From the beginning, Chris and Paul, the co-founders of OwnerRez, understood the importance of direct API channel connections. Instead of taking the easy route through third-party channel managers or outdated iCal connections, they invested the time to build direct relationships with all the major booking channels. The result is lightning-fast, clean, and reliable connections that have earned OwnerRez Elite status with Vrbo every year since 2021 and Preferred Plus partner status with Airbnb for four consecutive years.
In this guide, we’ll walk through the reasons why OwnerRez doesn’t use third-party channel managers and how that decision sets it apart as the world's best vacation rental software.
Why Channel Connections Matter
A property management system is responsible for keeping your calendars, pricing, rules, and property content in sync across all your connected channels. The type of channel connection a PMS uses has a direct impact on reliability and, ultimately, on the bottom line.
When connections are slow or unreliable, the risk of double bookings, missed reservations, pricing errors, and missed guest messages increases. These issues often lead to lost income and frustrated guests. Across the vacation rental industry, most property management systems rely on one of three types of channel connections.
- Direct API connections: API connections are the fastest and most reliable way to connect with a channel. This type of connection instantly pushes rates, rules, availability, content, and more across any of your connected channels.
- iCal connections: iCal was developed in the late 1990s and was not designed for a modern vacation rental business. Property management systems that rely on iCal take much longer to sync, have a higher chance of receiving double bookings, and limit the type of data that can be sent, requiring you to log in and out of several channels to make simple changes.
- Third-party connections: Some PMS platforms rely on third-party companies to build and maintain their channel connections. Adding a third party between your business and the booking channels can lead to slower updates, weaker support, less control, and sometimes additional fees.
OwnerRez has built direct API connections with all the major OTAs and does not outsource this core function to companies like BookingPal, NextPax, and RentalsUnited.
Accountability and Visibility
One of the biggest challenges with third-party channel managers is accountability. When something goes wrong, such as a guest message not being delivered or pricing failing to sync correctly, it becomes difficult to determine where the issue originated.
The channel points to the channel manager. The channel manager points back to the channel. Both point to the PMS.
Meanwhile, you are left dealing with a frustrated guest or lost revenue, hoping the issue does not happen again. With direct API connections, there is no middle layer. OwnerRez can see exactly what data was sent, when it was sent, and how the channel responded. This level of visibility makes it much easier to diagnose and resolve issues quickly, so you're not left in a bad position.
Speed and Reliability
Every additional layer added between your data and a booking channel introduces delay and risk. Third-party channel managers add extra steps each time your PMS syncs with a channel.
Rates, availability, rules, property content, bookings, and guest messages must pass through another company and set of processes before reaching platforms like Airbnb or Vrbo. These extra steps increase the likelihood of outdated listings, pricing discrepancies, and double bookings.
Direct API connections eliminate those unnecessary layers, allowing updates to flow lightning-fast and reliably between your PMS and the channel.
Cost
Another reason why OwnerRez chose to invest in direct API connections is that third-party channel managers are extremely expensive. Some charge 3-5 percent of the gross booking revenue, on top of PMS fees. Others charge $50 to $100 per month per listing.
Over time, these costs add up and can have a meaningful impact on profitability. Thanks to the upfront investment made in direct connections, OwnerRez offers a simple per-property pricing model, with no additional fees or commissions for specific channels. That pricing structure is only possible because OwnerRez owns and maintains its connections in-house.
The “Hundreds of Channels” Promise Doesn't Deliver
Many third-party channel managers advertise access to hundreds of listing sites. While this may sound appealing, in practice, most of those extra channels generate little to no meaningful bookings and can create additional work.
For most vacation rental businesses, the majority of revenue comes from a small number of channels like Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, and direct bookings. OwnerRez focuses on over 25 of the top-performing channels in the industry, rather than spreading its effort across hundreds of low-value listings.
Conclusion
OwnerRez was built with a clear focus on direct API connections. By choosing not to rely on third-party channel managers, OwnerRez can deliver elite performance without the need to add extra fees. The result of this up-front investment is powerful connections with over 25 of the top-performing channels in the vacation rental industry.
If you are not yet using OwnerRez, get started today by signing up for a 14 day free trial or by signing up to join one of our weekly live demo webinars.
FAQs About Why OwnerRez Doesn't Use Third-Party Channel Managers
Q: Why are channel connections important for a vacation rental owner and manager?
A: Channel connections keep calendars, pricing, rules, and property content synced across listing sites. Slow or unreliable connections increase the risk of double bookings, pricing errors, missed reservations, and missed guest messages, which can directly impact revenue.
Q: Why are direct API connections the best option?
A: Direct API connections are the fastest and most reliable way to sync with listing sites like Airbnb and Vrbo.
Q: What issues do third-party channel managers create?
A: Third-party channel managers add an extra layer between your PMS and booking channels. This can result in slower updates, weaker support, less visibility when problems occur, and additional fees.
Q: How do direct API connections improve speed and reliability?
A: Direct API connections eliminate unnecessary steps in the syncing process. This enables lightning-fast, reliable updates between OwnerRez and all the major booking channels, such as Airbnb and Vrbo.
Q: How do third-party channel managers affect a vacation rental operator's revenue?
A: Many third-party channel managers charge a percentage of booking revenue or a monthly fee per listing. Over time, these costs add up. OwnerRez offers simple per-property pricing with no channel-based commissions because it owns and maintains its industry-leading connections in-house
Q: Why does OwnerRez invest in direct API connections instead of third-party channel managers?
A: Direct API connections give OwnerRez full control over performance, reliability, and visibility. By building and maintaining these connections in-house, OwnerRez avoids the delays, added costs, and accountability issues that often come with third-party channel managers.
Q: How do I get started with OwnerRez?
A: You can get started by signing up for a 14-day free trial or by signing up to join one of our weekly live demo webinars.