Host Planet: Airbnb, Holiday Let, and Vacation Rental Insights

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Louis Andrews, President and Director, OVO Network France, is the special guest on today’s show – and he has plenty of tips and advice to share with our audience.

Learn:

·       How to keep guests and owners happy.

·       Why it’s important to concentrate on your niche and master it.

·       How to secure more direct bookings.

·       How to achieve great reviews.

·       Key trends in the industry.

·       Who the Leonardo Di Caprio and Brad Pitt of the short-term rentals industry are.

Louis also talks about sustainability, the prospect of regulation, and how to advocate for the STR sector.

He picked Plum Guide and Le Collectionist for his favourite brands, and gave Richard Vaughton and the entire OVO Network team a special shout-out.

3:36 Becoming part of the STR industry at a young age

6:48 The elevator pitch for OVO Network

9:29 Keeping guests and owners happy

13:28 What hosts and property managers can learn from OVO Network

18:13 How to secure more direct bookings

23:16 How to achieve great reviews

26:50 Challenges and opportunities in the STR space: sustainability and regulation

34:18 Talking up the STR industry

35:19 Key trends hosts and property managers need to be aware of

36:56 Favourite brands: Plum Guide and Le Collectionist 

38:34 Individual shout-outs: Richard Vaughton and the OVO Network team

40:10 No. 1 lesson learned from being President and Director of OVO Network France

Links:

James Varley: https://shorturl.at/rstAB

Holiday Cottage Handbook website: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

Free newsletter: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

Free e-book: https://shorturl.at/imtW6

Survey: https://shorturl.at/axOV6

Louis Andrews: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louis-jacques-andrews/

OVO Network: https://www.ovonetwork.com/en/home

Petition to reverse government plans to abolish the furnished holiday lettings tax regime: https://rb.gy/u0n35j

Sponsor links:

HCH Financial Services: https://www.hchfs.com/ Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]m

Hosthub: www.hosthub.com/hch

Mentions:

Plum Guide: https://www.plumguide.com/

Le Collectionist: https://www.lecollectionist.com/en

Richard Vaughton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardvaughton/

Simon Lehmann: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-lehmann-8375753b/

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Carlos Perez-Lanzac, the Founder of Vitur Summit and Caleta Homes, is the special guest on today's show.

Carlos talks about the upcoming Vitur Summit, which will be held in Malaga, Spain, on 8-9 May. He also discusses his career in the short-term rentals space, including scaling Caleta Homes.

As well as sharing a number of tips for hosts and property managers, Carlos gives special shout-outs to Bob W (favourite brand) and Eduardo Botelho Miranda (individual mention).

4:34 Carlos’s journey in the short-term rentals industry

7:54 Vitur Summit 2024

10:29 The key topics at this year’s summit

15:11 Who should attend the summit

16:08 Legislators need to take a long-term view and be brave

19:33 Gathering data about the STR sector is imperative 

22:24 The story so far in 2024

24:13 Top tips for property managers who want to scale

25:21 Top tips for delivering a great guest experience

26:15 Top tips for people starting out 

29:50 Head to www.vitursummit.com for ticket details and use code HCHVITUR24 for a special discount

30:44 Favourite brand shout-out: Bob W

31:25 Individual shout-out: Eduardo Botelho Miranda, Chairman, European Holiday Home Association

32:48 No. 1 lesson learned: keep fighting, persevere, and stay passionate

Links:

James Varley: https://shorturl.at/rstAB

Holiday Cottage Handbook website: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

Free newsletter: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

Free e-book: https://shorturl.at/imtW6

Survey: https://shorturl.at/axOV6

Carlos Perez-Lanzac: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlosperezlanzac/ 

Vitur Summit: https://www.vitursummit.com/?lang=en

Caleta Homes: https://www.caletahomes.com/en/

Petition to reverse government plans to abolish the furnished holiday lettings tax regime: https://rb.gy/u0n35j

Download your free e-ticket for Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE: https://rb.gy/y61j8q

Sponsor links:

HCH Financial Services: https://www.hchfs.com/ Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]m

Hosthub: www.hosthub.com/hch

Touch Stay: https://rb.gy/gumxlu

Sustonica: https://rb.gy/buf9p5

RentalWise: https://tinyurl.com/yx4avcz3

Mentions:

Bob W: https://bobw.co/

Eduardo Botelho Miranda: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eduardobotelhomiranda/

European Holiday Home Association: https://ehha.eu/

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Hostaway Founder and CEO Marcus Rader is the special guest on today’s show, and he has plenty to say about the STR industry, particularly the property management software (PMS) space.

