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The 15% commission being close to that of Airbnb without the same brand recognition seems out of line. Plus the unknown additional fees make this an unacceptable choice. At minimum the fees need to be defined.

Episode Seventeen of Walk ’n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals podcast is live!

Welcome to the Walk ’n Talk podcast, hosted by Paul Waldschmidt and Chris Hynes, CEO and CTO of OwnerRez. Inspired by their weekly walks, each episode gives you a behind-the-scenes look at the conversations that have shaped OwnerRez and the ideas shaping today’s vacation rental industry. Whether you’re a seasoned business professional or just getting started, listen in and walk away with ideas you can apply to your own business.

🎙️ Episode 17 Now Live

EP17 - Using AI With Intention

In Episode Seventeen, Paul and Chris discuss how to use AI to empower yourself instead of handing away your voice and judgment. They talk about intentionally developing your skills, bringing your unique skill set and experiences to the table, and why the best results come when AI expands your thinking instead of replacing it. They also discuss why OwnerRez continues to prioritize real human connection and share some exciting upcoming in-person events that reflect that value.

You'll hear about:

• Using AI to empower yourself instead of becoming reliant
• Why you only get out what you put in
• Intentionally developing your skills and judgment
• Bringing your unique skill set and vision to the table
• The importance of human connection in an AI-driven world
• Upcoming in-person events

Listen Now

Watch Now

Walk ’n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals is available on:

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• YouTube

New episodes are already in the works, and we can’t wait for you to join us on the walk.

We’re excited to share our new integration with STR TV, a smart TV platform designed specifically for short-term rentals.

About STR TV

STR TV transforms any in-unit television into a fully branded, interactive guest experience, giving hosts and property managers a powerful new way to communicate with guests, drive additional revenue, and elevate their brand without requiring expensive hardware upgrades. Designed specifically for short-term rentals, STR TV replaces the standard “blank TV + remote” experience with a modern, hotel-quality interface that guests instantly understand and engage with. STR TV supports properties across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

Features

• Branded Welcome Experience: Greet every guest with a personalized, hotel-style welcome screen displayed directly on the TV. Showcase your logo, property name, WiFi details, Weather, and custom messaging to immediately set the tone for a professional stay.
• Digital House Guide: Replace printed manuals and PDFs with a fully interactive, on-screen guide. Provide check-in/out instructions, house rules, appliance usage, and FAQs in a format guests will actually use. Supports photos, videos, and text.
• Local Recommendations & Upsells: Promote curated local restaurants, attractions, and experiences directly through the TV. Highlight partnerships, affiliate offers, or your own upsell services (late checkout, mid-stay cleaning, add-ons, etc.) to generate incremental revenue.
• Direct Booking Integration: Encourage repeat bookings and extended stays (based on availability) by integrating direct booking links and QR codes right on the TV. Capture returning guests and reduce reliance on OTAs. Capture email leads automatically from guests via STR TV Force-Checkin at WiFi.
• Multi-Property & Brand Management: Manage content and view analytics across one or hundreds of properties from a centralized dashboard. Apply global updates or customize content at the unit level with ease.
• Full Automation & Remote-On: STR TV automatically turns on your TV at check-in and checkout, delivering a seamless, hands-off experience. Set it up once and the system runs for every guest, fully automated and built to scale
• Integrations: STR TV seamlessly integrates with OwnerRez, allowing you to sync property details and guest reservation data.
  

Pricing

Plans start at $20.82 per property per month, with volume discounts up to 40% off. Hardware is a one-time cost of $75 per device, and an optional white-glove onboarding package is available for $150 per account for peace of mind setup. A 14-day free trial and 30-day money-back guarantee are also included. View full pricing info here.

Ready to Connect?

Get started with STR TV by visiting here, and check out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with STR TV.

This week, we are excited to feature Glen and Lisa Oostema, owners of Oostema Farmstead and OwnerRez users for nearly seven years. Beginning with one Airbnb on their family farm in 2015, they have grown their business into several vacation rentals, an RV campground, and an on-farm store, allowing them to share their family farm with guests from all over the world.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

We're Glen and Lisa Oostema, owners of Oostema Farmstead in Lynden, Washington. Farming has always been our livelihood, but in 2015 we decided to list one Airbnb on our family farm. We had no idea where it would lead.

Over the years, that one Airbnb grew into multiple vacation rentals, an RV campground, Harvest Hosts stays, and eventually our on-farm store where we sell our grass-fed Wagyu and Angus beef. Looking back, each new venture built on the one before it. What started as one place to stay has grown into an entire farm experience.

What is your background?

We've spent our lives farming. Hospitality wasn't something we planned on doing, but welcoming guests to the farm became a natural extension of what we already loved, sharing this beautiful place with others.

Were you always in vacation rentals or property management? If not, what did you do before?

No. Vacation rentals became our second career. Before that, our focus was entirely on farming. As our hospitality business grew, we found ourselves learning website design, marketing, online booking systems, and everything that comes with running a growing vacation rental business.

Are you from the geographical area where your properties are located, or did you move there later?

Yes. We've lived and farmed in the Lynden area for many years. It's a beautiful corner of northwest Washington, and we enjoy giving guests the opportunity to experience life on a real working farm.

What do you love most about the vacation rental business?

The people. We love meeting guests from all over the world and watching them slow down, enjoy the farm, and make memories with family and friends. Many arrive looking for a place to stay and leave feeling connected to the farm and our community.

What do you dislike the most about it?

As your business grows, so does everything happening behind the scenes. Managing reservations, guest communication, rental agreements, payments, and multiple booking channels can become overwhelming without the right systems in place.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

OwnerRez pretty much runs the hospitality side of our business. A few years ago, I built our own WordPress website because I wanted more direct bookings. Today, nearly all of our campground reservations come through our website using OwnerRez. It also manages our Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com, Hipcamp, Harvest Hosts, and direct bookings, all in one place. The biggest benefit for me is the automation. I've spent a lot of time building our workflows, scheduled emails, rental agreements, payment schedules, security deposits, and all the little details that happen behind the scenes.

Now, when a guest books, OwnerRez takes over. It automatically sends confirmations, rental agreements, payment reminders, welcome emails, and even our arrival-day text asking guests to give us a 20–30 minute heads-up before they arrive. Since we have more than 16 accommodations spread across our farm, that simple text helps us be ready to greet our guests and make sure everything is ready when they pull in. Instead of trying to remember every step for every reservation, I know the system is taking care of it, which lets me spend more time on the farm instead of behind the computer. I still haven't tapped into everything OwnerRez can do, but it's become the center of our hospitality business.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

Without question, it's the automation. Once we invested the time to set everything up, OwnerRez started handling many of the repetitive tasks that used to take hours every week. As we've grown from one Airbnb into multiple accommodations, an RV campground with direct online bookings, and a farm business with many moving parts, OwnerRez has grown right alongside us. It allows us to spend less time managing reservations and more time welcoming guests, raising cattle, and continuing to grow Oostema Farmstead.

Glen and Lisa have turned their family farm into a one-of-a-kind experience for guests from all over the world. We are proud to support their business and look forward to seeing Oostema Farmstead continue to grow!

We’re excited to announce our latest integration with HostReady, a compliance intelligence platform built specifically for short-term rental operators.

About HostReady

HostReady is short-term rental compliance on autopilot. Connect OwnerRez with HostReady and every property gets an always-current compliance layer: daily monitoring for new ordinances, license and renewal deadlines, zoning and tax rules, and a shareable, source-linked compliance certificate for owners, HOAs, and city audits. They cover hundreds of US markets at street level, every fact linked to its government source. And now HostReady files the paperwork too: in early access, they prepare and file STR licenses and renewals, keep them current, and handle the new filing when a city's rules change, so your team only signs what the law needs.

Features

• Real-time sync via OwnerRez webhooks: Add, update, or delete a property in OwnerRez, and HostReady reflects the change within seconds.
• License verification + renewals: HostReady auto-pulls each property's license status from the city portal where available, and then surfaces 60, 30, and 7-day expiration reminders so renewals never lapse mid-booking.
• Compliance checklist per property: Each synced OwnerRez property gets its own jurisdiction-specific compliance checklist, reviewed and verified by their team, and kept current as rules change.
• Daily regulation monitoring: They watch ordinance changes, council agendas, and enforcement actions across every market you operate in. You get notified before rules shift, not after fines land.
• Per-property + portfolio risk view: Filter your portfolio by 'needs attention,' 'license expiring,' or by market. HostReady is designed for OwnerRez accounts running anywhere from a handful of properties to 250+. It's also owner-aware, so you can share property-level certificates with the right owner record from OwnerRez.
• Verified compliance data - defensible if audited: Their research team reviews every market and rule before it lands in your dashboard. Every fact has a clickable link to its government source, and conflicts between sources are flagged (not silently averaged).
• Built for the multi-channel reality: Whether bookings flow through direct, Vrbo, Airbnb, or Booking.com, the underlying compliance picture is the same. HostReady tracks the property, not the channel.

Pricing

Flat portfolio plans start at $199/month for up to 25 properties, with additional tiers at $349/month (50 properties), $599/month (100 properties), and $1,249/month (250 properties). Annual billing is available at a discounted rate. Their done-for-you filing is a portfolio add-on in early access, priced per door per year starting at $89, with volume discounts down to $49 for larger portfolios.

For the launch, OwnerRez users get an exclusive offer with code OWNERREZ20: 20% off the first 3 months on monthly subscription plans, or 20% off the first year on annual subscriptions.

View full pricing info here.

Ready to Connect?

Get started with HostReady by visiting here, and check out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with HostReady.

This week’s roundup covers strong Fourth of July booking demand, new hospitality insights from Alchemer, Airbnb.org’s disaster relief efforts in Venezuela, and proposed short-term rental regulations in Croatia. Let’s dive in.

PriceLabs released data this week showing strong demand ahead of the Fourth of July weekend, with historic destinations seeing some of the strongest year-over-year growth. Booked nights are up 74% year-over-year in Williamsburg, Virginia, 64% in Philadelphia, and 53% in Washington, D.C., as travelers head to destinations hosting America250 events. Florida markets are also seeing strong demand, with bookings up 90% in Miami, 60% in Orlando, and 51% in Fort Lauderdale. Alongside the increase in demand, average daily rates (ADR) are climbing, with Philadelphia leading the way at 84% year-over-year, followed by Atlanta, Seattle, and Miami.

Airbnb.org announced this week that it is providing free temporary housing for first responders in Venezuela following the recent earthquakes. Through partnerships with Rescue Response International, CADENA International, Project HOPE, and others, Airbnb.org is using the Airbnb platform to connect emergency response teams with free housing as they deploy to support affected communities. Since its founding in 2020, Airbnb.org has provided more than 1.6 million nights of free temporary housing across nearly 140 countries, continuing its mission to support communities impacted by natural disasters and humanitarian crises.

A newly published hospitality study from Alchemer highlights several key shifts in how travelers view and choose accommodations. Based on a survey of more than 1,000 U.S. travelers, the report found that, despite the long-standing advantage of hotel loyalty programs, vacation rentals are now outperforming hotels in overall guest loyalty. The study also found that younger travelers continue to favor vacation rentals by a significant margin and that cleanliness remains the most important factor when choosing a place to stay. The findings reinforce the importance of maintaining high cleaning standards, responding to guest feedback, and building a strong base of reviews.

The Croatian government approved a proposal this week that would introduce new short-term rental regulations in 2027 if approved by Parliament. The new rules would require all vacation rental operators to register through a centralized national system, with every room, apartment, and holiday home receiving a unique registration number before it can be listed on booking platforms. The proposal is intended to align Croatia with the EU’s Regulation (EU) 2024/1028, which establishes a common framework for collecting and sharing short-term accommodation data. Officials say the new system is designed to improve transparency and long-term stability in Croatia's short-term rental industry.

Registration is now open for the 2026 OwnerRez Roadshow! This August, the OwnerRez team will be joined by Rental Guardian, Lynnbrook Group, Turno, Avalara, and StayFi for three FREE full-day events in Blue Ridge, GA, Gulf Shores, AL, and Tampa, FL. Each event will feature talks from STR industry experts, roundtable discussions, an all-speaker Q&A panel, FREE coffee, a FREE lunch, and plenty of opportunities to connect with the OwnerRez team and co-hosts. Whether you’re new to the vacation rental industry or a seasoned operator, we hope you’ll join us this summer!

As travel demand remains strong this summer and governments continue to refine short-term rental regulations, expect more changes across the vacation rental industry in 2026. Check back next week for the latest news!

