tonight. Yeah. They, they tend to come out tonight and we've got a fire pit and we're gonna have some s'mores tonight. We are, and we're not gonna worry about the kids are gonna burn their marshmallows. Like they always do. Yeah. They like 'em burn, but we're not gonna have to worry about guests that are. Mm complaining and nobody's responding to them or they may complain, but it won't be us that has to deal with it. Yes. And it will get done in a timing manner. Yeah. And mm-hmm, that's right. All those good things. So stay tuned for the next exciting episode of part two. And we will talk about more systems and processes and we'll get really nitty gritty here because I, I think that a lot of people. Say, yeah, go, go, go set up these systems and, and set up these processes, but nobody really tells you how. Yeah. And that's why we have the course too. So that's true. That's one. Would you have course if you're interested in that? Oh yes, the course has it all. But definitely like a follow [00:28:00] and we'll see you next time. We'll do the next onto the next.  

The First (And Most Important) Step When Starting a New Short-Term Rental / Airbnb [00:00:00] Hey everybody. Welcome back to the podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams with the short-term rental authority, your trusted authority on all things short-term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And on today's podcast, we are going to be going to be talking about. The first thing that you should do when you are starting your short term rental business. Yeah. I wanna feel like we've talked about it a little bit. Little bit. Yeah. Cause it's that important? Yes. But today we kind of want to take a deep dive on how to choose your avatar, how to choose. Who it is that your hospitality business, not your real estate business, but who your hospitality business is actually going to have as a customer, who's coming to stay with you. Right? So this is the first and the probably, I would say the most important step that you will ever take in your short term rental journey, because, and we're gonna get into this a little bit later because it's going to help you answer. all the other questions that you have right now, probably right. Like where, where to put it, you know, is it a three bedroom or a studio, right, right. What put inside of it, you know? Right. Where, yeah. All of those things, it's gonna help you answer all of those things. So let's first talk about how do you go about finding which customer to choose, because there's a whole mess of. That that you a whole mess of them. Oh God. Whole mess of them. Okay. Hey, at least I didn't say gaggle. That's true. that's geese. Oh yeah. That's right. and so you got a whole bunch to choose from, right? How do you even start? Like where do you even start? So [00:02:00] we may not even realize that, that there are so many. Well, that's true. And we're gonna get into all the, all the ones that you may not have even thought about yet. We're gonna get into that today as well. But let's talk about first. How do you even pick somebody? Like you got all these things to choose from, but how do you pick? So the first thing that, that we tell people to do is to start. Right. Yeah. So you want to, you want to be in your backyard as much as possible? Yes. Especially for your first several, especially. Yeah. For your first couple first one, for sure. Because you're you're you are going to be going to the unit a lot. until you have somebody to do that for you, but you probably. Aren't going to have somebody do that for you at first, right? Yeah. And it's not only that, it's just, there's all these other moving parts that you don't realize until you're doing it. And it's, it's way easier. And in my opinion, smarter to start local to where you can actually go there, if you need to, for whatever reason, mm-hmm that you could put eyes on that property that you're not overly reliant on something like, oh, well, I guess I gotta hire a property manager. because it's five hours away or it's across the country or, or whatever. Right. Right. And then you find out, well, all your revenue goes out the door to the property manager and even then you don't really have a sense of what's going on there. Right. So I think it's super important. Yeah. I would, I would recommend start in your backyard or as close as possible, as close as possible. Right. Right. For that reason, because you are going to be going to the unit for whatever reason. And, you know, you, you don't know what you don't know right. At first, right? Yeah. And you need to build up some of [00:04:00] that experience. Yes. Cause remember you're, you know, one of our mentors, Jay Massey told us this, he said, you do your first deals for the experience. And then you get the profit from your experience, right? Yeah. So if you, if you're doing those first deals and you're not in a place where it's actually local to you, or at least semi-local to you, then. You're not learning the things that you really should be learning, running that business. Mm-hmm and you know, you, you learn a lot about the market when you are operating short term rental business. Yeah. So, and, and we're gonna be talking a little bit about this too, a little bit later on, but the we've been operating in, in Charlotte for quite some time now. And I did not realize that there were so many things going on in Charlotte. Well, that's true. Yeah. And then we moved to a, to a new market and we thought we knew that market well. Right. but that, that is one of the things that people will do, they'll say, well, okay, I'll start local. I know my area. Yeah. Yeah. You think you do and you think you do. Yeah. And then you find out that, oh, I didn't know that was going on. Right. Cause people will come stay with you. and you didn't even realize that existed as a thing. Right, right, right. Because it's not in your sphere of right. You know, awareness, cuz it's just not something that you do. Right. Right. For whatever reason. So, so that's, that's part of it, but that's like after you get started, right. Like you don't wanna start and then say, okay, who's coming there and then, oh no, that that's bad news. Yeah. Cause you. The, the whole idea is that you, you need to build this thing to attract the person that you want. That's the idea to serve, right? Yes. That's the, the niche there. Yeah. So, so with that being said, if you were going to be starting locally in, in your own backyard, that, you know, that kind of limits you geographically, that's true. Right? So your, [00:06:00] your possible things that you could. are narrowed down by geography. Yeah, they are. But I will say that it's probably not as narrowed down as you think, even if you're in a, say a Myrtle beach, right. Say I wanted a short term rental in Myrtle beach. Would you immediately think vacation rental? Yeah. And that's it? Yeah. Like you don't even think about anything else. Right. But in Myrtle beach, there are people that live there. That's true. Yeah. There are people that have say a fire in their house. Mm. and they need a temporary place to stay. And they've got, you know, mom, dad, three kids, a dog and a cat. And that doesn't start sounding like a hotel room. Right. And it's gonna take six months to rebuild the house. Yeah. Right. That exists. Even in a vacation destination. That's true. There are people that are coming there for construction work. So say they're building something. A new theme park, a new whatever. Mm-hmm , you know, they there's people that come from in, from out of town that are there for those purposes. Yeah. Right. There are hospitals in Myrtle beach, right. There are traveling nurses that travel to Myrtle beach for work. Let's, let's go through those. And this would be a good time to, to actually go through some of the possible customer avatars that you. That you could possibly serve. And what we've done is we've put them into categories. There's about 65 that we came up with and we've put them into, to categories. So let's, let's do the categories. Yeah. And this isn't even an exhaustive list. No, but the idea is, Hey, get the juices flowing, just get the creation. Start thinking about, okay, what, who can I serve? Right. Because that's part of what we keep saying. You need to. Who you want to serve. Right. And the biggest problem a lot of times is figuring out, well, who could I serve? Right. What are the possibilities? So here's some possibilities. Mm-hmm . So we've got the corporate traveler, the life events, traveler, the [00:08:00] entertainment traveler, the medical traveler, the military traveler mm-hmm the seasonal or tourist traveler, the academic traveler, the emergency travel. And the voluntary relocation traveler. Right. And those are broad categories. Yes. So gimme some examples of got it. Some things in each that category. Okay. All right. So let's start with, start with the corporate traveler. And of course these are people like sales people who are, who work for a business mm-hmm and they are coming to the area to sell something. Remember the solar people mm-hmm yeah, we've had several sales teams. Actually. There was the solar mm-hmm that came in and stayed at one of our houses. And then there was the the pest control. That's right. I forgot about the pest control. So if you, if you've ever lived in, in an area where there's door to door salesman and they come through and they're selling you these services, a lot of times, they're not from, they're not local. They actually are sales teams that will go to an area and work that area for a period of time and they gotta stay somewhere and they stay with us in this case, at least a couple times we've had that happen that we know of. Yep. And then they'll go to another area and set up shop. Right. And they go all over the country. So that's one of 'em sales teams training sessions, continuing education. Mm-hmm , that's interesting. There's a lot of people that come in for you know, like the corporate office is there. And they come from the satellite office, some other part of the country and they're coming in for some kind of training. Yeah. It could be sales training. It could be you know, any kind of like it training. It could be anything like that. Yeah. Yeah. Yep. Contractors and construction crews. Mm-hmm , that's what I was talking about earlier. People coming to build something we've had that before to. Speakers and presenters for training or that's true. That's true. So a lot of times that training isn't done by the company itself, it's done by an outside sales trainer, Uhhuh and guests they're coming too. Yep. Right? Yep. Nonprofits mm-hmm meetings with members of [00:10:00] branch offices. Yep. Team