Is Hiring an Airbnb Management Service Worth It?

Airbnb property management services are in high demand for a reason. The thing is that hosts need to go above and beyond to grow their business. However, vacation rental platforms such as Airbnb have a limited range of services to offer.

There are also other reasons why Airbnb hosts turn to the services of property management companies. Full-time hosts are looking to improve their guests’ experiences while ensuring that the legal and financial sides of their Airbnb businesses go smoothly. Also, vacation rental management tasks can be extremely time-consuming. It especially holds true for hosts with multiple short-term rentals across different platforms.

In this article, we’ll answer some of your burning questions on the topic and also run you through our top picks for the best in the biz.

What is an Airbnb Management Service?

An Airbnb management service is a company or platform that takes care of day-to-day tasks for Airbnb hosts, making it easier to rent out properties. It’s a great option for hosts who don’t have the time, know-how, or resources to manage everything themselves.

How Can an Airbnb Management Service Help?

Airbnb management companies can help hosts with just a few routine tasks or fully take over the management of their properties. They essentially take over the repetitive work that often holds property owners back from growing their rental business.

Here is a brief overview of the services hosts can outsource:

Managing Listings

Crafting and fine-tuning property listings with eye-catching photography and engaging descriptions to draw in more guests.

Pricing Optimization

Implementing dynamic pricing strategies that adjust rental rates based on market trends, demand, and other factors to help hosts maximize their revenue.

Guest Communication

Handling all guest interactions, from answering initial inquiries and confirming bookings to providing check-in details and addressing any questions or issues during their stay.

Cleaning and Maintenance

Arranging professional cleaning services between stays to ensure the property is spotless, while also managing routine maintenance and urgent repairs.

24/7 Support

Offering round-the-clock assistance for both hosts and guests to quickly resolve any issues that may come up during the rental period.

Legal and Regulatory Compliance

Assisting hosts in navigating the complex legal and regulatory landscape of short-term rentals, which can vary widely depending on location.

Financial Management

Managing payments, invoices, and expenses while providing hosts with regular financial reports on their rental income and costs.

Some of the Airbnb management companies provide the full spectrum of property management services. So, hosts can save loads of time for scaling their business, if they opt for an all-in-one property management company.

Therefore, any quality rental management company is striving to create a one-stop-shop that Airbnb hosts can rely on. However, meeting these challenges for your clients can be tricky. If you want to match your client’s expectations, you need to learn what the top vacation rental property management companies have to offer.

Should I Hire Someone to Manage My Airbnb?

Well, that depends. Do you feel like you don’t have enough time in the day for everything? Has anything slipped through the cracks that may have been detrimental to your rental income? Or would you maybe like to shift gears and start focusing on really growing your business?

If the answer to any of these was ‘yes’, we recommend trying out vacation rental software like our own to lighten the load first.

iGMS provides a comprehensive suite of tools designed to tackle every aspect of your hosting experience. Our software allows you to:

• Centralize your operations with the Channel Manager, effortlessly managing multiple listings across leading platforms.
• Enhance guest relations using Automated Messaging, equipped with customizable templates for consistent and timely communication.
• Boost your property’s reputation and guest loyalty by encouraging reviews through Airbnb Automation.
• Efficiently coordinate tasks and schedules with Team Management, ensuring your property is always guest-ready.

If you still feel like you’re treading water after a little while of help from us, then it may be time to call in the bigger guns and find a team of property managers to take over the parts of your vacation rental management that keep dragging you under.

What to Look For in an Airbnb Management Service

Here are the 5 characteristics property owners look out for when they’re deciding on an Airbnb management company:

1. Effective Maintenance Management System

As a property management company, you make critical decisions on behalf of your clients. The first rule is to work with reliable, licensed vendors to provide high-quality services on their behalf at prices that are cost-effective. Additionally, your services should be available 24/7/365 to handle emergencies.

Top-performing Airbnb property management companies usually have automation software solutions such as iGMS in place to manage communication with guests, maintenance requests, and work orders. A competent vacation rental management company never lets maintenance fall by the wayside or requires multiple inquiries from the property owner before the problem is resolved. Ideally, homeowners should be able to submit maintenance requests to your company online.