We’re excited to announce the first-ever OwnerRez Roadshow! 🚗

This August, we’re hitting the road with our co-hosts Rental Guardian, Lynnbrook Group, Turno, Avalara, and StayFi for three FREE full-day events bringing together vacation rental owners, property managers, and industry partners for a day of education, networking, and community building. We'll be making stops in Blue Ridge, GA, Gulf Shores, AL, and Tampa, FL!

What to Expect

Each event will feature:

• Talks from STR industry experts
• Roundtable discussions
• An all-speaker Q&A panel
• Opportunities to network with fellow hosts, property managers, and industry partners
• Plenty of time to connect with the OwnerRez team

Whether you’re new to the vacation rental industry or a seasoned operator, this is a great opportunity to learn from industry experts, ask questions, share ideas, and meet the people behind the tools you use every day.

Event Schedule

Doors open at 9:00 AM with FREE coffee. A FREE lunch will be provided at 12:00 PM, and we’ll wrap things up at 5:00 PM. After the event, we’ll also be hosting an optional meetup with the OwnerRez team and our co-hosts for anyone who wants to continue the conversation.

2026 Roadshow Stops

📍Blue Ridge, GA

• August 1st, 2026
• University of North Georgia – Blue Ridge Campus
• Register for free!

📍Gulf Shores, AL 

• August 3rd, 2026
• SpringHill Suites Orange Beach at The Wharf
• Register for free!

📍Tampa, FL

• August 5th, 2026
• USF CAMLS
• Register for free!

Registration Is Now Live

Registration for all three Roadshow events is now live and completely FREE. We can’t wait to visit your local market, hear about your business, and connect with you in person this summer!

Say hello to My Stay 👋, the new guest portal and booking requirements tracking. Hosts can now message their international guests directly in the Inbox via WhatsApp Business. Plus, the long-awaited Owner Bookings feature is here, along with new owner name field codes, that level up the Property Management area. The addition of Bank Accounts now helps track Deposit destinations. The new My Support area helps users see their support ticket submissions and forum activity. And you know what else? These just scrape the surface of what July brought. Keep reading to learn about these and so much more.

• New Features
  • My Stay (Guest Portal) & Requirements
  • My Support
    • Ask Rezzy
    • Search Summaries
  • WhatsApp
  • Owner Bookings
  • Owner Name Field Codes
  • Bank Accounts
  • Direct Booking Seasonal Cancellation Policies
• Enhancements
  • Vendors
    • Contacts
    • PM Statement Views
  • Stripe
  • Nightly Rates
  • Airbnb Channel Integration
  • Photos
  • Booking Headers
  • Banned Guests
  • Booking.com Channel Integration
  • On & Off-site Activities
  • Notifications
    • Email History
    • Device Tests
  • Surcharges
    • Channel Integrations
    • Filters
  • Airbnb Channel Messaging
  • Tags
  • Smart Reviews
  • Channel Rate Tester
  • Past Webinars
  • OwnerRez Forum Post Emoji Reactions
• Rezzy AI 
  • Logs
  • Other Improvements
• Tweaks
  • July 1st Release with 2 Tweaks
  • July 8th Release with 4 Tweaks
  • July 15th Release with 2 Tweaks
  • July 22nd Release with 1 Tweak
  • July 29th Release with 3 Tweaks

New Features

My Stay (Guest Portal) & Requirements

In case you missed our June 25, 2026 - 👀 First Look: Your New Guest Portal email, we released My Stay (Guest Portal) & Requirements, which allows your guests to easily confirm contact information, complete custom fields, sign rental agreements, submit security deposits, and add or decline travel insurance (when available), all on one webpage, as part of our July 1st release.

As the host, the Booking Overview > Requirements section shows whether each booking is Met, Pending, or Not Met. This gives you instant visibility into what your guest has completed and what still requires action. Click on the upper-right kebab menu to copy the My Stay Guest Portal Link.

When you click on the upper-right 3-dots menu to copy the My Stay guest portal link, you can copy or preview the link, or compose an Email to the guest.

Hosts can monitor their guests' My Stay progress in the Requirements section of the Booking Overview, which is automatically updated as guests complete each required section.

The My Stay guest portal & Requirements are just the beginning. It first replaces the old {BUFIXUP} Booking Clean-Up guest form, but more importantly, it paves the way for new features. If you are still using the {BULEASE} Lease Form Link field code, and not yet using My Stay for your guests to finalize their booking (usually channel bookings) and track their progress with the Requirements section, we encourage you to consider making the switch to increase the guest experience.

What is your guests' experience? When your guest clicks the My Stay guest portal link you've sent them, they can complete your booking requirements: contact information, custom fields, signing the rental agreement, submitting the security deposit, and adding or declining travel insurance (when available), one by one. Guests can complete those sections by clicking on Get Started. All of this is fully mobile responsive.

After guests click Get Started, they'll be taken to the first required section, which in this case is to confirm their contact information (e.g., phone number, address, city, state, zip code). Some fields will be prefilled with the information OwnerRez already has. Your custom field requirements will be included in the Additional Questions section.

Depending on the booking requirements, guests will be guided through each step, including rental agreements, security deposits, and travel insurance options. If sections remain incomplete, My Stay will display a yellow Pending section label, and guests can click the Continue button. Completed sections have green labels (e.g., Confirmed, Signed, etc.).

If you don't require specific booking requirements such as custom fields, rental agreements, or security deposits, they won't appear in My Stay. Only your required booking options are shown to guests. For example, if a rental agreement isn't needed, it won't appear in the Requirements section of the Booking Overview or on the My Stay guest portal.

My Support

We all need a little help occasionally! OwnerRez is pleased to introduce the new My Support feature in our July 29th release, which brings your FREE Ask Rezzy chats, support tickets, and forum posts into a single in-app view, making it easier to find past answers and pick up where you left off.

Access your My Support page through Ask Rezzy by clicking on the Ask Rezzy/Help ? icon on the top menu, and clicking on the My Support link.

Hosts can also locate My Support by navigating to their Account menu and selecting My Support.

On the My Support page, you can access your Rezzy Conversations, Support Tickets, and Forum Activity all in one place.

Wondering what happened to the rest of the Help menu? You can still access those by clicking on the Other Help & Resources link within the Ask Rezzy window.

Clicking on the Other Help & Resources link within the Ask Rezzy window opens our Help menu.

Ask Rezzy

Ask Rezzy — OwnerRez's free in-app AI assistant offers instant, intelligent search with detailed summaries from support articles, guides, and blogs, plus direct links for further info—completely free for all users. With our July 29th release, OwnerRez has made Ask Rezzy more prominent and helpful in-app, allowing users to get the help they need immediately.

Ask Rezzy is now available immediately by clicking on the top ? icon.

Ask Rezzy utilizes the page you are currently viewing (such as booking, property, surcharge, etc.) to provide context for your questions. It includes links to support articles, enabling Rezzy to automatically resolve vague references, diagnose on-screen errors without requiring you to describe them, and identify when repeated issues may indicate a deeper problem that needs human assistance. If necessary, a link to create a support ticket is at the bottom.

Search Summaries

OwnerRez's Rezzy enhances your Support Center search experience by quickly searching support docs, blog posts, and guides to give instant, accurate answers—free for all users. Now, with our July 1st release, OwnerRez has added linked Support Center sources to Rezzy AI's search summaries, enabling users to quickly view instructions and details on the topic.

WhatsApp

WhatsApp Business, used by over 2 billion users globally, supports vacation rental businesses of all sizes, particularly for hosts outside the United States. With our July 22nd release, OwnerRez has made the WhatsApp Business integration available to all hosts, allowing them to connect directly, on an ad-hoc basis, with their guests via the OwnerRez Inbox.

😃 React to guest messages with emojis

Get started today by navigating to Settings >  > Messaging > WhatsApp > Connect WhatsApp.

Hosts should note that the OwnerRez WhatsApp integration does not support group messages or OwnerRez templates and trigger features.

Learn more by reading our WhatsApp Setup & Connecting support article.

Owner Bookings

Allowing owners to create their own bookings through the Team Access Portal to reserve their property for personal use gives them the full guest experience. OwnerRez has implemented Owner Booking capability in the Team Access Portal for Property Management premium feature users, allowing them to grant permission to owners to view, add, edit, and cancel their own owner bookings on their Portal with the July 1st release. This new feature includes the following.

PM users can grant these permissions to their owners by navigating to Team Access > Portal tab, then either inviting a new Portal user by clicking the + Invite Portal User button, or editing an existing Portal user by clicking the pencil edit icon next to their name or directly on their name, and then clicking the pencil edit icon at the top to edit > Permissions > Owner Booking, and selecting Add or Add/Edit/Cancel, and Save.

Once PM users have granted Team Access > Owner Booking permission to individual owners, owners can create their own bookings on their Owner Portal by navigating to their Calendar and clicking on the + Create Owner Booking button.

Owners can complete the Owner Booking by entering their booking details (e.g., Property, Stay dates, Guest information, Title, and Notes) and clicking Save.

When saved, the new owner's booking appears on the ribbon calendar when hovered over. Depending on their Team Access permissions, owners may be able to view the Overview, Charges, Transactions, and Files tabs for their own owner booking when logged in to their Owner Portal.

Need to find your owner bookings? PMs can filter by Booking Type in the Calendar List View.

Each owner booking includes all regular booking surcharges and taxes (if applicable) in the Booking > Charges tab. 

For full functionality, discounts, surcharges, and messaging triggers now include a Booking Type Condition to target Owner bookings.

Owner Name Field Codes

Maintaining good communication with your owners is imperative for property managers and users of the Property Management premium feature. OwnerRez added {OFIRST}, {OLAST}, and {OFULL} field codes for PM users to utilize in email templates, owner statements, triggers, and other communications, with our July 8th release, offering more flexibility than the existing {ONAME} field, supporting informal greetings and varied name formats when communicating with property owners.

Exploring Property Management? Check out OwnerRez's PM premium feature.

Bank Accounts

Recording deposits ensures your short-term rental finances are accurate and provides a clear record of what has been collected, making tax reporting much easier. With our July 15th release, hosts can now create and manage multiple bank accounts in the Financial area under Settings, with encrypted account numbers securely stored within the system and automatically associate imported deposits with the correct bank account using external identifiers. Stripe, Lynnbrook Group, and Airbnb deposits can be organized, filtered, and bulk-edited by bank account and are linked to the associated bookings.

Add your bank account by navigating to Settings > Financial > Bank Accounts > + Create Bank Account.

On the Deposits grid, you can select one or more individual deposits and associate a bank account with each deposit by clicking the Set Bank Account button.

In the Set Bank Account pop-up, select your desired bank account from the Bank Account dropdown list, then click Set Bank Account.

When manually changing or recording deposits, hosts can now select the associated bank account (or add a new one) from the Bank Account dropdown list.

Hosts can filter by bank account by clicking the Filter button in the Deposits grid, selecting the bank account from the Bank Account dropdown list, and clicking Apply.

Direct Booking Seasonal Cancellation Policies

Seasonal direct-booking cancellation policies tighten during peak times and relax in the off-season to protect revenue and stay competitive year-round. Following our June 10th release of Airbnb seasonal cancellation policies, OwnerRez has added the ability to configure seasonal cancellation policies for your direct bookings in our July 1st release.

If you set up multiple cancellation policies, you configure a direct booking seasonal cancellation policy by navigating to your specific season (Settings > Pricing > Seasons), creating a new Season by clicking + Create Season, or selecting an existing Season > Rules > Cancellation Policy > Direct Booking Policy, then choosing your preferred policy from the dropdown list.

Enhancements

Vendors

Contacts

Centralizing vendor contact information allows you to keep phone, email, and address details, ensuring records are accurate and easy to find. With our July 1st release, OwnerRez added Vendors as a contact type, letting you search, select, and merge vendor records the same way you manage other contacts, keeping expense tracking consistent.

Add a new Vendor contact by navigating to the left Contacts menu, and clicking the + Add Contact button. Notice that we've renamed the button from 'Guest' to 'Contact' for greater flexibility.

Enter your Vendor's contact information and the Contact Type (Owner or Vendor) on the Add Contact page, and click Save.

And your new Vendor contact will appear on the Contacts grid with the blue Vendor label in the Type column.

Just as with merging guests, users can merge their vendor contacts by selecting the vendors they want to merge and clicking Merge.

When Property Management premium feature users record an expense, they can select a vendor using the typeahead search in the Vendor field.

PM Statement Views

Adding a vendor column to owner statements to show which vendor each expense was paid to, making it easier to track spending by vendor. OwnerRez now includes the ability to add a vendor column to PM statement views, making it easy to review and track vendor expenses, as part of our July 22nd release.