Learn about his journey – from frustrated employee to CEO of one of the biggest tech solutions in the business.

Marcus outlines his key predictions for 2024 and shares a bunch of tips for hosts and property managers, discusses the standardisation of the industry, and talks about ever-increasing guest expectations.

Marcus picked three leading dynamic pricing tools for his favourite brand shout-outs: Beyond, Wheelhouse, and PriceLabs. He also had kind words for Boostly’s Mark Simpson, and Frontdesk’s Jesse DePinto.

4:47 Realising his full potential with Hostaway

9:40 Why should hosts and property managers be using Hostaway?

11:07 Why hosts with a small number of properties should use a PMS

12:56 Why Hostaway will become the market-leading PMS

15:01 Head to www.hostaway.com for further details 

15:42 Where the short-term rentals industry is heading in 2024

17:47 What’s going to happen in the PMS space?

20:23 Top tips for hosts and property managers 

23:19 Key trend: the standardisation of short-term rentals 

25:23 Managing guest expectations (more coffee, more bedsheets, more towels!)

27:46 Favourite brands in the STR industry: Beyond, Wheelhouse, PriceLabs, and Mark Simpson

29:39 Individual shout-out: Jesse DePinto from Frontdesk

30:44 No. 1 piece of advice to people starting out in the STR space: focus on property owners

 Links:

James Varley: https://shorturl.at/rstAB

HCH website: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

Newsletter: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

E-book: https://shorturl.at/imtW6

Marcus Rader: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marketingmarcus/

Hostaway: https://www.hostaway.com/

Petition to reverse plans to abolish the FHL tax regime: https://rb.gy/u0n35j

Download free e-ticket for Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE: https://rb.gy/y61j8q

Sponsor links:

HCH Financial Services: https://www.hchfs.com/ Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]

Hosthub: www.hosthub.com/hch

Touch Stay: https://rb.gy/gumxlu

Sustonica: https://rb.gy/buf9p5

RentalWise: https://tinyurl.com/yx4avcz3

Mentions:

Beyond: https://shorturl.at/acEH2

Wheelhouse: https://www.usewheelhouse.com/

PriceLabs: www.pricelabs.co

Mark Simpson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mrmarksimpson/

Boostly: https://boostly.co.uk/

Jesse DePinto: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessedepinto/

Frontdesk: https://www.stayfrontdesk.com/

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We are learning from the luxury vacation rentals industry during this episode featuring Doron Meyassed, Founder and CEO of Plum Guide.

Learn why Plum Guide is home to one of the most meticulous vetting processes in the industry – which leads to 97% of properties being rejected by the platform.

Doron outlines why Plum Guide is brutally honest about every rental and what every host and property manager can learn from the luxury sector. He also talks about 2024 trends, including the fact guests are much more price conscious this year.

Doron’s favourite brand shout-outs went to Air Peace of Mind and Le Collectionist, while two former Plum Guide employees, Laura Iglesias and Jess Scott, earned his individual mentions.

