Updated on January 31, 2025
The short-term rental industry is thriving, but staying ahead requires operators to adapt to rapidly advancing guest expectations, regulations, and technology. During a fireside chat at the RR Summit Rise and Thrive, Tim Rosolio, Vice President of Vacation Rental Partnerships at Expedia Group, shared his personal hosting journey and provided STR operators with insights to improve their game. Here are the key takeaways from his discussion with Alexa Nota, Co-Founder and COO of Rent Responsibly.
Delivering exceptional guest experiences
After joining HomeAway 10 years ago, Tim became a vacation rental host to enhance his industry knowledge. His journey as a host and executive at both HomeAway (later merged with Vrbo) and Expedia Group has taught him that the vacation rental industry’s essence boils down to creating positive and memorable experiences for guests.
“The category is not in the pixels on the Vrbo site. The category is in the perfect welcome gift, making sure the house is clean every time, and ensuring that if something goes wrong, you’re there to fix it. That’s where the magic happens,” Tim said.
Professionalizing the industry
Exceptional guest experiences go hand-in-hand with the professionalization of the industry.
Recent changes to the marketplace policies at Vrbo, Expedia Group’s vacation rental division, and the Premier Host program reflect an industry-wide push toward professionalism.
These changes are “up-leveling traveler experience” and improving the industry’s reputation.
“It’s our responsibility as an industry to eradicate bad experiences,” Tim explained.
“That’ll be…better for the travelers. That’s better for our partners because they’ll get more bookings…, and it’ll be better for regulators and governments because then the market will continue to grow in a healthy way.”
By professionalizing, “we enhance the reputation of the industry. And when you enhance the reputation of the industry, that enables us to have much more rational and strong conversations with regulators.”
Vrbo uses technology to preempt issues like disruptive parties. The booking platform flags risk factors, including one-night stays on Friday nights and travelers’ credit card addresses matching the city where the vacation rental is located.
Professionalism extends beyond responsible guest screening. Tim relayed a scenario where a poorly managed big event could have led to regulatory backlash: When the Super Bowl was in Arizona, regulators were concerned guests staying at short-term rentals would throw parties, cause disruptions and nuisances, and even commit crimes. However, because of focused partner education by Vrbo and Arizonans for Responsible Tourism and the strategic use of technology, the event went smoothly. Instead of sparking pushback against short-term rentals, it became a sort of case study for how to manage hot-button issues, Tim noted.
Advocating for balanced regulation
Advocacy in protecting property rights and supporting fair and balanced regulations are other components of building a strong future for vacation rentals.
“There is certainly a faction of people that say, “It’s my house; I’ll do literally whatever I want,” Tim said, “but we’re not going to win with that narrative.” Instead, the industry needs balanced, data-driven discussions with regulators.
Vrbo’s government affairs team often helps mobilize local operators to speak directly with policymakers.
“Local regulators don’t [care] what an online travel agency based in Seattle thinks,” Tim explained. “They need to hear from their local constituents that actually live in their community.”
Collaborations with organizations like Rent Responsibly have yielded valuable data. Vrbo and Rent Responsibly partnered on the State of the Short-Term Rental Industry Report, which showed many regulators were missing the data they needed to make informed decisions
“Often the regulators actually confirmed that they haven’t spent a ton of time looking at the data or getting particularly informed, and at times, were just listening to loud noises of … a vocal minority,” Tim said.
According to the report, just 18% of elected officials felt they had enough data to inform their STR policy decisions.
Tim’s advice to operators? Get involved. Provide the missing data to regulators. Talk about how short-term rentals contribute to the community and how much money they add to the local economy. Find or submit a request for data – like the number of nuisance complaints against vacation rentals – that can help regulators make more informed decisions.
“Help me help you,” he urged.
Syncing new trends and technology
Guests’ destination preferences are also evolving. Tim highlighted several emerging trends from Expedia Group’s recent Unpack ‘25: Trends in Travel report.
- Detour Destinations: Travelers are increasingly seeking alternatives to overtouristed spots. “Instead of going to Venice, they’re going to another town with similar characteristics.”
- JOMO Travel: The “joy of missing out” is driving 62% of travelers to seek out quieter destinations.
- Natural Phenomena: Events like eclipses and the Northern Lights are becoming travel motivators. “The amount of occupancy we had, literally down the line of the eclipse, was through the roof,” he said.
Vrbo’s recent platform optimization supports these trends. For example, in January 2025, Vrbo was poised to release a new feature that enables users to compare up to five properties side by side with various amenities, pictures, and reviews.
Promotional capabilities like early bird discounts and influencer-driven marketing are also on the horizon as new ways to attract guests and lock in bookings.
For more tips and resources, connect with Vrbo account managers or explore their partner website for insights tailored to your property or portfolio.
You also can learn more about Tim’s hosting experience and insights into the industry by watching the full replay of this “session in the RR Network under “Replays & Downloads” and then “RR Summit 2024 Replays and Downloads.”
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