Get Paid For Your Pad | Airbnb Hosting | Vacation Rentals | Apartment Sharing

When David Bergmann joined our Legends X program in April 2021, he was a hectic host with 25 units and a dream to quit his full-time job.18 months later, David manages a portfolio of 110 STR units and a neighborhood laundromat!How did David scale his Airbnb business so quickly? And what did he learn along the way?David is Cofounder of Heartwood Furnished Homes, a short-term rental management company out of Columbia, South Carolina.On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, David joins me to explain how a solar eclipse inspired him to become an Airbnb host and why he started managing units for other STR investors.David shares what he’s learned about hiring team members before you need them, adjusting systems that aren’t working and saying NO to clients who aren’t a good fit.Listen in to understand why David bought a laundromat to support his STR business and learn how to save money by washing linens in-house as you scale.Topics CoveredHow a solar eclipse inspired David to become an Airbnb hostHow David and his

When working in the STR space, buying new properties to increase your bottom line is not always possible or probable. And sometimes, it's not even necessary. Sometimes increasing your revenue is as simple as renovating your current properties to attract your ideal guest avatar and maximize occupancy. So, how can you determine which renovations actually pay off, what to skip, and come up with a realistic budget for your project? On this edition of STR Conversations, Eric and I are breaking down how we are planning to do basic renovations to our current cabins at what's currently known as Strawberry Creek Village to begin transitioning them to fit our brand. Listen in as we share details about the current status of the Schoolhouse and the Daydreamers' Den and the types of renovations each of those properties needs to help us achieve $150K more a year in revenue. We'll share our philosophy for coming up with our vision, and the research we did to create a renovation budget that mini

If you want to create a big brand identity as a small operator, you need to dig in and determine who you are and exactly who you want to serve.So how can you niche down and get specific about your guest avatar?One way is to determine a need you have that isn't being served and then fill that. That's what my guest today did.Rose Tipka of Your Family's Place offers multi-generational spaces designed to provide their guests with stress-free, nostalgic family vacations. Rose and her family launched their business after discovering how difficult it was to find the perfect getaway for their own large family. They currently operate 3 properties, including Mount Pleasant Lodge, designed to offer guests of all ages a chance to reconnect and experience that summer camp feeling you had as a kid. On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Rose joins me to share the story of her husband's bold move while she was pregnant with their fifth child that helped them pivot into an industry they are passionate about, and laun

In the Legends X program, Eric and I coach people on how to get from Hectic Host to Short-Term Rental Legend. But we also happen to be students, applying the system we teach to the new Airbnb business we’re building—a hospitality brand known as Freewyld. So, where are WE on the journey from Hectic Host to STR Legend? And what does our signature VOS system look like in practice? On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Eric and I give you an honest look behind the scenes of Freewyld, sharing the progress we’ve made in each of the three pillars—vision, operations and scale. We discuss the power in putting your brand vision and core values on paper and describe how automating our processes took us out of the day-to-day operations of Freewyld very quickly. Listen in for insight on building out a short-term rental team and find out why we’re dialing in our vision and operations before we focus on scaling Freewyld. Topics CoveredWhy we were able to move from Hectic Host to Rising Sta

When you own an STR business, there will always be issues. Someone will lose their key, someone will clog the toilet, a piece of furniture will break, and then there’s the money issue.Patrick Spanfelner was struggling with all those issues and more, all while parenting a one-year-old and a three-year-old with just one unit. He was the epitome of a hectic host. But all that changed. He's now successfully managing 39 units, including one of mine in Cali, Columbia.So, how'd he go from a hectic host barely hanging on to a successful host who seems to hardly work?Patrick Spanfelner has been living and investing in STR real estate in Colombia for over seven years. His current portfolio includes over 33 units. You can find his units at EXSTR Apartments and learn more about visiting, living, and investing in Cali and Colombia on his blog, The Cali Adventurer.On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Patrick joins me to discuss how learning to automate and develop systems helped him to scale to 39 units.Listen in as P

