This Florida homeowner found the perfect partnership offering premier support

It wasn't an option for Martin S. to work with a vacation rental management company that didn't mirror his appreciation for Destin Pointe and the Emerald Coast of Florida.

It's clear why—the private coastline features stretches of breathtaking, brilliant white sand, and the elegant emerald waters are lined with boundless off-shore recreation. The surrounding community also delivers a level of excellence that deserves gratitude—all accessible when staying at Martin’s Palmetto Cottage.

"There are a lot of things that make the community special, and our home special as well, which is why we emphasized having a company represent us that can appreciate all of our particular specialties and needs," said Martin.

Martin was introduced to Vacasa after their acquisition of Wyndham Vacation Rentals, but still decided to conduct a thorough assessment of every possible property management option. That assessment was crucial to his decision-making as an out-of-state renter.

"We evaluated everyone we could get good data on,” Martin recalled. “A good friend of ours has five homes in Destin and has for about 15 years, so he knows everybody. We ended up interviewing five firms, but we partnered with Vacasa because they demonstrated a passion for the island and the dependability the others didn't."

With a few years under his belt, Martin understood what it looked like and what it took for a local team to go above and beyond to deliver results. Still, what happened over the years with Vacasa has taken him by surprise.

The key factors in choosing Vacasa

One of Martin's primary goals was to ensure his visitors received a five-star stay. That started with securing a local vacation rental management team that could elevate the guest experience by delivering the following advantages:

• Partnering with a vacation rental management company that knows and appreciates Destin Pointe and can use that knowledge to improve the guest experience
• Reaching high occupancy rates, especially during their peak season.
• Working with a local team that independently takes immediate action, surfaces solutions, and is prompt to take action
• Ensuring housekeeping and home maintenance always reach premium service levels
• Having a VIP local manager who offers curated advice and personalized assistance
• Working with an organization that has the resources and expertise to effectively market his vacation rental across multiple channels

Are those extravagant requests? No. Vacasa and Martin's local team see those needs as the baseline when tasked to manage any vacation rental property.

"We've been highly satisfied with our occupancy levels. We had 98 days available to occupy between Memorial Day and Labor Day—we occupied 96 of them. Those kinds of numbers are pretty hard to beat," said Martin.

Martin expressed how important it was for him to work with a vacation rental management company in Destin with a local presence. As luck would have it, the Destin Pointe staff was just a short walk from his investment property, providing the security and dependability he deserved.

"Occupancy was important to us, but the second piece is being able to quickly get in touch with the local team. We're a five-star home. We rely on our local team to make sure that everything comes together," said Martin.

"We have nearly 40 reviews on our home, and almost all of them are five stars. And the housekeeping scores are five stars too. That's a big deal. None of Vacasa’s competitors I spoke with offered that level of service."

As an experienced vacation rental owner, Martin looks beyond the review scores to the reviews themselves, gaining valuable insight into Vacasa’s performance.

“When you look at our reviews, some of the key things they mention are the views, the comfy beds, and the housekeeping,” he explained. “Vacasa has done a super good job keeping the house. We see lots of words like spotless, perfect, and super clean.”

Having local support matters for owners and guests

When it comes to his experience as a homeowner, Martin shared examples of how Vacasa’s local team went above and beyond in their service, regardless of task size.

The first example he gave involved replacing a refrigerator in under 24 hours.

"During the high season, our refrigerator broke while 10 guests were staying at the house,” Martin recalled. “The local team got a loaner refrigerator hauled up four flights of stairs and removed the broken one. Then I worked with them to buy a new one and have it installed the next day. In all, our guests were only without a refrigerator for about four hours after the local guys put in a new one,"

Other examples involved the finer touches of owner and guest service, like lighting preferences and guest safety.

“Our stairwell is a little bit dark on the top floor, so I like to leave some of the exterior lights shining on the entryway and stairwell,” he said. “Just a few weeks ago, my neighbor let me know the light was off, so I called my local team who quickly drove by and turned the lights on that day. Just little things like that are a great service,”

Martin sees such actions as a means of elevating his experience as a vacation rental owner, as well as providing excellent service for his guests. As a result, he feels confident the partnership he chose is the best one, beating the competition by miles.

“We're in our fourth year with Vacasa, and I'm feeling pretty confident of where we are,” Martin shared. “I'm 700 miles away from the house, and it’s very comforting to know that you can get a guy to turn on a light switch that day, and you don't have to be there. I don't think other companies are quite as on top of that as Vacasa.”