Are you someone who started an Airbnb vacation rentals business and is now looking to pass on the management to new hands? Or are you someone who is looking for Airbnb investments and are planning on having someone else manage to it manage it from the beginning?

The market will offer you lots of short-term rental property management companies that can give you a hand with what you started.  Employing the right company can make all the difference.

However, this can be expensive sometimes. Managers may charge anywhere between 20-50% of your revenues. You need to decide if it’s worth it or not. You will have various property management software to help you but it is still a difficult task to achieve the finesse of being flawless at this business. If you find the right company to manage your business, they will only double your value. But how do you find this suitable match?

What constitutes a good rental property management company?

Experience 

• Is the company experienced in the field or are they relatively new? If they have experience, you can run a background check to confirm their performance. 

• Does the company work for only short-term rentals or do they do long-term rentals as well? We recommend short-term as such companies understand the intricacies and manage things better. 

• Can they handle your market? Every market is unique and hence, you need to know whether the company is capable enough to tackle your market. There will be cultural differences and much more to deal with. 

• Do they efficiently comply with the regulatory and legal demands of short-term rentals? You need to find someone who has a good track record of all such things. 

Fees 

• Understand their business model. Are they charging you from your revenue or do they have a fixed charge policy? Normally, we prefer the commission fee model. 

• Fees in the market are normally fixed. But with the commission model, you are likely to pay 20-50% from the host revenues. There might be some initial setup fees or vacancy fees depending on the company. 

• These fees often consist of cleaning fees, management fees, etc. Ensure whether cleaning is done in-house or is outsourced. 

• Do they cover minor repairs and stuff? What external expenses is the company expecting you to cover?

Cancellation 

Read the contract thoroughly before finalizing. What are their cancellation policies? If you are unsatisfied with their services, what is the procedure for ending the contract? How long are you legally bound to their services? 

Let’s talk about the best rental property management companies from various parts of the world 

• USA 

Nationwide:

Based in Charlotte and Miami, Rabbu is an investor-oriented short-term property managing company that is rapidly growing in the Southeast and the rest of the USA. They create short, medium, and long listings of your properties to get maximum returns. 

They manage all your daily activities at the property and also market it using personalized messaging. They also have tight security set up at the property to monitor the area. This makes the property safe for the tenants.

Operating across 17 states, Vacasa is one of the most well-known names in the industry. They are present in Central America and Europe. They manage over 14,000 properties worldwide. Using their services has notably shown growth of 21% in a year. 

Evolve is another property management company working in the USA. they are fast-growing with 10,000 hosts relying on them currently. 

California:

San Francisco is the hub of rentals being managed by external companies. 

Belo: Airbnb Property Management is based in California but works on listings worldwide. They are a boutique firm and only manage 5 Airbnbs at a time. 

KeyBee is one of the most famous ones in San Francisco. They provide full flexibility and transparency to the hosts. KeyBee manages all online bookings and procedures. They are known to increase the revenue by 20%.

The San Diego market is the biggest competitor for San Francisco with AirConcierge in the league. They offer full-service property management. Their optimizations help hosts in generating 10-40% higher revenues. 

Speed Keyz focuses on detailed market research for optimized pricing and listings to gain more revenue. 

Guestable is a company in Los Angeles that optimizes the rental procedures and also manages long-term contracts.

Venture Yours in California covers Joshua Tree, Long Beach, and Lake Arrowhead. They cover all services without long-term contracts.

Guesthop promises a jump of 40% in revenues and covers Oakland, Berkeley, San Jose, Palo Alto, Marin County, Bay Area, and Alameda. 

Florida:

Easy Air Rentals concentrate on south Florida. They specialize in luxury homes and take care of bookings, cleaning, and much more. 

Cleankeyhost offers three packages starting from the basic services to full-service ones which include every task from cleaning, laundry,  to rental photography services. 

New York:

Cityami is a great option for short-term rentals. Along with property management, they also assist investors in making their picks. 

Makomi offers training programs for hosts while they themselves indulge in managing short-term rental businesses. 