"The ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are the ones who do," Steve Jobs Often in the busyness of working on our businesses each day, our brains try to drive us to focus on the tasks we can focus on today to get a result. So, we dig into those tasks that require a lot of physical and mental work. And, at the end of the day, we feel accomplished—and we are.  But we want more! We dream of creating a globally recognized brand, building community, and bringing something unique to the marketplace—all while creating a memorable customer experience. Yet we can’t make any significant traction on our dream for our STR business when we're stuck putting out fires and moving the needle at a snail's pace. So, how can you adopt a higher-level vision, attract the right people into your story, and scale at a different level, ultimately building something bigger than you ever envisioned? On this edition of STR Conversations, Eric and I share an update on our vision

“Earn dollars, spend pesos, that’s a very attractive proposition these days,” Patrick SpanfelnerJust 4 hours away from Miami, Cali is the 3rd largest city in Colombia. With an amazing climate year-round, exceptional nightlife, and entertainment, it's the go-to place to live a high quality of life at a low cost. For investors, Colombia doesn't have any restrictions on foreign ownership. There's a great pool of inexpensive contractors, architects, and so forth, and affordable service. Add to that the possibility of a 10% profit after costs and the luxury of soaking up the tropical sun and investing in the emerging Latin market sounds like a great opportunity. But investing in Colombia or any Latin foreign country can also have some big drawbacks. So, how can you take advantage of the short-term rental investment opportunities in Colombia without the risks? Patrick Spanfelner has been living and investing in STR real estate in Colombia for over seven years. His current portfolio includes over

If you’re an Airbnb host with a small number of units, you may not think branding is all that important. But if you want to grow your STR business and enjoy long-term success, it’s never too soon to upgrade from host to hospitality brand. On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Eric and I sit down to discuss why it’s so important for STR hosts to build a hospitality brand and how branding is born out of the vision of what you want to create. We walk you through the three key elements of a hospitality brand, weighing in on how branding informs every decision you make—down to the soap and toilet paper you choose for your STRs. Listen in to understand why a hospitality brand is so much more than a logo and learn how to take the first steps in branding your Airbnb business! Topics CoveredWhy we hired a creative director for Freewyld and what the role entailsThe 3 key elements of a hospitality brand—visuals, language and productThe power of thinking BIG and sharing the idea behind your

Do you dream of growing your short-term rental portfolio to tens or even hundreds of units? Yes, a successful host can invest their profits in buying additional STRs. But it doesn’t take long to run out of your own money. So, what if you could use other people’s money to purchase more vacation rentals? How does it work to fundraise capital from investors for your STR business? Daniel Kalenov is Chief Investment Officer at Diversus, a boutique private equity firm that invests in luxury hospitality and affordable housing. Since 1999, Daniel has analyzed, purchased, repositioned and managed income-producing real estate assets, and he has an MBA from Harvard Business School. On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Daniel joins me to explain how his mother’s experience with the stock market inspired his interest in real estate investing and why he made the shift from single-family rentals to the STR industry. Daniel shares his best advice for hosts who want to grow their portfolio throug

Are you a problem solver who understands everything from products to systems and people to profit?Have you built a STR business with over 100 listings?Have you ever thought of becoming a coach?If so and you want to find out how you can get started impacting people’s lives and businesses, this episode is for you.Teaching something to another person or helping them get started in your space elevates both of you and enables you to become a better CEO and business owner.And the benefits don’t stop there. Sharing your knowledge while working with influential people that are in the same business as you are while trying to solve the same problems and achieve similar goals is priceless.On this edition of STR Conversations, Eric and I share a new opportunity to join our Overnight Success Team as a coach.We share what we are looking for in coaches, the requirements to join our team, and the #1 criteria we are looking for in an Overnight Success Team Coach.Listen in as we share our insight into how great coaching trickl