meetings. Mm-hmm merger, acquisition teams. Yes, they do that. Yep. So those are just some examples of the corporate traveler that you could serve. The life event travelers are the people that we serve. It's one of them. Yeah. Yeah. One of them that we serve. So that's people coming for life events, such as weddings, funerals. Birth of a child or a grandchild adoption, even mm-hmm we had somebody come who was adopting a child. We also had someone coming who stayed with us who was getting inseminated. Yeah. Did I say that right? You did. It's just shocking the say insemination , but I had no idea that there was an insemination clinic. Yeah around here. I didn't either. Yeah. Until she came and said, Hey, I'm, I'm doing this. This is what I'm doing. Graduations, family reunions, holiday gatherings. We get a lot of that. Yep. Especially around well, holidays births and home remodeling. So a lot of people are doing that too. We get. We got quite a bit of that Uhhuh as well. Somebody's remodeling a kitchen or something, Uhhuh and need a place for a couple of weeks or whatever. Yep. Happens all the time. Yep. And those people tend to be local. That's right. Mm-hmm yeah. So a lot of people are, are you'll hear some people say, oh, don't serve locals. That they're they're bad news. And well, they're trying to prevent parties. Well, I understand. Right. I get it. There's but they haven't realized that there's a ton of locals that need those services. For the, for this reason mm-hmm so we actually had somebody one of the neighbors, one of the neighbor's mom came to stay at one of our houses. Mm-hmm that's true. So that she could be right next to her daughter because I believe her daughter was. She's pregnant and she's, she's having me. So it was one of those birth of a child things. Yep. Yep. Mm-hmm okay. Entertainment travelers. These are people coming to things like [00:12:00] concerts, football games, football games, basketball, basketball, sports, any kind of sporting events festivals we have. That's right. Yep. We have the Renaissance festival here. If you've never been to a Renaissance festival, you must go. Yeah. And eat one of those big old Turkey legs. That's right. He always gets the big, giant Turkey leg. I love the Turkey legs. I like to take pictures of you with peoples legs. just, don't post 'em on social media. Yeah. Street fairs, art shows. Okay. And theater and the film industry is really big mm-hmm and we just had an actor stay with, with us and we didn't even, yeah. We didn't even know they were filming a movie. They were, but, you know, we've had people that you know, they'll come in for like a Broadway type production. Yeah. Uhhuh , but there's people coming to the production to watch it, but there's also the people. Putting the production on that's true. They have to stay and they come early and stay, stay for a while. Right. Cause they've set the set, the whole thing up and then do all the rehearsals and then they do the, the play or whatever, and then they have to break all that back down. And then, so they're usually here for a period of time. Yep. Mm-hmm yep. So that's, that's a one that you may not have thought of medical. Of course, these are your, your traveling nurses. Mm-hmm . But what you may not have thought about is if you've got a hospital in your area, especially a a specific type of hospital. Yeah. Like here we have a children's pediatric cancer center Uhhuh, right? Mm-hmm a lot of times they will. Bring in a specialist doctor and that doctor will stay in residency for a number of months mm-hmm and that there, those people are gonna need a place to stay, right? Yeah. So it's not just through traveling nurses. It's right. That, so traveling doctor. Yeah. It's one of those things where you kind of want to be specific, right? You what you don't, I'm just pointing this out about this. These categories is what I hear. A lot of people do is they're like, yeah, I have an avatar, but they name a category. Right. Like medical professional, like medical [00:14:00] professionals. Well, that's great but is it traveling nurses or is it the traveling surgeon? Right, because those are two different people. They're and they're two different experiences. Yes, too. Yes. And we're gonna talk about that in just a second long term hospitalization. Yep. So people coming to the hospital for procedures and things like that, and then people coming to visit them too. Mm-hmm a lot of times their family take care them. Yep. Mm-hmm yep. Long term recovery. So people have to be near the hospital. Especially people, we were, I was coaching a a student down in Florida and there was a plastic surgeon and she was serving people who were coming to get plastic surgery. No, that was Fort worth, Texas. Oh, was it? Mm-hmm oh, okay. I thought it was Florida. Maybe it could have been Florida too, but the one I'm remembering was Texas was Florida, but, and, and apparently. they, people, people come from all over. Yeah. People have people who have plastic surgery have a long recovery time. Yeah. And they can't fly and they can't fly. So they fly in. Yes. And they have the procedure done, but then they can't just get back on a plane. Right. Cuz they just had surgery. Right. And there, and there's also like complications could happen all this other kind of thing. Right. So they have to be near the hospital. Mm-hmm just in case, right? Yep. So emergency elderly parent being relocated to assisted living mm-hmm oh, we had that during COVID. That was one of the people that. Actually stayed in our units during COVID. Yeah. It wasn't what we, what you just described, but yes, but it reminded me of it. It did. Yeah. So they actually that's how my brain works. Yeah. Yeah. So I think this one was actually people that are moving somebody into an assisted living and they need a place to stay place to stay while they're doing that. You're right. Mm-hmm right. Cause they may be out of town or something. Yeah. But there is the one you were talking about where they were actually, and this, this has gotta be unique to COVID, but, but they were actually Mo they took. loved ones out of the [00:16:00] nursing home. Right. And put them in one of our units with a caregiver, because well, that's where everybody was dying. Yeah. We're in the nursing home. Right. And they, they were trying to take them outta that environment. Yep. And yeah, that was interesting. Yeah. Yeah, it was, it was so, oh, this next one is one of my, one of my very favorites to serve and that's the military traveler and big props to all you and military out there. We appreciate you and your service. To our country. It says some people who are coming for temporary duty assignments, mm-hmm looking for housing for upcoming move or reassignment mm-hmm visiting family members. And civilian training personnel right now. So this is a good example of one that is location, location specific. Yeah. Right. So if you're, if you're within an hour of a military base, then you should really look into yeah. You should really look into it cause serving military customer because they take great care of your property. They're very respectful and they stay for a long time, but even then you gotta think, okay, is it enlisted or is it officers right? Right. Two different people. That's right. Yep. And we'll talk about that in a second. The seasonal or tourist, of course, this, this is like your typical. This is the one everybody thinks of. Right. Right, right. So if you're in a beach area or a ski area historic towns outdoor nature interests mm-hmm like near national park, near national. That was a big thing during COVID yeah, it was, it was like one of the few places you could actually go was outside. Right. Right. So if you were near a, a national park or something like that hunting or fishing mm-hmm and my favorite wineries or breweries wineries or breweries. Excellent. I'm a big fan. Academic traveler short term training schools, technical schools, beauty schools. Or some mm-hmm trade schools, trade schools. Yeah. Are very good. Foreign students. Yes. Which was a big one during COVID you remember that? Yeah, it was because if you were [00:18:00] say a student from Italy, Italy you were screwed and the campus shut down. Well, you didn't really want to go back home either. Yeah, no, right. Not so much. But you needed a place to stay. Yeah. So that was, that was part of it. But even, even then it's like, Okay. Well, a lot of times foreign students are coming in and they're not staying on campus. They need a place for a while, or at least to figure out where they're gonna stay before. you know, have a permanent place or whatever. Right. And a lot of times temporary housing comes into that. Yep. Yep. Visiting professors and guest lecturers. Mm-hmm researchers using libraries or the archives. This is big in Washington, DC and summer school students. Yeah. I, I note Actually there's law libraries that people go to. Oh, like physical law libraries, cuz there's a lot of things that are only available in the library. Oh, okay. Not online mm-hmm and so they, they will come to specific libraries just for that to do research or do some kind of, you know, whatever they're doing. Right. Cause they're like getting a PhD or mm-hmm or studying to be a lawyer or something. It could be. Interesting the emergency traveler, and this is one of our customer types house fire mm-hmm flood or natural disaster or plumbing, disaster mm-hmm natural disasters, such as wild fires, blizzards, hurricanes, hurricanes storm damage due to ho storm damage crime in home. So a lot of times. People will get broken into and they're afraid of being at. Yeah. Yeah. That's something you probably never thought of. Never would've thought of that. Somebody that's been burglarized. Yep. Right. Burglarized. That's hard for me to say robbed robbery. There we go. So that's a that's. That was really interesting. Mm-hmm and roof repairs. Mm. Or any kind of repairs, like remodeling, stuff like that. Mm-hmm voluntary relocation is the last one. So another big one for us. Yeah. Yeah. So this is people who are. Relocating to the area, like they sold their house somewhere and they're moving [00:20:00] to your area. They'll, they're building a new house. We've got loads of that happening here. Mm-hmm it'd be interesting to see what happens with that. Right. And that relocation isn't always like from out of town, like sometimes it's mm-hmm, just like what you said. They sold a house. But they haven't found the new one yet. Right. Or it's being built or it's being built or whatever. And they, well, we did that. Mm-hmm we sure did. When we built, we built our house. I wish we'd known about term rentals I know. Right. it