Texas:

Square House offers support for bookings, marketing, and concierge services. They are based in Dallas/Fort Worth area. 

HostStarter offers full services in five parts of Texas - Irving, Plano, Forth Worth, and Dallas. 

Goldnest is also based in various locations in Texas. They offer end-to-end services from Dallas and also help with investment processes. 

Colorado:

COBnB is the best in Colorado. They work from Denver. They are a short-term investor-focused group that works towards maximizing profits and providing flawless 24/7 services. 

Georgia:

Kleenely offers its services in Atlanta and beyond Georgia as well. They have a strong background in hospitality and provide the most amazing experiences.

Skye Management handles every aspect of your journey. They believe in high cleanliness along with adequate profits.  

North Carolina:

BroadConnection helps hosts estimate earnings from properties and make the best choice. They work from the Greater Charlotte area. 

Black Bear Rentals is another full-service providing company in Weaverville, Asheville, Candler, and Black Mountain. 

Arizona:

Better Vacations are industry professionals who provide 24/7 management. They cover everything from online booking to ground maintenance. 

One Fine BnB is also a famous name that offers optimized services. Their team will take care of all the aspects of your business. 

VacayAZ is based in Scottsdale. They have in-house cleaning and concierge services. 

AIRMGR is in Phoenix. They are best at maintaining owner relationships. They also manage every part of the rental business and optimize your pricing. 

Washington:

Better Vacations covers areas of Seattle and beyond. 

StayLocal also covers Seattle and Tacoma. They promise to jump your revenue by 25%.

South Carolina:

Greenville property management is one of the trusted names in Greenville, SC.

Carolina vacation stays is another property management firm experienced and leading in Grand Strand.

Hawaii:

Ensourced is a short-term property manager across the islands of Hawaii.

• Canada 

Canada also has a long stretch of cities that have active property management companies for Airbnbs. 

Toronto 

The most popular service in Toronto is Luckey. They take care of everything and give the host a laissez-faire experience. They have also designed an app to generate popularity and make things easy for customers. They are also quite famous in Quebec. They charge 20% of your revenue for their services. 

Montreal 

Monsieur Concierge promises that they will look after the tiniest task of your property like watering the plants. They will undoubtedly look after cleaning, bookings, housekeeping, linens, departures, etc. they also verify property conditions after departures. 

Vancouver and Whistler 

HeartHomes is a short-term rental service management company that specializes in services and marketing. To maximize revenue, they have interior designers that can elevate your property. 

Lifty Life provides its services across British Columbia and Alberta. They provide 24/7 professional services along with added amenities and services to attract customers. They charge 25 - 35% of your revenue depending on what service plan you choose. 

Victoria:

Host Happy consults you about your property designs along with managing the same. This can help you attract more customers. They look after communications, cleaning, bookings, maintenance, photography, etc. they emphasize using professional interior services to make the best out of the property. 

Ottawa:

Breathebnb has its presence in various places including Ottawa, Val-des-Monts, Gananoque, Kingston, Muskokas, and Prince Edward County. They are spread across not only Airbnb but various other platforms of the industry. They take care of all the property maintenance needs as well. 

Nova Scotia:

HostOften is famous in Halifax, Nova Scotia. They offer dynamic services and free consultations. Their services ensure a hike in your occupancy rates. 

• Europe 

With vacation rentals becoming popular, the need for managers is also rising in Europe. Hosts now want to leave things to experienced people and sit back. Here’s a guide to the best European managers. 

Netherlands:

BnBManager handles about 1000 short-term properties in Amsterdam. The site also offers a calculator for hosts to understand their earnings with BnBManager. They also offer all the services and pay close attention to security.

Italy:

Halldis is one of the most popular Airbnb property managers in Italy. They have about 1850 properties across the country and a few in Belgium and France as well. Their most popular destinations are Milan, Naples, Rome, and Florence. 

United Kingdom:

Pass the Keys is a famous short-term property manager in London. The company itself is listed on Airbnb so hosts don’t have to. They also provide a calculator on their website to calculate the earnings. 

