Turn Homes Into Cash: How Short-Term Rentals Can Maximize Property Performance

Ron Curtis (00:00)
You hit it right on the nose. I would say direct booking sites. The reason being is because oftentimes guests have hundreds, if not thousands of reservations, right? These hosts have these guests staying at their properties, but they’re not collecting their data. And today’s day and age data is more valuable than gold. So one thing that you definitely want to do is start collecting guest name, their phone number, their email, right?

and you’re able to retarget them with email campaigns, offer them discounts, welcome them back to your property, and drive that traffic directly to your booking site.

Scott Bursey (02:11)
Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast powered by Investor Fuel. I’m your host Scott Bursey. And today our guest is Ron Curtis of WavyStay, a real estate entrepreneur who is literally writing the blueprint for creating five-star guest experiences that drive massive maxed out property performance. Get ready to fill your tank pros because Ron is bringing the high octane fuel on how to turn your properties into standout destinations. Let’s accelerate.

Ron, welcome to the show.

Ron Curtis (02:41)
Thanks for having me, Scott. I’m excited to be here.

Scott Bursey (02:45)
Thank you so much for being here. And to our listeners who want to get up to speed, please give us the front row seat, if you will, on how your career ignited and where you’re pouring your fuel now.

Ron Curtis (02:58)
Great, so I got started by becoming a first time home buyer. know, chasing the American dream, I was able to leverage first time home buyer programs. I bought a $420,000 house and I only spent $3,700 to get it. From there, I had to make a decision, that I want to turn my basement into a man cave and watch sports, or that I want to make it a money cave. And I decided to go with the latter. From there, I was able to turn my basement into a short-term rental.

And I’ve actually been able to consult and manage over 100 different properties over the past six years. And currently I manage a little under 50 properties with WavyStay. And I’ve been able to cookie cut that business model across multiple people’s properties all across the world.

Scott Bursey (03:45)
I love it, Ron. You know, what really caught my attention about you was the way that you’ve been able to master the intersection of high end hospitality and data driven property management, consistently achieving standout guest experiences and maximizing property performance, you know, through your work with WavyStay. That focus on delivering both value and incredible returns is pure investor fuel.

Ron Curtis (04:12)
Yes, it’s real fuel. It ignites everything, literally.

Scott Bursey (04:18)
Ron, now that we’ve covered your amazing background, let’s drop this conversation into overdrive and jump straight into your insights. Curious on this, what is the most valuable system you’ve implemented at WavyStay that ensures consistently outstanding guest experiences every time?

Ron Curtis (04:38)
You know, I would say if I had to pick one, it would be people. The reason being is because in the hospitality business, it’s a people and relationship business. I’m not only being hospitable to my guests and building relationships with them, I’m also building relationships with my partners, my homeowners, my investors. So I always say I’m in the people business. You got to make sure you’re hiring the right people, your right hoos in order, you know, to leave that lasting impression with your guests.

or your host.

Scott Bursey (05:11)
Absolutely. When it comes to relationships and networking, what’s made the biggest difference for you?

Ron Curtis (06:05)
would say just showing up and being my authentic self. I’m a firm believer in doing good business. I was brought up with good values. And I feel like in business, you have to be able to work with someone that you trust. And I feel like a lot of people trust me not only with doing business, but really managing their biggest asset. Most people’s largest investment in their lives is their home. And people really pass me the keys and trust me to turn it into a cash flowing machine.

Scott Bursey (06:37)
Absolutely, Ron. People do business with folks that they know, they like, and they trust.

Ron Curtis (06:46)
Definitely.

Scott Bursey (06:48)
Now let’s shift gears just a little bit. What’s one operational bottleneck or challenge in scaling and Airbnb business that you are still actively working to optimize?

Ron Curtis (07:01)
Great question. I would say automating the entire business. So as a CEO, as you may know, you wear a lot of hats. Your customer service, your sales, your maintenance, your HR, you’re the finance department. And what I realized in this business, I’ve been able to automate 90 % of my business on the operation side, but I don’t have a sales team. As we were saying, you know, this is a relationship business. People buy into WavyStay.

because of Ron Curtis. And what I’m trying to do is kind of separate my face from the brand, which is typically tough when a lot of your clients come from doing good business and word of mouth referrals. So because of that, I’ve been doing a lot of research in marketing, running Facebook ads, doing skip tracing as well. And I feel like I’ve cracked the code on finding great leads. And now I need to hire a sales team that has the same values as I have to be able to

push and sell the WavyStay brand to other homeowners and investors who have dreams of turning their homes into cash flowing short term rentals.

Scott Bursey (08:11)
That’s a massive injection of value right there. Now, smash the gas. Beyond the major booking platforms, what is the most underutilized direct booking or marketing opportunity for pro Airbnb operators today in your view, Ron?

Ron Curtis (08:26)
You hit it right on the nose. I would say direct booking sites. The reason being is because oftentimes guests have hundreds, if not thousands of reservations, right? These hosts have these guests staying at their properties, but they’re not collecting their data. And today’s day and age data is more valuable than gold. So one thing that you definitely want to do is start collecting guest name, their phone number, their email, right?

and you’re able to retarget them with email campaigns, offer them discounts, welcome them back to your property, and drive that traffic directly to your booking site.

Because Airbnb is charging us at least 18 to 20 % on every booking, and that’s the best way to cut out the middleman.

Scott Bursey (09:13)
Ron, that is pure gold. What impending local regulatory change or market saturation trends should short-term rental pros be watching most closely right now?