would've been a lot more pleasant than staying with my mother. Yes, yes. Which is what we did. Yes, it would have. Yeah. And she was with two kids and 80 years old and liked it very hot inside. Yeah, she did. It was very warm. Yes. Mm-hmm visiting the area to look for potential areas to buy in mm-hmm and change of job. so we actually have this available for download. If you want to contact us, you can find us online. I'm sure the short-term rental authority. So those are some of the categories and, and the idea was just to. Just to get the creative juices flowing, right. Just to put it out there of some, some things that you could, some possible people that you could serve and, and you could probably think of a lot more people. Yeah. There's many more there's many more so, but the idea is to really niche that down into. You know, 2, 3, 4, 5 max, no more than five, no more than five because you know, the, the, and there needs to be some overlap there too. Mm-hmm because there's such a thing as the level of service that you are providing for guests too. And you hit on this earlier. You know, you could be tra you could be serving a, a medical professional, but the medical professional, it [00:22:00] could be a nurse mm-hmm , but it could also be a surgeon as well. Right, right. Mm-hmm and their expectations yes. Are gonna be totally different. Yep. Right. So now we're talking about which level of service. So, not only do you wanna pick an avatar, put three to three to five, but you also need to choose a level of service mm-hmm and we liken this to Walmart target or Nordstrom type level of service mm-hmm right. So the Walmart type experience is very budget conscious. They're, they're really kind of shopping on price here. Yeah. And all three of those stores sell something similar. Yes. Yes. They do. Like you can buy a shirt at all, three of them. Yeah. That's true. But your expectation of quality at one is different than at the other. Yes. It's all about the expectation and what your customer experience, or maybe, you know, even how easy is it to return something might be. You know, a different experience at diff those different places. Right? So that's, that's definitely something to consider mm-hmm so, and so that's something to, to consider as well. And, and those different levels also have different things that they value. That's true. Right? So the, some people may value the location. So location's gonna be really important to some people, whereas it not so much to other people, convenience and convenience to certain things like. The well, some people may be, are they driving and they need parking available. Yeah. Parking's gonna be more. Or is it like mass transits, way more important? Mm-hmm and I need to be able to walk to the grocery store. Right. Like, right. So those, those are two different people expecting two different [00:24:00] things, but that answers the question of, if I know who I'm serving now I know where to go put that thing. Right. Right. Where do I want to locate? unit. Well, you've now you've gone into the next thing that we were gonna talk about is answering this question of, of who is your customer is going to help you answer pretty much every other question that you could possibly have. That's true. And, and I was really talking more about the overlap. Oh, because you said, Hey, there should be. And really there should be overlap in, in the customer types that you pick, like an example would be overlap, which is why I was mentioning location and things like that is if I wanna serve travel nurses and families with children, those things aren't very compatible. Yeah. They're not. Cause the traveling nurse starts sounding like, okay, something near the hospital. That's maybe a studio apartment because they're budget conscious and they're traveling alone versus family with children. probably values. Well, quiet privacy and privacy, right? In a larger space. Yeah. Like they probably want a two, three bedroom, right. With maybe a yard cuz they've got a dog. Right, right. So you, when you choose these avatars, you want to choose three to five, but you want three to five that are compatible right. In all those things, location type of property, all those kind of things. So maybe travel nurses goes really well with traveling business person. Who's also alone and values being uptown where the hospital is. Right. Right. And, and family event travelers goes real well with military travelers too. Right. Cause they, they can tend to be the same type of people. Yep. So you gotta to be thinking about like, what age are they even? Yeah. Yeah, for sure. Because are they the age that they're going to have young children traveling with them? Mm-hmm what's their income levels, what you were alluding to as [00:26:00] far. level of service, you know, are they expecting Egyptian cotton sheets, right? Or do they not value that because they'd rather have a lower nightly price. Right. And so those, those are things to consider when you're, when you're developing these avatars, make sure that you pick some that are compatible, I guess is the way to say it. Right. So what, what we've done is we've chosen. We've chosen somebody like us. yeah. The easiest thing to do is pick yourself, pick it. Right. And that's what we did because, well, for one thing, you already know this person because you are this person mm-hmm and you can anticipate almost their, every need. Yeah. Cuz that's what you're trying to do. Yes. That's what creates a really great guest experience. It does. Yeah. Is, is they walk in and say. These people have really thought about my needs and, and, and what I'm really going to need when I stay here. Right. And the needs of different people are different things, largely dependent on why they're coming. Yeah. How long they're staying. Like if you're, if you're serving people that are staying a long period of time versus just a weekend. Well now indoor washer and dryer start sounding like something you actually have to have. Or a dishwasher, for example, mm-hmm, where, you know, if you're staying for the weekend, are you really doing laundry? Probably not. Probably not. Right. Right. So it's like, who do you want to attract? And you need to really niche down into who that avatar is. Mm-hmm so, you know, kind of going through this list of, Hey, here's the different people. Great. But I always say, yep. Start with something that's closest to what you are. Cuz like you said, you understand that. And then the other thing I would say. Start with somebody you would actually enjoy serving. That's what I really like. I think that's part of it too. Mm-hmm right, because I, I [00:28:00] think one of the mistakes, you, you, it's actually a mistake. People. What people really want to do when they come to us is, is they wanna say, who can I make the most money with? Right. mm-hmm right. And then you start with that a lot. You start looking at the market and saying, oh, it looks like three bedrooms do a lot better than two bedrooms. Mm-hmm and you're looking at it that way. And while that may be true on paper it's, it's not always something that you would even enjoy serving. Right? You might not even enjoy having four bedroom houses, cuz it's constantly. You're worried about people having parties there. Cause it sleeps 10. Right? Right. That's just stressful where I, you know, maybe I'd feel better serving business travelers because well, there's smaller spaces that don't tend to attract people that want to party. And I understand that customer type better. And I like they're here for a professional reason rather than just vacation. Right. So I, I think a big part of it is who do you, who are you comfortable serving? Mm-hmm and then. do I know that customer very well. Yeah. That's, that's a big part of it. Mm-hmm right. Is, is being able to anticipate their needs and you know, that customer so well. That they don't even have to hardly ask you any questions. Right. Mm-hmm because you've thought of just about everything and it goes back to your marketing too. Like that's why you attracted them in the first place. Yeah. Yeah. Right, right. So, so the, so knowing who, who your customer is. Is not only gonna help you answer, you know, what type of property am I, am I gonna get, am I gonna get a, a studio? Am I gonna get a four bedroom house? But it's going to, it's going to help you choose the location, right? Because now that you know why someone's coming well, you're [00:30:00] going to want to be around that general area. I mean, if. If you are serving the, the military, for example, you need to be around a military base. Right? Right. So it's, it's it's going to answer what to put inside your unit. Even, you know, some people may not even value a desk or, or a pack and play, or those kid things, cuz you're not serving children. Right, right. Mm-hmm maybe the traveling nurses really value blackout curtains yeah. And not being on a busy street and not being on a bed. That's a good one. A lot of them are working nights and sleep. They work nights and sleep during the day mm-hmm right. Yep. Mm-hmm the, the property type, the feature photo and where to market. Yeah. I was talking about that. So like, what do you say in your title? Yeah. Like what do you say in your listing, in your description? What's your first five pictures. Well, all of those are centered around who am I trying to attract? Yep. Right. Cause I we've always, I'll just little nugget here for you, but in your title, your title should have features in it. You know, the worst title you can have is cozy place to stay one bedroom. Right. And cozy two bedroom. Cause what does that really mean? Right, right. I'd rather see. At least in your, in your title, it should be something that speaks to the avatar that you've chosen. So for example, if I'm doing a business traveler, for example, I'm going to in my title, say something like high speed, wifi dedicated workspace printer included, right close to such and such area. Yeah. Like two miles to convention center. Right, right. But if I wanted to serve the, because in uptown Charlotte, you could serve either. If I wanted to serve people that were coming from sporting events, I might say two miles to Panther stadium where the Panthers play football. Yeah. Right. Mm-hmm and, and, but those are actually the same location. Mm-hmm , it's just, what am I choosing to point out it's close to. Right. Right. For [00:32:00] example, Mm-hmm . So we hope that you have found loads of value in this episode and stay tuned for the next exciting episode and be sure to like, and follow us. And so you get notified of the next exciting episode that's coming out. . all right. Onto the next, onto the next .  

