General Help and Questions

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Thank you! By the way, when I hit "reply to inquiry" my template is similar to yours wherein it gives info about the house, things to do in the area, etc. and there is a quote at the bottom with the clickable links.

I guess my question was if the "reply to inquiry" automatically includes a quote anyway, why the need for the "quote only" email?

Thank you!

Thank you for taking time to answer (both of you!)

Chris, you said:
"There are two different emails you can do -- one answering just the inquiry, one sending the quote."

Yes I see that, and I always choose "reply to inquiry" which automatically includes the quote box at the bottom of the email. That's what confused me. Because after I send it, the system prompts me to send the quote again. I guess in my mind, I'm thinking I just sent the quote as part of the reply, but now I realize that maybe the system doesn't realize that it already included a quote in the first reply.

I will ignore the prompt to send the quote a second time.

Thank you again for your help!

I thought I knew how to do this but now I can't find the directions. Can someone point me to it? I need to add mandatory address and email to my contract since I just learned that Airbnb doesn't pass those through.

Thanks!

Hi,
is there a way to transfer OwnerRez reviews onto HomeAway/Vrbo Reviews?
Thanks, Claudia

Fantastic! Need help on testing?

Yep, all of the above!

It won't let you delete an owner statement if there's already a payout recorded against it. First delete the payout, then you can delete the statement.

We got delayed on this because our HomeAway API integration took a bit longer than expected. That's in beta now and releasing in a couple weeks, so the SMS stuff will be coming very soon!

Thanks @BlueMtn! Some more details:

1) The comments field is used for any guest comments that they include in their inquiry -- if it comes from a widget or listing site that supports it.

If you don't want to include that field in the response, edit the inquiry response templates and delete that field reference

2) There are two different email you can do -- one answering just the inquiry, one sending the quote. Many people like to do a simple inquiry response and then a detailed quote email to minimize the potentiality that they get blocked out by spam filters. Or maybe they want to respond to the inquiry but not send over the quote yet because they need more details.

If you just want to send one email, the easiest way is to edit the inquiry available response info to include the {QCTAB} quote charges merge field and then don't send the quote response.

Yep, they've got a big process there for signup and certain requirements on the properties they'll allow.

Last I checked, booking.com distributed to those ads, so that may be the easiest way to go for now.

Once they open up the API a bit, we'll investigate -- here's hoping they will go to a full channel process with their tooling.

Thank You! It looks like I created the custom template under the wrong area. Set up a new one under triggered and it looks like I'm set! Appreciate the help!

I would have sworn there was a recent post on Google's new direct booking for hotels, but cannot find. And they are also working on a VR equivalent.

Anyway, this was on a bed and breakfast owners forum about it and PMS integration:

"XXX is working with Google’s advertisement to allow for direct booking, “Google Hotel Ads”. We’re currently waiting on Google at this point. We don’t have an ETA from them but we’re hopeful we will hear back from them soon so that we can continue down the development path to support Google Hotel Ads. It’s been a long drawn-out process for us as we started reaching out to Google about partnering with them back in 2015 when Google Hotel Ads was released. We’ve made some progress with them recently, however!"

You can. You need to 1. set up an email template that you cna copy from "send lease to guests" system template. But five it a name, such as "SENDRA" or whatever you like. 2. You need to set up a trigger under Automation - email triggers. condition - as soon as booking is created and specify your "SENDRA" in what to send box. done.

Ah, yes, most of my bookings are imported. (For now) I was hoping to have it automatically send when the booking imports. It's not a big deal as I just go click a button to send it after a reservation comes in but trying to automate as much as possible. :-) Thanks!

You need to set up trigger 1st. Trigger should be "as soon as booking is created". But generally, lease gets signed in the process of booking (part of check out process). so unless it is for imported booking., or you need to get it resigned again, why do you need a trigger to send it?

