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Meet Jodie Willey, founder of 365 Blue Vacations. Born and raised in Colorado, Jodie has spent her career in hospitality, working her way from the front desk to General Manager of a timeshare resort in Breckenridge. After more than a decade in resort operations, she launched 365 Blue Vacations in 2021, combining her timeshare experience with short-term rentals to help owners maximize their investments. Today, Jodie manages a portfolio of over 60 short-term rentals in Breckenridge, using OwnerRez as the foundation of her business.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

I was born and raised in Boulder, CO, and now live in Breckenridge, CO. I have worked in hospitality since graduating from Colorado State University. I moved to Breckenridge in my late 20s, and while I have left a few times, I moved back permanently in 2006. In 2008, I became the General Manager of the Hyatt Residence Club in Breckenridge, where I spent the next 13 years. That role gave me a stronger understanding of resort operations, owner relations, and the ins and outs of timeshare.

In 2020, at the start of COVID, I was working 60+ hours a week and decided it was time to prioritize my family. I started a more traditional 9-5 for a while, thinking about starting my own business. I missed hospitality, especially working directly with owners and guests. That’s what led me to start 365 Blue Vacations, where I combined my knowledge of timeshare with short-term rentals.

What is your background?

After graduating from CSU, I started my career in the hospitality industry at the front desk and worked my way up to General Manager of a timeshare resort. My experience in timeshare showed me a missing link for many owners. Some could no longer use their week due to changing family dynamics, while others wanted to turn their ownership into a rental revenue source. When I decided to build a business around helping those owners, a friend introduced me to OwnerRez, which became the foundation I needed to manage timeshare rentals.

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

Yes, I have always been involved in hospitality to some degree. What I do today is an extension of that background, just in a more focused way.

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

I’m a true-born-and-bred Coloradan. I’d love to eventually expand my business beyond Breckenridge, but for now, this area is keeping me plenty busy!

What do you love the most about the vacation rental business?

For me, it’s the relationships with my owners. Of course, I enjoy helping guests make memories and offering fantastic experiences, but when I left Hyatt, I truly missed the relationships I had built with owners. Starting 365 Blue Vacations allowed those relationships to grow again, just in a different way.

What do you dislike the most about it?

Letting anyone down, whether it’s an owner or a guest. You can’t always rent every week, and with timeshares, it’s often the one week an owner owns. If that week doesn’t rent, neither of us sees any revenue, and that’s always hard for me.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

OwnerRez is integral to the operation of my business. I looked at many software companies, and very few work in a way that truly supports timeshare rentals. Timeshares are weeklong reservations, and every owner has a different week, so the setup must be flexible.

I manage 67 properties but work with over 350 individual owners, which adds another layer of complexity. It took me a bit to really dial everything in, but OwnerRez offers so many powerful tools, templates, triggers, tags, credit card processing, API connections, seasons, mutual blocking, and more. I’m sure there’s always more to learn, but I feel like I’ve gotten it dialed in well.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

OwnerRez offers so many features that are vital to my operation, it’s hard to pick just one. Channel management, seasons, and the ability to easily adjust minimum and maximum night stays are essential. Rezzy AI has also become a valuable tool, along with many other features that help keep my business running smoothly and successfully.

Jodie’s background in hospitality and timeshare operations allows her to deliver excellent guest experiences and strong returns for owners. With OwnerRez supporting her business, we look forward to seeing 365 Blue Vacations continue to grow.

No upcoming webinars are planned at this time, but you can see AruvoTV in action here.

Hi Jenny,  We are always looking for opportunities to do webinars with partners.  I will ask our marketing team to let you know if that is on the road map!

Super grateful for Cam, Greg, and Jason for helping me with so many things over the years.  I hope someday you will have phone support (ongoing) instead of having to schedule calls.  I look forward to seeing all new developments and releases!

This week’s roundup covers San Diego blocking a proposed short-term rental tax, new 2026 investment insights from AirDNA, cities continuing to adjust short-term rental rules ahead of the 2026 World Cup, a legal challenge to Dearborn’s STR ban, and a new HGTV series spotlighting vacation rentals. Let’s dive in.

Previously reported in Industry News on January 23rd and October 10th, San Diego’s proposed short-term rental tax was officially rejected this week. After hours of public comment and debate on Wednesday, the San Diego City Council Rules Committee voted 3–2 to block the measure, preventing it from moving forward to the full City Council and appearing on the June ballot. The proposal would have imposed a new annual tax of up to $8,000 on short-term rentals and vacation homes, with revenue directed toward affordable housing and homelessness programs. Supporters presented the tax as a tool to address housing affordability, while opponents argued it would disproportionately affect hard-working hosts and the vacation rental industry as a whole in the area. Councilmember Raul Campillo, who voted against the measure, said the tax would undermine small businesses and warned the city would ultimately lose more revenue than it would generate if it passed the new tax.

AirDNA released a report this week highlighting its top 10 markets for short-term rentals at the $700,000 to $1 million price point. The rankings are based on gross yield, comparing AirDNA’s projected annual short-term rental revenue against the average purchase price of homes currently listed for sale in each market. AirDNA notes that while gross yields in this higher price tier tend to be lower than in more affordable markets, higher-end properties often generate stronger overall revenue per listing, potentially allowing investors to own fewer assets while receiving similar returns. Markets featured on the list include Santa Rosa/Rosemary Beach, Florida, the Ozark Mountains in Missouri, and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, each posting projected gross yields between 9.0 and 9.8 percent based on current inventory. AirDNA also released a companion report highlighting the best places to invest with a $250,000 to $400,000 budget, using the same gross-yield methodology. That list includes Burlington, Kentucky, Abilene, Texas, and Savannah, Georgia, with average gross yields ranging from 15.9 to 17.9 percent.

Brea, a city in Orange County, California, has become the latest local government to amend its short-term rental rules as cities across the U.S. prepare for increased travel demand tied to the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics. City officials approved a new short-term rental pilot program that will allow rentals to operate under a regulated framework where they were previously banned. The new program will allow up to 100 permits, issued through a lottery, with hosts required to comply with rules around parking, safety inspections, minimum stay requirements, and business licensing. The city estimates the program could generate roughly $500,000 in annual revenue while helping accommodate the large number of visitors expected during the upcoming global events. The program will run through December 31, 2029, and will expire unless extended by the City Council.

Previously reported in Industry News on July 18th, Dearborn’s short-term rental ban is now being challenged in federal court by a group of property owners and short-term rental operators.  The ordinance, passed in July 2025 and taking effect on January 1st, prohibits short-term rentals in single-family residential neighborhoods. In the lawsuit, property owners argue the city violated due process by eliminating a previously permitted land use and that any ban should have exempted properties that were already operating as short-term rentals.

