Community : Discussion List - Hawaii Owners

Looking for Cleaning Company that Services the Mauna Lani area of the Big Island

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 22:01:19 GMT

Aloha,

I have a two bed/two bath townhome in the Mauna Lani Resort, which I rent out as a vacation rental. I am for a trustworthy cleaning lady or cleaning company that services this area on the Kohala Coast of the Big Island.

Does anyone have a cleaner they would recommend or any recommendations they could make?

Mahalo

Time to Raise Your Rates

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 19:59:36 GMT

Hotels in Hawaii are raising their rates according to Smith Travel Research and Hospitality Advisors. We should, too.

Daily rates in February were up 13% on average across the state compared to 2012, with Hawaii county leading the pace with 20% increases. I already had posted 5% increases, and think that I will go up at least another 5%.

Read the article at http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/sections/news/local-news/rising-room-rates-set-record.html

What to Look for in Vacation Rental Photography?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 19:23:42 GMT

Good photos of your vacation rental are essential in marketing your property. Travelers that choose to stay in vacation homes are savvy shoppers, and most compare many properties online before they book. Your photos help your property stand out amongst the competition and directly impact your bookings

1. Professional Photography

One cannot stress the importance of having professionally photographed images of your home. Amateur photography will not only poorly showcase your rental; it suggests that the owner or manager of the home simply does not care. Professional architectural photographers know how to frame each image and to keep the vertical lines of the structure vertical. They know how to show your view and your interiors without blowing out the windows or darkening the insides. Ask the photographer to use HDR technology so that your images retain depth.

2. Staging Your Property

Vacation homes are an alternative to hotels, and hotels usually have fabulous photos that are immaculately styled and photographed. Vacation owners can do the same, endeavoring to keep the images real. Hotels may have restrictions on props and amount of staging, but rentals are homes. People will lounge in them, cook in them; take leisurely baths and more. Stage the rentals to reflect these homely comforts. We suggest that you style your homes with items that come with the rental such as the tableware, adding extras such as a small flower arrangement and fresh fruit.

3. Focus on the Strengths of the Rental

Vacation rentals tend to be unique, reflecting the owners sensibilities in décor, furnishings and goods stocked. Photos should display the character of your home. Flaunt the majestic sunset, the resplendent bath, and the thoughtfully stocked games cabinet. Star that chef’s kitchen. Have the photographer take pictures of nearby scenic attractions, common pool and other features. Your guests will appreciate any assistance in fleshing out their daily itineraries, and nearby attractions add value to your rental.

4. Decide on Types of Media

At a bare minimum, owners should have a suite of 12 or more good still images. Sites such as VRBO give preference to listings with 16 or more photos. Owners should then consider supplementing stills with a select few virtual tours. Unlike still images, which show a room from one vantage point, a 360 degree panorama shows all corners of a room, giving travelers a better spatial awareness of your lodging. With no hidden areas, travelers ultimately have greater confidence in booking your rental. Finally, if your budget permits, invest in a narrated video tour of your home. While still photos and virtual tours tend to be documentary in nature, a well-produced narrated video can evoke a more emotional response from a visitor.

5. Displaying Your Photos

It is critical that your professional photos are properly showcased on the web. Display the images in high resolution and full screen on your own website. Use relevant captions, tags and keywords to describe each image. On booking sites that downsize your images, link back to your own webpage. If using 2 or more types of media, display them in full screen from a single viewer. Enable high resolution display of stills, virtual tours and videos on mobile devices, including Apple devices. Facebook now takes images as big as 2048px by 2048px.

PanaViz provides vacation rental photography services throughout the Hawaiian Islands. Stills, 360 panoramas and narrated videos. Our affordable photography services are utilized by vacation rental owners, management companies and booking sites. http://www.panaviz1.com

Does HI state law prohibit surcharges for credit cards?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 04:43:38 GMT

Aloha,

Today I read on "Beat of Hawaii" (www.beatofhawaii.com/new-airline-fees-and-credit-card-surcharges) that "Credit card surcharges are legal in the US starting January 27, 2013..." The website goes onto say that "Credit card surcharges haven’t been legal here in the US, but will be starting later this month. From January 27, 2013 merchants in the US are permitted to impose a surcharge of up to 4% (except where prohibited by state law) when consumers use a credit card."