Now that I'm comfortable that my lease agreement is working well and I can collect online signatures, I'd like to trigger it anytime a booking comes in. When I go to email triggers, the form field doesn't allow me to choose anything. (It's blank but has arrows like it should be populated. Is that a feature that's in a different plan than I might have or is there something else to set to allow those to pull in?

because you used a "reply to inquiry" instead of "send quote" for your manual reply possibly?
here is the template i Use for quote ( here in forum it is not formatted but real template has boldface, highlights, bullet points, links, property photo etc) :

Hi {CFIRST},

Thank you for your inquiry about {PDISPNAME} ({PIMGCAPTION}). Our cabin is a private vacation home, rented out by owners Victoria and Todd (we do not use a management company or an agent).

The quote is shown below for the dates you requested.

First, please review Booking and Rental information for our cabin:

NO smoking ~ NO pets ~ NO house parties.
Must be at least 25 years of age to rent, and be present during the entire stay (No third party rentals). Minors under 18 can only stay with parent, legal guardian or responsible adult.
No occupancy above total {PXOLIMIT} persons (which includes all children ages 0 and up), with maximum {PXMAXADULTS} persons over 14 years of age. Our quoted rates are the same for one guest or {PXOLIMIT}, but we do not permit over limit occupancy.
{QFPAMT} is due to reserve the property; Balance will be due {QSPDAY} days prior to check-in date. If reserving within {QSPDAY} days from check-in date, the full amount is due immediately.
Availability is real time and may change after this email is sent. Property is not reserved until deposit (or full balance) is paid and booking is accepted.
Rental Deposit of {PXDEPOSIT} will be refunded/released within 14 days after check-out if there are no damages or excessive cleaning required (See the Rental Agreement for more details).
Rental Agreement must be signed by primary Guest if you decide to book.
Guest signing the Agreement must provide valid photo ID which matches the name on the credit card used for payment. If not returned within 72 hours from booking acceptance, we reserve the right to cancel your booking and issue a refund.
60 day cancellation policy (full refund if cancelled by renter 60 or more days before the scheduled check-in).
We strongly recommend to protect your trip by obtaining Travel Insurance, especially if your stay is during winter months.
Payments accepted: Venmo, PopMoney, Zelle, major credit cards, personal or cashiers check, money order (at least 35 days prior to check in date), PayPal. Credit card convenience fee may apply.
Address, driving directions and check in instructions will be provided after balance is paid and few days prior to check in. See distance from the cabin to popular area destinations.
Owners reserve the right to install and operate security/image capture devices on the property outside for the express purpose of securing the property, driveway, entryway, parking, dwelling and its contents and ensuring occupancy/pet rules compliance.
Check in is {PCHECKIN} ET and check out is {PCHECKOUT} ET unless pre-arranged otherwise in advance. Late check outs may be subject to docking of the deposit.
WI-FI is available via satellite service (typical speed up to 12 Mbps; Connection speed/availability is not guaranteed).
Property has yard, fire pit and ample parking.
Questions? Check our Vacation Guide, FAQ and What is provided
See the Reviews of our cabins.
'Like' {PDISPNAME} on Facebook - we post updates, specials, or availability due to last minute cancellations.

{QPROPAVAILOTHER}
Please use the buttons at the bottom to view more information about the quote or to accept it and checkout. Our checkout form is simple to use and very secure.

{QHCTAB}

JTVR - I'd prefer answers, not suggestions about my lack of understanding. Perhaps you can revisit my questions and give specific (and useful) comments?

Reading through this makes me think you should talk to a CPA to set yourself up. Several items look like a possible lack of understanding of VR accounting. Taxes etc are not automatically like other industries.

Don't depend on a forum to guide your accounting, including state or local issues...

OR any updates on text notifications. We really need this. Thanks.

I've looked through the forums to see if anyone else has asked these questions, and I don't see it, so I'll ask.

