How Short-Term Rentals Provide a Unique Opportunity for PMI Franchisees

Property Management Inc. (PMI), the nation’s fastest-growing property management franchise with 400 units across the United States, offers franchisees the ability to quickly expand their portfolios with multiple streams of revenue. One of those opportunities is through short-term rentals.

PMI trains to and supports the four pillars of property management — residential, commercial, short-term rentals and association management — and realty, providing its franchise owners with service options that capitalize on emerging trends in the industry. The short-term rental industry is a unique, growing sector PMI franchisees can benefit from. Despite seasonality, the high percentage of revenue each night makes vacation property management an essential market to PMI’s revenue generation model.

“PMI is professionalizing the fragmented industry of short-term rentals and creating standards of experience for travelers and owners all around the world,” said Marianne Heder, executive director of Property Management Inc.’s short-term rentals division.

Trends in the Short-Term Rental Space

With platforms such as Airbnb popularizing short-term stays, the once-alternative market has grown and become widely accepted in the United States. The now mainstream industry was valued at around $115 billion in 2019. A July 2022 mid-year update on the U.S. short-term rental industry by AirDNA also found that there were 1,059,541 available units on various listing platforms in 2021.

During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many rental units saw cancellations. However, as people who wanted to travel were looking for safer, secluded getaways, more travelers opted to stay at rental homes in destination markets.

Heder noted that, in particular, PMI has seen an uptick in reservations within “drive to” locations in the United States. “People are looking for really cool places an hour or two from where they live,” she said. “We’re starting to see a lot more of that.”

Because travel has become so personalized and more flexible, the options for destinations are endless. And PMI has plenty of new territory openings. Heder pointed out that Colorado and Florida are some of PMI’s fastest-growing markets in the space right now.

Businesses Converting to the Short-Term Rental Space

Current business owners that are smaller in size or who are stuck and struggling to grow their business are coming to PMI to find the solutions, says Heder.

“They are looking to capture opportunities in the market right now, but they don't have all the systems, and on their own, it would take them priceless resources of time and money to build out all the right systems to get there in time to capture them,” she said. “We've already built them and already solved the problems. So they want to leverage us and our systems by purchasing a franchise to help them scale faster than they would on their own.”

Predictions for 2023

PMI anticipates that the boost from the last several years will normalize in 2023. However, Heder predicts a more creative use of space for short-term rentals. This includes innovations such as micro hotels and corporate rental spaces. She added that investors will be able to buy into smaller units, making it easier for the everyday investor to jump into the industry.

The brand also expects more owners to add additional services to their offerings. PMI is already seeing a number of franchisees add short-term rentals right now because of the demand they’ve seen from property owners this year.

When it comes to travelers, we are predicting an uptick in business travel, as they are looking for premier experiences when choosing where to book their stays. Because of this, Heder notes that rental owners will be asking for more services to be added to their offering. They no longer want someone to just manage their bookings and stays but someone who can add more to the experience.

“Consumers want a unique experience that keep the standard of a hotel but feels like home away from home,” said Heder. “Now more than ever, the world of travel is going to gravitate towards whoever does that best. And we know how to do it.”

The startup costs for a Property Management Inc. franchise range from $53,225 to $190,050. The franchise fee ranges from $45,000 to $190,050. To learn more about franchising with Property Management Inc., visit propertymanagementincfranchise.com.