2. Value-based Pricing

Some Airbnb property management companies determine their pricing on what other local vendors are charging. Of course, it is necessary to know what your competitors are doing. However, the best practice is to base your price on the scope and quality of the services your company provides. In return, homeowners aren’t likely to make a decision about which property management company to use solely based on who charges the lowest fees.

A homeowner may even believe that a lower price reflects the fact that the company doesn’t provide top tier service. Eventually, what your clients are looking for is a positive return on investment. Instead of focusing merely on what it will cost your clients, focus on the value of the services your company provides.

3. Transparent Reporting

Clients not only want an Airbnb property management company that can address concerns promptly. They also want transparent reporting of how their money is being spent. Provide a clear audit trail for all funds related to each property.

First, you need to have a system in place to ensure that vendors are always paid properly. Also, it is important to make sure that the funds of the properties that you manage on behalf of your clients will never get mixed.

Your company should provide monthly income/expense statements as it is the standard for the property management industry. To make things easier for your clients, they should also be able to view these reports online.

4. Marketing and Industry Expertise

One of the most valuable services an Airbnb property management firm can provide to owners is marketing.

In order to attract new owners, the best property management companies have established marketing programs to ensure that their client’s properties are booked regularly. A good marketing program increases revenues maximizes bookings, and ultimately keeps owners happy by elevating their reviews on vacation rental platforms.

The top property management companies also have the competitive advantage of knowing the local real estate market inside and out. This allows them to advise their clients on pricing, amenities to offer to Airbnb guests and other factors. By following their recommendations, their clients have a higher chance to stand out in the most competitive markets.

5. Providing Strategy and Advice

Developing a thoughtful strategy and providing sound advice is the final thing that stellar management companies must do. Almost every property management company can handle basic maintenance requests. However, only a few companies are capable of providing good advice and direction for achieving great results.

A great Airbnb management service is able to provide advice on relevant tax deductions related to the clients’ vacation rental properties. It also performs periodic inspections with timely maintenance recommendations. On top of that, they direct their client to an attorney or provide legal advice in the event of a legal dispute or litigation.

Which Airbnb Management Company is Best?

The more apropos question to ask is “Which Airbnb management company is best for you?” What you need from property managers might differ greatly from the next host. Your rental property might come with more to maintain or might be located in an area with stricter regulations to adhere to.

Let’s look at some of the best Airbnb management companies in the vacation rental industry and suss out which could be a good property management company for you.

Casago

Known for its widespread presence and two decades of experience in the vacation rental and property management industry, Casago is a great all-rounder choice. They operate all over the United States, as well as Mexico, and can manage your property’s listings on over 25 short-term rental sites.

They charge based on the property’s location and the market it’s in. This makes it so that the pricing stays fair compared to the services provided.

Awning

Awning offers full-service Airbnb property management with competitive rates and high availability. They cover all of the essential day-to-day operations and stand out from the rest of the hospitality industry with great reviews from other property owners that can attest to their service.

Their management services include all the usual; guest communication, pricing strategy, and other additional services.

SkyRun

SkyRun manages over 900 properties in the U.S. through a network of locally owned franchises and blends the personalized care of local business ownership with the efficiency of a larger corporate framework.

They offer management fees that are customized to suit the specific needs of each property.

Evolve

Specializing in marketing properties and maintaining high occupancy rates with low property management fees, Evolve .

They charge a flat management fee of 10% on bookings for their Core plan, which covers most of their comprehensive services. For those opting for more tailored strategies and additional protections, the Plus plan charges a 15% management fee.

Onefinestay

Onefinestay manages luxury properties and provides personalized service with local experts and dedicated account managers. They operate globally and cover top locations like London, Paris, New York, Los Angeles, and Turks and Caicos.

Their revenue model involves a 50/50 revenue split with property owners, which is on the higher end and reflects the premium level of service for the luxury market they cater to.

Final Thoughts

The key to taking your run run-of-the-mill, average vacation rentals to the next level is a team of experienced property managers from a successful Airbnb management service. If it takes a village to raise a child, then I will posit that it takes a small army to help manage and grow your little empire of vacation rentals.

That Airbnb management team is going to need the right set of tools to tackle property maintenance, payment processing, guest communication, and everything else that keeps your rental property running like a well-oiled machine They’ll need the best property management software for the job and that’s where iGMS comes in.