There are multiple ways to interpret this title and maybe multiple ways to answer it. I want to make sure that it’s very clear what we are going for. Keeping updated means that you are constantly looking to improve upon your space and we’ll tell you why you should care as a smaller host.

You know how it seems that more and more companies are appearing in your area providing short term rental accommodations? Well the main reason it seems that way is because it is that way. Companies like Vacassa, Sonder, the Airbnb acquired Lyric, Turnkey to name a few are making major efforts to expand into more markets. Well, What does that mean for you? It means that you are now competing with a big fish that just dumped a giant amount of inventory into your market diluting the results.

How do you compete?

Some hosts think you can’t and maybe sometimes their right. But, more often than not you may have a very good fighting chance to keep your mom and pop rental going and there’s a pretty obvious way to do so. You have to update your space (referencing our definition).

This can mean multiple things for you and your rental. An update could be a remodel or an constructing an extension (If the property is yours) or redecorating to find a niche. Let’s look at the three to see what can be done in each scenario and which could apply to you.

Let’s start with Redecorating

Often times the easiest and fastest way to get yourself differentiated. Look at your space and see what could be changed easily to give the space a newer look and feel. During this process take into account the following to make your process more effective:

What type of guest frequents your market?
What guest niche is your big fish competition possibly not servicing well?
What would make your space different?

Answering these three questions would definitely be at the top of my list to see how I can be more effective in my new competitive environment.

Remodel (HGianTV as my significant other likes to call it)

This would be a natural next step to your process if you believe redecorating won’t cut it because the space even though the furnishings, appliances, etc are modern the walls, cabinetry, flooring, etc looks dated. In this case you would look into a remodel to bring your space up to date. This will give your space a fresh new appeal and you may even appear as a more valuable option to potential guests because if your rental looks just a bit nicer than the bigger fish’s one then the massive elasticity of the marketplace will work in your favor.

Constructing an extension? What? Construction?

Yeah! Seems a bit out there but, check this out. I also what to make sure that I make it very clear that you would only resort to this very cautiously and that you MUST be the owner of the property to do construction and to have the necessary permits and avail. Phew! Now that the legal cover is out of the way let’s dive in. Sometimes a remodel or redecorating alone won’t cut it and you would look into a step further. Here’s an example of a scenario, you find out that your competition doesn’t service well big groups and your area has a nice demand for bigger groups so there’s an opportunity.

After identifying it you would then search out what extra space is needed in my rental to be able to meet this, if you already have enough space then a remodel might do the trick. So, in essence you would head into this to accommodate the new rental strategy and in accordance with your long term vision of the property. What good is an extension that you just made to extend your rentals value a few years and then when you decide to do something else with it the extensions don’t amount to extra value in the traditional market.

Here’s an extra one!

It has to do with this question’s answer: What would make your space different? Sometimes you can successfully instill your brand onto a guest by offering a service, a particular experience or your rental business stands with a value that they are in line with. So really think about this one, don’t just jump into offering everyday brunch as a service it will become exhausting and costly. But, analyze what you could offer and examine what it would cost you. Remember low cost, easy and thoughtful are what you want to go for.

-Gian From Hostpitality