There is increasing evidence of the worldwide economic downturn affecting the vacation rental market. A New York Times article last week identified two issues that property owners need to be aware of if they are to stay competitive in what is becoming an increasingly crowded market.
Firstly, inventory is increasing. We’ve seen this in our own rental management agency, and Craig White of CottageLINK would agree. He has seen the number of cottage owners listing their cottages grow substantially over the past few months as owners elect to ride out the slowdown in cottage sales and rent out instead.
The second impact on the market is the growth of interest in vacation rentals as a good economic choice for a vacation. Renting a cottage has always been a popular vacation choice in Ontario with the proximity of cottage country to Toronto, and this trend of staying closer to home is becoming more widespread with our neighbours to the south.
This new breed of renters are coming with higher expectations and requirements and I’ve been saying for a long time that owners must take notice of this and fight to capture the elusive out-of-season market by improving standards. We have already seen an upsurge in comments this year from renters with regard to the standard of furniture and furnishings in cottages, and it is becoming clear the market is changing.
With the summer season drawing to a close, there will be a massive amount of property owners jostling for the small amount of renters looking for a fall break. They must be creative, and willing to make make quality improvements to both the property and to the way it is listed, to squeeze the most out of the more demanding market.
My own property is already booked throughout September and into October and I want to share the secrets of how that has happened with you.
I’m working on an ebook that will be made freely available to my newsletter subscribers later this month. This will include suggestions to improve visibility in the marketplace for the low season; recommendations on how to increase occupancy, and plenty of ideas for those owners who want to raise their standards to meet the rising demand.
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It is so true that owners must look to improving the quality of their homes to compete in this changing market. The reaction of the inexperienced owner is often to lower prices. All that this does ultimately is lower standards for the renters. I have found that it is much better to make improvements to raise standards to attract guests. All of the homes I have are either almost brand new or have had a significant amount of money spent on them this year. I have already made that money back on increased bookings.