4:53 The vision and development of Plum Guide 

7:20 Scaling the platform after 99% of enquiries were ‘frustrated searches’ 

8:14 The vetting process, brutally honest descriptions, and quickly removing underperforming rentals 

11:50 How Plum Guide will be utilising AI to vet properties

16:05 Managing guest expectations with honest listings 

19:25 The importance of honest and actionable reviews

20:39 The constant tension of accepting only a small number of properties 

22:29 Knowing your customer is everything 

24:13 The future for Plum Guide

25:23 What hosts can learn from Plum Guide

28:28 Short-term rental trends in 2024

30:31 Favourite brands in the STR space: Air Peace of Mind and Le Collectionist 

31:09 Laura Iglesias and Jess Scott

31:40 Number one learning: think long term 

Links:

James Varley: https://shorturl.at/rstAB

Holiday Cottage Handbook website: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

Free newsletter: https://shorturl.at/xLMRY

Free e-book: https://shorturl.at/imtW6

Survey: https://shorturl.at/axOV6

Doron Meyassed: https://shorturl.at/aDQ56

Plum Guide: https://rb.gy/dorwv9

Petition to reverse government plans to abolish the furnished holiday lettings tax regime: https://rb.gy/u0n35j

Download your free e-ticket for Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE: https://rb.gy/y61j8q

Sponsor links:

HCH Financial Services: https://www.hchfs.com/ Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]m

Hosthub: https://tinyurl.com/4sr5pecz

Touch Stay: https://rb.gy/gumxlu

Sustonica: https://rb.gy/buf9p5

RentalWise: https://tinyurl.com/yx4avcz3

Mentions:

Air Peace of Mind: https://tinyurl.com/mr2ky5n6

Le Collectionist: https://tinyurl.com/mr3wpsbz

Laura Iglesias: https://tinyurl.com/n48zevs5

Jess Scott: https://tinyurl.com/3ump4z5d

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This week’s episode is a Spring Budget Special featuring Steve Taggert, the Founder and Managing Director of My Getaways.

Steve was in parliament to hear UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announce the abolishment of the furnished holiday lettings tax regime, and he spoke to Holiday Cottage Handbook Founder, James Varley, about the potential implications of the proposal.

3:52 Steve’s story in the short-term rentals world

7:51 My Getaways elevator pitch 

8:59 Make sure you get your rates right 

9:57 Advice to those who want to scale

11:48 Guest communication tips

14:28 Great Wi-Fi and photography

15:31 How hosts can be great neighbours

17:11 Working with homeowners 

18:37 Key trends

21:15 The Spring Budget – Steve’s day in parliament 

25:38 Promoting the industry is vital 

28:32 Advice for hosts who want to help the cause

30:27 Why a registration scheme had to happen

32:10 Data is integral in order to create the right legislation 

33:17 Why professionalisation is important 

35:03 Weeding out the cowboys 

37:33 Steve’s lobbying efforts 

38:51 The impact on housing 

40:03 Favourite brand in the STR space: Minut

41:00 Individual shout-outs: Richard Vaughton and Andy Fenner 

42:24 Advice to people worried about the FHL tax regime: Don’t Panic!

Links mentioned:

Petition to reverse government plans to abolish the FHL tax regime: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/658866

Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE (free e-ticket) https://propertyinvestor.smartreg.co.uk/Visitors/Visitors/register?promoid=WEBSITE

HCH Financial Services: https://www.hchfs.com/

Holiday Cottage Handbook: https://www.holidaycottagehandbook.com/

Free e-book: https://www.holidaycottagehandbook.com/e-book

Survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LC2W7GJ

Steve Taggert: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevetaggert/

My Getaways: https://www.mygetaways.co.uk/

SuperControl’s discovery sessions: https://supercontrol.co.uk/property-investor-show

Minut: https://www.minut.com/?utm_campaign=holidaycottagehandbook&utm_source=partners

PASC UK letter to MPs: https://pascuk.eaction.online/FHL/search

Touch Stay: https://touchstay.com/?utm_source=HolidayCottageHandbook&utm_medium=email+social&utm_campaign=airbnb

Sustonica: https://www.sustonica.com/

Richard Vaughton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richardvaughton/

Andy Fenner: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfenner2023/

UK STAA: https://ukstaa.org/

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This week’s special guest is Bob Garner, the Founder and CEO of EnviroRental – a free resource that is helping short-term rental managers make their properties more sustainable.

