Handling cleaning and maintenance from a distance will likely be the biggest challenge you face as a vacation rental owner. The key to success is finding a housekeeper or cleaning service that you can count on.

How to Find a Housekeeper The best place to find a housekeeper to clean your vacation home is right outside your front door. Visit your vacation home during the peak season and talk with the housekeepers cleaning your neighbors' vacation rental homes. Not able to make the trip? Look up your neighbors on HomeAway.com and give them a call to find out which housekeeper or cleaning service they use to clean their cabin, condo, etc.

Hire a Maintenance Person Consider hiring maintenance person or company to oversee your property on a continual basis. This works particularly well for people who live far from their second home and can't visit more than once or twice a year.  Find a maintenance person much like how you find your housekeeper-- through referrals. Do Proper Preventative Maintenance Don't make the mistake of thinking you'll only call in maintenance people when something is broken. You've heard this phrase countless times before, but it bears repeating here: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Stock Your Home with Maintenance Tools It's amazing what your renters will fix if you just give them the materials they need. Keep cleaning supplies and various tools on hand and your renters will likely help clean or repair any unexpected mishaps at your vacation rental home.

Common Myths about Renting Your Vacation Home... Debunked    The truth about what it take to start renting your second home as a vacation rental.

What Does Radon Have to do with Vacation Rentals?    You wouldn't want it in your private home, so why tolerate it in your vacation home?

20 Steps to a Greener Vacation Rental Home    Ways to create a better indoor environment for you family and guests, lower your energy bills, and help the environment.

Post-Peak Season Maintenance Plan for Vacation Rentals    After 12 weeks of continuous use, your property probably deserves a little TLC.

Sample Vacation Rental Cleaning Checklist    A quick rundown of the things your housekeeper should clean between each guest at your vacation home

One on One with Fernandina Beach, FL Vacation Rental Owner, Bob Moore (Transcript)    Bob Moore tells Christine about his experiences as a long-distance vacation rental owner.