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When I click on any items in your surveys, I get an error message that says, "File unavailable. Sorry, there's a problem with this file. Please reload."
@D. Chad Q: Thanks for the kind words. We love what we do, and we like who we work with and for. The folks on the IPM side of VRBO are pretty cool and are great to interact with.
Happy Hump Day! 🐪 Although, I'm getting this out late, so it's probably already past Hump Day for our European and Asian users.
Last week, we mostly worked on major updates that aren't quite finished - long term stuff - but there were a few things that went out, so let's take a second to go over them...
There is now a Channel Rate Tester tool (under the top Tools menu) that shows a side-by-side comparison of OwnerRez rates next to the channel rates. If you haven't seen this thing yet, check it out - it's pretty sweet.
Wondering what HomeAway will show for a property and set of dates? We'll show you directly. The tool hits channel APIs live and then returns a list of charges with the OwnerRez totals next to it. The bottom then shows the full OwnerRez rate tester charges so you can see the breakdown in more detail.
It works for the HomeAway, Airbnb and TripAdvisor channels only and, to be clear, it's only if you have API integration in place for those channels.
We added a 'booking only' option to CanadaStays calendar import (iCal) settings. This allows you to avoid situations where CanadaStays is serving blocked time back to OwnerRez resulting in a loop of activity. Other calendar import types like HomeAway and Airbnb already had this option.
The rate table widget now calculates week and month columns by a range instead of fixed amounts. Previously, there was a lot of confusion about the fix amount calculations. Week and month calculations are hard to get exact because of so many factors with spot rates, exact arrival nights and so on. The range option helps remove the confusion for guests.
Also on the rate table widget, we added a setting so that you can specify these options directly.
Channel Bridge has been enhanced in a number of ways. We are now ignoring empty rows on the Bookings tab of the export file. We clarify that matched-bookings (ie. matched against other properties and dates) are double bookings. On overlapping bookings, we now show the dates and guest name to make it easier for you to research. And past VRBO bookings with an 'unknown' status are now treated as cancelled. The are misc. bugs that are fixed on Channel Bridge on an ongoing basis, but these enhancements should clarify and strengthen how users interact with the normal Channel Bridge workflow.
Reviews widget count. We fixed the review widget to show decimal places properly for large numbers. Some of you have a lot of reviews! We wouldn't the guest thinking that's 200 when it's really 2,000.
Check-in Type lockbox options mention guests instead of hosts. This was confusing previously as the Airbnb documentation mentioned hosts for some reason but we have now changed it to correctly refer to guests.
Ken and team- we appreciate you guys so much. We've spent so much time lobbying our "partner success manager" at VRBO and talking to execs directly at the Partner Summit to yield nothing on the less than 5 properties API access for years and you guys pulled it off! It's working very well now and we can't wait to see what else you have in store!! Well done!!
Yes, I recently channel bridged with HomeAway/VRBO and it is amazing to get paid so quickly! Thank you!
Do I need to take any actions to get the new rendered agreements to show? Just checked in Vrbo and the update isn't active there yet...
You guys are awesome! Thank you for these great updates and fixes!
The ability to send SMS text marketing communications, quotes, and stay-related communications directly to guests' phones would be huge. Emails get lost in flooded inboxes, but guests see and respond to text messages.
We love RueBaRue! We no longer have to spend hours communicating to the guests pre-arrival/post departure/ or even durning guest stay. RueBaRue is such a great tool to take property management services to the next level and stand out! The integration is working perfectly with ownerrez. Guests get an email and a text with a link to their guest portal specific with their booking information. It includes instructions, house rules, safety locations. We really noticed the value of RueBaRue durning the COVID-19 Pandemic. We had a fast, easy way to communicate to all our travelers the local laws/ordinances to keep compliant. We were able to update all guest at once of any emergencies or helpful information durning the strangest of times. It takes some time setting up RueBaRue but once you have all your properties custom it does all the work for you from there. We don't have nearly the amount of phone calls pre-arrival from guests asking what kind of coffee maker, or early arrival, or where to get keys etc. Its all in the guest portal!! All at the tips of the guests fingers and this means when the wifi password changes, you no longer have to send a staff to the property to updated those refrigerator house rules. Additionally RueBarRue offers a fun guide with local restaurants and activities to do in the area! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! The text back feature is also a total plus, so guest do have the real office cell number but they can still text for any needs.
Please contact us at help@ownerreservations.com for instructions on how to connect your OwnerRez account to the HA/VRBO API.
So from a practical standpoint, what do I need to do in order to tie my OwnerRez account with their API? Thanks!
No. If you are not using our API connection to HA/VRBO, you'll be still paid according to their policies. If you are using our API connection, you'll be paid in accordance with your agreement with your credit card payment processor you have chosen and configured in OwnerRez.
Does this change anything about how and when we get paid for reservations through Vrbo?
@Alex: please contact our help desk (help@ownerreservations.com) for questions about that. There are options available that we are not publicly able to advertise yet.
Does the preferred partner status give any boost in rankings within VRBO?
Need API for <5 properties ASAP
Great work
Congratulations are very well deserved by your awesome team!
Well done, OwnerRez!
Over the past year, OwnerRez has experienced a lot of growth. Even during the covid hysteria, we've continued to grow at a fast pace. We know we owe some of that growth to our awesome users because you talk to each other and spread the word.
Some of you have jokingly mentioned that you should be on the payroll. Well now... maybe you will be.
As we grow, it’s very important to us that we maintain the high quality of support that we are known for. So, what better place to find new employees than among our clients, who already know what OwnerRez can do?
We are looking to fill several positions in online support - basically, the other end of the help@ email you know and love. 😉
Software development skills are not required, nor does it matter where you live, as OwnerRez is an entirely-virtual company.
