This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Schlage. The opinions and text are all mine.
As I mentioned briefly before, once #mytinybungalow is totally finished, we plan to use it as a vacation rental. Initially, I thought a normal rental would work, but the more we think about it… the more we want the flexibility to stay at the house whenever we feel like it! This strategy would fit in nicely with our longterm goal of owning and living in a cabin in the mountains, so every home improvement project we take on is with these goals in mind. Today I partnered with Schlage to share tips for how to prepare your house to be a vacation rental — especially so you get great ratings and repeat guests!
How to Prepare Your Home to be Vacation Rental
Make an Excellent First Impression
Now that our backdoor is welcoming and lovely, I am more than happy to receive guests through that entrance! I prefer to welcome guests into our home through this door because they can walk through our garden and instantly feel like they are transported to a different place. Also, parking is a lot easier on that side of the house. Our new Schlage door hardware with keyless entry makes it especially easy for guests to check in because we won’t need to coordinate a key exchange. All I need to do is simply message them the key code (that I can reset after each guest) and that’s it! I love that I don’t need to physically be home to welcome the guests. Personally, I’ve found that I enjoy it much more when the host is not home because it feels less awkward and I can settle in at my own pace.
If you’d like to install the same hardware in your home, I paired the Schlage Sense™ Smart Deadbolt with Century trim with the Century Front Entry Handle and Latitude Lever. With the Schlage Sense Smart Deadbolt, you can enter up to 30 access codes, which adds an extra security layer and ease of use for managing a rental property. I just love how easy to use the app is, especially remotely. Also, it means guests won’t have to carry around a key and worry about losing it or getting locked out!
Leave a Welcome Letter
I’ve stayed in so many vacation rentals… probably every time I travel, actually! The places that stand out the most in my mind are ones that offer a concise, but informative welcome letter. A few essentials for the letter include:
- wifi network information
- house rules
- check out procedure
- emergency contact information
- suggestions for our neighborhood
I asked my good friend Becca Luna to design this gorgeous free downloadable that you can use for your own rental — click here to download your free welcome letter printable!
Once you’ve printed it out and added the relevant information, make sure to place it in a highly visible place so your guests can easily find it. I usually keep mine on the dining table with a basket of local goodies.
Curate a Local Gift Basket
Speaking of treats… I suggest always giving your rental guests a goodie basket of local treats like coffee, wine or beer, chocolate, or tea. Because we’re in Seattle, I always make sure there’s a bag of fresh coffee that they can take home with them as a souvenir (I make sure the kitchen is stocked with coffee as well). I’ve heard that it’s best practice to give a gift that is worth 10% of the nightly rate of the vacation rental. You can also include some snacks for your guests to munch on, like your favorite locally made potato chips.
Consider the Details
My final tip for setting up a vacation rental in your home is to make sure all of the details are fab. For example, I’ve invested in gorgeous linen bedding so that the bedroom feels more like a hotel than a house. You can also upgrade your towels, provide luxury hair and bath products, and even stock the refrigerator with breakfast essentials. I really urge you to consider what would make you leave a glowing review!
I’d love to hear from you: what was your best vacation rental experience?
Photography and styling by Jojotastic. All copyright of the printable design is retained by Becca Luna.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Schlage . The opinions and text are all mine.