Imagine seeing your short-term rental on the big screen! Production companies rent properties all over the world and pay a premium to film in those spaces.But you won’t find film crews on Airbnb. So, how do you tap into this opportunity?Laura Wegner is Founder of The Suite Life Whistler, a STR company out of Vancouver, British Columbia. She is also a former professional actor and advocate for the film industry with expertise in hosting production crews in her short-term rentals.On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Laura joins me to explain how to list your property with the local film commission and share her standard operating procedure for vetting a production company.Laura discusses how her daily rate for a film crew compares to what she charges on Airbnb and describes how a crew might change your space to accommodate the script.Listen in for insight on designing your space to attract the interest of a location manager and learn how to leverage the film industry to fill your Airbnbs.Topics CoveredHow

The number of day-to-day decisions you must make when running a business can be insurmountable. It's easy to let the creative team connection fall by the wayside. And let's be honest, ZOOM meetings aren't the same as carving out time away from the distractions of the office with the key players of your team somewhere new where the creative juices can flow. We've just returned from our team quarterly off-site, and today we're sharing our biggest takeaways from that experience with our listeners. On this episode of STR Conversations, Eric and I are walking you through the BIG benefits of shutting off technology and being 100% present with your key team members. We'll share why time away from the day-to-day is vital to solving the biggest challenges in your business—no matter what size your organization is.  Listen in for a breakdown of what precisely an off-site is and a behind-the-scenes look at our Q3 off-site for Freewyld and Overnight Success. We’ll offer you expert insight int

"Girls Just Want to Have Fun" and bachelorette weekends are an expanding short-term rental niche where you can charge premium rates and make bank. But they can also come with some very BIG drawbacks. So, how can you set the right expectations from the start so you can tap into the lucrative ‘girls trip’ market without ending up with noise complaints and destroyed property? STR investor Kent He saw the demand for bachelorette trips in Scottsdale, Arizona, so he studied the data, took a chance, and jumped in—a move that paid off! Now, he's using his influence in the STR space to advocate for the development of affordable housing for all. On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Kent joins me to talk about why it's vital to have a niche to be successful in the Airbnb space today and how his bachelorette-themed properties are skyrocketing his revenue. We discuss how he gathered the data to make his properties a success and the role the Get Paid For Your Pad podcast played in helping him

Fueled by the increasing demand for rentals for digital nomads and the uptick in regulations by cities on short-term rentals, medium-term stays are now the fastest-growing category on the Airbnb platform.So, how can we jump into the medium-term market and get all the benefits of investing in Airbnbs without the hassle of turnover or the risk of changing city regulations?Zeona McIntyre has been an Airbnb host since 2012 and owns 12 long-term, mid-term, and short-term units. As an avid real estate investor who owns and manages a double-digit portfolio, she teaches listeners how to achieve financial freedom through real estate on her podcast, Invest2FI. Zeona is the co-author of the soon-to-be-released book, 30-Day Stay: A Real Estate Investor’s Guide to Mastering the Medium-Term Rental.On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Zeona joins me to talk about what constitutes medium-term and the advantages of these types of rentals.Listen in as Zeona shares some insider tricks for finding more customers, managing y

Every day for an STR entrepreneur is filled with numerous tasks, some of which consume the time you could spend growing your business using your unique skills. If only you could get the low-level projects off your plate, freeing up your time to focus on taking your business to the next level. You can if you hire a virtual assistant (VA). It's easy to hire a VA. But it's not always easy to hire the right one, assimilate them into the culture of your business, and then keep them as a part of your team while growing their role. Most hosts don't have a plan for any of it, so they end up in the cycle of hiring and firing VAs until they throw in the towel and decide working with a VA isn't working. It doesn't have to be that way. On this episode of STR Conversations, Eric and I are announcing a special FREE step by step training we are dropping next week and share how you can be a part of it for FREE. We'll walk you through some of the most common mistakes STR hosts make when hiri

