Pro- Displaying your address gives renters the ability to look up your home on a mapping program.  Understanding the location of your home is typically a high priority with renters and will give you a slight edge over owners who do not display their street address.  Displaying the address also gives renters confidence that you are running a legitimate business.

Con- Displaying your address gives criminals the exact location of your sometimes vacant home, a perfect target to rob.

An alternative solution could be not displaying your address on the web, but emailing it to anyone who inquires on renting your property.

For Condo Resorts

If you live in a condo resort, where there is basic security, I would display the address of the resort on the web.   You do not need to give your exact unit number but you should at least provide the floor.

Typically, most owners will set “Sleeps Maximum” to be the same as “Standard Occupancy”. However, if you wish to set your rates based on the number of people in a party (such as 8 to 10 people) this tool will be helpful.  Maximum occupancy is the total number of people that can sleep in your vacation rental.  Standard Occupancy is the number of people that your standard rates are based.  This system allows a fee per night per person for groups over your standard occupancy. 

Here is an example

Maximum Sleeps is 10
Standard Occupancy is 8

Rate per night: $150 based on 8 people
Fee you charge per night, per person above 8 people: $15

Rate per night for 9 people is $165
Rate per night for 10 people is $180

This is how it will appear in your description:

Even if you have beds to sleep ten people, you may prefer only eight guests to occupy the house.  It’s best to set your occupancy for comfort and safety. Most occupancy is set as two people per bedroom and an additional two people for a sleeper sofa in the living room.  For example, a two bedroom with sofa sleeper typically sleeps six and a three bedroom with sofa sleeper typically sleeps eight.

To reduce the wear and tear to your property, limit your occupancy to just two people per bedroom.  This also reduces your marketability to families who almost always want a property with a pullout sofa to sleep a child or two.

Large group homes can sleep between 12 and 20 people in a four to eight bedroom home. These homes will normally have a bunkroom with multiple bunk beds.  They will also have futons and sofa sleepers throughout the living areas. A large group home can expect lots of wear and tear throughout the year, though its high occupancy will make it highly desirable.  A large group home should have lots of living space to comfortably accommodate the group.  A good test is to look at your family room and living room. Are there enough couches and chairs for everyone to relax?  At meal times are there enough seats for people between the dining table and breakfast bar?
           
Be aware of any local regulations in your area that limit your maximum occupancy.  Check with the local fire department on any rules regulating occupancy.

What level of cleanliness do you expect from a hotel?  If you are like me, you want a dust free room, clean sheets on the bed, an immaculate bathroom, and freshly vacuumed floors. Guests expect the same level of cleanliness when they stay in a vacation rental. A professionally run cleaning service is the best way to clean your property between stays.  You can build the fee into your rates or simply charge a cleaning fee.   Of course, if you have the time, you can clean the property yourself.  I strongly discourage allowing your guests the option of cleaning the unit and waving the cleaning fee.  First, their standards of cleanliness will not be as high as yours.  Secondly, they are on vacation and will not feel like cleaning house.  And finally, they will not be able to do a thorough job as they rush to catch a plane or get on the road.

It is standard policy to ask your guests to wash dirty pans, run the dishwasher and dispose of all trash before leaving.  Some vacation rental managers will also ask a guest to strip the beds of linens and start a wash before they leave.  This policy is usually unnecessary if your cleaning crew is scheduled to start on the house immediately after the guest checks-out.

Thankfully, gone are the days when you were expected to bring your own linens or rent them for an extra fee.  In some resort destinations, you may still find a vacation rental manager holding on to this notion.  However, it is not in line with standards of the hospitality industry, and I strongly advise against working with a manager who insists on this policy. Use a local linen service to provide clean towels and sheets, or simply have your cleaning crew launder the dirty linens and make the beds between stays.

As far as a fee, most owner and mangers typically pass on the actual costs of the maid service to the guests.   It can be part of a refundable security deposit.

Send your amenity suggestion along with a definition to info@alwaysonvacation.com
Put Amenity Suggestion in the Subject Line

A damage deposit (Also called a security deposit) is a payment collected from the guest in case of damage done to the property and is returned after their stay.  It is not necessary to require a damage deposit; however, it provides extra protection should a group hold a raucous party or sneak in a pet.  Damage deposits typically range from 200 to 500 dollars, depending on the size of the home.

There are two acceptable ways for collecting and returning damage deposits.  One way is to collect the damage deposit with the final payment.  A check for the damage deposit should be returned to the guest within two weeks of departure. When you find damage, document it in detail and the cost of repair.  Send the guest a letter with the documentation and give them a chance to respond.  If you do not get a response within three weeks, send back the damage deposit less the cost for damages.

A second way to collect the damage deposit is at the time of check-in.  Collect it in cash, traveler’s check, or money order.  At the time of checkout, walk through the unit with the guest and return the deposit.  If you find damage, write up a report in the presence of the guest.  Negotiate an estimate on the cost of the damage and return the remainder of the deposit.

An inventory checklist will help keep track of your vacation rental’s belongings. Your cleaning crew can review the checklist as they get the unit ready for the next guest. This process will let you know when an item is missing and which guest last saw it.  For a sample Inventory Checklist see Appendix .

A strong cancellation policy helps you weed out the serious guests from people mulling over a stay in your vacation rental. Make you cancellation policy more costly as you get closer to arrival and it becomes more difficult to re-rent the unit. I recommend breaking your cancellation policy into three parts.  Charge a small fee for cancellations more than 90 days prior to arrival.  It should be enough to cover any credit card processing fees you have incurred and the time it took to make the reservation.  Typically, a 30 to 50 dollar fee is fair.  The second part of the policy is for cancellations less than 90 days prior to arrival but greater than 30 days prior to arrival.  A typical fee is anything from one night’s rent to the entire deposit.  The third part of the cancellation policy is at the point where full payment has been collected and the entire cost of the stay is non-refundable. Typically, most vacation rental managers will have a no-refund policy for cancellations less than 30 days prior to arrival.  However, this varies by resort area and has become more lenient with the current glut of vacation rentals on the market. A no-refund policy for cancellations during Christmas and New Years will typically be 90 days prior to arrival.