Add a vendor column to your statement view by navigating to PM > Settings > Statement Views > + Create View or clicking on an existing Statement View. In the Expense Columns section, click + Add Column > Vendor.

When PM hosts generate a new Owner Statement from your saved Statement View, the Vendor column appears in the Expenses section.

Stripe

Stripe securely processes guest payments at competitive rates, with quick deposits and fraud detection, reducing manual work and transaction risks. With our July 29th release, Stripe payments can now be deposited in multiple installments, with OwnerRez tracking each partial deposit separately while maintaining full transaction history and ensuring accurate reporting across deposits, statements, and QuickBooks sync.

Nightly Rates

Setting appropriate rates for short-term vacation rentals is essential for profitability and occupancy. The Rate Change History shows the history of nightly rate and rule changes from the Rate Calendar, including who made the change and when. OwnerRez added new All, Rate, and Min Nights tabs to isolate those specific types of changes in the Rate Change History, making it easier to find Nightly Rate or Minimum Night adjustments among hundreds of updates, with our July 29th release.

To view the new Rate Change History All, Rate, and Min Nights tabs, go to your Rate Calendar, select a date, and click the upper circle arrow icon.

Airbnb Channel Integration

OwnerRez's Channel Management integrates with Airbnb and others, enabling hosts to connect properties for real-time updates on rates, rules, availability, and receive instant booking and guest data. OwnerRez has improved our Airbnb channel integration with continuous block syncing, additional import options, and Notifications when channel integrations are ready to connect, with our July 29th release.

Channel blocks now sync hourly during onboarding to avoid stale availability causing double-bookings, and imported blocks are tracked to prevent recreating canceled ones. The Requeue Import dropdown now offers granular options (Availability, Nightly Rates, Surcharges & Taxes, Description, Amenities, Bedrooms & Bathrooms, Photos, Rules), allowing hosts to refresh blocks without overwriting dynamic pricing rates, limiting them to the types initially imported.

To remind hosts to complete their channel integrations, system notifications are sent when a listing finishes importing and is ready to go live.

Photos

High-quality photos give guests a clear, accurate view of your property before booking, building trust and reducing surprises at check-in. With our July 22nd release, OwnerRez automatically deduplicates photos when importing the same property from either Airbnb or Vrbo, keeping the highest-quality version regardless of import order and preserving captions, ensuring that all of your property photos in OwnerRez are accurate.

Booking Headers

While OwnerRez has displayed early or late check-in/out times on booking headers for a while now, we have now added all check-in/out times next to the dates in booking headers, as part of our July 22nd release, ensuring hosts are aware of each booking's check-in/out times.

Banned Guests

Banning problematic guests protects your property and reputation by preventing repeat damage, rule violations, and disruptive behaviors for future guests. OwnerRez has expanded its banned guest checks to prevent inquiries, quotes, and trigger-based quote creation for banned guests attempting to inquire or receive quotes for future stays, with the July 1st release.

While hosts can prevent banned guests from direct bookings (and inquiries and quotes), OwnerRez has no control over whether a banned guest books your property through another listing site (e.g., Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo). In the unfortunate event that a banned guest books your property through a listing site, we now notify hosts so they can manage the reservation appropriately.

Booking.com Channel Integration

Connecting an additional Booking.com account lets you manage separate properties or business entities while keeping calendars, pricing, and bookings synced independently. OwnerRez added the ability to connect additional Booking.com channel connections with our July 8th release.

Add an additional Booking.com channel connection by navigating to Settings > Channel Management > Channel Integrations > + Connect a Channel > Connect another Booking.com.

Continue the regular Booking.com channel integration process, and when complete, those connections will be displayed in your Channel Integrations grid.

Explore all the OwnerRez Channel Management options.

On & Off-site Activities 

Certain amenities, such as a bowling alley, climbing wall, hockey rink, laser tag, mini golf, or skate ramp, may be mistakenly listed as on-site by listing channels (e.g., Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo), causing confusion for guests. In case you missed our July 07, 2026, Action Recommended: Review Your Property Amenities email blast, OwnerRez added a "Proximity" selection for on- and off-site activities, allowing hosts to specify whether these activities are On-Site or Off-Site, with our July 8th release.

Check out this new option by navigating to Properties > your specific Property > Listing Content > Location > Sports & Adventure Activities, and check the activity checkbox.

Then click on the right-side checkbox to select on or off-site.

Existing amenities will default to Off-Site after July 8th. If an amenity is actually on-site, you’ll need to update it so it continues to sync to listing channels (e.g., Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo) appropriately.

Notifications

Email History

System notification emails send automatic email alerts for key account and booking events, such as bookings, payments, or account changes, allowing you to stay on top of your business in real time. With our July 29th release, OwnerRez has duplicated and moved System notification emails from Communication History to the Account → Notifications → History tab.

Device Tests

Enabling OwnerRez email or push notifications ensures timely updates about bookings or messages without constant checking in-app or email. But if hosts haven't received a recent notification, they may wonder whether their device is still properly subscribed. OwnerRez added the ability to test your subscribed devices with our July 8th release.

Hosts can test their subscribed devices by navigating to My Profile > Notifications > Devices tab, and clicking on the Test button.

After you click the Test button, you'll receive a notification from Rezzy on your subscribed device.

Surcharges 

Channel Integrations 

Surcharges help cover operational costs and services for maintaining and managing your short-term vacation rental property for guests. With our July 22nd release, the OwnerRez system detects conflicts with existing surcharges and automatically splits them by listing channel when importing surcharges or fees from Airbnb or Vrbo.

If an imported fee matches an existing surcharge (same type and amount), the existing fee is reused. If there's a conflict (same type but different settings), the existing fee is restricted to "everything but Airbnb," while the imported fee applies to "only Airbnb," with the same application to imported Vrbo surcharges.

Filters

Even though the Surcharges grid Description column displayed Rate Adjustments, the Filter > Type dropdown list did not include a Rate Adjustment option, so there was no way to filter the grid to show only Rate Adjustment surcharges. With our July 29th release, OwnerRez added the Rate Adjustment option to the Surcharges Filter > Type dropdown list.

Airbnb Channel Messaging

Corresponding with Airbnb guests directly in the Inbox allows hosts to unify their guest messaging. OwnerRez enabled copying text and links, and clicking links in the Inbox with a long press on mobile for Airbnb channel messaging in the July 15th release.

Long-pressing on an Airbnb channel message in the Inbox opens the menu to react, copy text, open, or copy links.

Tags

Tags help organize and remind you about bookings, guests, inquiries, properties, or quotes, but finding your disabled tags could be difficult, until our July 1st release. OwnerRez has improved the Tag deletion and disabling workflow by allowing users to quickly and easily disable or delete a Tag from associated bookings, guests, inquiries, properties, or quotes.

When users disable a tag, the Disable Tags pop-up displays any tag attachments and offers the options to Remove & Disable. Just Disable, or Cancel.

Disabled tags will continue to appear on bookings as greyed-out tags. Deleted tags are removed completely.

When deleting a tag, the Delete Tags pop-up displays any tag attachments and offers Remove & Delete and Cancel options.

Users should note that there is no Are you sure? option. Once a Tag is disabled or deleted, you'll have to enable or recreate it.

Smart Reviews

OwnerRez automates 5-star review sending with Smart Reviews; however, skipped review email notifications only showed a generic message that the review "wasn't sent based on your rules and settings." With our July 8th release, OwnerRez will include the specific reasons for skipped Smart Reviews in email notifications.

Channel Rate Tester

The Channel Rate Tester lets you run quotes using channel integration logic and compare them with OwnerRez quotes. However, determining how Airbnb discounts or rate adjustments affect the quote can be murky. We added a Notes section in the Channel Rate Tester to detail which Airbnb rate adjustments or discounts are not included in the Channel Rate Tester, to remind hosts of the possibility of discrepancies, with our July 1st release.

Past Webinars

Past OwnerRez Webinars provide recorded sessions on features, best practices, and partner integrations, helping you learn the platform at your own pace. OwnerRez improved the Past Webinars page to now support keyword search and filtering by Type (e.g., Partner, Focus Session, Under The Hood, Live Q&A, First Look) and Partners, with the July 29th release. Sorting options include Most Recent, Oldest, and Partner Name (A–Z/Z–A), and each webinar tile displays the date, type, title, and duration.

OwnerRez Forum Post Emoji Reactions

Allowing emoji reactions on forum posts lets users quickly express agreement, gratitude, or feedback without writing a full reply. With our July 1st release, OwnerRez users can now react to forum posts, blog comments, and posts in the Latest Posts view with eight emoji reactions: Like, Heart, Smile, Surprise, Celebrate, Sad, Clap, and Rezzy. Multiple distinct reactions can be applied to a single post (Slack-style), and reaction counts are publicly visible.

Anonymous forum visitors can see existing reactions, but they will be prompted to log in when they attempt to react.

Rezzy AI

Logs

OwnerRez's Rezzy AI is an all-in-one virtual and messaging assistant designed exclusively for OwnerRez users. On July 15th, we added "Rezzy reviewed" log links that direct hosts to the correct Rezzy log for inbound guest messages, explaining Rezzy AI's reasoning for responding or not.

When a guest sends several messages in a row, Rezzy AI reviews and coalesces all the messages and only responds to the latest one (which includes the entire thread in its context), so that only the last message gets "Rezzy reviewed" log links.

When hosts click the Rezzy reviewed log link, they'll be taken directly to the associated log that explains Rezzy AI's reasoning for not responding.

Other Improvements

OwnerRez continues to improve Rezzy AI, our all-in-one virtual and messaging assistant. With our July 15th release, we enhanced Rezzy AI to include the following.

Tweaks

July 1st Release with 2 Tweaks

Enable pre-registration in OwnerRez before Airbnb’s Highly Rated Guest discount is released. Airbnb Highly Rated Guest discounts can be configured in OwnerRez before Airbnb's official release on July 8th. Discounts created during the pre-registration period are automatically applied once Airbnb enables support.

Update in-app forms to use a uniform gray style for inputs and buttons. In-app form elements now display a consistent gray focus ring instead of the previous green styling, providing a more uniform appearance throughout the application. 

July 8th Release with 4 Tweaks

Change "Id" to "Owner #" on the PM owner overview page. We changed "Id" to "Owner #" on the PM owner overview page to match our format elsewhere in the app.

Display PM expense attachments as compact tiles. OwnerRez updated the attachments section on expense detail pages, now showing files as a vertical list of tiles rather than a grid, making better use of space since most expenses have only one or two attachments.

Update Airbnb channel integration map pin links, and add tooltips to buttons. OwnerRez updated the Airbnb channel integration map pin links to Airbnb's current URL format, ensuring the links open the correct search results page rather than redirecting to the Airbnb homepage. Additionally, tooltips have been added to the "Copy listing ID" and "View on map" buttons for better clarity.

Update file upload pop-up box border styling to match the latest design system. We applied the updated design to the pop-up box borders shown when uploading files to custom fields in bookings, ensuring consistent styling across the application.

July 15th Release with 2 Tweaks

Enable Airbnb Highly Rated Guest discounts for all. OwnerRez enabled Airbnb's Highly Rated Guest discounts for everyone.

Improve Booking.com license validation error messages with actionable instructions. When Booking.com (BDC) rejects an OwnerRez property because of missing or invalid license/registration details during the BDC channel integration, OwnerRez now displays a friendly message that directs hosts to update their license/registration information in the BDC Extranet, rather than a confusing error message that references an unsupported "Licenses API."

July 22nd Release with 1 Tweak

Improve in-app file upload progress bar styling. OwnerRez has improved all in-app file upload bar stylings.

July 29th Release with 3 Tweaks

Include direct Meta Business Support appeal links in WhatsApp template category mismatch system messages. When Meta reclassifies a WhatsApp template category (e.g., from Utility to Marketing), the OwnerRez system alert email now includes a direct link to appeal the classification in Meta Business Support.

Add support for more credit card formats, including 19-digit Visa and 2-series Mastercard. While the final decision remains with hosts' payment processors, OwnerRez added support for 19-digit Visa (common on EU/UK debit cards), 17-19 digit Discover/JCB, and 2-series Mastercard prefixes (2221-2720).

Prevent "Act as Host" escalation when Rezzy is set to reply automatically. When Rezzy AI's answering mode is set to Reply Automatically, the Act as Host escalation option is now disabled and automatically switches to Refer to Host, ensuring guests always know a human is involved when Rezzy can't complete a reply.

We’re excited to announce our latest integration with STRLY, offering OwnerRez users a new way to protect their properties through accidental damage waivers and guest verification.