Ron Curtis (09:26)
say you have to keep an eye on a weekly short term rental regulations change every single day depending on your market. An example New York City outlawed all Airbnb is for the most part. Imagine if your entire portfolio was in New York City the city in New York City doesn’t allow it anymore. Right. So now you’re investing you have to transition. You have to know your market before investing and even when you’re invested in that market.

you want to keep up with the local laws. Let me give you a perfect example. I’m based in Washington, DC. Washington, DC has a ⁓ 31 day minimum short-term rental regulation. ⁓ Sorry about that. Washington, DC has a 31 day short-term rental regulation. Recently, the mayor just is working on passing legislation to lighten that low and allow everyday people to rent out their properties.

for things like the new RFK, Washington Commander’s football stadium coming.

We’re also having the 250 America’s 4th July birthday this year. They’re also having F1, F1 race track here. They’re doing a UFC match at the monument. The mayor is trying to put in emergency legislation to let everyday people short-term rental their homes. So you have to stay abreast and keep up with the local regulations and what’s going on every single day with your properties.

Scott Bursey (11:28)
You really do, Ron. The landscape is constantly shifting, so you have to be ready to pivot to protect your investment.

Ron Curtis (11:36)
Definitely.

Scott Bursey (11:39)
And interested to know if you could walk us through this. What key performance metric beyond simple occupancy rate do you coach entrepreneurs to track monthly to truly maximize their property’s profit potential?

Ron Curtis (11:52)
That’s a great question. One of the key driving factors of occupancy is nightly rate. How you’re pricing your properties. I tell hosts all the time, what do you sell? They say I sell customer service. I sell an experience. I sell a clean space. All of that is true. But at the end of the day, all you sell is nights. And you have to price your properties correctly in order to sell as many nights as possible.

The way that I do it, I use AI driven pricing strategies and softwares. They’re priced properties based on data, supply and demand. And I call it factual based pricing, as opposed to what I would say 90 % of hosts price their properties based on opinion. They’re pricing based on what they think their home is worth or what their neighbor is charging, not knowing that their neighbor is doing the exact same thing that they’re doing. So you definitely want to invest in some type of automated pricing software.

to understand how to price your properties to drive that occupancy up, which increases your profits.

Scott Bursey (12:59)
Clarity leads to cash flow.

Ron Curtis (13:04)
You gotta know your numbers, it’s really important.

Scott Bursey (13:08)
Ron, you’re delivering serious value. Now let’s go for the high octane fuel. For the real estate pro looking to transition from landlord to hospitality CEO in the short-term rental space. What is the most financially impactful piece of advice you can give them to guarantee they attract the highest paying lowest headache guest?

Ron Curtis (13:30)
Great question. So in terms of identifying the highest paying customer, you definitely want to understand who your target market is. And I like to call that your avatar client. If you have a property that’s in the beach and it’s a beach town, you want to target families. You want to target people who are coming in town for vacations, right? You want to have all of those amenities that they like. You want to have beach chairs, umbrellas, towels, bikes. You you might even want to have a fireplace.

things, board games, things that families want to use, right? Let’s say you’re in a smoky mountains, right? You may want a Jacuzzi, you may want a sauna. Like if you’re in Miami, you might have a pool or Airbnb with a pickleball court, right? You want to invest in these amenities that attract those high paying guests because if not, those low dollar guests will cause headaches. You want to deal with luxury people if you have a luxury property.

and give them that luxury experience as well.

Scott Bursey (14:34)
Ron, that insight is priceless. Thank you so much for breaking that down. But we can’t let you go quite yet. You’ve given us a lot of good advice. Is there any additional golden nuggets that you could leave with our listeners today?

Ron Curtis (14:49)
Great question. I would say, I think a lot of people suffer from analysis paralysis. They have great ideas and they just don’t start. I have a full-time nine to five. I like to call myself the 9 to 5preneur. I’ve been able to work a nine to five, a government job and been able to scale my business from five to nine. So when I work from nine to five, I get off at five to nine and I’m growing my business. And I want to encourage every person that if you have a dream,

Chase it. You only get one life. My birthday is this week. I’m going to the U.S. Virgin Islands to celebrate. And that’s what I’m going to be reflecting on. How I’ve been able to grow in such a short amount of time. And I promise you, if you start today, you’ll be looking at yourself five to six years from now, and you’ll be able to be proud of yourself of what you’ve been able to build just by starting and doing the work.

Scott Bursey (16:25)
Ron, that’s absolute rocket fuel right there. And for those of our listeners that want to keep this conversation moving, perhaps steer themselves in your lane or collaborate with you on future deals. What is the best way for them to, to plug into your pipeline and reach you directly?

Ron Curtis (16:43)
way to find me if you’re on social media is the the9to5preneur. Use the numbers T H E 9 T O 5preneur. It’s an underscore on Instagram (@the9to5preneur_ ) and it’s no underscore on TikTok (@the9to5preneur). If you want to get directly in contact with me I’m on LinkedIn as Ron Curtis as well. I’m on Facebook as Ron Curtis and you can also go on my website to book a call with me.

at wavystay.com, w-a-v-y-stay.com.

Scott Bursey (17:18)
Ron, thank you so much for joining us today. You really brought the fuel.

Ron Curtis (17:23)
Thanks for having me, Scott. This was a great show, and I’m glad that I was able to come and add value to your listeners.

Scott Bursey (17:30)
And to our listeners, we appreciate you. If you got value from today’s episode, please subscribe. We’ll be feeling your tanks with elite guests, just like Ron Curtis, who are accelerating and setting the pace for the rest of the industry. Until next time, keep your standards high and your vision clear. We’ll see you on the next episode, everyone.