Updated on May 7, 2023
Chris and Ashley Genard, owners of New Orleans short-term rental company Stay Redamo, were all set to have a record spring. NOLA’s festival season was approaching, and their properties had around 85% occupancy scheduled from March through May.
That quickly fell to 0% when the COVID-19 pandemic struck.
“All of a sudden, we were scrambling, going, ‘We have all these vacant properties. What do we do with them?’” Chris said.
Helping first responders
Then he saw a Facebook post by the New Orleans EMS Foundation asking for housing for first responders. These workers were on the front lines of fighting the pandemic but were often hesitant to stay at home for fear of infecting their families.
Initially, Chris went back and forth with organizers about how much he would charge and what they would be able to afford to pay to house the first responders. But Chris quickly pivoted from focusing on how much he could charge to thinking about how much he could help.
“I just started thinking, ‘Why am I worried about money right now? Let’s do a good thing first, and we’ll worry about everything later.’ So I called them back and said, ‘You’ve got people who are in need right now. Let’s get them a house and I’ll do it for free. And if down the line, if y’all can pay something later, that’s fine, but if you can’t, I’m not worried about it.’”
The EMS officer Chris was working with “practically broke down in tears” when he heard the offer, Chris said, and his reaction made Chris realize just how serious the situation was. He also realized that the faster the pandemic could be beaten, the faster he and everyone in the industry could get back to business.
Since then, Chris has housed several first responders at his properties for free. The rest of his 20 homes are housing traveling nurses, who pay a steeply discounted fee based on the housing stipend they receive from the hospitals that employ them. Most of his new guests are staying at least a month, or until they can go home.
Helping the first responders has given Chris’ staff a new optimism and sense of purpose.
“They really got behind it. They work so hard with all these front liners and nurses, making them feel comfortable, knowing that they have a good place to stay that they are going to be taken care of,” he said.
Community First
In the meantime, Chris has applied for a Paycheck Protection Program loan from the federal Small Business Administration. Although the program previously ran out of funds, it has been reopened, and Chris is optimistic that he will be approved. That money would help him cover operating expenses and keep his staff working.
Chris wants to keep his team intact because he believes that once restrictions are lifted, demand for travel will return. Short-term rentals will be seen as a more spacious and safer alternative to hotel accommodations, he said.
“I think people will want to travel and that they’ll be smart when they do. The short-term rental industry has a role there to play to help people socially distance,” he said.
For now, though, Chris encourages others in the vacation rental industry to contribute where they can, demonstrating that short-term rental hosts are an important part of the community.
“Let’s face it: The short term rental industry in a lot of municipalities doesn’t get good press. So as owners, we need to get the message out that we do care about community. It’s community first and you know, if we can make a living doing it, that’s secondary. Everything will fall into place and if people can have faith, it can benefit everybody.”
As for the future, Chris has weathered storms before in New Orleans and he is optimistic that he and Ashley will survive the pandemic as well.
“You’re going to adapt and just move forward. We are always glass-half-full type of people,” he said. “We know that we’re going to come back and we’re going to come back stronger, just like after Katrina.”
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