Refer below to a list of some of the most frequently asked questions by new homeowners in our rental program.
What is the advantage of listing my home as a short term rental?
Short term rentals often net higher profit margins than long term lease rentals:
With the popularity and demand of Airbnb at an all time high, a short term rental allows you to maximize your return on investment. Our owners enjoy significantly higher revenues and profit margins over long-term rentals, between 2 and 4 times the expected rental income.
Less wear and tear on the property and better maintenance: Due to frequent guest turnover your property is inspected and thoroughly cleaned by our staff several times a month. We catch any issues early and address them immediately before they cause damage to your property. Also, people visiting South Florida are usually here for tourism, business or visiting family. Most of them are eager to explore and spend most of their time out and about.
Personal blackout dates allow owners a much more flexible and care free way to rent: Owners have complete control of when they want to use their property. This is ideal for a property that you like to occasionally visit or is your seasonal home. It's perfect if you’d like to have your friends and family come and stay. Blackout periods for personal use are easy to mark off the calendar and we can alter the listing around your preferences and schedule.
Ideal guests: We undertake a careful screening process for all guests to ensure that they are considerate and will take good care of your property. Airbnb fosters a sense of community and respect, and many Airbnb renters are property owners themselves.
With the popularity and demand of Airbnb at an all time high, a short term rental allows you to maximize your return on investment. Our owners enjoy significantly higher revenues and profit margins over long-term rentals, between 2 and 4 times the expected rental income.
Less wear and tear on the property and better maintenance: Due to frequent guest turnover your property is inspected and thoroughly cleaned by our staff several times a month. We catch any issues early and address them immediately before they cause damage to your property. Also, people visiting South Florida are usually here for tourism, business or visiting family. Most of them are eager to explore and spend most of their time out and about.
Personal blackout dates allow owners a much more flexible and care free way to rent: Owners have complete control of when they want to use their property. This is ideal for a property that you like to occasionally visit or is your seasonal home. It's perfect if you’d like to have your friends and family come and stay. Blackout periods for personal use are easy to mark off the calendar and we can alter the listing around your preferences and schedule.
Ideal guests: We undertake a careful screening process for all guests to ensure that they are considerate and will take good care of your property. Airbnb fosters a sense of community and respect, and many Airbnb renters are property owners themselves.
How much can i expect to earn?
In short, it depends. We will be able to give you a quote once we have some information about your home including address, amenities, and number of bedrooms. Typically, it will be comparable to or more than the long term rental value of your home, with less wear and tear, and more flexibility to use the home than comes with having a long term tenant.
How do I protect MY PERSONAL ITEMS, AND THE PROPERTY FROM DAMAGE?
Security matters, and we know it matters, so we’ve developed a multilayer strategy for creating the same degree of trust between you and your guest as you’d have with a close friend or member of your family.
Here’s how the layers stack up:
First, we have knowledge. We know who your guest is. We’ve seen their passport or driving license. We also have each guest sign a thorough and detailed Rental Agreement that protects you the owner from any accident or damage related liability.
Secondly, we set limits. We use owner closets with secure locks to ensure owners can store their own personal items safely away.
Thirdly, we are insured. The main listing sites we use offer a $1 million host guarantee policy. This is in addition to the mandatory security deposit we require from each guest.
Finally, we ask owners to be sensible. If you have very valuable, portable items in the home, consider taking them with you when you travel, or leaving them with a trusted friend or neighbor.
It’s worth adding: if you have irreplaceable, fragile, items which you think that someone might steal (even though we know who they are) or break (even though they’ve put down a card pre-authorization and we have their credit card details), we suggest you secure them before renting.
Here’s how the layers stack up:
First, we have knowledge. We know who your guest is. We’ve seen their passport or driving license. We also have each guest sign a thorough and detailed Rental Agreement that protects you the owner from any accident or damage related liability.
Secondly, we set limits. We use owner closets with secure locks to ensure owners can store their own personal items safely away.
Thirdly, we are insured. The main listing sites we use offer a $1 million host guarantee policy. This is in addition to the mandatory security deposit we require from each guest.