About STRLY

STRLY is a global platform that offers hosts enhanced property protection through accidental damage waivers and guest verification. A completely flexible, automated, and customizable protection that allows hosts to protect their properties, whilst maintaining guest experience.

Features

• Complete Integration: STRLY integrates directly with OwnerRez to sync reservations and streamline operations automatically.
• Worldwide Protection: STRLY provides damage protection designed for short-term rentals worldwide, helping you safeguard your properties and give guests a great experience.
• Industry-Leading Customer Support: Their dedicated, 5-star-rated support team is there to help every step of the way, providing fast and knowledgeable assistance to ensure your damage protection runs smoothly.

Pricing

No monthly fees, no listing fees, no hidden charges, and no contracts. Contact STRLY for a custom quote.

Ready to Connect?

Get started with STRLY by visiting here, and check out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with STRLY.

The summer booking season is in full swing, and this July, we’ve got a packed lineup of webinars and upcoming in-person events to help you get the most out of OwnerRez. ☀️

This month’s webinar schedule includes live demos, Q&A sessions, and Focus Sessions covering recently enhanced pages and brand-new features you can put to work today! We’re also hosting two partner webinars this month. Mark Simpson, Founder of Boostly, will share how AI agents can automate repetitive tasks, and the Airbnb Market Management team will walk through Airbnb’s newest features and promotions.

Plus, registration is now open for the 2026 OwnerRez Roadshow! We’ll be making stops in Blue Ridge, GA, Gulf Shores, AL, and Tampa, FL for three FREE full-day events featuring industry experts, networking, roundtable discussions, and opportunities to connect with the OwnerRez team. We can’t wait to see you on the road this summer!

Webinars:

 7/7/2026 OwnerRez Demo

Join us for a live demo of OwnerRez! Our client engagement team will give a high-level demonstration of how OwnerRez looks across all of its menus and features.

Register now!

 7/9/2026 Boostly/OwnerRez - How to Build AI Agents That Work While You Sleep (No Coding Required)

Join us for a live webinar with Mark Simpson, Founder of Boostly, to learn the exact framework he uses to build AI agents that log in on schedule, run multi-step jobs, and report back, all while you're sleeping.

Register now!

 7/10/2026 OwnerRez Q&A

Join us for a live Q&A! Please write in questions prior to the webinar so we can start off by answering those right away.

Register now!

 7/14/2026 Airbnb/OwnerRez - New Airbnb Features Explained

Join us for a live webinar where the Airbnb Market Management team will walk through its newest features and promotions to help you make informed decisions about your listing strategy.

Register now!

 7/15/2026 Focus Session - My Stay Guest Portal

Join us for a live webinar on the brand-new My Stay Guest Portal inside OwnerRez. In this Focus Session, we’ll show how the new guest portal gives guests a single place to confirm their contact information, complete custom fields, sign rental agreements, submit security deposits, and more.

Register now!

 7/16/2026 OwnerRez Demo

Join us for a live demo of OwnerRez! Our client engagement team will give a high-level demonstration of how OwnerRez looks across all of its menus and features.

Register now!

 7/21/2026 OwnerRez Demo

Join us for a live demo of OwnerRez! Our client engagement team will give a high-level demonstration of how OwnerRez looks across all of its menus and features.

Register now!

 7/24/2026 OwnerRez Q&A

Join us for a live Q&A! Please write in questions prior to the webinar so we can start off by answering those right away.

Register now!

 7/29/2026 Focus Session - Accommodations, Amenities & Location 

Join us for a live webinar on the recently redesigned Accommodations, Amenities, and Location pages inside OwnerRez. In this Focus Session, we’ll walk through setting up these listing content sections and share practical tips for keeping your listings optimized across all your connected channels.

Register now!

 7/30/2026 OwnerRez Demo

Join us for a live demo of OwnerRez! Our client engagement team will give a high-level demonstration of how OwnerRez looks across all of its menus and features.

Register now!

Upcoming In-Person Events:

2026 OwnerRez Roadshow

Join us for the first-ever OwnerRez Roadshow! This August, we’re hitting the road with our co-hosts Rental Guardian, Lynnbrook Group, Turno, Avalara, and StayFi for three FREE full-day events bringing together vacation rental owners, property managers, and industry partners for a day of education, networking, and community building. We'll be making stops in Blue Ridge, GA, Gulf Shores, AL, and Tampa, FL!

📍Blue Ridge, GA

• August 1st, 2026
• University of North Georgia – Blue Ridge Campus
• Register for free!

📍Gulf Shores, AL 

• August 3rd, 2026
• SpringHill Suites Orange Beach at The Wharf
• Register for free!

📍Tampa, FL

• August 5th, 2026
• USF CAMLS
• Register for free!

The day will feature talks from STR industry experts, roundtable discussions, an all-speaker Q&A panel, FREE coffee, a FREE lunch, and plenty of opportunities to connect with the OwnerRez team and co-hosts. Whether you’re new to the vacation rental industry or a seasoned operator, this is a great opportunity to learn, connect, and meet the people behind the tools you use every day. Registration is now live! We’re excited to meet you in person this summer!

This week, we are excited to feature Priscila Acerbi and Daniela Botero, founders of LuxeHaus Stays. Built on the belief that owners get better results from hosts who run their own rentals and know the local market, they have created a successful vacation rental management company serving Palm Beach County and Florida’s Treasure Coast.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history and background?

LuxeHaus Stays is run by me and my business partner, Daniela. We started the company here in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, after I had been managing my own short-term rental for a few years. My four-bedroom property in Port St. Lucie is where we test everything the company does first.

We built LuxeHaus around a simple idea: owners get better results from hosts who actually run their own rental and know the local area than from a large management company that treats every home the same.

Were you always in vacation rentals or property management? If not, what did you do before?

I started by hosting my own home several years ago, fell in love with the guest side of it, and turned it into a business. I have a background in technology and Daniela in the legal field, so we put both to work for our owners. The tech side means we get to do fun things like build custom direct booking sites for our owners using the OwnerRez widgets, and use AI to analyze pricing trends against the market and our competitors. The legal side means we stay ahead of Florida's short-term rental regulations and help our owners keep up with their tax remittance requirements.

Are you from the geographical area where your properties are located, or did you move there later?

I grew up in Miami and Daniela in West Palm Beach, so we know this stretch of Florida well and have watched the demand and vacation market shift over the years. Now we both live in Palm Beach County. LuxeHaus's service area runs up the coast through Palm Beach, Martin, and St Lucie counties, and being local means we read those markets the way someone flying in never could.

What do you love most about the vacation rental business?

The guest side. We get to be part of someone's vacation, a family reunion, a long-awaited trip, and a well-run stay makes the whole thing easier for them. The owner side is just as rewarding. When we hand an owner a clean monthly statement and a payout, and they can see exactly where every dollar came from, that trust means everything to us.

What do you dislike the most about it?

The rules change constantly, and they change by town. Short-term rental licensing in Florida varies from one municipality to the next, so part of our job is staying on top of what each city and county requires before a home ever goes live. It is not glamorous, but getting it wrong is expensive for an owner, so we treat it seriously.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

OwnerRez is the center of our operation. It is our channel manager and our property management system, so one calendar runs Airbnb, Vrbo, Google Vacation Rentals, and our own direct booking site at the same time. We run our direct bookings through the OwnerRez booking widget on our website with hosted checkout, we automate some of our guest messaging but not all of it, because we believe in actually talking to our guests, and we handle security deposits through it. On the back end, the QuickBooks integration is what makes our trust accounting work, so every booking flows into the books cleanly. We also sync PriceLabs through OwnerRez, so our nightly pricing updates on its own. And we give our cleaners calendar access through OwnerRez, which keeps their turnovers scheduled without us chasing dates.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

The channel manager, without question. Running every channel plus direct bookings off one calendar means we never double-book and we never manage rates in four places. A close second is how well it connects to the rest of our stack. The QuickBooks and PriceLabs integrations let a two-person company run like a much larger one, and that is the whole point for us.

Priscila and Daniela have built an elite management company through local expertise and firsthand experience in the industry. We look forward to seeing LuxeHaus Stays continue to grow this year!

This week, we are highlighting Gerry Leco, founder of Your Florida Vacation Villa. After years of investing in long-term rentals, Gerry and his wife made the move into short-term rentals and now manage 11 standout vacation villas in Orlando, Florida.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

My wife and I live in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (GO STEELERS!) with our two (almost adult) children. We love music, restaurants and travel! My mother is from Luxembourg and still has family there, so we have travelled quite a bit throughout Europe as well as the USA, Canada and a bit of Central America. We rarely go to the same place twice, as there is so much to see in the world! We started to invest in real estate on the side in the late 90’s. We stumbled into vacation rentals around 2016, and it has been so much fun and rewarding that we made this our full-time business. STRs are all we do for a living now. My family directly owns nine villas, and I handle bookings for two other owners. It has its ups and downs, but we wouldn’t trade it for anything!

What is your background?

I have degree in Computer Science and my wife has a degree in Occupational Therapy, but both of us had have had many careers. I have worked as a general contractor, a software engineer, a managing partner and COO in a healthcare company and am now a real estate investor. My wife was an occupational therapist, a purchasing account manager and a bookkeeper. We are both very adventurous with our career moves! Now that we are a full-time STR business, I handle all the bookings, property remodels and customer service aspects. My wife handles the finances for our business.

Were you always in vacation rentals or property management?

We dabbled in real estate with long-term rentals for about 20 years before finding the STR market. We bought two-family homes in a very trendy area in Pittsburgh. We gutted them down to bare studs and remodeled them to high standards. This was a safe approach for collecting rent regularly and building equity, but the returns are lower on high-end rentals due to the costs in purchasing and remodels. We were struggling to get 5% returns while associates of mine who were in lower rent properties were getting 15% to 30% returns. Once we stumbled into STR properties, we quickly realized we could get the best of both worlds! Our STR properties are high-end properties, but with returns of 10% to 30%.

Are you from the geographical area where your properties are located?

We do not live in Florida, where all of our properties are located. When I was in healthcare, there was a convention that we attended every year that alternated between Orlando and Las Vegas. When it was in Orlando, they always had some Disney hotels available at convention rates, so I would take my family with me as I could expense some of the trip. One year (maybe around 2014), the convention did not offer any Disney hotels, so my wife had the idea to rent a vacation home instead. This was completely new to me, but we loved it! Staying on property at Disney can be magical, but we quickly decided that there are many benefits of a rental home that made the stay so much better.

First, we could at least eat breakfast at home, and that is one less meal to pay Disney prices for! We also had some dietary needs for our children that were easier to accommodate. Second, we loved being able to come home and drink wine and play cards after the kids were asleep in their own rooms. No more sitting quietly in a dark hotel room watching TV with the volume off! Third, and this is hard to believe, but if you had to take a bus back to your Disney hotel, we could be back at our STR and in the pool long before you would normally get back to your hotel (and the pool is open all night at our STR!). Finally, PRICE!!!

What do you love most about the vacation rental business?

There are several things about the STR business that I love. The first is that 99% of our guests are happy and pleasant! I’m sure being in the Disney market helps, because for many guests, their Disney trips are the trip of a lifetime. I am a people person, and I love interacting with my guests. I even help many guests plan their trips, as I have become so familiar with everything within a four-hour radius of our villas!

Second, I love the creativity involved in theming our villas. I have a local management company to handle maintenance and cleaning, but I do all the painting and decorating myself. Last, but certainly not least, I love the business! I prefer to work for myself, I love building equity for retirement, and I can run the whole business from my phone from anywhere in the world. When I am not in Florida, I work from home, and so does my wife, so we have gotten to spend so much time with our children as they have grown up.

What do you dislike the most about it?

The other 1% of guests!!! I was fortunate to work closely with sales teams when I was in healthcare, and that taught me a lot. Building rapport with guests is one of the most important things you can do. I have helped several other people get started in this business, and one thing I tell them is, if you build a good rapport with your guest, they are much more likely to give you a good review, even if you didn’t deserve it and much less likely to give you a bad review.

However, every once in a while, you run into a guest who simply cannot be pleased, no matter what you do! This is the most frustrating feeling because you know you have bent over backwards to please them, and they are still going to leave a bad review, and unless they violate some channel rules in that review, you are unlikely to get it taken down. I consider any review less than five stars to be a bad review. At this point, we have close to 1000 reviews across our properties in all channels, with about 93% being five stars, so it is much easier to survive a bad review, but personally, it hurts.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

OwnerRez is the most important piece of software we use to run our business. Sure, we could survive without it, but our workload would increase tenfold. We, of course, use OwnerRez as a channel manager, but to be honest, in our market, there are only two to three channels that matter. That is not a knock on channel management, but praise to OwnerRez for being the first channel manager to not charge separately for this feature. We use OwnerRez for all direct bookings, credit card processing, bookkeeping integration, communication management (templates are key), and owner management for the villas we don’t own. I don’t think there are many features in OwnerRez that we do not use to some degree!