STRA Episode2 The number one mistake real estate investors make when investing in short-term rentals / Airbnb [00:00:00] Hey guys. Welcome back to the short term rental authority podcast. We are John and Wendy Williams, your trusted authorities on all things short term rental related to help make you the best operator ever. And today's podcast. The, the title that we came up with, which I think is really good by the way, is the number one. Mistake that we see real estate investors make when the AR thinking about or have started a short term rental business. Right. And I, I would say that number one mistake is actually alluded to and what you just said. What'd I just say business. Oh, I did say business. Yeah. Cause it's natural for you to call it that it's natural for you to call it a short term [00:01:00] rental business. Well, that's because that's my perspective. Right. But what they're saying is they're investing in short term rentals. Right. And, and you realize that that's, that's the problem, actually, that the biggest mistake is looking at it through the lens of a real estate. Or from the perspective of real estate investing. Right. Because it has very little to do with the real estate actually. Right. Which doesn't feel correct at all. Right. That feels like, well, I'm buying the house to turn it into a short term rental, tell me how it's not real what right. right, right, right, right. But that actually ends up creating problems. If you don't realize. yeah. Lots of problems. Yeah. So if I'm, if I'm thinking well, okay, well, what kind of pop problems does that create? Well, number one, you, [00:02:00] if you, if you have the, the property. Yeah. And you're trying to. Operate a business inside of it. I think a lot of people don't even realize that's what's going on. They're two separate businesses. Yeah. They really are. Right. So you've got the, the real estate that you are owning or whatever, and, and that has to make money. And then you're also starting another separate business keyword, separate business. Which is the short term rental business, which you are operating inside the real estate. Yeah. And I, and, and even there, I know there's some people that hear that and they're like, I don't get it. Cuz I've tried to explain this before and just that way. And, and it just didn't work. Yeah, I have to. So I started making analogies. So I describe the, the [00:03:00] short term rental side of it. I'm gonna say business is much more like running a re. It's much more like I'm gonna open a restaurant and I'm gonna serve people, food, and really what they're coming there for is the food, the atmosphere, the experience. Ooh. Right. I think you just said a key word there. And we were having this discussion earlier and I said, you know, it really has nothing to do with the building that it's. Unless it's olive garden. And, and then when he says, unless it's olive garden, unless it's olive garden, because she really likes the architecture of an olive garden, she likes the food too. Right? I do. I really like that, but anyway, but, but it's not really the building that attracts you. No, no, it's not. It's the, it's the whole experience. It's right. And, and you would, and yeah, and that, that's kind of the point, right? It's it's not the real estate, the value that you're getting. The whole reason that it makes more money than doing say a long term [00:04:00] rental is because, well, you're actually running a business in it here. So here's an, here's a good analogy for you. If I owned, cuz this is easier to see if I owned a, a strip mall. Is that what you call those? Like it's a mm-hmm , you know, it has a whole bunch of different. Yeah. Like there's a parking lot. There's in it. There's a bunch of different stores in it. Right, right. Yeah. And they all open to the outside type. Well, oftentimes there's a restaurant in there. In fact, there's a joke in North Carolina that every food lion has a Chinese restaurant in the same strip mall. Right. Right. And we've kind of tested that and it seems to be true. Well, at least in narrator, still testing that hypothesis, but it regardless, right. The, the guy that owns the strip mall isn't necessarily the same guy that runs the Chinese restaurant. Right. Right. Typically the Chinese restaurant is leasing that space inside the. because they're the ones that know how to run a Chinese restaurant. The guy that owns the real estate is in real estate, probably doesn't know how to run a restaurant. Right. And he would [00:05:00] probably never think to himself, Hey, I could get more rent if I own the Chinese restaurant. Right, right. He would realize that, oh, I'm starting a whole nother business. Yes. I'm gonna run it in my strip mall. But what I'm also forgoing is the rent that I would normally be collecting from the Chinese restaurant. Cuz now I'm paying the rent, right. Or hopefully my restaurant is profitable enough that it pays the rent. I hope so. And then I have both right. I'm leasing the space out and now I'm running a restaurant and, but I don't know how to run a restaurant. So I've gotta go learn how to run a restaurant and like what all the things I need and who all the people I need to hire. And all of this kind of thing, but for some reason when it's short term rentals, when you just take that away and say, okay, I have this house, but I'm going to turn it into a short term rental people, miss that. Yeah. That really, [00:06:00] what I'm doing is I'm putting a hospitality business inside of this house. Right, right. And that hospitality business better be able to afford. right. They don't realize that it's an actual, separate business in and of itself. Yes. Yes. And, and that's where you see a lot of people and because people don't make that distinction and maybe because they're looking at it, like it, because it looks very similar. It's like, well, instead of renting it a year at a time, I'm just gonna rent it a day at a time. It does. Yeah. Well, that's a whole different business. It is. Cause it's not about renting the space at all. It's about the food that you serve there, if I'm using the, the customer experience. Yes. It's all about that. Yeah. And do you know anything about the hospitality business? Right. Right. Like just like, do you know anything about running a Chinese restaurant? That's a good analogy. I like that one and people get caught up because they'll, they'll go set it up. They'll, you know, perhaps, you know, there's all sorts [00:07:00] of YouTube videos and things you can read and. Of course you can buy, frankly, and things like that, that purport to teach you about how to do that. The problem is a lot of the people teaching those courses are also real estate investors. Right. right. And, and, and that could be a problem that could be an issue, right. So maybe it's better. Okay. Maybe I should study hospitality and decide, Hey, is that really the business? I wanna run number one. And then two. once you make that realization, then you start approaching things differently. Don't you? Yeah, for sure. For like what you were just saying, not the property first, right? Not the property first, because one of the things that we've noticed in the, all the people that we've coached is if, if you, if you start with the property first, it's almost. backwards. Maybe I, it, maybe that's not right [00:08:00] the right word to say it, but it's trying to, you're trying to shoe horn your customer into this property. Right? So taking that into consideration is, is the, the first thing that you need to do is. okay, well, who's gonna be staying in my short term rental business. Right? Which like, what customer are you going to be serving? Yeah. Which is a lot like saying, what kind of restaurant do you want to be? Right. Do you really wanna do be Chinese? Maybe you wanna be Italian like Wendy, right? The, the olive garden thing. And then you have to start thinking, well, okay, I'm Italian, but am I like a high end Italian place? Is it that kind of experience where people, you know, go on date night or is. more like middle of the road, like olive garden, or is it that place in the mall that sells pizza? Subro subro cause that I would consider that low end Italian. Right, right. There's still a pizza by the slice in the mall. [00:09:00] I would too. It's disgusting. Right. But you'll notice all three of those places are in different types of real estate, right? Yeah. That's interesting. So the olive garden is an olive garden. Yeah. The subro is renting a space in the mall. And then the, maybe the high end place is in a nicer part of town even. Right, right, right. Those, yeah. But the whole point is that they've considered their customer first. Yes. And they know who they are because they know who they serve. Yeah. And then they located the restaurant and then they located, well, where does my customer, well, number one, where does my customer wanna be? Mm-hmm where is my customer at? And what type of property. does my customer want to beat in? Right. And what, what quality of things am I putting in there? Ooh, that's