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Sponsored Content Presented by Vacasa
Back in 2001, Portlander Sharron Smith’s in-laws wanted a place that could fit their 3 kids’ families, including 9 grandkids, comfortably. So, they bought a 7 bedroom, 6 bathroom home at Black Butte Ranch in Central Oregon. The Smith clan spent summers, holidays, and family reunions together at the ranch.
“We’ve had 22 years of incredible family memories in the house,” says Smith. “It’s truly been a special place.”
But, as is life, things have changed since ‘01. Smith’s two daughters are now off to college at Gonzaga University—rendering Sharron and her husband new empty-nesters. The couple now splits their time evenly between Portland and Black Butte Ranch.
Fortunately, whether they’re at their Portland home, traveling, or visiting their kids—the Smiths don’t have to worry about their place at Black Butte Ranch gathering dust. Or, any of the other details that make renting stressful, for that matter.
Why? Because the Portland natives rent out their property through Vacasa, which handles everything for them. And when we say everything, we mean it.
“Whether it’s getting a portable air conditioner installed during an extreme heat event, or running extra towels to the house, [our local manager] makes it happen,” says Smith.
This kind of hands-on assistance from Vacasa employees allows homeowners to be relatively hands-off. Vacasa will even connect homeowners with local contractors or handypersons to get things done on the house, when needed. Which has been a huge perk for the Smiths, who were managing their property themselves prior to using Vacasa.
“It became challenging to manage because inevitably something would come up,” she says. “[For example], the refrigerator stopped working one December while we were traveling in Nicaragua, and not having someone local to take care of it was stressful.”
But ever since the Smiths started renting with Vacasa, the company has proved itself a cut above the rest. Especially considering the family made the switch in March of 2020—right at the beginning of the pandemic.
Vacasa adapted and made needed changes quickly, and ensured renters were coming into a clean and sanitized environment, Smith says. They also found housekeepers at a time when it was difficult to find people to do those jobs.
“I would have been totally stressed if I’d had to deal with that myself,” says Smith.
Once the COVID dust settled, the passive income the Smiths got—from hosting entrepreneur retreats, or 4-5 full families at a time—became quite the perk. Whether they’re at their Portland home or on vacation, they’re making money.
Wondering how much? Well, in Q2 2023, Vacasa outperformed other property managers by driving 17% greater occupancy in Central Oregon markets.1 Which basically means that Vacasa was able to fill its homeowners’ calendars with more reservations than its competitors. And more reservations usually means more passive income. In Sharron’s case, Vacasa helped her increase Q2 gross rent by 6% YoY.2
Smith says they’ve made enough money to start pursuing home improvements such as new dining and living room furniture, and replacing the carpet. Her favorite part, though, is Vacasa’s pricing algorithm that maximizes rental value, and adapts to changes in demand.
“I would never have imagined getting the nightly rents we get during the peak summer season,” she says. “We are earning a lot more money [now] than [when we were] renting on our own.”
Vacasa has allowed the Smith family to travel freely without worrying about their home, while simultaneously making more money than they ever have through other rental avenues. On top of it all, they’re able to share their Black Butte Ranch home with others. That is, whenever they’re not there making new family memories for themselves.
To learn more about Vacasa, and how they help homeowners, you can visit their website.
1 Guest occupancy figure based on Vacasa’s analysis of its Q2 2023 Central Oregon portfolio performance data and third-party data about comparable properties managed by select short-term rental property managers in the region.
2 Gross rent figure based on unit performance from Q2 2023, compared to Q2 2022.