The moment a guest checks out of a short-term rental, the property stops making money and starts costing. From hiring a cleaning team to inspection personnel to time wasted, every minute a property is unoccupied by guests is costing you potential revenue.
With the high season in full swing, back-to-back bookings, and eager vacationers, property managers should be aiming for streamlined operations. Optimize your processes to take full advantage of every profitable opportunity and maximize the season’s ROI.
For example, if you nail the efficiency of your operations, you could offer guests early check-in for a small premium. Not to mention the benefit of minimizing mistakes in the turnover process (that could lead to negative reviews and in turn decreased bookings) and the ability to remove yourself from the equation, so you can put your energy into scaling your business.
What’s a turnover day?
Turnover days reset a vacation property so it’s ready for the next guest’s arrival. During turnover a property will be cleaned, bedding and towels replaced, amenities restocked, and inspected thoroughly.
All of these tasks are essential but can take up a lot of time and effort, especially if property managers have to oversee the whole process and manually grant access to every team involved.
How to streamline turnover days with PointCentral
Property automation tech is a game-changer for turnover days. Gone are the days of property managers working hard to maintain the quality and security of their properties – now their properties work hard for them!
Let’s break down the turnover process, so you can see exactly how PointCentral’s software addresses the pain points and creates operational efficiency:
Step one: Guest check-outs
Standard check-out process at a short-term rental includes guests leaving the property’s keys on the kitchen counter or dropping them off to the reception (which is usually unstaffed). Property managers aren’t notified and likely wait until the check-out cut-off has passed to kick off the turnover process.
But, what if you could be immediately notified when guests leave? What if you could take back any time gained from early check-outs? When your properties are equipped with smart home tech that’s connected to a platform via IoT, you can.
With smart locks, you’ll get a message the moment guests leave. What’s more, the doors will automatically lock for security, the thermostat will adjust itself to optimize energy consumption, safety systems will arm, and the cleaning team will be notified that the property is ready for them. All of this happens automatically!
Step two: Cleaning & inspection
There’s no need for property managers to be present during short-term rental turnover days, not when your properties are powered by smart home technology.
The Community Access solution, for example, streamlines the whole turnover process. Give easy access to everyone who requires entry to your property, whether that be cleaners, inspectors, or contractors, with keyless smart locks.
And don’t worry about the security of your property, the software allows you to give your team unique temporary codes, which can only be used within the approved time slot. What’s more, every time a unique code is used the automated tech system will notify you.
For example, when cleaners use their passcode, you’ll be notified on the platform’s app. “Cleaners accessed the property at 13:15 pm.” And, when they leave, the IoT-connected platform will message the inspection team, triggering the next step of the cycle until turnover is complete.
All while you’re elsewhere bettering your business and being updated every step of the way. So, if you want absolute certainty your properties have been cleaned, or if you want to know who’s in your property at all times – this is the solution for you.
Step three: Boost earning potential
Turnover is now complete (likely with plenty of time to spare thanks to automated communication improving turnover efficiency). Usually, many rentals would now sit and wait for the next guest to arrive. But, as we mentioned earlier, every minute a rental is unoccupied it’s losing out on potential revenue.
So, why wait? Use automated connected tech to inform guests that their rental is ready early, as soon as the last step of the turnover process is complete. Offer guests the chance to check-in early for a small premium and make the most of every opportunity.
Your short-term rentals shouldn’t be hard work, and they certainly shouldn’t be wasting money, they should be working for you and with you to continually improve the efficiency of your business and increase your ROI.
Luckily, with the support of PointCentral’s fully connected platform of home automation technology, they can!
Watch how this technology can streamline the turnover process here.
