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Today we are joined by the lovely Jen Clark, founder of Hosting With Heart, a hugely successful podcast and recently launched directory website featuring a growing collection of holiday properties managed by socially-conscious, ethically-minded hosts from Australia and New Zealand.

 

With big Online Travel Agents (OTAs) like Airbnb dominating the market and now the default choice for holiday rentals, we explore how this new landscape obscures the costs to the end user (or property owner). Jen explains that it’s not as simple as bunging your property on an OTA site and making a quick buck. You are responsible for admin, customer service, cleaning, amenities, utilities and gardening, and often the costs are not clear. Jen explains the commission that OTAs generally take, what this means for the host and the strange complexity of service fees.

 

It’s for these reasons that Jen encourages anyone considering hosting a property, to take the time to understand the costs involved and how to stand out in a saturated market.

 

Not only are costs obscured, but finding those standout properties, that take a holistic approach and consider elements like accessibility and sustainability are really lacking (and hard to find!) in the saturated markets of OTAs.

 

It’s for this reason that Jen decided to launch Hosting with Heart. The aim of this online directory, podcast and resource hub is to change the landscape of hosting in Australia, making it both more accessible and sustainable.

 

Jen shares the reasons why she sees the need for a platform like this now, the horrifying statistics around the accessibility of holiday properties in Australia and how taking a holistic approach helps to leverage your property in a crowded market.

 

I love Jen’s approach - she is pragmatic about the business side of hosting while being passionate about the things that really matter in holiday properties - for both hosts and guests. If you’re considering hosting, or you’re interested in how to improve your property and approach, this conversation is absolute gold. Dive in!

LINKS:

 

Connect with Jen Clark:

 

Website: https://hostingwithheart.net.au/

Instagram: @hostingwithheart

Podcast: https://hostingwithheart.net.au/podcast/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/hostingwithheart/

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