Does anyone know if Hawaii state law will allow this?

Mahlo,

Jennifer

T.A.T. increase to 11.25% proposed

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 18:35:57 GMT

I saw the below article that reports an increase in the TAT from 9.25 to 11.25% is under consideration, apparently reflecting the old theory of letting visitors pay the state's bills. Not a lot of useful information (typical for Trib-Her reporting), but perhaps someone will want to track down more information and/or offer testimony to the legislature.

http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/sections/news/local-news/visitor-industry-don%E2%80%99t-increase-hotel-room-tax.html

Looking for a house in Kauai

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sat, 12 Jan 2013 20:30:38 GMT

We are staying in Kauai from May 23rd to June 1st and need a 4 bedroom house with at least 3 queen beds and baby friendly (we have a daughter who will be just over 1 at the time of travel). Our ideal situation would include a beachfront house or house with a pool close to the beach in Hanalei or Poipu. We are not married to these two spots, so if you have something else (say in Maui, or elsewhere) intriguing we'd love to see it. Please let us know what you've got. Thanks!

VRBO continues to have calendar issues on email inquiries

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 16:14:06 GMT

Heads up - When you receive an inquiry email from VRBO which says that your unit is not avaialble - do not rely on their information.

They are sending emails that say the unit is not avaialble even when it is.

HA says they are aware of the problem and say it only affects a small number of people. I am not certain if they know the number or names of the people affected buy they have not notified those that are affected to make them aware of the problem.

In the mean time, do not rely on their info regarding availability

Flip key n Vrbo

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 01:31:00 GMT

Vrbo calendar info is Still Faulty

I've had countless errors with FlipKey so stopped using it and i'm depending on VRBO to be accurate and it isn 't

Sent using iPhone

Hawaii Local Contact Available - Inexpensive and Dependable

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sun, 25 Nov 2012 21:26:19 GMT

Aloha All!

Now that Act 326 requiring an "on island" contact along with other requirements is law in the State of Hawaii,

I would like to offer my services to assist out-of-state owners with compliance.

I would like to offer my services as the local contact for Kauai, Maui, Big Island and Oahu.

Along with compliance with Act 326, I can also offer full service concierge and Facebook support for your Hawaii vacation home.

Please email or call me at: 808-885-0936 or email hnlhulagirl@aol.com

Mahalo,

Lottie

click here to see sctual bil and signature of our Governor:

http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session2012/bills/GM1443_.PDF

Hawaii Legislature Adopts Changes Concerning Vacation Rentals

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 20:37:32 GMT

Dear Hawaii Vacation Rental Property Owner or Manager,

The State of Hawaii Legislature has adopted changes concerning vacation rentals. The legislation, HB2078, could affect your rental operation.

The Bill requires any operator of a transient accommodation to designate a local contact residing on the same island as the transient accommodation. Requires that all advertisements and solicitations on websites for transient accommodations display registration identification numbers. Effective July 1, 2012.

This is a public service announcement from HomeAway, Inc. Please do not call or email HomeAway®, VRBO® or VacationRentals.com™ customer support as we have no further information. HomeAway does not have independent knowledge of these regulations or any proposed or actual changes to existing regulations and encourages all managers and owners to understand and comply with the regulations governing short term rentals in their individual municipalities.

Does HomeAway.com attract Hawaii-bound travellers?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 22:35:16 GMT

Hawaii Owners: I'm changing the topic here for a moment to ask you a question on a different subject other than "HI tax issues".

I'd like to ask those of you who advertise your Hawaii rental on HomeAway.com if you find that HA.com brings you inquiries and bookings...a return on investment {ROI} for your ad? I'm asking because I do not know any HI owners personally who use HA...they are VRBO subscribers...as I am. When I speak to my guests about their *searching* ...they tell me that they use VRBO {I don't believe that any of my guests have mentioned HomeAway.com}.

Is HomeAway.com a site that travellers turn to when planning visits to Hawaii State? One answer to that question lies, in my opinion, on whether you owners who use HomeAway.com to advertise get enough inquiries...and especially bookings {ROI}?

P.S. the reason for my question relates to my decision whether to add HA.com to my listing services and I'm looking for "HI owner:" feedback to indicate whether it is worth it ...based on usual experience.