On Wednesday, HGTV announced the premiere date for its new series, Wild Vacation Rentals, with the first episode set to air on March 2nd. Each episode will feature three unique vacation rentals in the U.S., beginning in the central United States. They will be showcasing amazing design, hilariously honest guest reviews, stories straight from the owners, and the incredible experiences that set short-term rentals apart. We hope to see a few OwnerRez-powered properties featured along the way.

As cities continue to shift short-term rental regulations and fresh investment data is released, the vacation rental landscape continues to take shape in 2026. Check back next week for the latest news.

We’re excited to welcome Kicbac as a new integration partner, helping OwnerRez users simplify payments while maintaining predictable processing costs.

About Kicbac

Kicbac is a modern payments platform built to support businesses with complex workflows, high card usage, and frequent refunds. Through this integration, property managers can process guest payments securely, streamline refunds and cancellations, and maintain predictable processing costs without reserves or surprise fees. Kicbac focuses on transparency, reliability, and real human support, making payments one less thing property managers have to think about.

Pricing

Pricing is customized based on transaction volume, card mix, and business needs. Most OwnerRez customers see lower effective rates, simplified refund handling, and more predictable monthly costs compared to traditional processors. Quotes are provided after a quick review of recent statements. 

Ready to Connect?

Get started with Kicbac by visiting here and checking out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with Kicbac.

We’re excited to share some great news for OwnerRez users listing on Hopper. Listings that are live on Hopper may now also appear on Capital One Travel, giving your properties access to even more travelers and added visibility through one of the largest travel platforms available today.

What does this mean?

Capital One Travel is powered by Hopper’s underlying booking technology. With this recent expansion, many vacation rentals distributed through Hopper are now eligible to be shown to travelers searching on Capital One Travel at no extra setup required on your end. If your property is already connected to Hopper through OwnerRez, and live and bookable on Hopper, it may now also be surfaced to Capital One Travel users automatically.

A quick note on eligibility

Listings shown on Capital One Travel are curated by Hopper as part of their partner distribution platform. While most Hopper listings are eligible, inclusion is not guaranteed for every property, and there is no published criteria. This is intentional on Hopper's part and helps maintain a consistent, high-quality guest experience across partner channels. If your listing doesn’t appear right away, that doesn’t necessarily indicate a problem; it may simply not yet be included in that expanded distribution.

Why this matters

This is another example of how OwnerRez helps extend your reach without adding complexity. By listing on Hopper, you can unlock:

• Increased exposure to new audiences
• Access to high-intent travelers booking through Capital One
• More opportunities to fill your calendar

If you’re not yet listed on Hopper and want to take advantage of this additional exposure, now’s a great time to explore it.

As always, we’ll continue working closely with our partners to expand distribution opportunities and keep you informed as things evolve.

Keep up the great work! OR amazes me every day. 

Constant amazement at you guys!  Keep it up.

Meet Shane Henry, founder of Cameo Properties. Shane started his vacation rental business in 2018 after years of touring as a full-time musician and staying in short-term rentals across the country. With no formal real estate experience, he taught himself the business, rehabbing properties in his hometown and building a successful portfolio alongside his music career. With OwnerRez, Shane now manages eight short-term rental properties in Oklahoma while staying on the road as a full-time musician.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

I’m a full-time musician based in Norman, OK. I started my short-term rental business in 2018 after years of touring and staying in STRs across the country. I have released many albums under my name, Shane Henry, and currently have a band called The Imaginaries with my wife, Maggie McClure. You can check out our music at www.imaginariesband.com.

What is your background?

I have no prior experience in the real estate business; I’m a self-taught entrepreneur! My dad is a plumber, so I grew up with knowledge, and I’ve always been a fast learner when I focus my energy. All of my properties have been full-blown to-the-studs rehabs. Just proof that anyone can do this is if they focus their energy towards it.

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

This is a 2nd career for sure. My timing could not have been more perfect I had my first 2 properties online in April of 2019 and it was great to have income during the pandemic since musicians couldn’t tour and work.

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

All of my properties are in my hometown, Chickasha, OK, and a few are in Norman, OK. Chickasha is known for being a “Christmas Town” with the world's largest 50-foot-tall permanent Leg Lamp (from “A Christmas Story”) as well as the festival of light, which was voted one of the top 3 Christmas Light Displays in the USA. Our latest property, Ralphie’s House, is located just 8 blocks from the Leg Lamp and is our first “themed” property. It’s cool that our hometown is drawing in tourists now with the “Christmas” theme year-round.

If you moved there later, was there something that drew you to that area?

Honestly, my wife and I had moved back to Oklahoma from LA in 2018. I found a duplex in my hometown for sale; it was beyond rough, but I was able to get a construction loan and jumped in on rehabbing the property with no prior experience. It turned out so nice, I thought, I’m going to try renting this on Airbnb / Vrbo. I was blown away. The first month I went live, the property generated about 3 times the income that a rental would. Our area is primarily travel workers (construction/oil and gas) as well as folks traveling for sports and fairgrounds events. We live in a time now where you can be a success at running STRs in your own hometown. It’s no different than choosing an Uber over a taxi.

What do you love the most about the vacation rental business?

I love the flexibility that it’s given my life. I do this and music full-time. I could never go back to working an 8-5 at this point in my life.

What do you dislike the most about it?

Having to deal with guest issues when I’m on stage with a guitar in my hands, haha. For the most part, we have an excellent system, and OwnerRez is a huge reason why! Everything is automated, and since our properties are fully rehabbed, we seldom have major issues.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

You can’t run a short-term rental business without OwnerRez. OwnerRez runs our calendars via API (Vrbo, Airbnb, booking.com, Google Vacation Rentals), we have a direct website, and we use all the automated messaging and SMS text messaging. Our accountant also uses the QuickBooks connection.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

That’s a hard one. To me, it’s all useful and works together to allow one person (myself) to completely automate and manage 8 properties while being on the road as a full-time musician. That’s powerful!

Shane’s path from full-time musician to vacation rental owner shows how powerful and flexible the vacation rental industry can be with the right tools in place. With OwnerRez, he’s able to continue his music career while running his short-term rental business at an elite level. We look forward to seeing Cameo Properties and Shane's music career continue to grow.

Is there a webinar planned for this to demonstrate the system capabilities and ask questions?

