Short Term Rental Riches

Our guest today is Alex Alioto, co-founder of Whimstay, the last-minute vacation rental marketplace. Alex talks with hosts and property managers every day about the nights that would otherwise sit empty.

We cover how to split your calendar across Airbnb, Vrbo and Whimstay, why some guests still pick hotels, and how to turn every stay into a future direct booking.

• How to split your calendar across 3 booking sites
• Why $800 beats $0 on an empty night
• The 1 photo that sends guests away
• How last-minute guests get screened
• Why direct bookings help the whole industry

If this episode helped you, subscribe so you never miss a new one. Share it with a host or property manager who has a few empty nights on their calendar. Pick one change from today and put it into action this week. We will see you in the next episode.

Whimstay: https://www.whimstay.com/

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep362#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep362

On October 29, Vrbo moves every host to a flat 12% commission. If you connect through a property management system, you've been paying 5%. On a $600 booking, that's $42 more out of your payout.

In this episode, we break down the math, the markup that keeps your payout the same, and the pricing rule to check before you reprice.

• What changes on Vrbo on October 29
• The real cost of the jump on a $600 booking
• Why booking platforms keep raising their fees
• The 1-line formula behind our Vrbo markup
• The Vrbo rule that affects your direct booking price

If this episode helped you get ahead of the Vrbo change, subscribe so you catch the next fee update before it reaches your payout. Share it with a host who lists on Vrbo, and leave us a quick review. It helps more hosts find the show. See you next week.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep361#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep361

A lost TV remote or a missing garage door opener can turn a smooth check-in into an emergency trip. In this episode, we walk through the 12 things we keep in every Airbnb supply closet, and almost none of them are cleaning products.

We also share the simple formula we use for how many spare sheet sets each property needs.

• Why we split the closet in 2: 1 locked, 1 open
• The $30 lock that keeps backups out of guest hands
• What to do before a guest drives off with your opener
• The 9pm problems a stocked closet solves
• How many sheet sets a 5-bedroom actually needs

Thanks for listening to the Short-Term Rental Richest podcast. If this episode helped you stock a smarter supply closet, subscribe so you never miss a new episode and share it with a fellow host. Leave us a review too, it helps more hosts find the show. See you next week.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep360#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep360

Airbnb's photo tour sorts your listing photos room by room, the same way for every host in your market. Once it's on, you only control the order of your first 5 photos.

In this episode, we walk through what Airbnb's AI changed this year, how our team turns the photo tour off, and how to check what guests actually see.

• What Airbnb's AI changed in the 2026 Summer Release
• Why the photo tour makes listings look alike
• The 1 empty room that keeps the tour off
• What to leave out of your first 5 photos
• The AI setting that doesn't do what hosts think

Thanks for listening to the Short-Term Rental Riches podcast. If this episode helped you take control of your listing photos, subscribe so you never miss a new episode. Share it with a host who needs it, and leave us a quick review so more new hosts can find the show.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep359#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/?utm_source=shownotes&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ep359

Airbnb collects the full tax bill at some of our properties, none at others, and only part at the rest. Same platform, same property type, 3 different outcomes depending on the address.

In this episode, we cover 4 tax layers hosts need to check, who collects each one, and the free lookup tool that pulls the report for any address.

• Why Airbnb might not be paying all your short-term rental taxes
• The 4 tax layers stacking on your property right now
• How Vrbo and Airbnb differ on who remits what
• The one rule that decides if your rental even counts as short-term
• The free lookup tool that pulls your full tax report from just an address

Taxes will not be the most exciting item on your to-do list, but they can cost you the right to list at all. We cover the 4 layers to check, what "short-term" means in your state, and the licenses hosts miss most. Hit subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Look up your property's short-term rental taxes free: https://corzly.com/str-taxes/

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/

On September 15 Airbnb moves every host to a single 15.5% fee, and it doesn't stop at your nightly rate. It also hits your cleaning fee, pet fee, and extra-guest fee. In this episode, we walk through the 4 numbers to change, the exact math behind the markup, and the cleaning fee mistake our team almost missed on 1 listing.

• Why September 15 changes your Airbnb payout even if your listing price never moves
• The 4 numbers on your listing this fee actually touches
• The math mistake that leaves you short on every booking
• Why your cleaning fee just got 5x more expensive than you think
• The 1 setting our team almost missed when we made the switch

Missing 1 of these 4 numbers means losing money on every booking until you catch it. We walk through the exact math so you only have to do it once. If this saved you a booking's worth of revenue, subscribe so the next Airbnb change doesn't catch you off guard.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/

A noise alert can go off at 1am and never turn into a confrontation or a bad review.

In this episode, we cover the 2 leading devices hosts use to catch loud guests early…

That means where to mount each device, the decibel threshold that actually works, what a setup costs per month, and which device now catches smoke too.

• Which of the 2 leading noise devices can now catch smoke without a camera?
• The decibel range that separates a lively living room from a real problem.
• One mounting mistake that can cost 10 to 20 points on your noise score.
• What a fully integrated noise monitor costs per property every month?
• The exact response sequence before anyone on our team picks up the phone.

Noise complaints are one of the easiest problems to prevent once the right device is in place and used correctly.

If this episode helped, subscribe and leave a review.

Check back next week for another episode built to help your rental run smoother.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/

We sit down with Matt Sanderson, founder of STRIQ, to break down how data finds profitable short-term rental properties in seconds instead of weeks.

We cover the below key aspects:

• Why a single AirDNA number can hide $100,000 a year in missed revenue.
• The exact filters that clean up comp data so a 5-mile radius stops lying to you
• How one bedroom conversion turned a $150,000 property into a $210,000 property
• The 4 questions to ask yourself before you ever open a single listing
• Why chasing the "top 10 markets" everyone talks about might be costing you money

If you are ready to stop guessing and start finding properties backed by real data, this episode gives you the exact framework to use.

Subscribe to the STR Riches Podcast so you catch every new episode.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/

Bigger properties bring bigger groups, longer sales cycles, and guests who expect concierge-level service before they even ask...

We cover pricing without a comp set, protecting a one-of-a-kind property, and why direct bookings matter even more once a single reservation hits five figures:

• Why a $30,000 reservation almost never gets instant-booked?
• What group organizers expect before they even ask?
• Why PriceLabs and market comps don't work on luxury properties?
• The real cost of a 3% credit card fee on a five-figure booking?
• Why a 20-bedroom turnover is nothing like a 1-bedroom turnover?

If this episode helped, subscribe and leave us an honest review.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/

Most hosts pick their next STR on a gut feeling, a beachfront view or a cozy cabin. Garrett Brown from BiggerPockets took a different approach…

He built a data comparison today across 5 property archetypes, scoring cash flow, appreciation, and long-term risk.

In this episode, we break down which property type won, and why management matters more than location:

• The property type most investors overlook actually scored highest on cash flow.
• Why lakefront properties deliver strong appreciation but almost no day-1 cash flow?
• The 1 management decision worth $18,000 a year on the same property.
• Why the highest-ceiling property type also carries the widest range of outcomes.
• The property type that scored lowest despite the strongest nightly rates.

If this episode helped, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone weighing their next short-term rental purchase. We'll catch you again real soon.

Check out our videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShortTermRentalRiches

Grab your free management eBook: https://strriches.com/#tools-resources

Looking to earn more with your property (without the headaches)? Chat with our expert management team: https://strriches.com/management-services/