Vacation Rental by Owner or VRBO changed the vacation rental industry forever. From a small personal website started in 1995 designed to advertise a single Breckenridge, CO ski condo VRBO has grown to over 150,000 vacation rental listings worldwide! In 2005 VRBO was acquired by HomeAway and became part of the HomeAway network of websites advertising over 500,000 vacation rentals worldwide.

Each day more and more vacation home owners choose to advertise their homes directly to travelers and manage their property themselves or rent by owner. There are many benefits to rental by owner but also many challenges. Advertising and booking the property can be done easily from anywhere with a simple internet connection, but the day to day management of the property is extremely challenging since most owners live several hundred or even thousands of miles from their vacation homes. This is where Book by Owner has made renting a vacation home by owner more possible by providing local, reliable management and maintenance services for the home owner.

Traditionally local property managers would not only manage and maintain the property but also advertise and book the property. They were then paid for their service through a share of the rent as a commission, generally 30 – 50 percent. By renting by owner the property owner can avoid paying the steep commission of a traditional property manager, but still needs the day to day management services. Book by Owner has developed a fee based management system specifically designed for vacation rentals that offers reliable, professional services on an unlimited basis for a fixed annual cost. As a Book by Owner franchisee this annual fee paid on monthly basis provides steady, reliable cash flow and allows you to easily scale your business to meet the demands of a growing customer base.

It is estimated the vacation rental industry generates $24B annually in rental revenue and that only 50% of vacation homes in the US are currently rented by owner. As vacation home owners become more internet savvy this is expected to increase to 75% by 2015. VRBO, HomeAway and the vacation rental industry also continue to spend millions of dollars promoting Vacation Rentals as a better value proposition than a hotel room to travelers seeking accommodations for their vacation which will only increase demand. Don’t wait to get involved in this fast growing, exciting vacation rental industry, contact Book by Owner today to claim your exclusive territory in your favorite resort area!