Bob talks to Holiday Cottage Handbook Founder James Varley about the upcoming SCALE Green event and shares five simple things that every host and property manager can do to make their rentals more sustainable. 

Bob’s favourite brand shout-out went to Touch Stay, while Damian Sheridan from SCALE Rentals was his individual mention.

3:26 Bob’s journey in the short-term rentals world 

4:37 Bob’s Italian adventure  

4:58 How the hosting journey has changed over the years 

6:57 Bob’s focus on sustainability 

9:20 Green VR Events and EnviroRental

12:31 Bob’s top tips: No. 1: Shift to a green energy tariff

14:03 No. 2: Stop buying single use plastics

16:06 No. 3: Try using an accreditation scheme like Sustonica

17:55 No. 4: Invest in biodiversity 

19:12 No. 5: Think about your web profile

21:52 SCALE Green in London on 23 April

24:59 SCALE Green presenters and subjects 

26:48 Tickets are just £40 each. Visit green.scalerentals.show 

27:40 Bob’s favourite brand in the short-term rentals space: Touch Stay

28:18 Bob’s individual shout-out: Damian Sheridan from SCALE

29:00 No. 1 lesson learned since founding EnviroRental: It’s not all about logic! 

Links mentioned:

Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE (download your free e-ticket)

HCH Financial Services Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]

Holiday Cottage Handbook website 

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter 

Download our free e-book for investors, hosts, and property managers

Take our two-minute survey

Bob Garner

EnviroRental

SCALE Green

SuperControl Discovery Sessions at Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE

Sustonica

Touch Stay

Andy McNulty

Damian Sheridan

SCALE

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This week’s special guest is Sally Henry, Vice President of Business Development at Key Data, the global leader in market intelligence in the short-term rentals industry.

Sally talks to HCH Founder, James Varley, about 2024 trends – shining a light on supply, occupancy, and rates. She also discusses Airbnb losing market share to Booking.com in Europe and the UK, how to get your pricing right, and how strict your cancellation policy should be.

Sally’s favourite brand shout-out went to cottages.com, while Simon Law (her fellow ‘radiator’) earned her individual mention.

3:30 Sally’s career in the STR world, which started in the brochure era!

7:35 The growth of the industry has been massive 

9:14 Innovative tech is prevalent in the STR space

10:08 Elevator pitch for Key Data 

11:43 The onboarding process for Key Data customers

13:03 The cost and platform: Key Data website

14:08 What the data is telling us in 2024 so far (more supply, lower occupancy, lower rates)

17:51 Have we hit peak supply?

19:36 Airbnb has lost market share to Booking.com (2% drop in the UK and 4% drop in Europe)

22:03 2% and 4% swings are quite significant 

23:22 Sally’s top tips to navigate 2024

27:11 Price is everything. People are taking more trips but stays are shorter

30:17 Working out the optimal cancellation policy 

33:15 Favourite brand in the STR space: cottages.com

34:40 Individual shout-out: Simon Law

36:39 No. 1 tip to STR hosts and managers in 2024: utilise your data!

Links mentioned:

Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE (download your free e-ticket)

HCH Financial Services Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]

Holiday Cottage Handbook website 

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter 

Download our free e-book for investors, hosts, and property managers

Sally Henry

Key Data 

cottages.com

Simon Law

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Send us a text

This week’s special guest is Howard Reuben, from HCH Financial Services – the new home of holiday let mortgages.

Howard discusses his career as a mortgage broker and financial advisor, founding HCH Financial Services (in collaboration with Holiday Cottage Handbook), and how the growth of short-term rentals has boomed since the pandemic. 

Howard picked the Principality Building Society for his favourite brand shout-out, while Samantha Turmaine took the individual shout-out for her outstanding work in managing HCH Financial Services. 