All that’s needed is a a warm personality, knowledge of OwnerRez, a decent computer and Internet connection, and a reasonable place to work. We are looking for both full-time and part-time staff.
If you are interested in this opportunity, please write to hr@ownerreservations.com with:
Is there an update yet on Master Cancel?
Yes, still true! Price Consistency is built into the API side. If you're using it, you're fine. On the non-API side, it's up to the user to make sure they are price consistent.
Regarding Price Consistency, and just to make sure, other info in OR says:
"First: this only applies to API connections. If you are not using our HA/VRBO API, it's entirely irrelevant.
Second: OwnerRez's API connection fully supports their requirements.
So you don't need to worry, you're compliant, and your property ranking will not be harmed."
All of that still true? API folks can ignore? What about non-API folks?
Happy Friday everyone!
Vacation properties are seeing a surge of bookings, especially now that states are reopening and loosening health and safety restrictions. A typical summer vacation may take the family for a week or two to the beach or mountains. This year, as many employees have been shooed from the office and summer camps have been canceled, many travelers are vacationing for a bit longer. Angela Rice, a co-founder of Boutique Travel Advisors in the Scottsdale, Ariz., area, said that some clients are looking at rustic long-term rentals near lakes, trails and waterfalls. She has received inquiries from clients with children who are looking to take road trips to a “lodge, ranch, ski resort town,” or anywhere with stand-alone lodgings and outdoor activities. Many travelers are ready to depart immediately, perhaps because they have cabin fever, feel more comfortable as officials relax restrictions or are unsure about booking too far into a future with hazy conditions. Evolve Vacation Rental, which manages 14,000 vacation homes across the country, said trips booked within seven days of departure are up 300 percent compared with last year.
Vacation rentals can reopen in 49 Florida counties after state officials cleared seven more safety plans Wednesday. Bradford, Columbia, DeSoto, Leon, Polk, Pasco and Seminole counties are joining the nearly three quarters of Florida’s 67 counties free to offer short-term vacation rentals. Those plans, going into effect immediately, will locally reverse Gov. Ron DeSantis‘ statewide ban from late March.
VRBO has introduced the Price Consistency program. What does this mean for you? OwnerRez is fully price consistent if you use the HomeAway API. So basically you have nothing to do, you will be price consistent by default. Here are some of the benefits for property managers who choose to be Price Consistent:
To learn about what will happen to property managers who do not adopt Price Consistency by August 31st, read more here.
Two and a half months into social distancing, affluent city-dwellers are buying homes in rural areas, and some are even doing so sight unseen. In New York state, the COVID-19 PAUSE policy means that traditional showings are verboten. "We're getting offers on virtual showings alone," says Howie Guja, a real estate agent at Old Purchase Properties in Bellport Village, New York, a rural community about 90 minutes from Manhattan. Jessica Lautz, the vice president of demographics and behavioral insights at the National Association of REALTORS®, says that about a quarter of the realtors her association represents report they've made a sale in the past week to a buyer who had only seen the home virtually. "Rentals are approximately 20% higher this year than last year, conservatively, and while there are some short-term rentals in the mix, we are mostly seeing long-term rental deals being done," says Cody Vichinsky, the co-owner of Bespoke Real Estate, which lists Hamptons properties valued at $10 million or more. "I’ve never seen the type of increased energy like we’re doing this quarter."
Have a fantastic weekend!😊
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Hey Lydia. No one really has experience with it as it's brand new. There is only one carrier that I know of offering it and only two PMS systems that currently have it integrated. There might be more, but that's my general knowledge. You do need to have 5 or more properties to get underwritten, I believe. They wanted 10 or more, but it sounds like they'll approve you if you use OR and have 5 or more - that's what came out in the last meeting we had. We can ask on a case by case basis if they'll accept smaller users but that's the general understand at this point.
Paul W. - Is this something you guys have experience with: folks who use it, how to use it, whether it improves your ability to get bookings? Do you know enough about it to know if it's available to little fish or do you have to be a big property manager?
Many of you reading this may already be using our Hosted Website feature.
If not check out some great examples like ShenRent, Sasquatch, MT Shasta, CB Borrego, Dawn's or Mountainside.
Hosted Websites has some solid features, but we're in the middle of designing some great new ones.
Please let us know (survey below) what you need for your hosted site. What's bothering you about it? What do you see on other VR websites that you wish your website had?
(make sure to scroll to the bottom and click the Submit button)
It's around 5% of your booking total - Master Cancel. In exchange, you get an extremely flexible cancellation policy where the guest can cancel all the way up to 2 days before arrival, and the carrier will cover your cancellation refund, no questions asked. There are no qualifying reasons or types of cancellations that are covered - they are all covered across the board. There's a 10% deductible and if you successfully rebook they will refund the difference between the new and old booking with 0% deductible (they want to incentivize you rebooking).
We are pleased to announce that we have partnered with RueBaRue to provide advanced guest communication tools.
RueBaRue now integrates seamlessly with OwnerRez software to help vacation rental property managers save time, optimize operations, and liaise with guests.
RueBaRue Guest Communication Platform helps property managers use smart messaging to communicate with guests, schedule automated text, and email delivery of guestbooks and area guides, respond quickly to guest questions using the property manager app.
With the integration, guestbooks will be created in seconds, and you will have RueBaRue up and running within a few hours.
Here’s what a vacation rental company in San Diego has to say about RueBaRue:
"A game-changer for our Guest Services Department. People aren’t calling in asking how to use a TV or where exactly to park because it’s all there in detailed step-by-step photos. And their customer service and support team are the best."
Schedule a 30-Minute Demo at https://www.ruebarue.com/schedule-a-demo
Learn how to Integrate RueBaRue with Your OwnerRez Account.