Add-ons for platforms (AB&B & VRBO mostly), versus “own site” what is working better for you hosts/managers out there?
My observation is that “add-ons” are ignored by most guests, who just want to grab a cheap place to stay. 

1. Raising the price on platforms, & making it all, or mostly (“experiences” subject to availability & scheduling) inclusive?
2. Make own rental site only way to get “stripped-down” price, without add-ons. 

How are you, as a host or manager, deploying the options?

Thank you for sharing your ideas, 

Emily DG

This week, we are highlighting one of our own. Steve Clark joined OwnerRez in 2021 with a background in technology and firsthand experience as a vacation rental operator through his business, WoodHaven Rentals. After buying his first vacation home in the North Georgia mountains, Steve quickly immersed himself in the short-term rental world, becoming an active member of the OwnerRez community long before officially joining the team. Today, Steve is the Director of Customer Success at OwnerRez, leveraging his real-world experience as a vacation rental owner to drive customer success and help shape the product.

Can you tell us a little bit about your history?

I grew up in Northern Virginia and moved to the Tampa, Florida area in 1988. I’ve lived here ever since with my wife and our two kids. One day, we took a vacation to the North Georgia mountains, and after living in the Florida heat for so many years, we absolutely fell in love with it. We thought the area was amazing, and it felt like such a great change of pace. We ended up buying our first vacation home in 2020, right after COVID started.

What is your background?

Right after high school, I joined the Army and served for four years as an ammunition specialist. After I got out, I started going to college, but I was offered a job at a company doing the kind of work I really wanted to be doing. A lot of my friends who graduated college were struggling to find careers at the time, so I took the opportunity and ended up stepping away from school.

My first role was as a certified technician doing desktop and computer support. After that, I worked on a project with AAA South where I traveled to different states upgrading computers. This was around the year 2000, and we were upgrading systems from Windows 95 to Windows 98. We’d go into a branch after closing and had to finish everything before they opened the next morning, so it was a fast-paced job with a lot of hands-on troubleshooting.

From there, I moved into purchasing, then later into sales, and spent several years in business-to-business sales. Later on, my wife was diagnosed with cancer, so I left my job to stay home with the kids and take care of her. After she recovered and returned to work, I stayed home and became a stay-at-home dad for about eight years. Then we bought our vacation rental, I got immersed in the short-term rental world, and eventually that led me to OwnerRez.

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

No, I wasn’t always in vacation rentals. Most of my career was in technology and business-to-business sales. I’ve also done a little bit of everything, including pool remodeling, serving, and bartending. But we bought our vacation rental in 2020, and that’s really when I entered the vacation rental industry.

A fun part of that story is that in 2020, when everything was shut down, I spent a lot of time on the OwnerRez users group and unofficial community forums while I was learning the software. I joined Zoom calls with other users, worked through issues, and shared tips and ideas. I really liked the community and stayed involved, answering questions and helping people.

At one point, another user messaged me and told me I should work at OwnerRez. She reached out to the OwnerRez CEO, Paul, and it turned out they had an opening at the time. I applied, and it worked out. I started with OwnerRez about five years ago, and I’ve since moved into a leadership role. Today, I’m the Director of Customer Success, supporting both the inbound and sales sides of the business. So now I’m not only an owner and self-manager, I also work in the industry and attend a lot of industry events.

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

I live in the Tampa, Florida area, specifically in a small town called Lutz, just north of Tampa. My property is in North Georgia, in Mineral Bluff, just outside of Blue Ridge. It’s about an 8 to 9-hour drive for me, depending on how long we stop at Buc-ee’s on the way up. Because I’m managing from a distance, I realized early on that if I wanted to self-manage successfully, I needed strong software to support me, and OwnerRez was the solution I landed on.

If you moved there later, was there something that drew you to that area?

Even though I don’t live in Georgia, I absolutely love the area. After living in Florida for so many years, we wanted a place where we could actually be outside more. In the Georgia mountains, we spend more time hiking, visiting waterfalls, and being down by the river. It’s also just a slower pace of life, less hustle and bustle, and it feels like a true getaway for our family. That’s what really drew us to the area.

What do you love the most about the vacation rental business?

Honestly, I think what I love most is the people. It’s really cool meeting guests from all different walks of life. And working in the industry, I also enjoy going to conferences and events, connecting with other property managers, and hearing their stories. My LinkedIn is filled with short-term rental professionals, and it’s just a really great community. At the end of the day, this is a hospitality business. It’s people-oriented, and I don’t think everyone realizes that. Some people get into vacation rentals thinking it’s just an easy way to make money, but to really be successful, you need to have a hospitality mindset and be empathetic. That’s what I love most about it.

What do you dislike the most about it?

Is it bad to say the people? (laughs) Most guests are great, but every once in a while, you’ll get someone you just can’t please, no matter what. You put in the time and effort, the home is clean, everything is ready, and they still find something to complain about, or they aren’t being completely honest and are trying to get something for nothing. That’s probably the hardest part for me. I wish everyone was more honest and reasonable. Sometimes there might be a small issue, but it gets turned into a huge problem, and suddenly they’re asking for a big refund, even though they’re still getting a beautiful three-bedroom, three-bath home for the price of a hotel room.

How do you use OwnerRez to manage your business?

I use pretty much every part of OwnerRez. Since I live about eight hours away, I do have a cleaner who acts as my boots on the ground. She uses Turno, so I have that connected through the API, and I handle a lot of coordination through that.

For pricing, I rely heavily on PriceLabs. I probably lean on it more than I should and could tweak things more manually, but overall, it works well and saves me time.

Messaging is the biggest piece for me. It’s funny because if you look at my guest reviews, people always say things like “Steve was the most communicative host I’ve ever had,” or “he was so quick to respond.” And it makes me laugh because half the time, I never personally talked to them at all. For years, it was templates and triggers doing the work, and now it’s Rezzy answering a lot of those questions automatically.

I also love SMS. Even if a booking starts on a channel, once we’re past the booking stage, I try to move communication over to text messaging whenever possible. Guests seem to really like it because it’s simple and direct.

Between messaging, automations, integrations, smart locks, and everything else, OwnerRez is set up to make my life easier. For a single property, it’s a no-brainer, because it would take so much more time to do all of this manually.

What is the most useful feature OwnerRez offers?

It’s hard to narrow it down to just one, because OwnerRez does so much. The channel integrations are probably the most technical part, and they do a lot of heavy lifting behind the scenes, even though people don’t always think of them as a “feature.” But for me personally, the most useful feature is messaging. It saves me the most time, and now with Rezzy, it’s even better.

