1. Channel Manager
This is probably the only feature we would consider a must-have.
A PMS should make it easier for you to list, maintain, and update listings across different short-term rental channels. It should also help simplify the process of accepting and managing bookings from said channels as well.
2. Automated Guest Messaging
When comparing automated guest messaging functionality between PMS platforms, a flexible solution is generally best. What that means is you should be able to build an email sequence that matches your own preferred booking process.
How soon after booking should the message be sent? How many reminders will you send the guest before they arrive, and what will you remind them about? Will you require a security deposit? Should the automation also handle the identity verification process?
A flexible guest messaging module will be more likely to scale to your needs as your business grows and your process evolves.
3. Direct Booking Website
There are no-code website builders out there like Wix and Squarespace, but they’re not built with short-term rental properties in mind. If anything, vacation rentals are more of an afterthought for these general-purpose platforms.
That’s why it’s ideal for you to create direct booking websites from a PMS. Not only can you create a tasteful website that presents your property (or properties) in their best light, but it will be built specifically to accommodate additional features that your business will need, such as guest payment plans, direct booking options, and instant connections to Airbnb.
Not all PMS platforms can create a direct booking website, so if this is important to you, make sure you check that box before signing.
4. Unified Inbox
One of the most challenging aspects of listing on multiple platforms is having to check each of the inboxes every single day. There’s a lot of risk of miscommunication, and it becomes difficult to keep track of who said what and where.
You may want to ask your property management software vendor whether or not their product has a unified inbox. A unified inbox connects with all of the different booking platforms and centralizes all of the messages so that you can see all of your guest communications in one place.
Not only is this a huge time saver — but it also helps prevent double booking and reduces guest miscommunications.
5. Integrations
As complete as some property management software claim to be, they will never be able to do everything that your business needs. That’s why it’s important to assess whether or not your PMS of choice can integrate with other apps, and how well.
Here are a few examples of useful apps with which to integrate:
- PriceLabs is a dynamic pricing solution that helps you find the right rate for your properties at any given point during the year
- BookingTrust is accounting software designed specifically for the short-term rental industry
- August is a smart locks app that helps automate guest access
- Minut monitors noise and occupancy levels
- Safely is an insurtech guest screening solution
If your PMS can expand its capabilities through integrations, your business can become more efficient and scalable.
6. Multi-Calendar
We’ve already covered the value of seeing all of your messages from the different booking platforms in one place. Now, let’s take it a step further and incorporate all of your different booking calendars.
How much of a life-saver would that feature be?
That said, a poorly executed muti-calendar can be just as bad as not having one at all. For best results, this feature needs specific functions that make it easier to read and manage. Things like:
- Color-coding and other display options to help you differentiate between booking platforms and actions to be taken
- Tags and filters to help you easily sort and find the information you need
- Instant calendar updates so that blocking a date in one calendar updates all the other platforms at the same time
These functions should be considered basic features when reviewing multi-calendars. If a PMS doesn’t have these, then you should look elsewhere.
7. Security Deposits
Security deposits on platforms like Airbnb are a tricky issue. It’s not a matter of whether or not they allow it (they do) but how these security deposits are handled.
In a nutshell, Airbnb’s security deposit policies put you, the property owner, at a disadvantage by not actually taking the deposit money from the guest — it’s just a hold amount on their card.
Why is this relevant? Because some property management software platforms allow you to choose between different security deposit arrangements. You can either accept deposits the Airbnb way, or you can do it the traditional way, where the guest sends you cash to keep as security.
8. eSign Rental Agreements
While we’re on the topic of protecting your property, rental agreements play a crucial role in both protecting yourself from liability and screening potential guests.
Paper rental agreements are a thing of the past, and very few short-term rental property owners ever use them anymore. Now, agreements can be sent using electronic documents, but doing so via email usually ends up turning into a game of cat and mouse, as you try to get guests to sign well before they arrive on your doorstep.
That’s where a good property management platform can assist.
Check to see if your PMS can help you streamline the rental agreement process through automated messaging and digital signatures. Also, try asking whether or not the PMS will be able to enforce the process in such a way that the booking won’t proceed without the guest’s signature.
9. Guest Identity Verification
Cautious property owners will want to verify their guests’ identities prior to their stay as a means of protecting against stolen identities and impersonations.
Screening guests can certainly be handled through other means, doing it within the PMS that is already handling the rest of the booking process is much more convenient, for both you and your guest.
10. Cleaning Scheduler
Arranging cleaning schedules with external contractors is always a challenge, but with the right features, a PMS can help make this less of a burden.
Some property management tools come equipped with a cleaning scheduler that can help you coordinate turnover tasks with your cleaning service — but this is only really helpful if you already have primary and backup cleaners you know and trust.
To find new professional cleaners in your area and automate the scheduling process, Turno can help. The platform will assign the cleaning task as soon as the guest checks out. It can then let the cleaners notify you whenever they’ve completed the project. Best yet, Turno integrates with all the top property management systems on the market.
11. Professional Check-In/Check-Out Capabilities
This section doesn’t discuss a specific feature that a PMS should have, but rather the net effect of all its capabilities put together.
What do we mean? Well, one of the things that traditional hotels do well is they create a consistent and scalable check-in/check-out process. This process was refined over time across thousands of hotel chains to help move guests in and out with little to no fuss. If your own short-term rental business is to grow, you need to build toward the same.
Since you lack a physical front desk (and a desk agent), you need to upgrade your online lobby to compete.
This means making sure your PMS can help create smooth, repeatable, and above all stress-free check-in and check-out experiences. Features like centralized calendars, digital rental agreements, online guest verification, automated messaging, and more all help contribute to positive guest relations.
12. Revenue Management
As with the professional check-in/check-out capabilities we mentioned above, any property management software worth its code will give you at least some methods to improve and manage your revenue.
Direct booking, guest payment plans, and integrations with major banks, accounting software, and digital payment processors all help you manage the flow of cash. You can further connect your PMS with dynamic pricing apps and other similar tools.
The net result? You get total visibility into how much each of your properties is earning, and you have the ability to push and pull various levers to adjust your profit margins.
Take the Legwork Out of Hosting
Using a PMS to handle the tedious and manual tasks that come with vacation rental hosting, frees up your time to start acquiring additional properties, spend more time with your family, or travel the world.
Not to mention, this type of automation software will also enhance guests’ experiences by making check-in and check-out a breeze, ensuring they’re welcomed into a clean property, and facilitating consistent communication between them and you.
