'Property management companies must specialise'

By Cristiana Carpini, Founder and CEO, Tara Home Consulting

A recent survey from Hospitable showed that nearly 80% of vacation rental owners are moving away from traditional Property Management Companies (PMCs). Am I surprised? Not at all.

What I’m about to share might sound uncomfortable to some, but it comes from my first-hand experience – both as a property owner and as a consultant in the vacation rental industry.

During the pandemic, I had the chance to spend time in my vacation home, far from the city and surrounded by nature. It gave me the perfect opportunity to evaluate whether the newly renovated property was truly guest-ready. As soon as travel resumed, I listed it on Airbnb.

At the time, the area wasn’t very well-known (it later became a UNESCO World Heritage site), so I focused on promoting local experiences, great wine, beautiful surroundings, and fair pricing. The response was fantastic – the house was fully booked and I received excellent reviews.

At the end of 2021, I decided to hand over full management to a PMC. That’s when things started to go downhill: bad reviews, missing welcome kits, wine glasses gone without replacement, broken beds – you name it. I changed PMC, but the results were the same. They charged twice my original net rate, added high management fees, and inflated cleaning and linen costs under the pretence of using eco-friendly products. Yet, bookings dropped, damages increased, and when I visited the property, I found they were using standard cleaning products and cheap plastic kits.

I changed PMC again. Same story. This time, they were also delaying payments by months.

Today, I work with a PMC that only handles bookings, guest communication, and bureaucracy. I give instructions directly to a local service provider for everything else. The difference? Night and day.

The PMC ensures visibility on over 100 platforms, manages guest communication, payments, compliance (like DAC7), and registration requirements – while I focus on delivering a great guest experience.

The interesting thing is, as a consulting company, we’re seeing that most PMCs are now taking one of the following directions:

• Becoming true luxury PMCs: where services are even more important than the house itself.

• Acting as pure service companies: essentially professional Airbnb Co-Hosts. They charge owners for their services, and they are truly local. Large service companies may have offices every 40–50 km to ensure proper service. They don’t handle bookings.

• Becoming a sort of tour operator: offering wide visibility on far more than the typical 5–10 platforms used by individual hosts. They will find guests, they will work on occupancy in low season, they will handle complaints, payment issues, etc. They are working on a fair commission paid at the booking by the guest.

Now, I’m not getting into the debate on which model is the most profitable, but I can tell you why the traditional property manager model is changing – and must change (and that’s part of our job, too). With Tara Home Consulting and as an owner, I’ve met many PMCs. I always ask the same two questions:

1. Where will my property be advertised?

80% answer: “Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, TripAdvisor, etc.” But that’s exactly what owners can do themselves. What’s really interesting? Hearing that most bookings come from repeat guests or direct reservations or from hundreds of exclusive platforms.

2. What will my net income be (before taxes)?

Again, 80% respond: “It depends where the booking comes from; we use a revenue-sharing model…” This means owners can’t plan investments or even forecast basic income. We all understand dynamic pricing, but giving a net income is very different from saying, “We’ll see what’s left.”

The takeaway for property management companies?

PMCs must specialise if they want to win back the trust of property owners. The industry is evolving, and those who adapt will thrive.

With over 20 years of experience in the vacation rentals industry, Cristiana Carpini is a Host Planet Columnist and the Founder and CEO of Tara Home Consulting.

A delegate of ANBBA, the Italian holiday homes association, Cristiana actively supports the growth of small and emerging businesses in the STR sector. She is also passionate about industry education and regularly organises conferences and events for STR professionals.

Fluent in Italian, French, English, German, and Spanish, Cristiana has worked across many segments of the STR industry, including recruitment, product development, and executive leadership.

Get in touch with Cristiana via email: cristiana@tarahomeconsulting.com.