If you need any type of mortgage or financial product, contact HCH Financial Services:

Call: 0333 1234 536

Email: [email protected]

Visit: https://www.hchfs.co.uk/

3:46 Howard’s career as a mortgage broker and financial advisor 

9:20 Why this is the right time to launch HCH Financial Services

12:51 The customer journey – we aim to deliver your long-term goals

15:56 A range of options: holiday let, buy to let, residential mortgages, and much more

17:13 There are lenders who will consider all sorts of circumstances 

19:09 The holiday let market has boomed since the pandemic 

23:38 The state of the market right now 

28:26 Favourite brand shout-out: Principality Building Society 

30:01 Individual shout-out: Samantha Turmaine from HCH Financial Services 

31:39 No. 1 lesson learned: the only constant is change 

Links mentioned:

Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE (download your free e-ticket)

HCH Financial Services Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]

Holiday Cottage Handbook website 

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter 

Download our free e-book for investors, hosts, and property managers

Howard Reuben

HD Consultants 

Principality Building Society

Samantha Turmaine

HCH Mortgage Podcast 

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Beyond is the global revenue management system for the vacation rental industry and prides itself on helping customers increase their annual revenue by a whopping 40%.

During this week’s episode we hear from Beyond CEO Julie Brinkman about her career, the dynamism and innovation of the short-term rentals industry, and future trends we should all be looking out for.

Julie also offers a deep dive into the Beyond platform, outlining why it stands out in the dynamic pricing tool landscape.

Julie’s favourite brand shout-out went to Host & Stay, while her individual shout-out went to Fiona Campbell, CEO, Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers.

3:32 Business, travel, and growth: Julie’s career journey

5:47 The dynamism of the short-term rentals industry

7:16 Where the STR space stands currently

8:19 Where the industry is heading 

10:11 Why hosts and property managers should be using Beyond

11:20 A dynamic pricing tool like Beyond keeps you up-to-date with shifts in demand

12:43 Beyond can help you boost revenue by up to 40%!

13:53 Why Beyond stands out in the dynamic pricing tool landscape 

17:12 The onboarding journey for new Beyond customers 

18:30 It’s easy to set minimum and maximum nightly rates

19:02 The first 5,000 bookings with Beyond are free! 

19:48 Trends in the short-term rentals industry 

20:59 Julie’s top tip: know your market 

21:57 What’s next for Beyond?

23:03 Favourite brand shout-out: Host & Stay, Dale Smith

23:32 Individual shout-out: Fiona Campbell, CEO, Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers

24:03 Number one lesson learned from being CEO of Beyond 

Links mentioned:

Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE (download your free e-ticket)

HCH Financial Services Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]

Holiday Cottage Handbook website 

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter 

Download our free e-book for investors, hosts, and property managers

Julie Brinkman

Beyond

Host & Stay

Dale Smith

Fiona Campbell

Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers 

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This week’s special guest is industry expert Mark Simpson – the direct booking king, Founder of Boostly, and the man Airbnb don’t want you to know about. 

Mark spoke to James Varley about being born into the vacation rentals industry, founding Boostly, his top direct booking tips, marketing tactics, and what he really thinks about Airbnb.

Mark’s favourite brand shout-out went to Mount, while his individual shout-out went to HCH Founder, James Varley.

3:44 Born into the STR industry

15:47 The Boostly elevator pitch: the ultimate direct booking solution

19:05 Why are direct bookings so important?

28:12 Mark’s top three direct booking tips

39:21 What Mark has learned about marketing 

45:27 ‘I love Airbnb’ – but you have to make the OTAs work for you

49:32 The future of Boostly 

50:42 Top tips for hosts and property managers: start with a great bed! 

51:20 Top trends in 2024

55:14 Favourite brand in the STR industry: Mount (shout-out for Madison Rifkin)

56:39 Individual shout-out: James Varley(!)

57:04 Biggest lesson learned: get a great accountant! 

Links mentioned:

Holiday Cottage Handbook LIVE (download your free e-ticket)

HCH Financial Services Call: 0333 1234 536 Email: [email protected]

Holiday Cottage Handbook website 

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter 

Download our free e-book for investors, hosts, and property managers

Mark Simpson

Boostly

Touch Stay

SuperControl

Isaac French 

Mount

Madison Rifkin

James Varley 

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