Our CEO Michael Friedman was recently interviewed by Minut for a feature on what separates great hospitality providers from average property managers. Here's the thinking behind our approach.
There's a question we ask ourselves regularly: Are we property managers, or are we hospitality providers?
The answer shapes everything: how we onboard a new home, how we greet a guest, how we respond when something goes wrong at 11pm on a Saturday. Michael put it plainly in the interview: "We're really not in the property management business. The asset of the home is the property management element, but what we are really in is the hospitality industry."
It Starts with a Different Frame
Property management is about the asset. Hospitality is about the people.
When you lead with hospitality, the operational tasks (maintenance, cleaning, turnover) become the foundation for something bigger: a guest who feels genuinely taken care of, and a homeowner who trusts you with one of their most valuable investments. The management of the home is table stakes. Creating a memorable experience is the real work.
That shows up in the details: handwritten notes before arrival, thoughtful welcome amenities, anticipating needs before guests have to ask. None of it is a grand gesture. But when someone is spending real money on a vacation, those small things signal that they're in good hands.
Growth Without Losing What Makes You Good
Scaling a portfolio is exciting. It can also be the fastest way to dilute what made you worth trusting in the first place.
Our approach: slow down to speed up. Before adding homes, the systems have to be solid: standardized onboarding, rigorous property standards, professional revenue management, and clear operational accountability. As Michael said, "You can add as many homes as you want, but if your systems behind the scenes aren't in place, you're just not going to succeed."
The Metrics We Actually Care About
The industry loves to talk about unit count. We focus on different numbers: homeowner retention, revenue per property, and guest satisfaction. A smaller, profitable, well-cared-for portfolio will outperform a massive one built on shaky foundations every time.
Three Things We Never Lose Sight Of
After years in this business, we keep coming back to three pillars:
Cash. Homeowners deserve strong returns, and we hold ourselves accountable to real performance.
Care. Every property is treated like it's our own. Every guest is worth going the extra mile for.
Communication. Homeowners and guests should never have to wonder what's going on.
These aren't complicated ideas. Executing them consistently, across every stay and every season, is where the real work lives.
Read the full Minut interview here.