Guests ask questions all the time that are already answered in my guest book or guide, like whether they should bring coffee grounds or K-cups. Most guests don’t read all the details ahead of time, so before Rezzy, I still had to respond manually. Now Rezzy can answer those questions instantly by pulling from my FAQs, for example, letting them know I have a dual coffee maker that works with both K-cups and grounds. That kind of automation makes a huge difference, and it’s why messaging, especially with Rezzy, is the most useful feature for me.

Steve’s journey from vacation rental owner to Director of Customer Success reflects his strong understanding of both the industry and the people in it. We’re proud to have Steve on the OwnerRez team and look forward to seeing him continue to leverage his real-world vacation rental experience to drive customer success.

I just integrated our OwnerRez lisings (2 of them) w/ Lake and have a question about mapping. Do you have an API mapping document that I can look at? The Lake.com FAQ section "How do I access the property?" appears to map to "Accommodations Summary" in OwnerRez, and our check in time, set to 4pm in OR on all listings, is showing up as 2pm in Lake.

Good to see more connections,  10% is ok to me. We push it to renter, if I book then its good. I see the bigger picture. More places to book the better. Keep them coming. 

As we wrap up another big year, we’re excited to share a snapshot of what 2025 looked like at OwnerRez.

From conferences around the world and major engineering milestones to millions of Rezzy interactions and countless hours spent supporting our customers, 2025 was a year defined by growth, momentum, and impact. This infographic highlights just some of the numbers behind the work our team put in and the scale at which OwnerRez continues to operate.

None of this happens without the people behind it, our customers, partners, and the OwnerRez team who build, support, and improve the platform every day.

In 2026, we’re carrying this momentum forward with a continued focus on powerful product improvements, smarter automation, deeper integrations, and even better support. We’re grateful to everyone who was part of our journey in 2025, and we’re excited for what’s ahead.

Here’s to another year of building better tools for professional vacation rental management.

10% plus the Stripe fee.  I have beach properties, not sure I see my target market going to Lake.com

This week's roundup covers Key Data’s Q1 2026 short-term rental market report, Lake.com’s new integration with OwnerRez, ongoing tax debates in San Diego and Washington state, and new data on Airbnb’s economic impact in Kentucky. Let’s dive in.

Key Data released its Q1 2026 industry performance analysis for property managers, highlighting continued shifts across the U.S. short-term rental market. The report shows that RevPAR and average daily rate (ADR) trends remain on a positive trajectory, even as booking windows and average length of stay continue to tighten. Looking ahead, Key Data says success will depend on “flexibility and execution,” noting that operators who closely monitor booking trends, optimize last-minute pricing, and maintain strong visibility across the high-performing channels will be best positioned to succeed in 2026.

HospitalityNet released an article this week announcing OwnerRez’s recent partnership with Lake.com, a vacation rental booking platform offering more than 40,000 properties near the water across North America and Europe. The partnership gives OwnerRez users seamless access to Lake.com’s highly targeted audience of travelers searching for lakehouses, cabins, cottages, and beach homes. OwnerRez users can get started with Lake.com by visiting here and checking out the OwnerRez support article for integrating OwnerRez with Lake.com.

The proposed San Diego short-term rental tax, previously reported in Industry News on October 10th, is making headlines again this week. The current proposal would impose an annual tax of $5,000 per bedroom on short-term rentals and vacation homes, with revenue directed toward affordable housing and homelessness programs in the city. Supporters say the measure would help address housing affordability, while opponents argue the tax would unfairly target hosts and could have significant impacts on the local vacation rental industry. In response, Airbnb issued a statement saying, “Airbnb supports meaningful solutions that help generate new local revenue, but a hefty tax that significantly raises costs for residents who occasionally share their home to make extra money is not the right approach,” and urged the city to work collaboratively on solutions to improve affordability.

It was announced this week that Washington state lawmakers are once again revisiting a proposal that would allow cities and counties to impose new taxes on short-term rentals. House Bill 2559 would give local governments the authority, starting in April 2027, to add a tax of up to 4 percent on short-term rentals, with the revenue directed toward affordable housing efforts. Over the past year, Airbnb has spent nearly $4 million backing a political action committee opposing the proposal in Washington, including a $1 million contribution made in late November. As of now, the committee reviewing the bill has not scheduled a vote to move the legislation forward.

According to a new economic impact report from Airbnb, Airbnb hosts welcomed more than one million guests to Kentucky in 2024, supporting an estimated 8,700 tourism-related jobs and generating roughly $354 million in income for local workers. Airbnb says guest activity also contributed approximately $146.5 million in state and local tax revenue tied to stays and off-platform spending. The report goes on to break down host demographics and highlights the role short-term rentals have played in smaller, bourbon industry-driven communities where traditional hotels are limited or nonexistent.

As early 2026 data emerges, and local governments continue to revisit short-term rental regulations, the vacation rental industry continues to evolve. Check back next week for the latest news.

A great idea. But 10% her Booking seems very high 

We’re officially a month into the new year, which makes February a great time to pause, take a step back, and make sure you have everything in place to support your goals for 2026. ❄️

This month’s webinar schedule includes live demos, Q&A sessions, and Focus Sessions covering the PM module. You’ll hear from industry partners such as Happy Guest, Boostly, and American Snowbird, who will share practical strategies to help improve your business in 2026. We’re also hosting a special webinar focused on Rezzy AI, where we’ll cover how it works, how to train it, and how it fits into your workflow.

Plus, OwnerRez will be attending two in-person events this February. We’ll be at the MOVHA Hosting Crash Course in Kansas City on February 6th and 7th, and later in Phoenix on February 26th for the VRNation Roadshow. Stop by the OwnerRez booth to meet the team, ask questions, and grab some swag!

Webinars:

 2/2/2026 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!

 2/3/2026 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!

 2/5/2026 Happy Guest/OwnerRez - Groundhog Day: 5 Tips to Avoid Repeating 2025

If your revenue strategy feels like déjà vu, it’s time to break the loop. This session covers five practical revenue management strategies to deploy this year, built for shorter booking windows, erratic pacing, and less predictable demand. Walk away with clear adjustments you can make now to stop relying on last year’s playbook and start pricing for how the market actually behaves today.

Register now!

 2/6/2026 Rezzy AI - Available to All, Sneak Peek, and What's Next

In this live webinar, we’ll walk through how Rezzy AI works, how to train it with FAQs and Directives, how Tasks and Sentiment Analysis fit into your workflow, real world examples from live accounts, what’s coming later, plus a live Q&A to help answer any questions you have.

