Lots of people ask how they should manage their Tampa vacation rental. This is not an easy task and there’s a very steep learning curve. Here are a some simple tips you can use to help you succeed.
Response Time
From years of experience I have found that it’s critical to answer the inquiry within an hour or two of receiving it. Industry wisdom is that you’ll get the booking if you answer right away. I have found this to be true. If it takes you a day or two to get back to a person, you aren’t going to get that booking. Instead, you’ll be lucky to get a booking from 10 percent of your inquiries.
Preparing the Property
Your home has to be ready. Good property management means getting the place ready for guests within 24 hours of your previous guest leaving. Set the air conditioning at a comfortable level, turn on any welcoming lights and leave a little hospitality basket on the table. I like to leave a collection of sweet and savory things as a present to welcome new guests.
Follow Up
When a tenant leaves the property, we follow up with an email thanking them for the stay. We ask for a review, and then we 
refund any deposits that are owed to them. We also complete an immediate clean up so that the place is ready for the next guest.
This is a very time consuming endeavor and if you can’t manage it easily, you shouldn’t have vacation properties on the market. I belong to the Florida Vacation Rental Managers Association and by attending their meetings I have gathered many tips on how to manage vacation rentals. I’d be happy to share some of that knowledge with you, so please contact us at HomeSeekers if you have any questions or you’d like more information about Tampa vacation rental property management.