This week's Industry News highlights a key zoning decision in Maui, Airbnb's latest global Community Fund recipients, Faraday Future's robotics deployment in vacation rentals, AirDNA's 2026 investor outlook, and a new STR ordinance in Evanston, Illinois. Let's dive in.
In continued coverage of Maui County's vacation rental phase-out, previously reported in Industry News on June 6th (/blog/global...
This week's roundup highlights Airbnb's one-million-dollar investment ahead of the 2026 World Cup, new pool safety rules advancing in Florida, a North Carolina town saying no to short-term rental rules, and an important Arizona court decision defining the scope of local STR regulation. Let's dive in.
Airbnb announced this week that it will be investing more than one million dollars into Houston,...
This week's roundup covers Airbnb's New Year's Eve anti-party measures, Expedia's move to deepen its experiences business, rising World Cup-driven demand in Los Angeles, and a key legal ruling in Nevada that could reshape local short-term rental enforcement. Let's dive in.
Airbnb is activating heightened anti-party technology in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, the UK, France, Spain, and Australia...
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, (
Episode six of Walk 'n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals () is now available!
Hosted by OwnerRez co-founders Paul Waldschmidt and Chris Hynes, the podcast features honest, behind-the-scenes conversations about growth and what it really looks like to build and scale a software company. Inspired by years of candid discussions, each episode offers a raw look at how...
From Vrbo's updated policies and push for last-minute bookings to Honolulu's bold regulatory push, this week's headlines highlight how platforms and policymakers continue to shape the vacation rental industry. Let's dive in.
Forbes sat down with Larry Plawsky, general manager of Vrbo, to get insights into the ever-changing vacation rental market. (
This week's roundup covers Airbnb's use of machine learning to prevent unauthorized parties, Vrbo's new features, insights from Utah's short-term rental study, Airbnb's new host fee structure, a proposed STR tax in Colorado, and the top winter destinations for 2025. Let's dive in.
Airbnb rolled out its anti-party system ahead of Halloween weekend to help hosts prevent unauthorized gatherings. (h...
This week's roundup highlights Expedia Group's latest platform updates, Airbnb's continued shift towards hotels, a new vacation rental platform gaining traction, the IRS targeting short-term rental income, and trends shaping Greece's rental market. Let's dive in.
This week, Expedia Group unveiled a series of updates set to reshape the experience for both hosts and guests on its platforms. (https...
This week's roundup covers Hilton Head's updated short-term rental rules, Formula 1 driving a massive increase in rates, Booking.com's top travel trends for 2026, and new developments in Maui's vacation rental phase-out. Let's dive in.
Hilton Head, South Carolina, leaders have reached an agreement on updates to short-term rental rules, though final approval is still pending. (
This week's Industry News covers short-term rental policy updates in Atlanta, Green Bay, Galveston, and Southampton, plus Comparent's first annual ranking of the top 100 management companies. Let's dive in.
The Atlanta City Council voted 7-6 on Monday to reject a proposal that would have banned short-term rentals in several northeast Atlanta neighborhoods. (
This week's roundup covers Airbnb's strong Q3 performance, Sonder's abrupt bankruptcy, Instacart's move into vacation rentals, new short-term rental rules in Kansas City ahead of the World Cup, and Airbnb's strategic push into rural Spain. Let's dive in.
Airbnb reported strong Q3 financial results, () posting a 10 percent year-over-year i...
Subject
You're Already on PMv2. Here's What's Coming Next! Body
Hey [first name]!
Since you're already using PMv2 (the upgraded version of our Property Management module), you're ahead of the curve, and we're excited to officially kick off the full public rollout of PMv2 to all OwnerRez users.
Over the next several weeks, PMv2 will transition from private beta into full general availability...
Subject
SMS Messaging Update: Sending Outside the U.S. and Canada Body
Hi [first name],
Earlier this month, we announced that SMS messaging through OwnerRez had expanded to include additional +1 countries and territories. After going live, we discovered that this expansion cannot continue as planned.
To clarify: OwnerRez SMS has always been limited to phone numbers registered in the U.S. an...
Earlier this month, we announced that SMS messaging through OwnerRez had expanded to include additional +1 countries and territories. After going live, we discovered that this expansion cannot continue as planned.
To clarify: OwnerRez SMS has always been limited to phone numbers registered in the U.S. and Canada. That part has not changed. What we attempted to add was the ability to send SMS to g...
Subject
Still using Converge for payments in OwnerRez? It's time to move on. Body
Hey [first name]!
We are reaching out because you currently use Converge (aka. Elavon, aka. Costco) as your payment processor inside of OwnerRez.
Over time, Converge has become an older, increasingly limited platform that has caused ongoing challenges for both our users and our team. As the payments landscape...
New field codes were recently created that can be inserted in the body of a template of a message to a guest that show the rate for each night of a quote or booking.
But that still leaves me unable to view and change each night's rate in Charges of a quote or booking.
This is such a basic fundamental need, it's not really even a feature. Why is it still not provided? The rate for each night...
Effective October 27th, 2025, all hosts using property management or channel management software have been automatically transitioned to what Airbnb calls the "Single Fee" structure () . This fee structure has been available as an option for some time and has been tested in select markets.
If you are an API-conne...
Walk 'n Talk: The Business Behind Vacation Rentals pulls back the curtain on what it really takes to build, scale, and run a successful company in the vacation rental industry.
Hosted by Paul and Chris, co-founders of OwnerRez, the show is inspired by their long-standing ritual: taking weekly walks together to think through problems, debate ideas, and talk candidly about the business. These walki...