Register now!

 2/9/2026 Boostly/OwnerRez - Roast Your Listing Live

Discover how to boost your direct bookings in this live OwnerRez webinar with Mark Simpson, Founder of Boostly. During the webinar, OwnerRez attendees will have the opportunity to submit their OTA listings live, and Mark will audit a selection in real time. He will highlight quick, practical improvements you can make to strengthen your listing and increase direct bookings.

Register now!

 2/10/2026 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!

 2/12/2026 Focus Session - PM Owner Configuration & Financial Settings

Join us for a live webinar focused on the PM (Property Management) module inside OwnerRez. In this Focus Session, we’ll walk through how to configure owners for properties, as well as how to set up surcharges, discounts, and taxes. We’ll also highlight batch update tools to help you apply these settings efficiently across multiple properties.

Register now!

 2/18/2026 American Snowbird/OwnerRez - Mid-Term Mastery 2026: Turn Slow Months into Steady 30+ Night Revenue

In this live webinar, we’ll walk through a practical four-part strategy to make monthly bookings a real engine in 2026, not just a backup plan. We’ll cover flexible, tiered pricing for 30+ night stays, useful lessons from the top long-stay markets, and the listing updates that actually sell “daily living” to month-long guests, think workspace, laundry, and crystal-clear policies.

Register now!

 2/19/2026 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!

 2/20/2026 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!

 2/25/2026 Focus Session - PM Owner Statements & Custom Statement Views

Join us for a live webinar on Owner Statements and Custom Statement Views in the PM (Property Management) module of OwnerRez. In this Focus Session, we’ll walk through how to generate owner statements and how to customize statement views so the right information is presented clearly and consistently.

Register now!

 2/26/2026 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!

In-Person Events:

2026 MOVHA Hosting Crash Course

The MOVHA Hosting Crash Course is education-focused on building a solid foundation for hosting guests. Sessions will center on safety, Good Neighbor policies, guest experience and communications, the art of cleaning, and all the practical applications. Register here!

When: February 6-7, 2026

Where: Kansas City, MO

2026 VRNation Roadshow Phoenix

Join us for a one-day event designed to elevate your vacation rental business with market-specific insights, hands-on education, and meaningful connections. You’ll network with 100+ local industry professionals, hear directly from VRNation’s Executive Board on emerging trends, stay ahead of local STR regulations, and explore the benefits of VRNation membership. The agenda features interactive roundtables and peer-led discussions, a specialized education and certification track including safety training with Justin Ford and a cleaning certification with Durk Johnson, and a Local Market Pulse track covering market data and performance sponsored by BEYOND, along with advocacy updates focused on local short-term rental regulations. Register here!

When: February 26, 2026

Where: Phoenix, Arizona

This week’s roundup covers Airbnb.org’s new disaster response partnership, Hilton’s latest apartment-style brand aimed at vacation rentals, social media-driven travel trends, Airbnb’s continued push into AI, and a major milestone for Lake.com. Let’s dive in.

Airbnb.org announced a new disaster response partnership this week with 211 LA, a nonprofit that serves as Los Angeles County’s 24/7 non-emergency information and referral service provider. The partnership is aimed at helping connect people displaced by disasters with free, temporary housing through Airbnb.org, while relying on 211 LA’s local call center and coordination support. The agreement builds on a year of collaboration that provided housing to nearly 24,000 people affected by the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires, and includes a $100,000 credit commitment from Airbnb.org to help 211 LA place guests in emergency housing throughout 2026.

Hilton announced the launch of Apartment Collection by Hilton, a new brand designed to compete more directly with short-term and mid-term rentals while attempting to bring a standardized, hotel-style experience. The collection will include roughly 10,000 apartment-style units, with up to 3,000 new units added through a partnership with Placemakr, and reservations expected to open in the coming months. Hilton says the collection will feature furnished apartments paired with hotel services, including dedicated on-site team members available 24/7. The move marks the latest attempt by a major hotel brand to professionalize short-term rentals at scale and appeal to travelers seeking the flexibility of an apartment with the consistency and support of a traditional hotel.

Airbnb released its list of the most loved Airbnbs on social media in 2025, highlighting Guest Favorite listings that generated the most likes, comments, shares, and impressions across TikTok and Instagram. Airbnb says social media continues to play a growing role in how guests discover places to stay, especially among Gen Z travelers. Common themes among the most engaging listings include nature-focused properties and distinctive spaces that allow guests to disconnect and feel inspired. The highlighted stays range from a riverfront cabin in Washington to a converted DC-6 airplane in Alaska to a tropical treehouse in Hawaii, pointing to how experience-driven properties are increasingly shaping traveler interest and booking behavior on social media.

As part of its continued push into artificial intelligence, Airbnb has announced the addition of Ahmad Al-Dahle as its new Chief Technology Officer. Al-Dahle previously led generative AI efforts at Meta and will oversee Airbnb’s technology and AI strategy as the company continues to invest heavily in artificial intelligence. Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky said Al-Dahle “connects big ideas with technical depth” and emphasized that the hire reflects Airbnb’s belief that AI will play a central role in shaping how guests discover stays and how hosts operate on the platform in the near future.

Lake.com announced this week that it has surpassed 40,000 vacation rental listings across 36 countries, marking a major milestone for the listing site focused on lakefront, riverfront, and waterfront stays. The company says demand for water-based travel remains strong across North America and Europe, as travelers increasingly seek quieter, nature-focused destinations. For vacation rental operators, Lake.com continues to show strong growth and provides property managers access to a highly targeted audience of travelers looking for lakehouses, cabins, cottages, and beach homes. And for OwnerRez users, stay tuned for a Lake.com channel integration coming soon.

As new listing platforms gain traction and new brands emerge, the vacation rental landscape continues to evolve. Check back next week for the latest news.

Hi Katie.

It seems it's already a popular feature request (63 upvotes and counting) so I don't think me opening a new one is going to be helpful.

Sad to see that the fairly popular feature request has been open for 5 years without any dev attention yet.

https://www.ownerrez.com/forums/requests/optional-addon-items

Hello!

Although we don't have a way for the guests to specify a quantity for an optional surcharge (such as the number of bags of firewood they'd like), you should write this up as a feature request so other clients can upvote your ideas for new and improved features in OwnerRez: https://www.ownerrez.com/forums/requests

Feel free to share your request with like-minded users who would be willing to give it an upvote! Voting in the forum allows our Engineering and Product teams to evaluate where our sights should be set for future roadmap enhancements.