really good too. Right. So, so getting that down first and we always say, you know, start with, start with avatar, start with who you wanna serve, start with what restaurant you want to build. Mm-hmm right. Cause hopefully you want [00:10:00] just one, you want a whole chain of these things. Mm-hmm and I know we do, and that's another mistake. Ends up happening with real estate investors is because they're going for deals and value. Ooh, this is another really good point. Mm-hmm yes, they are real estate investors tend to, to think about the, what the cash flow that this particular property is going to bring in mm-hmm right. And, and the tell people what the problem with that. well, I mean, I think you should be considering that. Well, that's fine and dandy. It is, but the, but the problem is a lot of times the deal doesn't always match up with the customer you're trying to serve. Yes. And that's the point that I was trying to make. Yeah. And you end up with 10 different properties, right? So you can have a, a, two bedroom, one bath house over [00:11:00] here, a duplex over here in a totally separate part of town. And, you know, a four bedroom over here. Right. And then I've got this place in the mountains. It's from beach house, five bedroom, beach house over here. Right. And you're serving totally different clients in each one of those spaces. Yeah, you're right. And it's kind of like, okay, I've got an Italian restaurant, I've got a Chinese restaurant. I've got a subro. Yes. And I've got a taco bell. right. And, and a Ruth's Chris up in the mountains. Yeah, maybe a Ruth's Ruth. Chris would be like the high end floor, right? The nice one in the mountains. Okay. I got you. but the, but the problem with that is now, because I didn't consider that the short term rental side of this really is its own separate business. Now my marketing's fractured. Yep. Right. So every guest that comes through the door, well, I'm not really marketing my duplex to somebody that stayed at. Mountain house with five rooms. Right. Cause that's not what they're, that's totally different [00:12:00] customer. Right? Right. So now if I really want to get into like taking direct bookings and having an email list and I, I, all of a sudden have this fractured customer base. Right. And if I want to reach those different types of people, now I have to, if I had a hundred dollars to market with, I gotta, well, put 10 on the beach house and 10 on the, instead of spending the whole hundred mm-hmm and saying, Hey, here, come stay at any of these places. Right. And not to mention they're geographically separated. Yeah. Right. A lot of the times, by a lot, sometimes I got one at the beach and one in the mountains. Right. And it's like, cool. And I got one in Charlotte. right. And right. It's instead of having three in one location that served the type, the same type of customer. Right. Right. Well, you know, another dang, I just had. So another, I just thought of another, really another problem with that was even if, if you let's say somebody stayed at your, your beach house [00:13:00] and had a really great experience, mm-hmm for example, they, and they, and they want to come back then. And, but the, the time that they wanna come back, your, your beach house is, is rented or even worse. What if the, the, the bathroom breaks and you only have one bathroom at one of your places, you don't have anywhere to move them to yeah. Cuz your other place, even if you're saying, oh, well I just do beach houses. Well, do they all serve the same type of client? Yeah. And if they do that's awesome. Right? Because now I can say, well, you know that one's not available because the pipes burst, but mm-hmm we have this one over here. That's just like it. Yes, exactly. It's the same experience. It's gonna be the same type of place. It's gonna be the same level of service and all those kind of things that you would've gotten over here or that you previously experienced, even like you were talking about the person returning. Yep. Right when they return, they're not really. I wanna [00:14:00] be here in this place, in this house, right in this house. They're really saying I enjoyed that experience. I enjoyed that experience. Yep. Mm-hmm that's exactly right. And you know, this happened to us not too long ago, the, we we're in Charlotte, North Carolina, and as hot as Hades here in the town. Oh yeah. The, so the air conditioner went out in one of our places and the, we serve families with children. And pets and pets. And this family had like a, a, a small baby. I wanna say the baby was it wasn't walking. Like it was a baby baby, like six months maybe. And you can't keep a six month old baby in a house in the middle of the summer, in the south with no air cont. I don't know how our ancestors made it through. Well, I probably got climate. I really don't. Well, people. Especially in the winter, like, same thing. Like if the heat goes out in the winter, you're gonna freeze to death. Right. So you [00:15:00] get, you need to place to either, either correct the problem by having portable space heaters or something, portable air. Well, those are the operational things that we've learned. Right? Yeah. But having some, having a place to move them to is an, also an option. Yes, yes it is. Right. And it, and it better be something that's really similar. Yes, exactly. Right. Cause that's what they're paying for. Yep. So it's hard to take somebody that you know is staying at your. Like Hilton uptown and say, well, your room's not available, but we can move you to the red roof. right. Even if it's across the street. Right, right. Cause it's just not the same place. It's not, it's not the same experience and they, they're not gonna be happy with that. Yeah. Right. So that, that's a really good point. Yeah. Yeah. So those were the, the, a couple of things that I, that I thought about, you know, were, were problems with that perspective. Could you think of anything. yeah, I, I, part of it is, here's another big thing that I see. People will get into the short term rental space that come into it from either the real estate investing world or just that [00:16:00] perspective on it. And because they're thinking of it as, okay, my insurance is this right. And then I'm gonna make it a short term rental. So now I've gotta pay for utilities. You know, I gotta put some furniture in there. Right. But I didn't really think about who my customer was. So I bought furniture on the marketplace. Facebook marketplace. Oh God. Or battery or worse? LA LA LA worse yet. LA LA baby. We really need a new couch and we could take this old one and put it shortterm rental. We'll get ourselves a new couch. Oh, no, stop. you're killing me smalls. Cause I don't care who stays there really I'll take. oh, right. Mm-hmm And the problem with that then becomes, okay. You've just made that place a commodity and you're only competing on price. Mm-hmm you're only competing on price. So when things happen, like, I don't know COVID or whatever, [00:17:00] you're now competing with people that are lowering their price. So now, now you're a commodity and now you're just competing on price mm-hmm yes, that's huge. Yep. Well. I like the, the way that the way that we've done it is at well, the, the way that we coach a lot of people to, to do is to think about what you're, who you're serving, what customers gonna be there and then put what, what they want inside the unit. Right, right. Yeah. So for example, if you are serving families with children and pets, what are you gonna put inside the unit? You're gonna put a pack and play a stroller. Yeah, we do the high chair. High chair. Yeah. Dog bowls. Mm-hmm we're gonna put [00:18:00] those pet covers over the top. Right, right. And pray that people, and we're gonna have a place that doesn't have. And we're gonna have a place that doesn't have carpet. Right. But what was my point? But, well, those people raise their hand and say, I wanna stay there. That that's right. That's what I was gonna say. And it's not because, oh, you're $75 and that person's a hundred, right? They're that's less part of it, right? Yes. It's it's not so much. How much is it now? Mm-hmm it's. Does that place have everything that I need, because if I'm I'm a, a, a woman and I'm a wife and I've got two small children and I am coming to Tim buck to, to visit my elderly parents mm-hmm and I've got to cart all this. I don't know how these little babies come with so much crap [00:19:00] they do, but they do don't they don't talk to baby contraptions. Oh my goodness. And nowadays the baby contraptions, I mean, our kids are a little bit older. Some of the baby contraptions nowadays are pretty ingenious and I'm like, man, I wish we had had those days when, when our kids were little. Right. But anyway, the, I don't want to have to cart that. Stroller and that pack and play through the airport. Mm-hmm or pack it in the car. Oh, Hey look, this place already has one. Right. They've already thought about me and my needs. Mm-hmm so the customer feels really considered. Right. And, and