Your vacation home is a special place, one that you want to share with close friends and family. However, when you’re treating your vacation rental as a business, it can turn into a delicate situation. What if they want to stay during New Years’ weekend? Or during peak season when you could otherwise generate more income? It can be uncomfortable telling your cousin to pay full price or your friend that they can’t use your home at all.
Consider the following tips and suggestions to navigate those tricky requests and still protect your home, your calendar, and your personal relationships.
Remind Them That it is a Business
If your aim is to make money from your vacation property, it’s important to let friends and family know this. They may not be aware that your beach condo is anything more than a personal getaway spot. A simple reminder to your friends and family can help to ease the blow when you have to turn down their reservation requests.
Give Them a Special Deal
Letting someone stay for free could mean a sizable loss (especially if the requested dates are during high-season). Not only will you lose out on potential revenue, but you’ll also incur the costs that come with renting your space (e.g. HOA fees, property management costs, cleaning fees, electricity costs, etc).
Point friends to your nightly rates page so they understand the current market rate, then offer them the best rate you are willing and able to accept during their stay. You can also come up with a creative deal such as letting them pay the full rate for weekends and have the weekdays for free.
However you handle special arrangements, it’s important to let the person you’re renting to understand that they’re getting a special deal. If you’re offering your vacation rental for free, chances are that it’s to someone who’s important to you; let them know that this is a gift from you. If you’re offering a deep discount, share that it’s a private offer because they’re important to you. Communicating this helps temper that this is a special arrangement, not your typical business transaction. Also, when they get home, hopefully they’ll tell their friends and colleagues how wonderful your vacation rental is!
Ask for Referrals & Feedback
This can be particularly helpful to get more reservations in the future: In exchange for a special deal, suggest that they refer people they know as potential paying renters to you. Maybe they know others who are also interested in visiting the area or simply looking for a nice beach destination for a relaxing vacation. Not only can your guest connect you with these potential renters, but they can also speak from experience about their own stay at your property. After their stay, they’ll be able to give your unfiltered feedback regarding their experience while staying at your property.
High vs Low Season
If friends or family want to book during your high season, you can politely tell them that you save those dates that are in high demand for full-paying guests. Then suggest alternate dates during a slower period. Another option is to set aside specific periods of time and then make them available on a first-come-first-served basis. This is especially helpful if you consistently get requests for free or at a discount.
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