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

Hosted by OwnerRez co-founders Paul Waldschmidt and Chris Hynes, the podcast was inspired by their weekly walks and candid conversations about the business. Those talks have shaped key product decisions and strategy shifts at OwnerRez over the years, and now you’re invited to listen in. Whether you’re a host, manager, or simply curious how vacation rental software is built, the podcast delivers practical insights you can apply to your own business journey.

🎙️ Episode 5 Now Live

EP5 – Inside the 2025 OwnerRez Retreat: Voice, Growth, and Leveling Up

In Episode Five, Paul and Chris reflect on the 2025 OwnerRez company retreat at Tanque Verde Ranch and the deeper conversations it sparked about growth, culture, and what it means to truly level up. They discuss how a fully remote team builds a shared voice, why maturity requires intentional systems, and how AI is reshaping not just how we work, but the pride we take in our work, creativity, and what it means to be authentically human.

You’ll hear about:

• How the retreat was designed to bring people together
• What “leveling up” really means for a growing company
• Why structured PTO and clearer processes can actually be healthier
• How customer focus and pricing strategies shape the future
• What it means to have a human voice in an AI-driven world
• How pride in your work evolves as tools get more powerful

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.

Is there a way to Ban certain guests in bulk, based on criteria - for example, guests that hosts have given a 1-star review to, or guests that have given hosts 1-star reviews? Or alternatively, is there a way to automatically ban future guests based on similar conditions (vs manually having to go back through past reservations and individually banning guests)?

Not at this time, Alma. Feel free to add your request to the OwnerRez Feature Request forum.

Is there a way to Ban certain guests in bulk, based on criteria - for example, guests that hosts have given a 1-star review to, or guests that have given hosts 1-star reviews? Or alternatively, is there a way to automatically ban future guests based on similar conditions (vs manually having to go back through past reservations and individually banning guests)?

I currently allow guests to pay via Paypal friends and family so there are no fees involved.  I assume with this new change that I have to upgrade to a business account - which I don't want to do.  Can I keep my account configured the same way and make no changes?

New year, new OwnerRez features - including the wide releases of Rezzy AI, Tasks, and PMv2; also, the addition of Rate Change History, the Template & Trigger Library, two new Nightly Rent Field Codes, and so much more!

• New Features
  • Rezzy AI
  • Tasks
  • Rate Change History
  • Template & Trigger Library
  • PMv2
  • Nightly Rent Field Codes
  • Kicbac
• Enhancements
  • Cancellation Policies
  • Booking.com Surcharges & Taxes
  • Airbnb Host Reviews
  • Airbnb Guest Profile Photos
  • PM Statement View Discount Charge Categorization 
  • Standard Surcharges and Discounts
  • Tags
  • PM Owner Statement Expenses Report
  • PM Owner Statement Summary Report
• Design Progress
  • Property Photos
  • Property Accommodation Types
  • Discounts
• Tweaks
  • January 7th Release with 8 Tweaks
  • January 14th Release with 9 Tweaks
  • January 21st Release with 3 Tweaks
  • January 28th Release with 2 Tweaks
• Bug Fixes

New Features

Rezzy AI (Wide-Release)

In case you missed our January 16th 'Rezzy AI - Available to Everyone on January 28th!' email blast, Rezzy AI is now available to everyone. You may have already heard a little about Rezzy, our new intelligent assistant for guest messaging, task automation, and sentiment analysis. As of the 28th, she's available throughout the entire month of February for free to everyone!

(That’s right, Rezzy is a she :-))

We want to express our sincere thanks to the 1,000+ OwnerRez users who participated in the beta program. Your feedback, real-world testing, and suggestions have been instrumental in shaping Rezzy into what she is today.  

Here are the key dates:

📅 On Wednesday, January 28, Rezzy became available to all OwnerRez accounts!

📅 On Friday, February 6, we are hosting a live demo webinar (Hear from Paul Waldschmidt, Co-Founder and CEO of OwnerRez)

📅 Starting March 1st, billing will be $9/property per month and charged on your regular monthly billing day.

That’s right, Rezzy will be completely free for the entire month of February (and into March depending on your billing day)! That makes it easy to turn on and use for the month of February to see how it works and become comfortable with her.

Tasks (Wide-Release)

Using a task management tool for your vacation rental business helps prevent forgotten requests, assign accountability, track maintenance, and ensure a consistent guest experience across multiple properties. With our January 28th release, OwnerRez has added our own in-app Tasks area that centralizes your to-dos, guest requests, and maintenance needs in one place. Assign tasks to team members and set urgent priorities when needed to ensure nothing is forgotten, keeping your rental operations organized and accountable.

NOTE: Rezzy supercharges the tasks area by auto-creating tasks based on guest needs and requests, but if you don't use Rezzy, you can still use the new Tasks area for manual task management.

The main menu includes the Tasks item, which displays the number of unresolved tasks, so you can stay on top of them.

Create a new task by selecting Tasks from the left navigation menu and clicking + New Task.

Enter the Task Category, Description, Status, Property, Booking, whether this task is a Priority, attach any files if necessary, and Save.

You can update your task details at any time, and each task can be assigned to your team members and marked as complete when finished.

Rate Change History

Tracking your nightly rate history reveals pricing patterns, helps optimize future pricing, identify high-demand periods, and maximize revenue while staying competitive. With our January 7th release, OwnerRez added the Rate Change History, allowing you to view the history of nightly rate and rule changes made directly from the Rate Calendar. This new Rate Change History includes the name of the person who made the nightly rate or rule change, the date it was changed, and features a convenient sparkline visualization that displays rate trends over time. 

On the Rate Change History fly-out, the nightly rate and rules changes are displayed, along with the following details.

• The date the nightly rate or rules were changed.
• Nightly rate or rule changes, along with who made those changes.
• Nightly rate or rule changes made by dynamic pricing tools, with a logo displayed on the right side.
• Team Access members' names if they made changes with the Impersonated label displayed on the right side.
• If adequate data is available, a sparkline visualization displays rate trends over time.
• If changes to the nightly rate or rules were made by a Team Access member or the dynamic pricing tool, the date may be a clickable link that opens a log of those changes.

To see the Rate Change History, navigate to Tools > Rate Calendar, select a date, and click on the upper-right circle arrow icon.

On the Rate Change History fly-out, you can select individual dates by clicking the calendar icon or move forward or backward a night by clicking the left and right arrows.

This Rate Change History identifies when the rate and minimum nights were added on July 28, 2025, by Fancy Rental, the account owner, as well as a subsequent rule change made by Fancy on January 7, 2026.