so now they they're, they're thinking, well, you know, I could pay. You know, a little bit more for this great space that has everything that I need already. Right. And those people have obviously thought of me. Yes. When they put it together. Yes. Because the, because we [00:20:00] are speaking to that particular customer. And why are we speaking to that particular, particular customer? Because that's who we picked because that's who we picked and that's who we know who we are. Yeah. And we coach people know who you are and who you're serving and who do you like to serve even. Yeah. Right. And because when you know, how do you ch we'll talk about. All of that, right? Yeah. We were how to, how to choose that. And I believe that's on, on a, another episode here coming up pretty soon. Yeah. But that's a mistake. I see all the time. It's, it's a, Hey, I didn't consider you. Yes. Right. Because I, and people can tell, I don't really care who comes is what that says. Yes. As long as they're paying. Yes. And that works to a degree mm-hmm until, well, this is why you hear people say it's things that. Think we're kind of silly, but they'll say, well, the market's so saturated. Right? and the truth is the market is saturated in generic. Yep. Places with [00:21:00] far marketplace furniture and cell phone pictures. And will everybody knows to put a cure egg in there now. Right. Right. And everything's cookie cutter and kind of looks the same. Bland gray, gray, boring, not designed. Mm-hmm it'll because as a real estate investor, you're, you're kind of looking at it in, in very, I'm gonna put this much money in and then I can get this much rent and the less I put in the more my return. Right. Right. And that's not really the, always the case. Oh, that's interesting. Right. Cause if you actually consider who your customer type is, it may cost you more upfront, but you'll actually make more in the long run. Mm. Cause you will consistently attract that customer. Ooh, that's good. And, and that's the key to getting 'em to comeback direct too, by the way, which is dang. I was just about to say that. Yeah. Yeah. I was just about to say that, which is even more profitable. Yes. Right. Cause you don't really want to be, you're not building an Airbnb business. [00:22:00] Right. Right. The, the, the whole idea is I'm building a, well, at least for us in our avatar, we're building a business that serve. provides temporary housing, short term rentals for families, with children and pets. Right. And we want those people to raise their hand and say, I wanna stay there. And by the way, I wanna stay there again. Yes. The next time we come. Yes. And by the way, our friends who are just like us, we're gonna refer that to them. Right. Because we had such a good experience. Yep. Right. Yep. That's what it's all about. Right. There is building your brand and, and building that database. Customers that you can market back to. Right. And that's, that's how you start solving problems of quote, saturation. Yeah. And quote well, other things, you know, pricing and all these other kind of things that people tend to get tripped up on because frankly they came into it as real estate investors. Yep. Right. Yep. Or, or saw it as a real estate investment. [00:23:00] right. Even if you didn't start out as a real estate investor, a lot of times what you learned about this business came from someone who actually had that perspective as well. Mm. I hadn't, I hadn't considered that. Mm-hmm yeah. That's interesting. Yeah. Huh. I see what you're saying. Mm-hmm , it's interesting. Yeah. But yeah, that that's, that was kind of the discussion we were having. Yeah. And you know, some, some of the pitfalls you run. And it, and it comes down to kind of what you said last time. I think on the first podcast you said, or the first, you know, we're back podcast for short term, rental authority, you, you made mention of, you know, the, the thing that's lacking in the industry isn't, you know, properties or Nope. Mm-hmm you know, money there's there's money everywhere, floating around, believe it or not. What's really lacking is. How to operate yeah. How to operate and how to operate competently. Yes. Competent operators and efficiently. Yes. And, and what are you [00:24:00] actually operating? Yes. Yes. What are you actually doing here? Right. Well, that's right. That's that is the number one thing. Mistake that we say we see people make all the time. Mm-hmm, not realizing that the, the short, the Airbnb that you just opened is a business and of itself in and of itself. And it's separate from the real estate that you're operating your business in. Yeah. And I here's, here's proof of that because the hotels figured out a long time ago. I was watching it was something on YouTube. I can't remember exactly which video it was, but they were discussing, you know, are the hotels afraid of Airbnb? Like, are, is Airbnb a threat to the hotels? Oh yeah. What I learned it, it, that was the subject. But the, the thing I got actually got outta that video is that for example, IHG, which is international hotel group, there's only a certain number of big hotels. Like there's the [00:25:00] Marriotts there's IHG Hilton Hilton. Some, some of 'em like that, and then they have their subbrands like IHG is your holiday Inn and like your, oh, so IHG traveling holiday and your days in. Gotcha. You know, Marriott has, you know, like a courtyard by Marriott. They've got home. No Hilton is home to suites, but they've got these sub brands mm-hmm like under that. Right. But they don't own many of them at all. Like they don't own the real estate. Correct. They're not in the real estate business. That blows my mind in particular IG. And I'd have to go independently verify this, but according to the, the video I was watching, they sold their last two that they actually owned some time ago. So they don't even own the real estate. Yeah. So when you go to a holiday Inn, it's not owned by holiday Inn, it's franchised by holiday Inn. That's what it is. And somebody else bought the real estate. And bought frankly, the, the business that's [00:26:00] what a franchise is, right. That's what a F the value in holiday Inn is the systems. Yeah. It's the experience. It's the, and the name, it's the name? Yeah, the brand, the brand and the marketing Uhhuh and all of those things. Yeah. You get to take advantage all those things, and they realize that a long time ago. Yeah. So holiday Inn as a brand or a, I guess international hotel group, actually as a brand, cuz they're an. isn't in the real estate business. That's crazy. Yes. They, they, they don't even own the building. No. And they don't even, you would think they, they would even manage them, but they don't. They do, they offer it as a service. Right. But I think only I forget which group it was, but only 2% of them. Did they even, did people even take them up on the offer to manage it? They were simply buying the name. The, the brand awareness or the computer software. Yeah. Like how do you run a hotel? Oh, like here's the owner's manual. Yeah. Yeah. That's what a franchise is. Right. Essentially. Right. And you know, all of that [00:27:00] stuff and, and that's really the value. So when you, when you're thinking about, Hey, I'm going to turn this into a. Or air Airbnb or short term rental or whatever, realize that the value is in the systems and the processes and the operations mm-hmm and the customer experience. And it's based off of reviews and that's really, what's creating the extra value and the real estate itself is something entirely separate. Yep. Wow. Yep. And that was the main point that I, I personally wanted to convey to people. Yeah. In, in the podcast. Have you got anything else you wanna say about that? I don't think so. No. I mean, I'm sure I'll come up with something. I'll be like, man, I should have missed no. But good thing. We've got more episodes coming cause John thinks of something later. He can write it down and say it on the next one. That's right. that's right. All you gotta do is remember to write it down. Well I'll cause you know, I'm not gonna remember. I will say Wendy, write this down cuz Wendy's the note taker. Yeah, because here's the secret. If I write it down, you won't be able to read it. I won't be able to read it later. [00:28:00] even though it's my handwriting, I can't read your handwriting and you can't read your own handwriting. If that's bad. I think about third grade, I was like, okay, I can make letters. good enough to pass. And I just never practiced after that. Yeah. It's really bad. It's well, we hope that you found some value in the discuss. On the podcast today, if so, be sure to click that like and subscribe button. So you get notified of the next podcast that are coming out, cuz we have loads more great conversations and great topics coming for you at the, from the short term rental authority with John and Wendy Williams, your trusted authority for all things, short term rental related to help make you best short-term rental operator ever. [00:29:00]

