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Ask Christine #10: Should You Break Up the Rental Rate?
Is offering an all-inclusive rate the best way to go?
Note: This is an edited transcript of Christine Karpinski's How To Rent Vacation Properties by Owner podcast.
 Christine Karpinski: Today's question is:
Q: "Is it better to break up rental prices into rental rates, cleaning fees, taxes, etc.? Or is it better to offer an all inclusive rate?"
A: This really depends on your market. You've got to look and see what all the rest of the property owners are doing. If they all include cleaning fees and taxes in their rates then usually it's in your best interest to price your property the same way as the other properties.
This way, when travelers are looking at various properties, they'll be able to compare apples to apples with regards to the pricing. However, as a general rule, I think it's actually better to break your prices up into your rental rates, your cleaning fees, your taxes.
The other thing is that a lot of tax offices like to see that you're charging sales tax and that you charge it on top of all the rates. If tax departments are going through the websites, which they do sometimes, that's one of the red flags that goes up if they don't see a rental rate plus tax.
So, as a rule, I think it is usually better to break it up, as long as you're in an area where the rest of the people don't have all-inclusive rates. If it goes 50/50, I would definitely do the rental rates, plus cleaning fees, plus taxes and pet fees, or whatever else you charge.
I hope you enjoyed this episode of "Ask Christine." If you have a question we would love to hear from you. Please leave a message at 512‑493‑4340.
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What strategies did you find useful when setting your rates?
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