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

Automation!!! The ability to automate so many tasks and activities is what makes OwnerRez so helpful. We use custom fields to differentiate items specific to properties and then use templates and triggers with these fields to cut down on the number of templates and triggers needed. The QuickBooks integration saved us about 80% of our accounting work once we took the time to set it up. Tags help us keep track of the status properties from booking to arrival. Reports help us pay taxes and report commissions to our owner customers.

There are so many things, I can’t list them! The OwnerRez team is great about constantly improving or updating things. As an example, I was having a bit of an argument with a certain channel about floor plans not being allowed as pictures. I didn’t want to exclude these from all channels, as many guests ask for them, and then just recently OwnerRez put out an update allowing pictures to be restricted from certain channels.

Gerry and his wife have done an excellent job creating a thriving STR business in Orlando, Florida. We look forward to seeing Your Florida Vacation Villa continue to grow and deliver amazing experiences for guests for years to come.

This week’s roundup covers Airbnb’s continued efforts to reduce disruptive parties, Sydney’s review of its short-term rental regulations, new licensing requirements in Salt Lake City, and the latest developments surrounding Bill 9 in Maui. Let’s dive in.

Airbnb announced this week that it is once again rolling out its anti-party system ahead of Fourth of July weekend. The system is designed to identify and block high-risk bookings for entire homes in an effort to reduce disruptive parties. This marks the fifth consecutive year Airbnb has implemented these measures for the holiday. Airbnb says the system helped block or redirect more than 20,000 people from booking entire home listings across the U.S. during the 2025 holiday weekend, with fewer than 0.06% of all U.S. stays throughout the year resulting in a reported party.

Following the recent release of stricter short-term rental tax rules by the Australian Tax Office, covered in Industry News on May 29th, the City of Sydney is reviewing the impact of its current short-term rental regulations. Officials are evaluating whether the existing 180-night cap on non-owner-occupied rentals is helping return homes to the long-term housing market and whether additional measures may be needed. Potential changes being discussed include reducing the cap to 90 nights and incorporating occupancy rates into future regulations. Airbnb has pushed back on the review, arguing that officials should focus on enforcing existing rules and increasing housing supply rather than introducing additional restrictions.

Salt Lake City, Utah, passed new short-term rental regulations this week as part of its 2026-2027 budget, requiring vacation rental operators offering stays of less than 30 days to obtain a business license beginning July 1st. The rules cap rentals at 200 nights per year, require a two-night minimum stay requirement, and require operators to designate an emergency contact. The ordinance also requires listings to meet city safety codes, allow inspections to verify compliance, and set limits on short-term rentals in multifamily buildings. Violations could result in weekly fines of up to $1,000 and the loss of a license.

Previously reported in Industry News on May 29th, Maui County Council voted 7-2 this week to give final approval to Bill 88, a measure that creates two new hotel zoning districts, H-3 and H-4. Based on recommendations from the council’s Temporary Investigative Group for Bill 9, which will phase out short-term rentals in apartment-zoned districts, Bill 88 creates a pathway for some vacation rentals impacted by Bill 9 to seek hotel zoning and potentially continue operating as short-term rentals. The bill now heads to the Mayor for final approval.

As local governments continue to evaluate short-term rental regulations and platforms roll out new systems to address guest-related issues, the vacation rental industry continues to take shape in 2026. Check back next week for the latest news.

This week, we are featuring Kendra Hendrix, founder of Vacay To The Smokies and an OwnerRez user for nearly four years. Raised around cabin rentals and hospitality in East Tennessee, Kendra has now built her own collection of properties in the Smoky Mountains, focused on helping guests slow down, reconnect, and create lasting memories together.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

I was born and raised in East Tennessee and moved to Miami, Florida, after graduating from the University of Tennessee. My husband and I met in Miami, and after our first child was born, we decided to move back to the Great Smoky Mountains area to be closer to family and more actively manage our vacation rental cabins in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.

My husband was born and raised near Branson, Missouri, so this region feels familiar and comfortable to both of us. We feel incredibly fortunate to call the Smokies home and to have the opportunity to host guests who come here to experience everything this beautiful area has to offer.

What is your background?

I grew up in the hospitality industry. My parents built and managed cabins in the Great Smoky Mountains while I was growing up, and we also operated a bed and breakfast long before Airbnb existed. We hosted overnight guests, weddings, and special events, so welcoming travelers was simply a way of life for our family. At nine years old, my first official job title was "Fruit Plate Creator," and I took great pride in preparing fruit plates for guests to enjoy at breakfast each morning.

Looking back, my family was constantly transforming unique spaces into guest accommodations, so income-producing properties and hospitality entrepreneurship were on my radar from a very early age. When I attended college in Knoxville, I purchased my first home and immediately rented out two of the bedrooms. After graduating from UT, I moved to Miami and shifted my focus from cabin rentals to opening a dance studio while also working in the restaurant side of the hospitality industry.

Were you always in vacation rentals or property management? If not, what did you do before?

It's actually both my first and now my third career. I found my way back to vacation rentals after operating my dance studio in Miami for nearly eight years. While I enjoyed that chapter of my life, hospitality and vacation rentals always felt like home. Today, my husband and I own and manage several vacation rental properties in the Great Smoky Mountains through Vacay To The Smokies.

One of our most exciting current projects is our Hidden Gem Cabin Series, a collection of thoughtfully designed luxury cabins created specifically for couples seeking a romantic Smoky Mountain getaway. Each cabin has its own unique character and design theme, but they all share the same goal: creating memorable experiences that help guests slow down, reconnect, and enjoy the natural beauty of the Smokies. Building and growing this collection has allowed us to combine my lifelong hospitality background with our passion for creating exceptional guest experiences.

Are you from the geographical area where your properties are located, or did you move there later?

Even though I was born and raised in East Tennessee, I actually relate more to the idea that I moved here. When I left for Miami, I never imagined I would return permanently. Life had other plans, and coming back to the Smokies turned out to be one of the best decisions our family ever made.

If you moved there later, what drew you to the area?

Beyond having family nearby, the Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg area of the Great Smoky Mountains offers an incredible experience for travelers. One of the things that makes the region so special is its accessibility. Roughly two-thirds of the U.S. population lives within an eight-hour drive, making it an easy vacation destination for millions of people. The mountains are breathtaking year-round, and the communities continue to invest in attractions, dining, entertainment, and infrastructure to support the nearly 14 million visitors who come to the area annually. Whether you're a family, a couple seeking a romantic getaway, a solo traveler, or a large group, there is truly something here for everyone.

What do you love most about the vacation rental business?

I love creating spaces that guests can enjoy during some of their most meaningful moments together. One of the unique things about vacation rentals is that all of the work happens before the guest arrives. If you've done your job well, you're somewhere else while families are making memories, couples are reconnecting, and travelers are relaxing and enjoying the experience you've helped create. That philosophy has guided many of our projects, especially our Hidden Gem Cabin Series. We intentionally design each cabin to feel unique and memorable, with thoughtful details that encourage guests to slow down, enjoy their surroundings, and create lasting memories together.

What do you dislike the most about it?

"Dislike" is probably too strong of a word, but I will say that I greatly appreciate having a degree in psychology. It has given me valuable insight into guest communication, especially when navigating challenging situations. Over the years, I've learned that setting clear expectations and communicating proactively solves most problems before they happen. Being the primary communicator and problem solver for our guests has taught me a tremendous amount about people and customer service.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

We love OwnerRez and take advantage of many of the features it offers to manage our vacation rental business more efficiently. I especially appreciate the ability to automatically process payments from booking channels, as well as the email templates and automation tools. Everything from the wording of the messages to the timing of when they're sent just makes practical sense.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

That's almost impossible to answer because there are so many useful features. What I appreciate most is that the platform clearly feels like it was designed by people who have actually managed properties themselves. I've used several property management systems over the years, and often it's the smallest tasks that consume the most time. OwnerRez seems to eliminate many of those friction points.

I'm also a big fan of Rezzy AI. Having response drafts generated and ready for review makes guest communication much faster while still allowing for a personal touch. Thank you for building a system that feels like it was created by people with real-world experience, common sense, and a deep understanding of the vacation rental industry.

Kendra has done an impressive job building a business centered around helping guests slow down, reconnect, and create lasting memories in the Smoky Mountains. We look forward to continuing to support Vacay To The Smokies and are excited to see what they do next.

This week’s roundup covers AirDNA’s latest U.S. market report, Airbnb.org’s new disaster response partnership, Whimstay’s launch of same-day bookings, and proposed short-term rental regulation changes in Manatee County, Florida. Let’s dive in.

AirDNA released its May 2026 U.S. market review this week, highlighting continued growth across several key metrics. According to the report, Revenue per Available Rental (RevPAR) increased 2.6% year-over-year to $147.97, occupancy averaged 57.2% (up 0.5% year-over-year), and Average Daily Rates (ADR) climbed 2.1% compared to last year to $258.91. Looking ahead, AirDNA noted encouraging signs for continued growth in the second half of 2026, including strong demand for Fourth of July travel, which is currently pacing 10.3% above last year.

On Tuesday, Airbnb and Airbnb.org announced a new partnership with the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) to improve disaster preparedness and emergency response ahead of hurricane season. The agreement will help provide free emergency housing for people displaced by natural disasters across 20 Caribbean member countries. Under the partnership, CDEMA will coordinate with local responders to identify people in need of emergency housing, while Airbnb.org will help provide free stays through the Airbnb platform. Airbnb.org says it has provided more than 1,500 nights of emergency housing across the Caribbean since 2020 and will use this new partnership to mobilize faster and provide free housing to more people when they need it most.

Whimstay announced this week the launch of same-day bookings on its platform, allowing guests to book participating vacation rental listings up to four hours before check-in. The new booking option is designed to help operators fill vacant nights and capture last-minute demand. To support a faster booking process, Whimstay has also added real-time fraud-prevention tools to help reduce the risk for operators. For OwnerRez users interested in integrating with Whimstay, please check out our support article here for more information.

On Tuesday, Manatee County Commissioners voted to review the county’s short-term rental ordinance and explore potential changes. Among the measures being considered are occupancy and parking limits, as well as a requirement for owners or property managers to be available 24/7 and respond to complaints within one hour. Violations could result in fines ranging from $250 to $5,000. With no changes currently approved, now is a great time for local operators to get involved and make their voices heard as discussions move forward.

As new market data emerges, platforms roll out new features, and local governments weigh regulatory changes, the vacation rental industry continues to evolve. Check back next week for the latest news.

This is wonderful! I would love it if Scott would be open to talking to me about a property I manage in Costa Rica.

Meet Teara Galbraith, founder of Visit Island Park Idaho, and an OwnerRez user since 2019. Driven by a love for travel and the outdoors, Teara has built a portfolio of eight properties focused on helping guests discover the area’s natural beauty.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

I’m a programmer and developer, with experience in souvenir shop sales and portrait photography. Property management was not my original career path. I was always a traveler, and over time, I bought property in an area I loved and planned to retire in.

Are you from the geographical area where your properties are located, or did you move there later?

I’m from an area not too far from where my properties are located, and one of the biggest things I love about it is being so close to national parks and nature. That connection to the outdoors is a huge part of both my personal life and my business.

What do you love most about the vacation rental business?

What I love most about the vacation rental business is the opportunity to share with others the chance to experience so many amazing things in nature. It is rewarding to help guests discover the area's beauty and create memorable stays.

What do you dislike the most about it?

What I like least is dealing with rude or high-maintenance guests, which can sometimes take away from the experience of hosting.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

I use OwnerRez to help manage communication and property management for my business. The most useful features for me are the communication tools and the ability to integrate with other companies, such as TouchStay. I also appreciate the fact that the platform clearly understands the needs of short-term rental owners.

Teara has done an excellent job of creating a thriving vacation rental business in Idaho. We look forward to continuing to support her business through our communication and integration features.

We’re excited to announce our new integration with hostAI, an AI-powered direct booking platform for short-term rental operators.

About hostAI

hostAI is the AI-powered direct booking platform for short-term rental operators: a conversion-optimized website and booking engine (hostFront) with automated content marketing and programmatic SEO built-in, managed paid acquisition through Google Ads (hostDistro), and hyper-personalized email marketing on auto-pilot (hostMail). Launch in 3–5 business days, convert 2-4x better than standard STR sites, run paid campaigns at 5-11x return on ad spend, and shift bookings away from OTAs into your highest-margin channel.

