• News
    • VRM Intel News
    • Latest News
    • Sponsor News
  • COVID-19
  • Marketing
  • Tech
  • OTAs
  • Customer Service
  • Business
  • Housekeeping
  • More
    • Education
      • Calendar of Events
      • Videos & Whitepapers
    • VRM Intel Live!
    • Reports Login
    • VRM Intel Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Authors
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
VRM Intel
  • News
    • Resort Collection Outsources Call Center to Jamaica
    • Getaway Society Founders Are a Dynamic Duo
    • Marketers: Too Soon to Plan for 2022?
    • Fact or Fiction? Mythbusting Hot Vacation Rental Trends
    • Fast Growth at Homes & Villas by Marriott International
    • VRM Intel News
    • Latest News
    • Sponsor News
  • COVID-19
    • Bounce into 2021 with Tools to Help Heal and Focus
    • 12 Steps To Reclaiming Your Spirit of Hospitality From The Grasp Of Cynicism
    • Marketers: Too Soon to Plan for 2022?
    • Fact or Fiction? Mythbusting Hot Vacation Rental Trends
    • Identifying, Hiring, and Inspiring Your Team in a Post-Pandemic World
  • Marketing
    • One Size Doesn’t Fit All in Owner Acquisition
    • Marketers: Too Soon to Plan for 2022?
    • Fact or Fiction? Mythbusting Hot Vacation Rental Trends
    • Fast Growth at Homes & Villas by Marriott International
    • Expedia CEO Talks Vrbo: We ‘Removed Vrbo from Google’s Vacation Rental Meta Product’
  • Tech
    • Fact or Fiction? Mythbusting Hot Vacation Rental Trends
    • Technology in 2021 and Beyond: Vacation Rental Tech Leaders Predict the Future
    • The Pace Report Is Dead
    • How 2020 Played Out: Analyzing Performance in 10 Key Vacation Rental Destinations
    • Founder of Newly Launched Kaiser Vacation Rentals Says, “Things Will Be Different … This Time”
  • OTAs
    • Expedia CEO Talks Vrbo: We ‘Removed Vrbo from Google’s Vacation Rental Meta Product’
    • vacation rentals at the best price guaranteed
      Stays Group Vacation Rental Network Opens SoutheastStays
    • Vrbo Is Performing Better Than Airbnb for Vacation Rental Managers, But Direct Booking Still Number One Revenue Source . . . By A Lot
    • 4th Annual #BookDirect Guest Education Day Is February 3, 2021
    • Airbnb Goes Public. CEO Brian Chesky: “Travel is never going to look like it did in January”
  • Customer Service
    • Resort Collection Outsources Call Center to Jamaica
    • Bounce into 2021 with Tools to Help Heal and Focus
    • 12 Steps To Reclaiming Your Spirit of Hospitality From The Grasp Of Cynicism
    • Getaway Society Founders Are a Dynamic Duo
    • sarah and t record podcast vrma recap episode sarah walker luxury vacation rentals
      Sarah and T Podcast: PMs Should Be Prepared to Answer These Questions from Prospective Homeowners
  • Business
    • One Size Doesn’t Fit All in Owner Acquisition
    • Resort Collection Outsources Call Center to Jamaica
    • Bounce into 2021 with Tools to Help Heal and Focus
    • 12 Steps To Reclaiming Your Spirit of Hospitality From The Grasp Of Cynicism
    • Getaway Society Founders Are a Dynamic Duo
  • Housekeeping
    • Founder of Newly Launched Kaiser Vacation Rentals Says, “Things Will Be Different … This Time”
    • Booking.com Affirms Commitment to Quality with Minimum Cleanliness Score Requirement
    • Q&A with Breezeway founder Jeremy Gall about company’s $8 million funding round and more
    • Gatlinburg-based Cabins For YOU acquires Chalet Village and is looking for more. Q&A with owner and founder Greg Plimpton
    • What is the cost of Airbnb’s recommended 24- to 72-hour “buffer” time between stays?
  • More
    • Education
      • Calendar of Events
      • Videos & Whitepapers
    • VRM Intel Live!
    • Reports Login
    • VRM Intel Magazine
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Authors
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
  • RSS

Latest News

Former Airbnb Exec Shaun Stewart Discusses the State of the Vacation Rental Industry at LiveRez User Conference

Former Airbnb Exec Shaun Stewart Discusses the State of the Vacation Rental Industry at LiveRez User Conference
mm
Amy Hinote
October 8, 2018

Last week at the LiveRez Partner Conference in Boise, Shaun Stewart, chief business development officer of Waymo and former global head of vacation rentals at Airbnb, gave attendees a follow-up to the predictions he presented three years ago and discussed the state of the vacation rental industry.

 

Airbnb’s Increased Focus on Professional Property Managers

In 2015, there was a lot of hype about Airbnb shifting its focus to meet the needs of professional property managers (PMs), but managers were skeptical about whether Airbnb would be able to adapt to their needs. Stewart demonstrated that over the last three years, with over 100 software integrations, Airbnb has indeed increased its focus on management companies. In 2018, 55 percent of Airbnb’s hosts offer multiple listings, compared to 45 percent of hosts who only list one home. In contrast, he showed 67 percent of HomeAway’s suppliers offer multiple listings and 33 percent list only one property.

Stewart discussed the difference in the number of monthly reviews on Airbnb vs HomeAway (below), and the steps Expedia has taken since purchasing HomeAway, including the introduction of guest fees, a 25 percent increase in listing fees, the focus on instant booking, the new 10 percent attribution fee, communication restrictions between suppliers and guests, taking over the branding in company apps, the Premier Partner program, and changes to search algorithms.

