Attracting Renters In The Off season (Not only is the vacation-rental season coming to an end as we approach fall, but the housing market is continuing to cool, making things increasingly difficult for the owners of second homes and vacation properties. )
Combine this with increased mortgage payments due to the resets of adjustable-rate mortgages, and many people could be in for a difficult few months.
A September 18, 2006 article by Daisy Maxey of The Wall Street Journal, “After the Peak,” looks at different strategies people can use to get renters into their home during the off-season in a slowing market.
“There's a reason why it's called the off-season. Some vacation-home owners report so little rental interest during off-peak months, they don't even try to rent out their properties. Others, however, find ways to keep the renters coming during high, low and in-between seasons -- even when their task is made harder, as it is now, by a weakening housing market.”
Maureen Regan, owner of Seaside Rentals of Maine, helps owners rent their homes on the coast of Maine and in other places as well. She says competition has increased due to the softening market and owners must price competitively and keep their homes looking as pristine as possible, in order to survive under these conditions.
The first thing a home owner can do to attract more renters during the slow seasons, is to lower their price compared to what they ask for in the summer months. You want to lower your price to a competitive rate, but not too much that it looks like your property is somehow inferior to another.
“Typically, owners should knock 30% off their peak rates for so-called shoulder-season rentals -- those that fall between their high and low seasons -- and as much as 50% off peak rates for low-season rentals, says Christine Hrib Karpinski, director of the owner community for HomeAway.com, based in Austin, Texas, an online marketplace of vacation rental properties.”
Another way to entice potential renters into your vacation home is by offering package deals.
“Package deals represent a way to attract interest without appearing too inexpensive, says Ms. Karpinski. When prospective guests inquire about summer bookings, offer to throw in a winter special, too -- like half-price for a weekend stay, she suggests.”
Offering extended stays, or renting out your property to college students or professors for the school year are also clever ways to attract renters that are not your traditional vacationers.
Making your property “kid-friendly” or by allowing pets are also great ways to make your home more appealing to a wider range of renters.
“Vacation properties that accept pets can increase their occupancy by 10% to 50%, Ms. Karpinski says. A woman she spoke with, for example, had a nice cabin in the mountains in Colorado, but rentals were slow. Though the cabin was within driving distance of three ski resorts, it was not close enough to advertise that fact, Ms. Karpinski says. Once the woman began accepting pets, though, the bookings flowed in.”
These are just a few of the ways you can increase your rental occupancy during the off-season, you just have to be creative.
Back to Articles | 