Features

hostFront: Intelligent STR websites that convert lookers to bookers

• Programmatic SEO
• AI search
• Personalized pricing

hostMail: Win repeat customers with automated emails

• Useful personalization
• Dedicated booking engine
• Smart retargeting

hostDistro: Automated ads that reach your ideal guests

• AI-powered Google Ads
• Automated landing pages

Pricing

No setup fees. No minimum duration. hostAI plans start at $299/month for operators with 5-50 listings, with additional plans available for larger businesses. View full pricing info here.

Ready to Connect?

Get started with hostAI by visiting here, and check out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with hostAI.

This week, we are excited to feature Scott Bittner, founder of My Costa Rica Homes and an OwnerRez user since 2022. After falling in love with Costa Rica during a vacation in 2020, Scott and his wife have steadily built a standout collection of short-term rentals in the area. Today, they use OwnerRez to remotely manage their nine properties while continuing to grow their business.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

I got started in the short-term rental business in 2010 with a single condo that I owned in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. What began as a way to maximize the value of one property quickly grew into something much larger. Over time, I expanded my portfolio and eventually managed 22 condos in the area. What started as a side investment became a passion for hospitality, property improvement, and creating memorable guest experiences. Today, I own properties in both the United States and Costa Rica and continue to look for opportunities to grow and improve my portfolio.

What is your background?

I graduated from Kutztown University in 1992 with a degree in Business Management. My professional career has primarily been focused on sales, marketing, and business development. Today, I own and operate two business-to-business marketing call centers that support several large companies. Building businesses, creating marketing strategies, and understanding customer needs have been central themes throughout my career.

Were you always in vacation rentals or property management? If not, what did you do before?

Vacation rentals are definitely a second career for me. Before entering the vacation rental industry, I spent most of my professional life in sales and marketing. Those experiences taught me the importance of customer service, relationship building, and creating systems that help businesses scale effectively. I still own and operate two B2B marketing call centers today, and many of the skills I've developed over the years have translated directly into the vacation rental industry. At the end of the day, both businesses are about understanding people, delivering great experiences, and building trust.

Are you from the geographical area where your properties are located, or did you move there later?

My North Myrtle Beach properties are located close to my home, which made them a natural starting point when I entered the vacation rental business. My Costa Rica properties, however, came from a completely different journey. 

In 2020, my wife and I vacationed in Costa Rica and immediately fell in love with the country. The people, the natural beauty, the lifestyle, and the overall atmosphere made a lasting impression on us. That first trip inspired us to purchase a home in Manuel Antonio. Since then, we've either purchased or built a new property nearly every year. Today, our portfolio includes six homes, two casitas, and an apartment in Costa Rica, with another acquisition currently underway: a mountain estate in the Hills of Portalón, just south of Quepos and Manuel Antonio. Costa Rica has become much more than a place where we own property. It's become a place we're deeply connected to and enjoy sharing with travelers from around the world.

What do you love most about the vacation rental business?

I love finding properties with potential and transforming them into something special. Whether it's a renovation project, a new build, or simply improving the guest experience, I enjoy the process of creating something that guests genuinely enjoy. I also love the marketing side of the business. Every property has a unique story, and I enjoy figuring out how to showcase those qualities to attract the right guests.

What do you dislike the most about it?

The part I enjoy the least is navigating the review and approval processes with some of the booking channels. It can sometimes be time-consuming when you're trying to make updates or solve issues quickly. That said, it's a small trade-off in an industry that I genuinely enjoy being a part of.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

OwnerRez serves as the operational hub for my entire vacation rental business. Because I manage properties in multiple geographic markets, having everything centralized in one platform is extremely important. We use OwnerRez to manage reservations, guest communications, payment processing, reporting, and overall business operations. It helps us stay organized and efficient while continuing to grow our portfolio.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

The biggest benefit for me is the ability to manage all of my properties under one roof, even though they're located in completely different markets and countries. I also rely heavily on the payment processing and reporting tools. Having accurate financial information readily available allows me to make better business decisions and spend less time on administrative tasks. OwnerRez has given us a scalable system that supports the continued growth of our vacation rental business.

Scott has done an impressive job building a successful vacation rental business in Costa Rica. We look forward to seeing My Costa Rica Homes continue to grow this year!

We recognize that AirBnB has a huge presence in this industry.  However, we are avoiding listing on AirBnB like the plague.  Our last rental through a 3rd party manager was a 45 night snowbird rental.  Our resort strictly prohibits smoking and the signed rental agreement makes this clear.  Regardless, on day 3 they were found to be smoking inside our room and rather than enjoy 42 more nights of smoke, the guests were evicted.  Despite this clear violation and the guests affirmation of the policy, they were given a full refund by AirBnB and we received nothing, and the unit remained open for another 6 weeks.    

This is what was told to us by our former manager and that relationship has ended.  If other owners have had similar experiences, and the guests were not granted a full refund due to a policy violation, we would like to learn of that and your replies are appreciated.  

Thank you,

Greg

Episode Sixteen of Walk ’n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals podcast is live!

Welcome to the Walk ’n Talk podcast, hosted by Paul Waldschmidt and Chris Hynes, CEO and CTO of OwnerRez. Inspired by their weekly walks, each episode captures candid conversations about product decisions, business challenges, and lessons learned from years of building in the vacation rental industry. Listen in and take away ideas you can apply to your own business and journey.

🎙️ Episode 16 Now Live

EP16 - The Cost of Head-Down Building

In Episode Sixteen, Paul and Chris discuss the downside of head-down building and the importance of creating space to think. They talk about the value of slowing down, understanding how people actually use your product, and why paying attention to the details and the overall feel of a product can matter more than people often realize.

You'll hear about:

• How creating space to think and meditate can improve mental capacity
• The importance of listening to customer feedback
• Understanding how customers use the product
• Paying attention to the details that shape the overall feel

Listen Now

Watch Now

Walk ’n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals is available on:

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• YouTube

New episodes are already in the works, and we can’t wait for you to join us on the walk.

This week’s roundup covers Vrbo piloting sponsored listings, Airbnb’s new Extended Cancellation Option, free World Cup tickets for select bookings, a new STR ordinance in Glendale, Wisconsin, and a helpful guide to identifying your guest avatar. Let’s dive in.

Vrbo has officially begun testing sponsored listings, with an official rollout planned for later this year. The new advertising option will allow vacation rental operators to pay for increased visibility in search results, similar to sponsored placement programs already common across the hotel industry. Expedia Group says the feature is currently being piloted and could eventually expand beyond Vrbo to include placements on Expedia.com. The announcement marks a major step toward paid visibility becoming an influential part of the vacation rental industry in future years, highlighting the importance of diversifying across multiple booking channels and investing in a direct booking strategy.

Airbnb is testing a new Extended Cancellation Option, allowing guests to pay an additional fee at checkout in exchange for the ability to cancel for a full refund up to 24 hours before check-in. Importantly, hosts will still be paid according to their existing cancellation policy, with Airbnb covering the difference between the guest's refund and the host's payout. The canceled dates will also be immediately reopened for new bookings. The new guest offering is currently being piloted on listings using Moderate, Limited, Firm, or Strict cancellation policies and can be disabled by hosts at any time.

On Monday, in response to a recent shooting at an unlicensed short-term rental, the city of Glendale, Wisconsin, passed a new STR ordinance. The new rules ban all bookings shorter than 7 days, require each property to have an in-town manager available 24/7, and require a license from the health department. While most residents who attended the council meeting supported the changes, local operators expressed concern that the new restrictions could put them out of business.

Airbnb announced this week that free FIFA World Cup 2026 tickets will be included with select stays across the platform. Listings that include free tickets will feature a soccer ball icon at the top of the listing page and will be available across all 16 World Cup host cities. Airbnb says that, in total, hosts and guests will receive more than 1,300 complimentary tickets throughout the tournament, including surprise tickets gifted to existing guests as well as tickets included with future bookings covering matches from the group stage through the World Cup Final.

AirDNA published an interesting article this week on the value of understanding your guest avatar. The article explains how guest avatars go beyond broad demographics and can help operators understand the real motivations, priorities, and expectations behind each booking. It also walks through several ways to identify your guest avatar, including analyzing reviews, looking at common pre-booking questions, and diving into market-level data. AirDNA states in the article, "Understanding your guest avatar can help guide smarter decisions around amenities, property design, listing copy, and investment strategy."

As OTAs experiment with new ways to drive bookings and small communities continue to evaluate short-term rental regulations, the vacation rental industry continues to evolve in 2026. Check back next week for the latest news.

We’re excited to share our new integration with IntelliHost, an AI Revenue Manager for short-term rental property managers.

About IntelliHost

IntelliHost is an AI Revenue Manager built for professional STR property managers. It does the work a revenue manager would do, daily pricing reviews across every listing, listing optimization, owner reports, but it uses something no human revenue manager has access to: real OTA click traffic on each of your specific listings, combined with AI that learns from how your portfolio actually books. Every night, it reviews your portfolio, flags what needs attention in Slack with a specific recommendation, and pushes the approved changes to OwnerRez. With the new OwnerRez integration, those pricing and listing updates flow directly into OwnerRez with one tap. No copy-paste. No second login.

Features

IntelliHost Premium

• Booking Funnel Dashboard
• Automated Change Tracker
• DeepRank AI Analysis (monthly)
• Predictive Pricing
• Search Rank Tracking
• Competitive Benchmarking
• Revenue Copilot (weekly)
• Airbnb and Booking.com integration
• OwnerRez Integration

IntelliHost Agent (Everything in Premium, plus)

• AI Dynamic Pricing
• Listing optimization (titles, descriptions, photos, auto-applied)
• Daily pricing review with one-tap OwnerRez push
• Review sentiment analysis & complaint detection
• Auto-generated monthly owner reports
• Slack & email proactive alerts
• Scheduled automation in plain language
• Continuous learning loop

Pricing

Simple, scalable pricing. IntelliHost Premium starts at $15.99 per listing per month for portfolios with 4-25 properties. IntelliHost Agent is available with custom pricing and includes an AI agent that identifies issues, recommends fixes, and implements them automatically. View full pricing info here.

Ready to Connect?

Get started with IntelliHost by visiting here, and check out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with IntelliHost.

We’re happy to announce our latest integration with STR Desk, giving users a seamless way to sync OwnerRez data with GoHighLevel, Monday.com, Airtable, and Notion.

About STR Desk

STR Desk automatically syncs OwnerRez data into GoHighLevel, Monday.com, Airtable, and Notion, so property managers can run their marketing and operations without manually moving data between tools. Reservations, properties, and guest reviews stay current in real time via webhooks. When something changes in OwnerRez, it reflects in your CRM or workspace within seconds, no exports, no Zapier, no custom development required.

Features

• Real-Time Guest Data Sync: Never manually enter guest information again. STR Desk automatically syncs new reservations, guest details, and property data from OwnerRez to your CRM in real-time.
• Connect to Your Favorite Tools: Integrate with the platforms you already use. Sync to Lead Connector for marketing automation, monday for operations, or Airtable for revenue management or custom workflows.
• Intelligent Field Mapping: No manual mapping needed. STR Desk automatically maps your OwnerRez data to the fields you need, so you can focus on what matters most.
• Set It and Forget It: Configure your sync once and let STR Desk handle the rest. Scheduled syncs, webhooks ensure your data is always up-to-date.

Pricing

Simple, transparent pricing designed to scale with your portfolio. Plans start at $29/month, with Growth, Pro, and Enterprise options available for larger operators and more advanced syncing needs. A 7-day free trial is available. View full pricing info here.

Ready to Connect?

Get started with STR Desk by visiting here, and check out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with STR Desk.

This week’s roundup covers Airbnb’s new Earnings Protection program, major short-term rental regulation changes in Cleveland, Ohio, and Florence, Italy, and AirDNA’s latest analysis on how rising gas prices could influence booking behavior this summer. Let’s dive in.

Airbnb announced this week that it will be rolling out a new insurance plan for hosts called Earnings Protection, offered in partnership with MIC Global. Currently available in 45 U.S. states, with plans to expand to all 50 states in early 2027, the optional paid insurance plan is designed to cover lost income for hosts during unexpected events such as natural disasters or severe property damage. Coverage amounts will be calculated using a listing’s historical earnings rather than a fixed payout. Airbnb says hosts must have five or fewer listings, more than 50 reserved nights in the past year, and have hosted on Airbnb for at least one year to qualify.