Finally, we ask owners to be sensible. If you have very valuable, portable items in the home, consider taking them with you when you travel, or leaving them with a trusted friend or neighbor.
It’s worth adding: if you have irreplaceable, fragile, items which you think that someone might steal (even though we know who they are) or break (even though they’ve put down a card pre-authorization and we have their credit card details), we suggest you secure them before renting.
WHO IS Dreamaway stays?
Dreamaway Stays, is a truly full-service vacation rental management company based out of South Florida. We’re dedicated to setting a new benchmark for vacation rental stays by providing the most luxurious and enjoyable rental experience for our guests. Our goal is to provide a consistent, high-end experience like one would expect at a fine hotel, while retaining the unique benefits and authenticity of a vacation rental home. We grow your income at less cost- handling all aspects of management.
WHAT DOES dreamaway stays DO FOR VACATION RENTAL HOMEOWNERS?
We manage almost every aspect of keeping your vacation rental occupied and ready for guests to enjoy. Our goal is to optimize the revenue potential for your rental without you having to do any of the busy work involved with managing it. That means we handle taking photos, writing descriptions, and marketing it to potential guests. No need for you to stress about managing logistics like reservations, payments, check-in and check- out processes, housekeeping, and maintenance. We make sure homeowners can sleep well at night knowing their rental is being taken care of and generating the most revenue possible. 😊
How is dreamaway stays different than a listing site like VRBO or Airbnb?
Companies like VRBO, Booking.com and Airbnb operate listing websites that market vacation rentals to guests all over the world. However, these listing platforms don’t expertly craft and manage property listings, list your property on multiple vacation rental sites, have a team monitoring and adjusting booking rates to best meet demand, manage availability calendars, answer guest inquiries responses immediately, complete in-person property inspections after every stay, manage vendors and property maintenance, provide professional housekeeping, or maintain local and state permits/licenses/taxes. Dreamaway Stays does all of this and more as a luxury short-term property management company.
Do I have to commit to a certain amount of availability?
This depends entirely on the duration term of the contract. There is no problem with an owner, friends or family using the rental for weeks at a time, however if you plan to only make it available occasionally then you can let us know in advance as the contract terms will differ.
Do I need to have Wi-Fi or a traditional phone line/land-line installed?
A landline phone isn’t required, unless you are in an area with no cell reception. We do require Wi-Fi to be available at all of our properties.
Do owners have to allow pets?
That’s totally up to you. In general, we encourage it, as homes get more bookings if they allow pets, but we understand many owners do not want to allow them. For those homes that are pet friendly, we charge guests a non-refundable pet fee (this amount differs based on the pet’s size and breed) and we have specific pet rules that guests must agree to prior to accepting their reservation request.
What kind of reporting will I be provided so I may understand my success?
You will get a monthly statement from us that details out how much rental revenue you earned, includes details on how much tax we collected and will pay on your behalf, as well as any charges that you have incurred during the month (for example if you want it cleaned for your own stay, or if you had us install a new TV, etc.) We also provide a year end statement as well.
How do you enable online bookings?
We use a Channel Manager – a very secure and reliable management solution for professional managers to push your rental to over 50 booking sites.
How do you advertise my vacation rental?
We list your home on the main sites where guests are looking for rentals! In addition to our own site, we’ll automatically get your property onto the major listing sites such as Airbnb, Vrbo, and our own website.
What if I already have listed my home on those sites?
Many owners have already created listings. We will work with you to migrate your listing over to our managed account. We will also professionally rewrite the listing if necessary, improve the photos or take new ones, and synchronize the pricing and calendar across all of the many sites on which we list your rental.
How do you set pricing for my rental?
Owners often ask how pricing is set for each rental. First, we set an initial price for each day of the week, and time of the year. Midweek days might get set at one price, and weekends at another; holidays and peak periods may be set higher, and off-season prices could be set lower. We set these initial prices based on several factors like input from each owner, characteristics of the home (size, amenities, location, recent remodels, etc.), comparable home prices in the area, and other factors.
Do I need to provide soap, paper towels, toilet paper?