Right now, many property owners and managers are looking into ways to expand their bookings for the slow season ahead. So, how can we monetize our rental spaces outside of Airbnb and expand our bottom lines? Jackie Nedin is the CEO of PHX STAYS, specializing in Arizona vacation rentals and boutique style management with properties in Chandler, Phoenix, Gilbert, Tempe, Mesa, Queen Creek, Sun Lakes, and Scottsdale. With award-winning interiors and details that celebrate what’s unique about every city, PHX STAYS is bringing enriched experiences to their guest and property owners. On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Jackie joins me to talk about how a bad month for her STR properties, combined with an email from Get Paid for Your Pad, led her to try listing her properties on Peerspace. She shares the unique features of her most popular property and how her ‘drive right in’ spirit led her to a $6K return in one month from the Peerspace site. Listen in as Jackie shares the types of ev

"The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do." — Steve Jobs Every single human has the same number of hours in a day. But high-achieving enterprising individuals such as Kevin Hart, Elon Musk, and Tim Kennedy seem to make better use of their time, exploring what's next while investing in the now to make the impossible possible. So, what's the difference between them and you and me? It's all about the decisions we make! On this episode of STR Conversations, Eric and I discuss the 3 things you need to achieve more significant results in your business and life with less effort. We'll share an update on the hotel purchase process, and our recently discovered insight into the two-pronged challenge of buying existing STR properties or other businesses. Tune in as we discuss what you need to focus on to achieve the biggest ROI on your investment in your business. We'll walk you through the 2 qualities the most successful people share and d

"Even though 99% of retail happens on screens or shelves, those aren't where the real moments are. The real moments are in native settings."— Marc Hostovsky Thousands of advertising dollars are spent on Facebook, Google, and Instagram pop-ups and influencers to create meaningful moments with products.However, all of it still misses the mark on the end-user experience. Hosts have a lot of value in this attention economy, and they're not getting credit for it. But my guest is out to change that. Marc Hostovsky is the founder of Minoan, a platform where hosts can purchase furniture and amenities at a 30 to 60% discount and then make the items shoppable for their guests and earn a commission. On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Marc joins me to talk about how his background in retail gave him the idea for Minoan. He'll walk us through Minoan's unique marketing partner relationship with some of the top brands in the home furnishings space. We discuss how to use higher-end furnishes a

The STR industry is changing. With more investors, bigger companies, and new laws cropping up daily investors (like us) are asking what the best way is to scale? For us, the answer is turning our focus to buying properties you can legally run as short-term rentals forever. The biggest opportunity in our industry right now is acquiring old vacation rental communities to convert into modern short-term rental experiences.But how does the process for acquiring these properties work? On this episode of STR Conversations, Eric and I discuss why the next natural phase in the STR business is acquiring boutique hotels. We'll walk you through our search for the 'right' property, how we found the property we are working on acquiring, and the features that make this hotel perfect for adding to the Freewyld portfolio. Tune in as we discuss the steps in the hotel purchasing process. We share the scenarios and analysis process we used to develop our offer, how the due diligence process works, and wh

Online Travel Agencies (OTA) spend millions in marketing and advertising to drive online searches to their websites. A great thing for STR hosts. Or is it? It’s dangerous to have all your STR hosting business on a site you don’t own. But it can be just as risky to go 100% in direct bookings. So how can you be sure you have a healthy mix of OTA and direct bookings? And how can you drive more direct bookings to expand your brand? Mark Simpson is the founder of Boostly and the host of The Boostly Podcast. As one of the top consultants in the STR industry, Mark has worked with thousands of hosts to help them increase their direct bookings and build better websites and marketing campaigns. On this episode of Get Paid for Your Pad, Mark joins me to walk us through how to diversify your bookings to maximize your income. He’ll walk us through the 3 main strategies you can use to drive your guests to book with you directly, plus ways to use the personalization options on Airbnb to bo