By now, the gradual introduction of the COVID-19 vaccine is old news. Starting in the UK, the first non-trial administration of the vaccine took place in early December, and since then, more and more people around the world have begun to receive their doses. With the vaccine slowly rolling out, the question on everyone’s mind is how this will affect travel restrictions and, ultimately, the short-term rental industry.
As the world anticipates a gradual return to normalcy, it’s only natural to start thinking about how travel policies will evolve in the coming months. For property owners and managers, this is a crucial time to prepare for the changes that are likely to come. While demand for travel is expected to increase, new health and safety protocols will remain a significant factor in how guests choose their accommodations.
In 2021, being proactive about implementing the right protocols for renting out your properties should be high on your radar. With competition heating up, staying one step ahead of industry trends and guest expectations will give you a significant advantage. It’s essential to think about how you’ll adapt to potential shifts in travel patterns—such as increased domestic travel or last-minute bookings—as well as evolving health guidelines.
Now more than ever, clear communication with your guests about health measures, cleaning protocols, and contactless technology will be critical. Guests will still seek properties that emphasize safety, so ensuring your listings highlight any updated practices related to sanitation, flexible cancellation policies, and vaccine-related requirements will be key to gaining their trust and confidence.
By planning ahead and preparing for post-vaccine travel dynamics, you position yourself to capitalize on the expected travel resurgence. Travelers are eager to explore again, but they will still prioritize properties that prioritize their well-being. Anticipating these changes and being ready to adapt quickly will ensure your rental business thrives in 2021 and beyond.
Preparing your STR for future stays
So, how can you prepare for the future when everything at the moment is so unpredictable? When dealing with the travel industry, the first step you need to take is having any sort of detailed plan. Having this ready, you can then prepare for each scenario. Being able to foresee the future, you gain the ability to accurately adapt to each new obstacle in a timely manner. Take the start of the pandemic for property owners for example: You may have completely stopped taking bookings, and ended up having a loss for those months. As time went on, you realized that maybe short term stays wasn’t the smartest idea or maybe you implemented some new cleaning measures. Just like that you adapted to your situation. What’s great now, is that you now have the hindsight from what happened before so you can better predict what may happen.
With the introduction of the vaccines, some restrictions will most likely be lifted in some areas of your country (if you currently have restrictions) depending on the overall situation. As these restrictions start to lift, cleaning procedures and preventive measures will still be in place. Think wearing masks, and regular sanitization. If you do own vacation homes, we mentioned in earlier posts about the importance of regularly sanitizing your properties in order to keep things in order. These thoughts are still just as valid today, if not more so. After a vaccine is implemented, you are in the preventative stage to make sure the virus does not make any surprise appearances. If you yourself are uncomfortable with cleaning your properties, we suggest leveraging a service cleaning company that can clean and disinfect your property. We also wrote a post about how you can actually leverage property management software to make this process even more efficient and seamless.
When it comes to cleaning and preparing your property for a post COVID-19 world, there are so many points you have to consider. Making sure you have a plan for the future is the first step to ensuring that your property management business doesn’t see a drop in occupancy, and cleanliness is an important second step to retain current guests and also see more. If you are still wondering how to better prepare your property for the 2021 year, feel free to message us at contact@ensoconnect.com.
