Hi everyone! Hope you had a great September. As we move into the later part of fall, this month's newsletter is devoted to what I think is the most dreaded aspect of owning a vacation rental home - maintenance. And to start you off with a smile, we have taken a humorous approach with our top ten list—the overly exaggerated, 10 Signs You're Due for Some Household Maintenance.
I also wanted to let you know that I'll be in 4 cities in Florida this fall, Miami, Orlando, Tampa/St. Pete, and Fort Myers. If you own your vacation home or live in those areas, be sure to come by. And don't forget to introduce yourself to me! By the way - we need your help!  Nominations are open for the People’s Choice Podcast Awards. Please nominate our weekly How to Rent Vacation Properties by Owner podcasts in the Business category by September 30th!
Happy scrubbing, fixing, and scheduling maintenance! Christine

Handling Maintenance at Your Vacation Rental Your one-stop-shop for learning the necessary maintenance tasks to keep your home up and renting.

Recovering from a Hurricane at Your Vacation Home Suggestions for managing hurricane damage at your vacation rental property.

Seven Tasks That Should Be on Your Maintenance Schedule Regular maintenance of your property will provide a more pleasant stay for your renters as well as increase the life of your home and amenities.

Decorating Your Vacation Home for the Fall Learn how to spice up your decor and cozy up your furnishings to attract fall renters.

Winter Lock-Up: How to Protect Your Property During the Winter Protect your property from unwanted intruders during the unoccupied winter months.

Checklist for Turning Your Second Home into a Vacation Rental A step-by-step guide for preparing your vacation home for rentals.

Adding Autumn Amenities to Your Vacation Rental Ideas for boosting rentals during the slower season.

How to Market to Foodies & Wine Aficionados Learn tips for attracting food and wine lovers to your vacation rental.

Ten Closing Tips for Your Cottage, Camp or Cabin Hints for closing up your vacation home for the winter from author, Joanne Palmisano.

Decreasing the Heating and Cooling Costs at Your Second Home Make sure that you're not losing unnecessary cold air, heat, and money.

In light of Christine's dread for the fall maintenance season, we wanted to ask: What do you find to be the most challenging aspect of maintaining your vacation home from a distance?

Last month we asked you to share some of the most common location questions you receive from travelers.  Take a look at the so you know how to update your listings with this important information.

September 22: Heading to the Hawaii Seminars Christine talks about the prep work for the Hawaii Seminar Series.

September 16: A Non-Traditional Booking Christine is pleased to have landed a 10-week booking at her Panama City Beach condo.

September 8: Scheduling Fall Maintenance Christine vents about the burdens of scheduling and planning for fall maintenance.

One-on-One with Palm Springs, CA Vacation Rental Owner Gregg Rapp Christine talks with Gregg Rapp about the excitement and challenges of renting a high-end vacation home that has attracted celebrity guests. 9/22/08

One-on-One with Rockport, TX Vacation Rental Owner (and HomeAway CFO) Lynn Atchison Christine talks with Lynn Atchison, the CFO of HomeAway, about her hesitation in renting and why she eventually changed her mind. 9/16/08 Furnishing and Decorating Your Vacation Rental  Christine talks with Mary Byerly of Furniture Land South about decorating tips for your vacation home and the benefits of using a design consultant. 9/8/08

Have a question for Christine? Leave a message at (512) 493-4340 and get an answer on the air.

Registration is now open for seminars through the end of November. Click on the cities below for more information.

Sept. 27th: Hilo, HI Seminar (Big Island) Sept. 28th: Hilo, HI Workshop (Big Island) Sept. 30th: Lihue, HI  Morning (Kauai) Oct. 1st: Lihue, HI Evening (Kauai)

Oct. 20/21st: Fort Myers, FL Oct 22/23rd: Miami, FL Nov. 17/18th: Tampa, FL Nov. 19/20th: Orlando, FL

We've been hard at work developing new Pre-Recorded webinar topics for you to download at your convenience.  Visit the Vacation Rental Webinars Page for more information.

Our Most Popular Pre-Recorded Webinars: Amenities: Must Haves and Extras Quick Tips for Responding to Inquiries How to Make YOUR Property Show Up Higher in Google How to Write Headlines & Descriptions for HomeAway

Visit the Owner Community for more September Vacation Rental News and 100s of articles in the Vacation Rental News archive.

America's Surprising Foreclosure Hot Spots "The crisis on Wall Street is shrinking net worths and erasing nest eggs. Next on the block: multimillion-dollar homes." Forbes.com 9/16/08

Stocking the Staples Rule #1: Don't Run Out "...most second-home owners keep a list of the staples that they want permanently stashed at their getaways. But some items aren't quite so obvious." NYTimes.com 9/4/08

Council raises permit fees for vacation-home rentals in Lake Tahoe "An increase to vacation-home rental permit fees was approved by the South Lake Tahoe City Council on Tuesday." TahoeDailyTribune.com 9/10/08

1.  When you're watching Wheel of Fortune, the mounds of sand underneath your couch cushions make you feel like you're still at the beach. 2.  During a visit to your home, you're greeted by chirping birds, cool breezes and a clonk on your head from your leaf-filled gutters. 3.  When you wash your hands at the kitchen sink, the faucet gives you a full-body shower.

4.  Your carpet looks as though a small herd of buffalos paid a visit during one or two of your available weekends.

5. When you wash your hands at the kitchen sink, the faucet gives you a full-body shower. 6. Your carpet looks as though a small herd of buffalos paid a visit during one or two of your available weekends.

7.  The lint trap in your dryer could clothe a small child.

8.  You're missing so many blinds on your windows that a Peeping Tom would be more like a Gawking Tom. 9.  The tile on your floor looks like the local kindergarten class held cookie and Koolaid time in your kitchen. 10.  The grout between your shower tiles looks like someone had a refreshing mud wrap spa treatment against your bathroom wall.

You've probably noticed some big changes to the HomeAway site, and hopefully you're enjoying the new enhancements.  Here are the key features: • Larger photos in your search results and your property listing. (You may need to upload higher resolution photos for the larger size to appear.) • Increased fonts for easier reading. • Simplified inquiry form to make it easier for travelers to reach you. • New homeowner pages with specific information on rental how-to's.

Have a question or comment? Email us.