Submitted by Charity Kuahiwinui, charter member of Host2Host, former North Portland host and co-founder of Ensourced, a rental consulting firm. Charity lives in Lisbon, Portugal.

The ninth annual Vacation Rental World Summit was held in Porto, Portugal at an old-world charm conference center that used to be the city’s customs house. The seminar was chock-full of useful guidance for short-term rental hosts with plenty of opportunities to connect with fellow hosts, vendors, and property managers.

Here are some of the key takeaways and how you can leverage them.

Cleaning Quality is Key
Industry leaders pointed out again and again that quality is critical. The biggest driver of quality is the cleaning crew hired to take care of your space (or your own trusty hands, of course). Even if you think you’ve found the dream clean team, personally inspect the property at least quarterly to make sure it is being properly maintained and to identify any areas of improvement.

When you find a good cleaner, keeping them is crucial. There are a few ways to retain these key players:

• Keep the work environment engaging and organized. Cleaners hate arriving to a chaotic rental left by a guest, but a storage space or re-supply area with the same amount of chaos is enough to drive them batty;
• Use a cleaning checklist to make sure cleaners don’t miss anything; 
• Give them ownership in how they do their work; don’t micromanage. The guest won’t know that your preferred pillow tuck is one way but the cleaner did it another way. They’ll just be happy the pillowcases and sheets are clean.
• Follow the golden rule and treat people the way you would want to be treated. Reward them with extra pay and bonuses if their work is shining brilliantly in your reviews and resulting in increased occupancy.

Improve Your Ratings
Accurancy: The best way to improve the accuracy of your description is to periodically conduct a rental inspection and read your listing description out loud. Does the text realistically match the layout and location of the listing? Guests demand accuracy above all else. 

Communication: Communicating with guests is key. Certain OTAs provide automated ways to streamline communications but ensure they still have a personal voice in tone and timing. If your space is frequented often by folks from other countries, translate your listing, guidebook, and house rules into your target languages to help those travelers find you using their search terms and easily get around once they arrive.

Value: Do you have a 5-star rating for value? Turns out, AirDNA thinks this means you are not pricing your rental correctly. It’s too inexpensive. Strive for a value rating of between 3-4 stars to strike the right balance with potential future guests.

Environmental Sustainability
Travel is responsible for 8-10% of all greenhouse gas emissions! Now, more than ever, travelers understand they have a vested interest in minimizing their footprint.

The desire for green travel is not a trend. Sustainability is here to stay and advertising a sustainable rental can increase clicks from potential renters and drive increased occupancy.

Did you know? 

• 90% of consumers seek sustainable options when traveling;
• 60% of travelers have chosen a more environmentally-friendly transport or lodging option;
• Travelers will pay nearly 40% more for authentically sustainable lodging.

• Make it easy for guests to recycle;
• Add energy-efficient bulbs, smart appliances, and water-saving tools;
• Add energy meters to monitor usage in real-time. This can save 22-27% depending upon the type of utility;
• Consider installing an EV charging station (minimum 120V outlet; Level 2 better);
• Provide alternative transportation suggestions like using the local metro system, e-scooter apps to download, carshare vendors, etc.

• List on multiple OTAs, especially ones that cater to niche travelers like FabStayz, FairBnB, HomeStay, or Booking.com;
• Offer free cancellation policies. These not only increase bookings overall but also improve your listing’s location in the OTAs algorithm search results;
• Allow for bookings to come in over 90 days before a guest will arrive. Folks are eager to take big trips and are planning early. If your calendar is closed, you’re missing out on them completely;
• Accept pets, or at least dogs. 53% of travelers and growing like to bring their pets along. If you do that, include amenities that will help pet owners minimize damages in the home. For example, leave poop bags, offer pet food and water bowls, provide a dog-specific blanket and ask that it be used to protect the furniture from excessive pet fur to make clean-up easier.