Meet Stephanie, a dedicated vacation rental owner and property manager who turned her love for the beach into a thriving business, Sea South Properties. What started as a personal investment in 2005 quickly evolved into a full-fledged career after realizing the value of hands-on management.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

My husband and I began vacationing in Orange Beach, Alabama in 2000. We quickly came to love the sand between our toes and the beach community's vibe. We wanted more time at the beach to build memories with our three children. We purchased our first beach vacation home in 2005. I thought it would be difficult to manage the property from another state, so we began the short-term rental journey with a large, local property management company. We aimed to rent the condo when we were not using it and have vacationers cover the expenses. Sounds great, right? Not so fast… I quickly realized I would need to manage the property myself to give the high standard of customer service I expected. I gave undertaking the management myself a great deal of consideration before making the decision to begin the process, but now realize it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made! I trusted myself to do a better job. I had another career, so it was not on my radar to become a full-time property manager.

Were you always in VR or property management, or is this a 2nd/3rd career?

This is my third career. While I worked in my other positions, I had condo owners in the area approaching me about managing their vacation properties for them. I enjoyed managing mine so much that I decided to obtain my real estate license and see what I could build out of this side hustle. I put the work into learning the industry and moved forward with taking new properties to manage, eventually growing to 34 properties.

If a later career, what did you do before?

I retired as the CEO of a home maintenance and remodeling company after 26 years of service. This is where I learned how to provide excellent customer service. At our company, we did not compromise. The company expanded greatly through word-of-mouth referrals, and it did grow! It was a challenge, but I worked for a wonderful owner who strived for excellence in everything the company performed. After retiring, I wanted to challenge myself and work in a completely different industry. I dove headfirst into the banking field at a credit union. I retired as the Executive Vice President after 8 years. During both of these careers, I managed my own properties, and then, as other owners asked me to manage theirs, I became a realtor and began Sea South Properties.

Are you from that geographical area, or did you move there later?

I am an Alabama resident but keep my home in Louisiana.  I have surrounded myself with an excellent team of assistants, runners, cleaners, and maintenance people. They make the wheels turn, and I could not operate without them.

What do you love the most about the VR business?

I love that I am helping families make memories at the beach. For years after a family beach vacation, families will have birthday and Christmas parties, and there will always be someone fondly reminiscing about the last beach trip. I love knowing I contributed to that in a small way. Alternatively, I strive to be the property manager I wish I had when I first became a short-term vacation rental owner. I enjoy the industry and burst with pride at every 5-star review I receive. I’m tenacious and am always working on improving my systems. The OwnerRez software helps me with the details and is a big part of the growth and improvement of Sea South Properties. 

What do you dislike the most about it?

Since doing this for many years, I’ve seen the positives and the negatives in the property management field. Things can change for the worse on a dime, and you need to constantly have your antenna up and pay attention to what’s happening in the industry. It can be a tropical storm, hurricane, an oil spill, a real estate bust, or a global pandemic that can turn your world upside down. Paying attention to trends and acting quickly is essential. When I first began managing my own condo, I only accepted checks. Now, with the help of OwnerRez, I manage 34 condos and take many different forms of payment. In the early 2000s, everyone booked seven-day vacations many months in advance. Today, I receive same-day bookings regularly during the high season.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

I researched many options, and after speaking with other property managers, I began researching OwnerRez. The software, website, and the integrations available to users were what I required for a seamless operation. The software integrations would do so much of the work for me, and having reports at my fingertips would give me the information necessary to make decisions instantly.  As I began to work with the software and learn everything it could do, I knew I had made the right decision. Over the years, as OwnerRez grew and improved, so did I. I look at it as a partnership. I’ve received nothing but stellar service from the OwnerRez team. There’s not one problem I’ve had with the software that we could not work through and resolve. It’s been a privilege to work with their team. They understand the property management business, and the software reflects that. It’s not perfect yet, but they are continuously improving and introducing new software features.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

For me, it’s hands down the website. Presenting a professional front for Sea South Properties allowed me to gain traction as I jumped into this full-time. A close second is the integration with ResortClean, RemoteLock, and the Oracode Kaba lock site. These seamless integrations allow me more time to focus on other, more critical aspects of the business. Another crucial benefit for me is operating the software from my smartphone. This was a game-changer. I am now able to be more mobile and am still able to give excellent response times to my guests. I am definitely team OwnerRez and wouldn’t dream of using another PM software.

It’s wonderful to see how Stephanie has turned her passion for the beach and her background in customer service into a successful vacation rental business. Wishing her continued growth and success as she helps families create lasting memories at Sea South Properties!