We are back with a new season of valuable information about all things short-term rental! We have rebranded after being absent from the podcast and have so much to share. In this episode, we will reset with who we are, where we have been, and what's coming in the following episodes.

You'll never guess what we did!  Well you might because we talk about it a lot but... We did exactly what we told you about in Episodes 72 and 73  About how the rules of money work  And it worked!

What did 2020 teach us? And how can we apply those lessons in 2021? Well, we learned a lot, that's for sure! About ourselves... About our business... About how life is going to change forever...  

What did 2020 teach us? Several things...   1. Expense Ratios matter 2. Move money more 3. Give people options 4. The Slight Edge works   2020 has taught us how important it is to know your numbers. But just the mere fact that we had numbers wasn't the whole story. We had to know that they are good numbers so that we could make sound business decisions with them.  Mo' money = mo' problems! Now what do we do with the money now that we have it? Another thing 2020 has taught us. Don't paint a seagull on someone else's painting. Guests don't like being told what to do. They like options. We found out the hard way but it's a lesson worth learning. Lastly, 2020 has taught us that success doesn't come over night. Success is a culmination of a lot of mundane, seemingly unimportant things done every day over a long period of time. 

Part 2 of last week's conversation of how the rich get richer and you can too!  Robinhood affiliate link: https://bit.ly/33MM5oA            

It's true that wealthy, successful people play by a different set of rules than ordinary folks do.  But the rules can be your rules, too! They're not a secret. It's just that most people don't get taught the rules... by anyone, not your mom, not your dad, not your school.  Wealthy, successful people know the rules. They know the game. They know it's a game of money. So what do they do with their money that makes the difference? Let's find out...

Tune in for some Holiday Hosting tips! Just some things that we've learned from experiencing several Holiday seasons.  Like... you're going to have to clean the oven probably. And the "do you decorate for the Holidays" question that comes around every year. But if there's one thing we've learned, it's that now is the time to start planning for the Holidays in terms of pricing, minimum night stay and your team schedule.  