Increased Demand for Short-term Rentals

Stewart also discussed the increasing demand for short-term rentals as a lodging alternative. Demand for short-term rentals as a lodging alternative has increased 81 percent between 2012 and 2017, and is predicted to increase 59 percent between 2017 and 2022.

 

Multi-destination Models

Three years ago, Stewart predicted that we would see new multi-destination models come to the forefront. While the prediction was correct, the industry has found that the vacation rental business is more complex and harder to scale than initially thought.

Instant Book

His prediction that the industry will move toward instant online booking requirements is coming true, and he showed that the online share of private accommodation revenue grew from 24 percent in 2015 to 52 percent in 2017. All of Booking.com’s listings are now instantly bookable, and HomeAway and Airbnb both have significant initiatives to push managers and hosts to instant booking. But he also pointed out that there are valid reasons that hosts are moving slowly to instant booking, and that luxury markets are moving more slowly than the market as the need to vet guests, set expectations, and provide specialized service is higher for these homes.

Technology Consolidation

In the vacation rental industry, we are hearing a ton of buzz about consolidation among property management software and technology companies. Stewart explained that this kind of consolidation is inevitable as private equity enters the space to help tech companies scale. When asked about it in a follow-up question, he said for software companies, it is “eat or get eaten.” He also predicted that new technology offerings will continue to emerge to service managers and hosts. Examples are technology designed for safety and security, data and analytics, goods and services, and check-in solutions.

 

Real Estate Investment in Short-term Rentals

As many in the industry are observing, real estate investors are interested in the appreciation and income-producing opportunities in short-term rentals, and they are looking for data to make buying decisions. Stewart discussed the art and science behind property selection, including factors such as:

  • Real estate prices
  • Local vacation rental rates
  • Insurance, taxes and maintenance costs
  • Overall popularity of tourism destinations

As PMs and investors get more savvy in analyzing rental performance as a driver for real estate acquisition, data will play an increasing role.

 

OTA Take Rates

Stewart also talked high-level about the challenges OTAs face when looking at short-term rentals. While OTAs are pushing to provide all lodging types to customers, the take rate for short-term rentals is currently much lower than hotels. Stewart explained how OTA market managers are incentivized, the importance of sort order and reviews, margin negotiations, and inventory competitiveness. As the race for supply settles and the industry matures, OTAs will inevitably compare take rates and push the short-term rental industry to match hotels in commissions.

 

Related ItemsairbnbFeaturedhomeawayliverezrollupshaun stewartshort termsoftwarevacation rental
View Comments (3)

3 Comments

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest News
October 8, 2018
mm
Amy Hinote @vrmintel

Amy Hinote is the founder and editor-in-chief of VRM Intel Magazine, which provides news, information and resources for the professionally managed vacation rental industry. With a background in finance and over 15 years in the vacation rental industry, Hinote has worked with property management companies, technology companies, intermediaries and investors, and provides insider information about the growing vacation rental industry. She also founded the data company, now known as Key Data Dashboard, which provides aggregated market intelligence and reporting for vacation rental managers. Hinote resides between Alabama's Gulf Coast and Evanston, Illinois.

Related ItemsairbnbFeaturedhomeawayliverezrollupshaun stewartshort termsoftwarevacation rental

More in Latest News

Resort Collection Outsources Call Center to Jamaica

Zandra WolfgramFebruary 19, 2021
Read More

Getaway Society Founders Are a Dynamic Duo

Zandra WolfgramFebruary 18, 2021
Read More

Marketers: Too Soon to Plan for 2022?

Amy HinoteFebruary 17, 2021
Read More

Fact or Fiction? Mythbusting Hot Vacation Rental Trends

Jason SprenkleFebruary 17, 2021
Read More

Fast Growth at Homes & Villas by Marriott International

Amy HinoteFebruary 11, 2021
Read More

Expedia CEO Talks Vrbo: We ‘Removed Vrbo from Google’s Vacation Rental Meta Product’

Amy HinoteFebruary 11, 2021
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Sponsor News

  • Kasa and Minut partner to protect properties all over the U.S.
    Sponsor NewsFebruary 11, 2021
  • The Pace Report Is Dead
    Sponsor NewsFebruary 10, 2021
  • How 2020 Played Out: Analyzing Performance in 10 Key Vacation Rental Destinations
    BusinessFebruary 10, 2021
  • Rented Launches New Automated Rate Tool for Vacation Rental Professionals
    Industry News for Vacation Rental ManagersJanuary 25, 2021
VRM Intel
Calendar of Events
Videos & Whitepapers
VRMintel Magazine
Subscribe
Advertise
About Us
Authors
Contact Us

Recent News

  • One Size Doesn’t Fit All in Owner Acquisition
    BusinessFebruary 23, 2021
  • Resort Collection Outsources Call Center to Jamaica
    BusinessFebruary 19, 2021
  • Bounce into 2021 with Tools to Help Heal and Focus
    BusinessFebruary 18, 2021
  • 12 Steps To Reclaiming Your Spirit of Hospitality From The Grasp Of Cynicism
    BusinessFebruary 18, 2021

View Current Issue

VRMintel Copyright © 2016-17 | Click HERE to Subscribe | Privacy Policy | Disclaimer | Copyright | Jobs | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

Stay Alfred Raises $47M, Bringing Total Funding to $62M
Are Hotels Obsessed with Direct Bookings?