Question 1: When I manually create an inquiry, it has a space for "comments" however these comments show up in the email when I answer it. I thought those comments were just for me to see. Thank goodness I scrolled all the say down and saw them, so I could manually delete them. If the guests can see that field in their email message, what is that comment section for?

Question 2: In answering a manually created inquiry, a quote gets created and appears at the bottom of the email. However, after I hit "send email now" I'm confused as to why the system urges me to send the quote again in a separate email, after I've just sent the quote in a reply. Am I making sense?

Thank you!

I made an owner statement with the wrong date on it and now cant seem to delete that statement and start over. Any ideas?

Hi,

(See QUESTIONS at bottom)

Anyone have a good handle on the accounting/correct way to be handling taxes relative to Quickbooks?

Here's my understanding:

A) There is a Financial Report available in VRBO that lists "Gross booking amount", "Deductions" and "Payout"

B) For each booking, VRBO deposits the "Payout" amount into my bank account (Gross booking - Deductions)
example: Gross booking amount = $243.81
Deductions = $7.31
Payout = $236.50

C) At tax time I run a report on the total funds received as 'Gross bookings'

NOTES
I'm pretty sure I am required to pay Sales Taxes on the Gross booking amount. In other words, I can't just import the payments I receive in my bank account, but instead I need to record each booking transaction in Quickbooks with two accounts. A positive account for the gross booking amount, and a negative amount for the deductions. I'm not mentioning cleaning fees because they are included already in the Gross booking amount. Mentally I'd like to think about paying taxes only on the cash I end up with in my pocket ***BUT*** I don't think that's how sales taxes work. I have to pay tax on the full amount paid by the guest, which includes the deductions that VRBO keeps and the (pass thru) amt I collect and pay to my cleaning service. And all this gets more complicated when I start using AirBNB and bookings in OR itself.

QUESTIONS
1) Is my understanding correct?
2) Suggestions for how to automate this (without using OwnerRez)? EG: I imagine I can import the Financial Report from VRBO in some way to cause the Gross bookings and deductions to be associated with each transaction, resulting in the correct Payout amount

PS - I'm not currently interested in using Quickbooks Online. I have other businesses that are tracked in Quickbooks Pro and don't want to have to reinvent my accounting practices... Just need advice about how to practically handle tax time each quarter.

Sounds good. Does the "smoothening" include:
Multiple (N) payments and/or "Simplified quotes" (merging amounts and removing details - like the option in the quote widget)

After manually inputting all my lock codes for this year I look forward to multi-lock support!
SMS and Housekeeping are also on my wishlist.

Can't wait for the updates.

Thanks

-Tim

That's a great read, JTVRs! Thanks! Lot of great advice there.

We do share our roadmap but only with the context and understanding that the roadmap is not fixed and changes frequently. The current (closest) items are:

- HomeAway API (nearly done, watching last pilot users, etc)
- Auto-release for security deposits
- PM updates
- QB updates
- QoL ("quality of life" smoothening for a bunch of small things)
- Door lock updates (adding Kaba, supporting RemoteLock's newer API)

After that:

- SMS (templates and trigers)
- Housekeeping module

I was thinking IPO 😊

I know lots of companies don't like to share what they are working on....but you guys seem pretty open about those things. I know that channels have been taking up most of your development time over the past few months, and I just thought I'd see if you wanted to comment on what's next in the pipeline, what's coming later this year, etc. Is there a priority list of upgrades/features? And, understanding that dates are extremely variable, especially when it comes to software rollouts, can you share any timelines?

Thanks,

Tim

Read this today, pretty useful

http://blog.uplisting.io/the-ultimate-guide-to-hosting-on-booking-com/

Once you have PriceLabs set up, they'll update Airbnb and OwnerRez rates automatically: https://www.ownerrez.com/support/articles/pricelabs

Our VRBO rate push is manual, so you'd have to do that manually from time to time.

We're going to release HomeAway API integration in April which will let you hook up the channel in OwnerRez and have all of the rates push automatically at that point.