If nightly rates or rules are changed by dynamic pricing tools, the Rate Change History includes the following.

• Nightly rate or rule changes made by the dynamic pricing tool, with a logo displayed on the right side
• A sparkline visualization displays rate trends over time if adequate data is available
• Each date may be a clickable link that opens a log of nightly rates or rules changes

If your Team Access member added the initial nightly rate or made changes to the nightly rates or rules, their name is displayed with the Impersonated label on the right side of the Rate Change History.

If changes to the nightly rate or rules were made by a Team Access member or the dynamic pricing tool, the date may be a clickable link that opens a log of those changes.

Template & Trigger Library

Using OwnerRez email, channel, and SMS templates with triggers to automatically send them streamlines your guest communication, makes guests feel welcome, builds trust, and improves their experience, increasing your rental's success. OwnerRez added the ability to add prepopulated email, channel, and SMS templates and triggers directly to your account from our Template and Trigger Library, both in-app and in some of our support articles, with our January 14th release.

Users can add templates directly into their account by navigating to Settings > Messaging > Templates, selecting the message type (e.g., Email, SMS, or Channel) tab, and clicking on the Copy from Library button.

Click on any of the templates in the Template Library to add them to your account.

When the template opens, you can edit or customize it to your liking.

Then head over to the Trigger section by navigating to Settings > Messaging > Triggers, and click the Copy from Library button to find the associated trigger.

When the trigger opens, you can edit or customize it to your business needs.

Additionally, you can also add templates directly from some support articles, if available, by clicking on the +Add Template to My Account.

Similarly, you can add triggers directly from some support articles, if available, by clicking on the +Add Trigger to My Account.

PMv2 (Wide-Release)

Over the past year, OwnerRez has rebuilt our Property Management (PM) system from the ground up. With our January 14th release, all PM users can opt into the PMv2 upgrade. The upgrade is not yet automatic, but it is available to everyone. What’s new in PMv2? PMv2 was built on a new statement and remittance foundation that fixes long-standing limitations of the old PM system and unlocks more powerful tools, a future-proof PM foundation with quicker updates, including the following improvements.

💰 Accurate expense tracking for Commission, Taxes, and Damage Protection
📊 Summary statement report for assisting with year-end owner reporting
⚙️ Fully customizable Statement Views
🎯 Better fee & expense controls
🔄 Cleaner Proration & Historical Corrections
✅ Clear, intuitive remittance totals

Are you starting to manage properties for others? Check out our Property Management premium feature.

Nightly Rent Field Codes

There may be times when hosts may be required to produce a detailed nightly rate receipt for guests, particularly if those guests are traveling for work. Providing a table or list of nightly rent by date ensures compliance with specific governmental billing requirements, demonstrates pricing transparency, and simplifies the purchase order process. There wasn't an easy way to do this until now. OwnerRez added two new field codes to offer more flexibility in your guest messaging with our January 14th release.

Here's an example using the {BNRENTT} field code, which shows the nightly rent breakdown by date in a table format.

Alternatively, if you only need a list that displays the nightly rent breakdown by date, use the {BNRENTL} field code.

Kicbac

With our January 7th release, OwnerRez added KicBac as a new integrated payment method partner.  Kicbac's approach is simple: what you see is exactly what you pay. Kicbac simplifies the fee structure and removes hidden markups, helping you keep more of your earnings within your business.

Considering adding a new payment processor? Check out all of OwnerRez's payment processor options.

Enhancements

Cancellation Policies

Cancellation policies help protect your business while setting clear expectations with guests. With our January 21st release, OwnerRez improved the Cancellation Policies area by changing the language from "It's complicated" to "Tiered policy," properly hiding options when "None" is selected, and generally enhancing this in-app section layout, all while dynamically updating your cancellation policy at the bottom.

Booking.com Surcharges & Taxes

Identifying and recording non-English Booking.com charges and taxes ensures accurate financial reporting, tax compliance, and prevents costly errors when managing international properties or serving global guests. OwnerRez added support for correctly identifying and syncing Booking.com charges and taxes in non-English languages with our January 21st release.

Previously, charges and taxes in languages other than English couldn't be properly matched to the correct charge types, but now they'll be correctly identified and synced to the appropriate OwnerRez surcharges and taxes.

Airbnb Host Reviews

Reviewing Airbnb guests helps future hosts make informed decisions, promotes accountability, builds your credibility as a host, and creates a two-way feedback system that improves the overall Airbnb community. As part of our January 21st release, OwnerRez added the ability for hosts to now add optional text comments (50 characters maximum) when rating guests with 1 to 5 stars across three categories: Cleanliness, Communication, and House rules.

Users can leave a host review for their Airbnb guests by navigating to the Booking > Review tab and clicking on the + Record New Review button. If fewer than 5 stars are given, hosts must select at least one descriptive tag.

Airbnb Guest Profile Photos

Airbnb guest profile photos help hosts put a face to names, personalize communication, quickly reference guests, and maintain enhanced communication throughout the guest's stay. With our January 28th release, when available, OwnerRez will download and display Airbnb guest profile photos in the guest information area once the booking is confirmed.

PM Statement View Discount Charge Categorization 

Having the right discount strategy can give you a competitive edge without sacrificing profitability. And with our January 7th release, discounts can now be organized into specific charge categories, rather than being grouped solely under "Discounts." PM Statement views and associated statements now support displaying discounts by category, making it easier to track discounts for rent and other charges. This change provides greater flexibility in statement view design and enables more accurate tax calculations.

You can add these new Discount Categories to your Statement Views (PM > Settings > Statement Views > and either edit an existing Statement View or + Create View), and + Add Column > Discount Categories.

After your Statement View is saved and selected for your Owner Statement (PM > Statements & Payouts > Owner Statements), the new Discount Categories will be displayed on your Owner Statement.

Standard Surcharges and Discounts

Strategic discounts can significantly boost your vacation rental's performance, while surcharges help cover operational costs and services for maintaining and managing your short-term vacation rental property. Following the August 27th, 2025, release of our Discounts & Surcharges, we decided to remove all unsupported criteria from standard surcharges and discounts to ensure they are passed correctly to Airbnb and Vrbo. Those unsupported conditions include the following.

After you run the PM Owner Statement Expenses report, you'll see the new "Included in Booking" column displayed on the far right.

Owner Statement Summary Report

The Owner Statement Summary shows total income and expenses, grouped by category, based on owner remittances during a period of time. Resembling a classic P&L type of layout, it summarizes the owners' revenues, expenses, and net profit or loss over a specific period, making it useful for end-of-year reporting. With our January 14th release, we enhanced the PM Owner Statement Summary report by implementing the following improvements.