No, you don’t need to worry about it, Dreamaway Stays makes sure your home remained stocked. We supply an initial set of amenities, so when guests arrive they don’t need to head straight to a market. This set includes toilet paper per bathroom, paper towels, small sizes of soap, shampoo, and conditioner, and dish soap in the kitchen. We buy amenities in bulk and restocks these for every stay.
What if I want to do some decorating on my own?
We love it when owners stay involved with decorating and improving their home! In fact, we highly encourage it. Guests want a luxurious and memorable experience. Your home decor is a great way to provide this.
Who takes care of my lawn, my pool, etc.?
We can schedule a regular lawn or pool service, but most owners already have this in place and continue to use their preferred vendor. We require that all owners have repeat services in place. Owners typically pay these fees directly to their contractors, along with utilities, internet and TV. We can set up recurring services for you (but only set them up to happen on a regular basis). The bills for the service are included in the monthly invoice sent to you.
WHAT ABOUT CLEANING FEES?
Guests pay us directly for cleaning fees, and we pay the cleaners. There is nothing you need to do to schedule them or pay for them. If you wish to have your home cleaned while you, a family member, or friend are using it, just let us know and we will clean it and bill you for it as part of your monthly statement. At first you may want to do an initial cleaning before we go live with the listing or may need some assistance in organization which our cleaners would be happy to do.
How do guests interact with Dreamaway stays?
Guests can communicate with us via text, email, or by phone with our team that is available around the clock. Once they book, guests can view their reservation information, receive check in instructions, get directions to your property, get nearby restaurant suggestions, and more.
Can guests book my property online?
Yes. They can book directly from our SouthFloridavacations.net website or from our channel partners such as Airbnb and Vrbo.
How do you deal with noisy guests
We do have a strict policy of not allowing parties or any types of events in any of the properties unless the owner permits. When we get noise complaints we take them very seriously and will be sure to make the guest aware. If issues persist, we reserve the right to evict the guest.
Do guests pay any type of cleaning fees?
Guests pay us directly for cleaning fees, and we pay the cleaners.
HOW EASY IS TO GET STARTED?
Getting started is easy and risk-free. We can onboard homes that are existing vacation rentals as quickly as in a few weeks if everything is ready to go. Onboarding includes shooting new photos, putting together detailed listings, setting pricing, advertising on booking platforms, and taking reservations – all in as little as a few weeks! This can take longer given a homeowner’s schedule, or if a home is in the process of being converted from a residence, long-term rental, or if there are construction/maintenance projects still in progress. Our agreement is flexible and may be cancelled by either party with 30 days notice. Early termination fees may apply.
CAN YOU HELP ME CONVERT TO A VACATION RENTAL?
Yes, we will help in any way we can, and we regularly do it all. Most of our current clients were owners of long-term rentals and our capacity to simplify and execute the conversion is a huge selling point. Whether it is helping you secure a short-term rental license, bringing in our interior designers, choosing and installing all the furnishings, meeting movers, getting landscaping in shape, etc. Depending on the circumstances, we may charge an hourly fee to assist with some of these projects, however there are no start-up fees to get the home onboarded on our end.
What kind of contract do I need to sign?
Our contract is non-binding and may be cancelled by either party. 30-day notice is required for termination of services and cancellation fees may apply depending on the agreement. The type of contract will differ depending on the duration of the rental contract being full time, seasonal or occasional rentals.
Will I have to worry about taxes?
No, as with most things, Dreamaway Stays will coordinate collecting occupancy tax for you. We collect the taxes and remit on your behalf. Each reservation has taxes added to the amount of the rental, so when you see a rental dollar amount, you can rest assured that we have collected and will remit tax on top of that.
DOES MY HOME NEED TO BE OF A CERTAIN QUALITY OR SIZE?
Yes, Dreamaway Stays is a boutique luxury vacation rental management company and we do focus on upper-end rentals in desirable locations.
do i need to provide you with photographs?
If you have them, great! If you don’t, we’ll handle it. Even if you do, we will likely come and shoot some more. Our Onboarding Specialist, Stager, or Property Manager will stage the home for professional photos to be taken.