Nestify is one of the most trusted ones in the country. Specializing in end-to-end management, they are spread across Spain, the UK, France, and Ireland. They yield revenues higher by 40%.

Spain:

Friendly Rentals is based in Barcelona and was started in 2003. They have 1200 properties across 14 European cities. Their team has multilingual employees who are efficient and professional. They provide 24/7 services and top-notch guest services. 

Germany:

Smartbnb is available 24/7 and responds within 60 minutes. It is a favorite because of its services that are fast and reliable. 

You Are Welcome Berlin takes care of all the elements and provides full service from cleaning to booking management. 

France:

Bnblord is a service management company owned by GuestReady in various locations in France. They are present in the Alps, French Riviera, Paris, Nice, and the Antibes. They are renowned for their hospitality and professionalism. 

Czech Republic:

AirSorted is located in Prague as that city has more customers asking for rentals. They offer full services and short-term rentals. They also have analysts who work on balancing nightly rates and occupancy. 

Russia:

Flat Inn focuses on Moscow as it is a major tourist destination. They are a fast-growing company that focuses on both international and domestic customers. They offer several benefits that makes the rental experience a memorable one for the customers and easy to manage for the hosts. They also have bilingual staff for better customer service. 

Denmark:

Hostminded is set in Copenhagen and is one of the most well-known names. They are spread across Denmark. They provide professional hospitality and focus on maximizing the revenue as well.

Things to look for in a property management contract 

If you are firm on not wanting to manage your property, take a look at hiring professional managers who will do it for you. When you find a capable company to manage the property, they can yield you better fruits. 

Hiring the wrong manager can break the whole deal. Hence, you need to carefully pick yours. Here’s what you need to look at while choosing your management company. 

Read the contract thoroughly 

It is quite necessary to read a property management contract thoroughly. Always feel free to ask questions that you are not clear about. This isn’t a contract that you can simply say ‘I agree’ to. You need to carefully go through the terms as the company will be following those lines. If there’s anything you don’t agree with, you will find it there. Once you sign it, you won’t have the authority to object something that has been mentioned in the property. 

Clear your expectations 

You need to set your expectations clear from the beginning. Tell them how you wants things to be. Then they can take care of the same. But if they are unaware, there are chances of disagreements. You need to set the benchmark clear for them to achieve in terms of quality and revenue. 

Define the company’s responsibilities 

Chalk out everything that the company is supposed to be responsible for. You need to define what the company is responsible for and what the host is responsible for individually. This can include the following:

• All services and fees

• Duration of contract 

• Termination clause

• Terms and conditions 

Services and fees 

All the services that the managing company is willing to provide shall be clearly state din the contract. This will give the host a clear idea of what to expect. This also reflects how and what goals will be achieved by the company. 

Many companies work by fixed fees and some have a set percentage from the revenue. All such details should be a part of the contract. This is one section that both parties need to thoroughly negotiate and come to terms with before things are finalized. 

Responsibilities of the host 

The contract also needs to clarify what the host will be responsible for. This will show what all things need to be taken care of by the host and not the company. 

Liability insurance 

This insurance is a must in today’s deals. This ensures that there are certain damages that the company managing the property won’t be responsible for (unless it was the company who was negligent). This clause should be clearly defined to avoid clashes. 

Reasonable care clause 

This clause of the contract states that the manager needs to take ‘reasonable care’ of the property when involving a third-party. This means that the manager is responsible for any damage caused by any maintenance guy like the plumber, contractor, repair man, etc.

Contract duration 

Another important thing to look into is the duration of the contract. You can conduct a trial run before finalizing the contract.

Termination 

This is another clause you shouldn’t miss in a contract. You need to clearly state the circumstances that are unacceptable and shall result in termination of the contract. This is formed to make sure the set standards are fulfilled.  

For example, if the manager fails to provide the services that are stated in the contract, the host can terminate the contract with a 30 to 60 days prior notice. 

With a well-drafted contract, you can have a harmonious partnership and healthy running business.