• Rework "Hide Categories" to be "Show as Other"
• Removed the "Group Uncategorized" option so uncategorized expenses are always grouped under "Other"
• Add an informational tooltip when "Other" appears
• Removed the redundant "Owner" prefix from "Income" and "Expenses" labels

Design Progress

Property Photos

High-quality photos help potential guests envision their stay, highlight your property's best features, set accurate expectations, and boost booking rates by creating emotional appeal and reducing uncertainty. OwnerRez improved the design and user experience of the in-app Property Photos area with our January 7th release.

Now, when adding property photos (Properties > specific Property > Listing Content > Photos > Upload Photos), you can add photo captions (descriptions), assign the photo to a specific room or accessibility amenity, or add a video during the upload process.

Property Accommodation Types

Accurate property accommodations (e.g., year built, square footage, etc.) build credibility, help guests find the right fit for their needs, improve search visibility, set proper expectations, and justify nightly rates. With our January 7th release, we improved and reorganized the in-app Property Accommodations (Properties > specific Property > Listing Content > Accommodations) area layout for enhanced usability.

Discounts

Strategic discounts boost your Vrbo listing by attracting guests, encouraging longer stays, and filling booking gaps. With our January 21st release, OwnerRez improved Vrbo in-app discount tiles by making titles more consistent, enhancing mobile responsiveness, adding the Vrbo "Promos" label, and creating a uniform layout across discount types.

Tweaks

January 7th Release with 8 Tweaks

Add dynamic character counter for hosted website CSS editor. Instead of only updating the character count after saving, OwnerRez added a dynamic text character counter to the hosted website CSS editor, which updates in real-time as you type.

Add English (UK) calendar culture support. OwnerRez added English (UK) to the Display Culture dropdown on calendar widgets to support Monday as the first day of the week and to display the GBP currency. We also renamed "Default (English)" to "English (United States)" for clarity.

Display company names in Rezzy AI FAQs and Directives "Created By" filter and row displays. We updated the "Created By" filter and row display in Rezzy AI FAQs and Directives to display account company names when available.

Improve {QPROPAVAILOTHER} field code display. OwnerRez updated the "Other Available Properties" {QPROPAVAILOTHER} field code to display property Public Names by default, falling back to the internal Name only when the Public Name isn't set.

Increase channel thread attachment URL length limit to 1024 characters. OwnerRez has increased the channel message attachment URL length limit from 256 to 1024 characters, allowing for longer attachment URLs in thread messages.

Restore OwnerRez app installation suggestion pop-up on Android devices. OwnerRez restored the ability for Android users to install the OwnerRez app on their home screen via a friendly in-app announcement banner. The prompt appears when the browser indicates that the app can be installed, allowing users to easily add OwnerRez to their device's home screen.

Update channel map display terminology. OwnerRez changed the channel map display options from "Map pin" and "General area" to "Exact location" and "Approximate location" to better align with recent location display changes.

Update Length of Stay discount interface. We updated the Length of Stay discount interface by removing the information icon from "Discount Amount" and adding a help link that opens the Length of Stay Discount support article in a new tab.

January 14th Release with 8 Tweaks

Add billing address to Billing Info section. For easier reference, OwnerRez added account billing addresses to the in-app Billing Info section.

Improve failed payment display on transaction screen. We improved the payment display for failed booking transactions by changing the text color and label from red to gray when the issue has been resolved, when the booking is paid in full, or when the security deposit has been collected.

Improve review listing site labels. We changed the label from "Posted On" to "Listing Site" for channel booking reviews submitted directly by guests in OwnerRez.

Improve standard discounts and surcharges interface and validation. OwnerRez enhanced the Standard Discounts and Surcharges interface by updating the visuals for the conditions selector and adding default descriptions and explanatory text for pet fees, length-of-stay discounts, and early-bird discounts. Additionally, we added duplicate surcharge detection with warning messages.

Rename Airbnb "Transit" property description field to "Getting Around." Since Airbnb renamed their “Transit” description field to “Getting Around,” OwnerRez now syncs this using your property’s “Getting Around” description instead of the older “Getting There” field. All existing Airbnb description overrides have been automatically migrated.

Rename bed type "Sleep Sofa" to "Sleeper Sofa." For consistency and clarity, we renamed the bed type "Sleep Sofa" to "Sleeper Sofa." 

Set "Vrbo" as vendor for PM expenses generated during Vrbo Commission CSV import. OwnerRez enhanced the Vrbo Commission CSV import process by automatically designating "Vrbo" as the vendor for PM expenses generated during the import.

Standardize check-in/check-out time descriptions. We standardized the language displayed for check-in and check-out time descriptions to consistently use "is" instead of "at" or other variations.

January 21st Release with 3 Tweaks

Improve rate calendar accessibility and mobile experience. OwnerRez improved the accessibility of the rate calendar for visually impaired users and enhanced the mobile experience. Changes include larger calendar dates, with a more centered layout with improved history button visibility, compressed search fields on mobile, and better visibility of calendar days when scrolling.

Improve Review Template Removal Process. We improved the in-app host review template interface by changing the "Save Templates" button text to "Save Changes" and making the template removal process more intuitive by adding explicit "Remove" and "Restore" text on the buttons instead of just icons.

Update Airbnb revenue categorization for Avalara tax calculations. OwnerRez updated how Airbnb bookings are categorized when sending data to Avalara for tax calculations. Revenue is now properly categorized based on the property's tax collection mode: "Ineligible" or "Stacked" modes are sent as Airbnb revenue, while "None" is sent as direct booking revenue, and "Override" mode sends revenue based on how Airbnb-specific taxes are defined for the listing.

January 28th Release with 2 Tweaks

Add property photo minimum height requirement to ensure proper layout. OwnerRez added a minimum height requirement for property images to ensure proper layout even when images are missing or fail to load, preventing layout shifts and maintaining a consistent user experience across different devices.

Bug Fixes

As of 2026, Bug Fixes will no longer be included in OwnerRez's monthly Product Updates blog posts. Instead, keep an eye on our Changelog for a list of bug fixes each time.

how do you access the new airbnb channel rate tester? i see the link: https://app.ownerrez.com/ratetester but i don't see the option to choose Airbnb in the Listing Site dropdown. 

Alex, you can access the Channel Rate Tester by navigating to the upper right Tools menu > Channel Rate Tester. You can select Airbnb from the middle dropdown list.

Keep your personal account and create a business account using a different email address, and use that business account for taking business payments.