The city of Florence, Italy, approved a major expansion of its short-term rental restrictions on Thursday, increasing the number of affected properties from roughly 35,000 homes to more than 100,000. The new measure extends the existing limits beyond the historic center into several additional neighborhoods, with officials noting concerns over overtourism. Existing short-term rental operators in these areas will be allowed to continue operating under current permits through May 2028, when Florence plans to establish a new licensing system aimed at reducing the number of short-term rentals in the city.

On Monday, Cleveland City Council voted 14-1 to approve new short-term rental regulations after years of debate. The new rules, which will take effect in 180 days, require short-term rental operators to obtain an annual license, pay hotel taxes, designate a local contact who can respond to complaints within an hour, and comply with a new density cap limiting short-term rentals to 10% of homes on a block or within a building. The ordinance also includes fines of up to $5,000 for violations. Dave Stokley, leader of the Northern Ohio Short-Term Rental Association, noted in an interview with Cleveland.com that most short-term rental owners agree with "95% of the rules" but believe the density cap could reduce lodging options for visitors and force responsible operators out of business.

AirDNA released an interesting analysis this week examining how rising gas prices may impact booking behavior this summer. Using guest travel data from 2025, the report suggests travelers may favor shorter, closer-to-home vacations over further destinations as transportation costs increase. AirDNA noted that Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Bozeman, Montana, and Park City, Utah, were among the markets that attracted guests from the farthest distances in 2025, while many mountain and coastal destinations appear to be better insulated from higher fuel costs. While this data can only produce projections, it may help operators adjust pricing and revenue strategies based on expected demand.

As traveler behavior shifts and cities continue to refine their approach to short-term rentals, expect more changes across the vacation rental industry this summer. Check back next week for the latest news.

OwnerRez's June Product Update introduces ways to leverage Rezzy AI guest sentiment in templates and triggers, lots of Inbox enhancements, expanded property amenities, a Stripe 3DS upgrade, and many Airbnb additions: Seasonal cancellation policies, Promo discounts, message reaction emojis, etc. Oh, and first up, a 'First Look' at the new guest portal, My Stay!

• ICYMI
  • 👀 First Look: Your New Guest Portal, My Stay
• New Features
  • Rezzy AI Guest Sentiment
  • Inbox
    • Improvements
    • Event Indicators
    • Inbox Template Menu
  • Airbnb
    • Seasonal Cancellation Policies
    • Promo Discounts
    • Message Reaction Emojis
    • Optimize for Airbnb
  • Amenity Details
  • Stripe 3DS
• Enhancements 
  • SMS Hyperlinks
  • Booking PM Tab
  • PayPal
  • Images
  • Airbnb
    • Request to Book
    • Property Descriptions
    • Suggested Door Codes
    • Third-party Booker Roles
  • Vrbo Same-day Bookings
  • Schlage Door Lock Codes
  • Notifications
• Design
  • Borders & Buttons
  • OwnerRez Sign Up
• Tweaks
  • June 3rd Release with 5 Tweaks
  • June 10th Release with 2 Tweaks
  • June 17th Release with 2 Tweaks
  • June 24th Release with 2 Tweaks

ICYMI!

👀 First Look: Your New Guest Portal, My Stay

In case you missed our June 25, 2026, email blast, 👀 First Look: Your New Guest Portal, OwnerRez is releasing a new guest portal, called My Stay, on July 1, replacing the previous BUFIXUP guest experience with a modern, checklist-style flow that guides guests through the steps needed to finalize their booking.

With My Stay, guests can more easily:

☔ Add or decline travel insurance, when available

You’ll also see a new Requirements section on the Booking Overview that shows whether each booking is Met, Pending, or Not Met. This gives you instant visibility into what your guest has completed and what still requires action.

The same BUFIXUP merge field and booking cleanup links will continue to work, but guests will now land in this improved My Stay experience.

My Stay is scheduled for release on July 1st. This first release lays the foundation for future enhancements, with even more guest portal features planned over time.

New Features

Rezzy AI Guest Sentiment

While Rezzy AI intelligently analyzes your guest communications and user-entered notes over time to detect and summarize your guests' experiences or sentiments for bookings, users couldn't leverage those sentiments in templates and triggers until recently. With OwnerRez's June 3rd release, users can implement Rezzy AI Sentiment (if enabled) in their messaging tools by selecting the immediate Booking sentiment changes event, using the Sentiment status Trigger condition in their trigger, and utilizing the new Rezzy AI sentiment value {BSEN} field code in Booking templates.

To include the new Rezzy AI sentiment value {BSEN} field code in Booking templates, go to Settings > Messaging > Templates, then select an existing template or create a new one by clicking the Email, SMS, or Channel tab and selecting + Create Email/SMS/Channel Template.

Name:

Rezzy AI Sentiment Status Change SMS Template

To:

555-555-5555

Body:

Hey Fancy Rental Team Member!

Rezzy AI detected a Sentiment Status Change for the following booking.
Sentiment: {BSEN} 
Booking: {BID}, {BARR} to {BDEP} at {PNAME}
Guest Name: {CFULL}

Please contact the guest at {CPHONE} to rectify the issue.

{MYFIRST}

Here's a preview of the Rezzy AI Sentiment Status Change SMS Template.How can these new Rezzy AI Sentiment options be used in triggers? You can choose Rezzy AI Sentiment Statuses (e.g., No Sentiment, Angry, Negative, Neutral, Positive, Delighted) in the Trigger Conditions section.

Navigate to Settings > Messaging > Triggers > + Create Trigger.

Type: 

Immediate

Event:

Booking > Booking sentiment changes

Statuses > Sentiment Status > One Of > Angry

Rezzy AI Sentiment Status Change SMS Template

Here's a preview of that trigger.

This is just one idea to leverage Rezzy AI Sentiment in your messaging. You could also use the Rezzy AI Sentiment Status to limit your review requests to only those guests that have certain Sentiment Statuses (e.g., No Sentiment, Angry, Negative, Neutral, Positive, Delighted) to avoid requesting reviews from unhappy guests.

Interested in incorporating AI into your own tech stack? Explore OwnerRez's own Rezzy AI!

Inbox

Improvements

In case you missed our Email Blast June 02, 2026 - 👀 First Look: Inbox & Amenity Enhancements, OwnerRez implemented a number of improvements to the Inbox in our June 3rd release, including the following.

🎯 Larger touch targets and a more streamlined interface

These changes make communicating with guests faster, smoother, and more reliable than ever.

Event Indicators

Event and date indicators in OwnerRez's inbox provide context for guest communications, enabling quick prioritization and efficient workflow management. With our June 3rd release, OwnerRez added linked Airbnb Request to Book Inbox Event Indicators into the Inbox.

Inbox Template Menu

In our June 10th release, OwnerRez added a link to load more templates to the Inbox template menu when more than 50 templates are available.

Airbnb

Seasonal Cancellation Policies

Seasonal Airbnb cancellation policies enforce stricter terms during peak times and relax in the off-season, safeguarding revenue during peak demand while staying competitive year-round. With our June 10th release, OwnerRez added support for seasonal Airbnb cancellation policies, allowing hosts to optionally customize their Airbnb cancellation policy by season.

Configure your Airbnb seasonal cancellation policy by navigating to your specific season (Settings > Pricing > Seasons), creating a new Season by clicking + Create Season, or selecting an existing Season > Rules > Airbnb Cancellation Policy, then selecting your preferred policy from the dropdown list.

Configured Airbnb seasonal cancellation policies will override your Airbnb channel integration cancellation policy. If not configured in your Seasons, your original Airbnb channel integration cancellation policy will remain in effect.

Promo Discounts 

Strategic discounts can enhance your vacation rental's performance by attracting more guests, encouraging longer stays, and filling gaps in your booking calendar. With our June 24th release, OwnerRez enabled users to be able to configure two new promo discounts to guests. These new Airbnb promotional discounts increase visibility and conversions, particularly among high-quality, on-the-go travelers.

• Mobile Promotion Discounts offers a fixed 10% discount to guests who book through the Airbnb mobile app.
• Highly Rated Guest Discounts offers a fixed 15% off to Airbnb guests with a rating of 4.8 stars or higher and at least 3 reviews. (Airbnb has not yet released the Highly Rated Guest discount; it is expected on July 8. You may configure it now, and OwnerRez will apply it automatically as soon as it is released by Airbnb.)

Create either of these Airbnb discounts by navigating to Settings > Pricing > Discounts > + Create Discount > Channel Specific Discounts, and select either Highly Rated Guest (Airbnb) or Mobile Promotion (Airbnb) discount.

Message Reaction Emojis

Reacting to messages with emojis to acknowledge, affirm, or add personality to messages, while keeping conversations clean and natural. OwnerRez added the ability to respond to Airbnb guest messages with emoji reactions  (😊 ❤️ 👍 👏 🤣) directly in the OwnerRez Inbox, keeping communication natural and on-brand in our June 24th release. Reactions appear as badges below messages and sync automatically in both directions with Airbnb, showing who reacted. Hosts can add reactions by hovering over a message (desktop) or long-pressing (mobile) to open the reaction picker.

OwnerRez hosts are not notified if a guest removes their reaction on the Airbnb platform.

Optimize for Airbnb

In case you missed our June 08, 2026: Limited-time Airbnb Rebate Available! email blast, OwnerRez added support for Airbnb's optional Optimize for Airbnb, offered to OwnerRez users, which lets you temporarily prioritize Airbnb bookings on specific dates in our June 10th release. When enabled, your listing’s availability will be limited or blocked on other channels during those periods, giving Airbnb (and your direct bookings) exclusive priority access, helping you capture more Airbnb bookings during high-demand periods.

Eligibility for the optional Optimize for Airbnb feature is determined by Airbnb. Eligible Airbnb channel-integrated property/ies may receive an email notification.

Learn more by reading our Optimize for Airbnb support article.

Amenity Details

Catching you up on our recent Email Blast June 02, 2026 - 👀 First Look: Inbox & Amenity Enhancements, OwnerRez consolidated and expanded the level of detail you can provide about property amenities, helping your listings better reflect what guests can expect. Highlights include:

☕ Detailed property data, or metadata, for amenities such as parking, pools, air conditioning, coffee makers, BBQs, and more
✅ Better support for channel-specific (e.g., Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo) amenity information
➕ Additional details that help improve listing accuracy on Airbnb and other supported channels
🌊 More flexibility to showcase unique property features

Whether you’re describing a heated pool, available parking options, or the type of coffee maker in your property, you’ll now have much greater control over how those details are presented.

Stripe 3DS

3DS technology enhances guest transaction security by prompting additional identity verification, possibly reducing unauthorized transactions and fraud-related costs for hosts, particularly for non-US hosts. OwnerRez migrated our Stripe 3DS authentication to Stripe's modern inline confirmation flow in our June 10th release.

Enhancements

SMS Hyperlinks

An SMS hyperlink, or "click-to-text" link, uses the sms: URL scheme to open the text messaging app with a designated phone number and optional pre-written text. In our June 24th release, the OwnerRez rich-text link editor now accepts SMS links (such as sms:+15551234567) alongside our existing tel:, mailto:, and http(s):// schemes to add SMS hyperlinks to your hosted website.

Add your SMS hyperlink to your hosted website by navigating to Settings > My Website > your Hosted Website > select the webpage you want to add your SMS hyperlink to > expand the Intro tab, and add your SMS hyperlink by clicking on Insert/Edit Link in the rich-text editor.

How does this appear on your Hosted Website? Here's an example on an Availability page, but you can add it to any page of your Hosted Website.

Thinking about a direct booking website for your vacation rental business? Consider an OwnerRez Hosted Website! 

Booking PM Tab

PM Owner Statements are key for fostering a transparent, professional relationship between property managers and owners, offering a detailed financial breakdown of each property’s income and expenses. OwnerRez added links to associated Owner Statements in the Booking PM tab in the Profit > Owner column in our June 17th release.

Are you managing properties for others? Explore the OwnerRez Property Management premium feature.

PayPal

OwnerRez's PayPal integration lets you offer your guests a wider range of payment options, including PayPal, credit cards, Venmo, and Zelle. With our June 17th release, OwnerRez now ensures that your PayPal payments are successful even if guests approve payment but do not return to complete checkout (e.g., they close their browser).

Thinking about changing payment processors? Check out the OwnerRez Payment Processing options.

Images

Supporting WebP and HEIC/HEIF allows hosts to upload photos directly from modern smartphones and cameras, saving time while maintaining high-quality property photos and attachments. In addition to the previously supported PNG, JPG, GIF, and BMP image formats, OwnerRez added support for WebP and HEIC/HEIF formats with our June 3rd release.

