Put Your Home To Work This Winter

(NAPSI)—Here’s an idea many homeowners may warm to: Rent out your place as a vacation home.

With vacation rentals becoming a preferred choice for travelers and their families, homeowners can realize the financial benefits of renting their homes when they’re not in use. In fact, a recent report shows that over half of vacation homeowners cover 75 percent of their mortgage with their rental income. You can rent out a variety of different properties to earn extra income, including primary residences rented for only a few weeks and vacation homes or second homes rented throughout the entire year.

This can be a particularly lucrative idea for Floridians in the winter when snowbirds from the Midwest and Northeast flock south.

According to Vrbo data, there’s already a spike in vacation rental demand for the winter holiday season in popular areas such as Sarasota, Fort Myers, Clearwater and Naples. Available properties in these areas are in high demand this winter, and local homeowners should pay attention. With droves of travelers looking to escape the cold for warmer climates, over 700 million visitors are viewing Florida vacation homes listed on Vrbo. On average, homeowners in these areas can earn nearly $4,500 per booking during the winter season.

How To Get In On This

So how can you cash in on this trend? For homeowners looking to rent for the first time, Vrbo provides everything needed to get started: from educational materials on how to market your rental and attract travelers to your property, to information to help you stay compliant with local regulations and a set of tools that help you optimize your pricing, bookings and communication with travelers.

You remain in total control of how often you list your home on the site—just one weekend of the entire year, or for months at a time—whatever works for you and your lifestyle. You simply explain what’s unique about your property, show it off with photos, and set the price. Vrbo connects you with travelers from home and abroad and manages the payment process.

“Southwest Florida is an incredibly popular destination for families and groups,” said Bill Furlong, VP of North American Business at Vrbo. “We’re here to help homeowners capitalize on the many visitors to these cities in the easiest way possible. Once a property is listed on Vrbo, we work to match that property to the right travelers and maximize bookings and rental income for homeowners.”

Calculate Your Income Potential

A new rental calculator takes the guesswork out of the equation so you can get a preliminary estimate of what you could earn even before you list, and a clear idea of potential extra income to help you plan for retirement, college tuition or other household costs.

To learn more, check out your home’s earning potential, or get started with listing, you can visit the new rental calculator at www.vrbo.com/lyp.

 ““Once a property is listed on Vrbo, we work to match that property to the right travelers and maximize bookings and rental income for homeowners,” said Bill Furlong, VP of North American Business at Vrbo. http://bit.ly/2KvmLJq”