techniques for preventing vacation renters from bringing extra guests

Running a vacation rental in Coachella Valley can be very lucrative as it is a hot destination for several vacationers and one of the most iconic spots to rent a vacation home. But every vacation rental brings a few challenges from renters every now and then. It is not uncommon for a vacation rental to experience at some point guests checking out late or causing damage to the property for example.

Another common challenge that many vacation rental hosts can face is vacationing guests bringing extra people with them on their vacation that they did not originally place on the reservation. In some cases, it can be to avoid paying the extra cost per person and in others, it could just be inviting a friend to join them on their trip on a whim. Whatever the reason having extra people in your vacation rental can become burdensome for vacation rental owners.

The importance of setting an occupancy limit for your vacation rental

There are a few good reasons to set a maximum occupancy limit on a vacation rental. The first and most being that city ordinances often will limit the number of renters you are able to have in your property at any one time. Violating these local vacation rental laws can result in your permit being revoked.

Second, it is important to make sure everybody is accounted for, for legal purposes. You do not want unauthorized guests having an accident on the property that could potentially bring a legal case against you because they did not sign any of the rental agreement paperwork.

How to prevent extra guests from showing up

Place your policy in the signed rental agreement

The first step to preventing unwanted visitors in your vacation rental is to make sure that as soon as a guest has made a reservation all occupancy limits and the consequences for bringing in unauthorized guests are clearly communicated.

This can be done through a portion of the rental agreement helping to communicate and prevent a problem before it occurs.

Also, state the occupancy rules in the list of house rules

Every vacation rental should have a list of house rules that renters are aware of and reminded to read upon signing a rental agreement and making a reservation. This states all of the expectations for guests that enter the property including important items to be aware of such as noise, smoking, pets, taking care of garbage, parking, check-out time, and any other expectations or need-to-know information.

Have all guests named on the rental agreement

Beyond the person making the reservation and signing the agreement, it is a good idea to have them list out every intended vacationing occupant of the property during their stay. This will protect both you and your guests in the case of a disagreement. This also helps give an added layer of protection if more people show up on the property.

Charge a deposit

Once your guests are well aware of all of the expectations and that they need to provide names of the planned guests staying in the home also have them provide a security deposit. You can make this nonrefundable and turn it into a portion of the rental fee upon checkout. You can also clearly state that this deposit will be an additional fee should anything be found to be outside of the agreed-upon rental rules that were signed by your guests. Nobody wants to pay an extra fee and as such it helps to encourage guests to stick to the rental agreement and the communicated house rules.

The more you clearly communicate your expectations for vacationing renters the less likely it is for renters to break the rules. Though it can still and probably will still happen on occasion. To keep an eye on renters while they are in your property make sure that you or a property manager stops by to check in on renters while they are on the property to ensure they have everything they need and make sure the rental agreement is being upheld.

For more information on investment properties in the Coachella Valley please contact us anytime.

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