What are systems and why are they important in your business?  Have you ever wondered why you get the same cheeseburger from McDonalds no matter where you go?  Systems There's a system for making a cheeseburger and it's the same system at a McDonalds in New York as Paris. Systems provide consistent, dependable, scalable results.  We've decided to show you how our Door Code Change system works on a LIVE demonstration on our Facebook Community- The CashFlow Couple Community. Come check it out!

Finding ways to fund your STR venture can be challenging.  If you're thinking about partnering with someone, we can help you ask the right questions. Book a call with us at TheCashFlowCouple.com/AskUs  Creating a note to fund your business is one way to do it. What about using credit? We've done it. We know plenty of people who do it. We'll talk about the pros and cons.

We had a great time "glamping" this past weekend at a semi-local campground. Quite a few things stood out to us as we were the guests this time. It was an interesting experience and we learned that camping at a campground and the STR business had a lot in common. From the booking experience to the review experience, many things were the same. We got a confirmation email. We got an email with check in instructions. We got a request for review email.  Even the experience of staying there had a lot of similarities to the STR biz. 

Are you working too much IN your business and not enough ON your business? Here's a simple but effective process to get more of your time back so that you can have the time freedom you deserve.  Even corporate America uses this same process! Shadow yourself for at least a week and write down everything you do in your business. Write the name of the task and how long it takes you to do it. Then, at the end of the week, categorize the tasks into Like/Dislike/Indifferent. The first things to get off your plate are the things that you dislike doing. Maybe it's bookkeeping. Maybe it's talking to guests. That list is now your job description.  Now it's time for training. Let's do this!

We hear this a lot. People say they're scared to talk to landlords but why? What are you really afraid of? Maybe if you ask to lease a place, the landlord will say no. What are they saying no to exactly? Have you taken the time to think about who you are as a company and what value you may be bringing to the landlord? Even what value your business is bringing to the community? The key is to say what's in it for them.

Do you have a plan for all that money that your short term rental business is bringing in? Use the Profit First system! What is Profit First you say? Well, it's just a method of managing your cash flow. It's a plan for your money. And here's how we use it for our short term rental business.

When you have a reservation that turns out to be a dumpster fire, you learn from it! From a broken bed to body bags, we'll reveal a story stranger than fiction. You can't make this stuff up!

Consistently tracking prices for all of your units even though the pricing changes every night is a difficult task. However, it possible with software such as PriceLabs.  But even using software isn't a "set it and forget it" thing. You have to consistently monitor your pricing. So where do you even start? Listen up because we're about to break it down into 3 easy steps: 1. Determine your expected occupancy rate 2. Determine your fixed expenses 3. Get your "Don't lose money number" and your "Profit number" with this easy formula

Want to know how to crush your market with extended stays? Join us as we talk about what an extended stay is, the pros and cons and some amenities that extended stay guests actually value. 

Case study of 3 major short-term rental start ups and their battle against the Covid. 2 losers and 1 winner. We discuss what the losers did wrong and what the winner did right.  Lyric, once a powerhouse with over 400 units in 13 major cities, closes its doors. This article in Forbes, found here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidjeans/2020/07/02/rental-startup-lyric-shuts-most-locations-in-pivot/#6c15258840c8, sheds light on its 2 major reasons for its downfall: its reliance on a platform (Airbnb) and its service of only 1 customer type.  Once a $100 million company, Stay Alfred has closed all of its 2500 locations. In this article, found here: https://www.spokanejournal.com/local-news/stay-alfred-closes-its-doors-permanently/ the owner of the company says that there was a "fundamental crack" in the business model. But is that true? We think not. Because the winner, Sonder, has proved that the it's not the business model that's the problem. Sonder also leases property so how were they able to stay afloat? Read about it here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevenbertoni/2020/06/24/hospitality-startup-sonder-raises-170-million-at-a-13-billion-valuation-during-covid-travel-collapse/#673574c048aa  

So is this like an Airbnb? Can I Airbnb my property? We can't Airbnb here! It's illegal! We get these questions all the time. And the answer is easy enough. It's just a simple perspective shift.  We'll talk about the answer to these questions, including the legality issue, and much more on this week's podcast. And guess what! We have training for that! Join us at TheCashFlowCouple.com to learn more about the mindset shift needed in order to be successful in this business.

Setting up a new unit takes a lot of pre-planning and organizing. Check out how we set up 2 units in 3 days REMOTELY!  Could not have done it without the help of Ben Curry from B&S Construction in Alexandria, LA. Huge shout out to him for all of his hard work helping us put these units together.  The quicker you can set up your unit, the less money you will lose. Every day that unit sits empty costs you money. Hiring a designer who can get it done quickly will save you money in the long run. If you are in need of a skilled design pro to design and set up your units, let us know! Just email us at info@thecashflowcouple.com and we'll set up a time for a free consultation.

On today's podcast, we interview a special guest, Chinedu Akunne. Chinedu is originally from Nigeria and now lives and invests in Alexandria, Louisiana. We had the pleasure of setting up his first 2 short-term rentals for him. He talks about his story and his experience of getting started.  Chinedu Akunne is also the host of the podcast Immigrant Investor Show. His website is immvestor.com. His direct booking website is heirsliving.com if you or someone you know needs a short-term rental in Alexandria, Louisiana.

In this episode, we give you some tips on how to write a killer listing description that converts into bookings. Visit us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/thecashflowcouple/ Join our community at https://www.facebook.com/groups/thecashflowcouplecommunity Visit us on the web at http://www.thecashflowcouple.com  

This is part three in our series on tips that you can use during these stressful times in the short-term rental business. Visit our website at http://thecashflowcouple.com And join our community at https://www.facebook.com/groups/thecashflowcouplecommunity/

In part two of this series, we'll give you more actionable items for you to implement immediately in your business to help you adapt to this new era of business. Find us on the web at www.thecashflowcouple.com Join our Facebook Community at facebook.com/thecashflowcouplecommunity

In this series, we'll give you actionable items for you to implement immediately in your business to help you adapt to this new era of business

These days, people are looking for better deals. Why not give them one for your properties? It's a great way to give your guests a unique opportunity to experience your place now or at a future date. 

The impact of Covid-19 on the STR industry has been massive and devastating, but we WILL survive. With borders closing, mandatory confinements are the new norm. You as an STR operator will need to adapt. There are things that you can do. Many things, in fact. Let's chat, shall we? What else are doing besides buying toilet paper?

Got toilet paper but no guests? Time to think outside the box! Your target customer may not be coming for the usual graduation or Spring Break. But they are still coming. You just have to find out why. 

Creating a vision for your business, any business, is probably one of the most important things you do as a business owner. A vision is like taking a road trip. You want to know where you're going before you get in the car.

Providing your guests with consistent customer service is an art. The way to do it is to document experiences when you have them so that you know what worked and what didn't. We'll tell you how we do it.

John and Wynde talk about why and how to use a central calendar for your short-term rental business. If you want a step by step guide on how to set up your central calendar, go to thecashflowcouple.com and join our community!

Everybody's always talking about occupancy, worrying about "What is my occupancy rate?". But that's not really what it's all about. The Short-term Rental business is more a Revenue business. John and Wynde talk about why.