Airbnb

Request to Book

The Airbnb Request to Book feature lets you screen guests and manually approve reservations, ensuring full control over who stays at your property. OwnerRez has added support for the Airbnb channel integration "Request to Book" Maximum Availability setting in our June 10th release. Your Property's Maximum Availability settings (Properties > Rules > General > Change > Max Availability), which allows a range of 1 to 730 days (2 years), is automatically applied to your Airbnb channel integration's Booking Window & Duration settings.

See this new option by navigating to Settings > Channel Management > Channel Integrations > Airbnb > Channel Settings > Booking Window & Duration, and selecting the Allow Request to Book Beyond Max Availability checkbox.

Property Descriptions

Accurate "The Space" descriptions clarify guest expectations, reduce pre-booking questions, and enhance search visibility, boosting bookings and reviews for your rental business. With our June 24th release, when the separate Accommodations Detail field is empty, property descriptions now flow into Airbnb's primary "The Space" field, with a maximum of 10,000 characters. New Airbnb listings will automatically use your main description everywhere.

For existing listings, Accommodations Detail remains available as an optional Airbnb-specific override.

Suggested Door Codes

Providing door lock codes enhances the guest experience by enabling a seamless check-in process that lets guests check in at their convenience. With our June 17th release, if no Airbnb guest phone number is provided, OwnerRez will utilize Airbnb's suggested door codes as a fallback to generate door lock codes for properties configured for guest phone-number-based code generation.

Third-party Booker Roles

Third-party bookers on Airbnb are those who book for others, like travel agents, assistants, or corporate travel desks using Airbnb for Work, for a client who will be the guest. With our June 17th release, Airbnb messages from third-party bookers now appear with the correct participant role rather than being labeled as a guest to properly identify all parties in the conversation.

Vrbo Same-day Bookings

Strategically combining Vrbo same-day bookings and specific discounts attracts more guests and fills booking gaps. OwnerRez now supports Vrbo same-day bookings with configured Last Minute, Mobile, and One Key or "Member-only" discounts/promotions, as part of our June 17th release to increase potential guest visibility.

Remember, these discounts only apply when you allow Vrbo same-day bookings and do not override your property lead time rules (Properties > the specific Property > Rules > Change > Booking Window > Lead Time) or Vrbo Booking Window & Duration settings.

Schlage Door Lock Codes

Automatic retries ensure Schlage door lock codes are set reliably even in the face of transient failures, such as an offline lock or no response, protecting guest check-in and reducing manual troubleshooting. In our June 3rd release, we improved our OwnerRez-powered Schlage door lock integration by implementing automatic retries for failed Schlage door lock codes, with notifications sent after 5 failures.

Interested in exploring OwnerRez-powered locks? Check out our Schlage support article.

Notifications

Enabling OwnerRez notifications ensures you stay informed about booking updates without constantly checking in-app or email. We reorganized and consolidated some important notifications or alerts into simpler delivery dropdowns (email, push, or both), improved preview examples with better data and formatting, and renamed channel-specific alerts for clarity (e.g., "Inquiry Received - Airbnb Only" vs. "Everything But Airbnb") with our June 3rd release.

Design

Borders & Buttons

With our June 17th release, borders, action buttons, hover text, and other OwnerRez in-app elements now feature rounded corners for a more modern and polished appearance.

OwnerRez Sign Up

Updating our signup pages demonstrates ongoing investment in OwnerRez, boosting clients' confidence in a reliable, well-maintained platform they can trust long term. With our June 3rd release, we improved our OwnerRez Signup pages for Team Access member invitations and new users.

When Team Access members accept their invitation to OwnerRez, their sign-up pages will appear like this.

Building out your team? Check out OwnerRez Portal Access.

Tweaks

June 3rd Release with 5 Tweaks

Allow users creating OAuth apps for private use to automatically subscribe to message webhooks for their own account. OwnerRez users creating custom MCPs can subscribe to message webhooks for their accounts while developing OAuth apps for private use.

Downgrade Listing Quality Analyzer Airbnb and Vrbo tax double-collection check from error to warning with clearer guidance. The Listing Quality Analyzer (LQA) now shows a warning instead of an error when a tax applies to both Airbnb and Vrbo while Airbnb is in stacked mode, clarifying the double-collection risk and helping users verify their configuration.

Ensure transaction value and currencies are sent to Google Ads on all conversion events. OwnerRez now ensures that the booking transaction amount, or value, and currencies are sent to Google Ads for all conversion events, enabling users to see which campaigns, ads, and keywords drive valuable booking actions.

Improve Airbnb and Booking.com long-term rental sync error messaging by providing specific remediation steps to resolve them. When Airbnb or Booking.com availability syncs are rejected due to long-term-only rental restrictions, the error messages presented to users now explain how to resolve the issue: register your short-term rental license with Airbnb and/or Booking.com, or raise the minimum night stay to 31 nights or more.

June 10th Release with 2 Tweaks

Downgrade guest fee multiplier surcharge Listing Quality Analyzer errors to warnings. When guest multiplier surcharges are configured to apply above the property's maximum guest capacity, the Listing Quality Analyzer now displays a warning instead of an error, allowing channel mappings to proceed while still surfacing the issue.

Improve OwnerRez availability rule calculations performance. The OwnerRez improved the availability rule calculator, enhancing the accuracy and performance of availability checks across quoting, booking, and calendar views.

June 17th Release with 2 Tweaks

Increase Guest Instructions field limit to 60,000 characters with clearer validation messages. Guest Instructions fields (Check-in Instructions, Directions, Internet Info, and House Manual) now support up to 60KB of content, up from the previous 20,000-character limit. Validation messages now display the current size in kilobytes and account for HTML formatting, making it easier to understand when content exceeds the limit.

Make task descriptions optional when Task name is provided. OwnerRez Tasks now require either a name or a description, but no longer require the description field to be filled in, making it easier to create quick tasks with just a short title.

June 24th Release with 2 Tweaks

Improve mobile Inbox padding and background. The Inbox message view on mobile now displays edge-to-edge, without padding or a gray background, for a cleaner, more native appearance.

Remove "Add details" text hint from amenity edit buttons on property details. OwnerRez removed the "Add details" text hint from the amenity edit buttons in property details, now displaying only the edit icon without accompanying text, creating a cleaner, more consistent interface.

Thanks for all these! 

RE: the Airbnb host review tag dropdowns: It would actually be very useful to have all the Positive options be "select-all-able" in each of these categories. (Either via a "Select all" indicator or simply by tapping the Positive headline.) The system already grays out the Negative options based on star-selection, which is a helpful efficiency. Being able to check all Positive options with one click would be another VERY appreciated efficiency! 

We’re excited to share our latest integration with GuestsKey, a smart lock automation platform built by property managers, for property managers.

About GuestsKey

GuestsKey is a US-based smart lock automation platform. They eliminate the frustration of manual access code management by syncing your bookings directly to your smart locks, generating, scheduling, activating, and removing guest codes automatically. Built and operated by The Hunter Foundry, GuestsKey supports SmartThings, Seam, and a growing list of lock vendors, with native OwnerRez integration for seamless booking sync, guest contact handoff, and real-time updates. No more last-minute code creation, missed check-ins, or security worries.

Features

• Deep OwnerRez Integration: OAuth-connected sync pulls in 12 months of bookings, listens to real-time webhooks, and schedules codes the moment a reservation is confirmed.
• Cleaner Codes: Global cleaner management. Add a cleaner once; their code works on all properties instantly.
• Guest Automation: Codes generated from guest phone numbers. Activate at check-in, expire at checkout.
• One-Time Keys: Temporary codes for vendors, deliveries, or inspections. Auto-expire when done.
• Emergency Backup (Beta): Pre-programmed backup codes ready to distribute if primary codes fail.
• Smart Security: Multi-tenant isolation, encryption at rest, and role-based access control. Your data stays secure.
• Owner Management: Give property owners permanent access codes scoped to only the properties they own. Built for managers running OwnerRez portfolios on behalf of multiple owners.
• Team Management: Invite team members with Owner, Admin, or Viewer roles. Full audit logs.
• SMS Notifications: Automatic text messages for access codes, check-in reminders, and cleaner alerts.

Pricing

$5/lock/month, 4-day free trial, no per-property fees, no feature gates. Volume discounts apply automatically as you add devices. Connect GuestsKey with OwnerRez and automate your first guest code in under 10 minutes. View full pricing info here.

Ready to Connect?

Get started with GuestsKey by visiting here, and check out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with GuestsKey.

This week’s roundup covers Airbnb’s investment in WeRoad, Vrbo's latest AI features, proposed STR regulation changes in Tybee Island, Australia’s updated vacation rental tax laws, and new developments surrounding Bill 9 in Maui. Let’s dive in.

Airbnb led a $58 million investment in growing group travel startup WeRoad this week, as the company plans to expand into the U.S. market beginning in Austin, Texas. WeRoad offers curated group travel experiences, primarily targeting younger and solo travelers looking for community while traveling. Trips on the platform are typically 10 to 12 days, though the company has recently introduced shorter weekend trips. WeRoad has also launched a new app called WeMeet, designed to help facilitate local in-person gatherings, which the company says will play a central role in its U.S. expansion plans. The investment reflects Airbnb’s continued interest in the social side of travel, and it will be interesting to see how the platform performs in the U.S. market.

This week at Expedia Group’s partner conference, Explore 2026, the company announced a suite of new features that will impact Vrbo hosts in the short term while also giving a glimpse into its long-term vision for the platform. Highlights include Natural Language Search and Family Highlights, both of which will change how guests search for properties and how listing information is presented. This major shift, similar to what Airbnb introduced in its 2026 Summer Release, covered in Industry News on May 22, adds another layer of AI between hosts and guests, inevitably changing how hosts approach optimizing their property listings.

Following restrictions put in place in 2024 aimed at phasing out vacation rentals, the Tybee Island, GA, city council is now considering a new proposal that would introduce new opportunities for vacation rentals in certain areas of the city. The proposal would divide the city into four unique zones, each with different limits on the number of active short-term rental permits. City leaders hope the changes will allow for more vacation rentals in tourism-focused areas while keeping residential areas quieter and more affordable. As the proposal heads to the planning commission for recommendations, now is a great time for local operators to make their voice heard on the proposed changes.

The Australian Tax Office this week released stricter rules around STR tax deductions, aiming to close what it sees as a tax loophole used by many vacation rental homeowners. Beginning July 1, 2026, owners could lose the ability to claim deductions such as mortgage interest, maintenance costs, and more unless properties are made available for rent during “peak” periods like Christmas and Easter. H&R Block director of communications Mark Chapman said in an interview with Yahoo Finance that, “The ATO wants to draw a firm line between genuine short-term rentals that operate on a commercial footing, and private holiday homes dressed up as investments.”

In the latest news surrounding Bill 9 in Maui, previously covered in Industry News on June 6th, June 13th, July 4th, August 1st, August 29th, October 17th, December 19th, and February 27th, Maui County’s Housing and Land Use Committee voted 6-1 this week to advance a proposal creating two new hotel zoning categories, H-3 and H-4. The proposal, opposed by all three county planning commissions, opens the door for vacation rental operators impacted by Bill 9 to seek hotel zoning as Maui continues phasing out vacation rentals in apartment-zoned districts.

From Maui’s ongoing Bill 9 discussions to Vrbo’s new AI search features, expect more changes ahead this summer in the vacation rental industry. Check back next week for the latest news.

Episode Fifteen of Walk ’n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals podcast is live!

Welcome to the Walk ’n Talk podcast, hosted by Paul Waldschmidt and Chris Hynes, CEO and CTO of OwnerRez. Inspired by their weekly walks, each episode captures the candid conversations that have shaped product decisions and strategy at OwnerRez over the years. Whether you’re a host, vacation rental manager, entrepreneur, or just curious how the industry works, this is your opportunity to listen in and hopefully walk away with ideas you can apply to your own business.

🎙️ Episode 15 Now Live

EP15 - When Process Replaces Hospitality

In Episode Fifteen, Paul and Chris discuss the growing tension between hospitality and process in the vacation rental industry. They explore how rental agreements, fees, upsells, security measures, and other layers of process can sometimes create friction that works against the guest experience. They also share some key takeaways from their experience at Keys100.

You’ll hear about:

• Key takeaways from Keys100
• When process gets in the way of hospitality
• The hidden cost of friction in the guest experience
• Why some travelers are heading back to hotels
• How tools used correctly can support hospitality

It’s a raw conversation about recent vacation rental experiences, hospitality, and where Paul and Chris think the industry sometimes gets it wrong.

Listen Now

Watch Now

Walk ’n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals is available on:

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• YouTube

New episodes are already in the works, and we can’t wait for you to join us on the walk.