How to Easily Turn Your Vacation Rental into a Smart Home
Curb appeal is only a portion of the battle you now face when trying to attract guests in the competitive vacation rental industry. Vacationers have much higher expectations for convenience, security and technological sophistication. To get their attention, you need to infuse features and tools that make your rental a smart home.
The following is a look at several of the best devices and features you can integrate to boost interest in your property.
Smart thermostats
One of the first things a guest notices after dropping luggage is the climate of the home. Some guests have concerns about being too warm, while others worry about cold conditions. More challenging, preferences change during the day and night.
An affordable smart thermostat not only allows guests to easily adjust temperatures throughout the day, but the device actually learns their preferences and adapts over the course of the visit.
The Nest Learning Thermostat is one of the best on the market, and is available for around $249.
There’s a reason it has over 12,000 reviews and a nearly perfect rating on Amazon
Smart lighting systems
Guests typically want the time they spend inside to be relaxing. Thus, the ability to control basic aspects of the setting, ambiance, and experience with little or no movement is optimal.
Smart lighting systems allow a guest to control lighting throughout the house with a remote. You can even sync the lighting to a Smartphone for more convenient and customized control.
The Philips Hue is a top affordable option.
Not only is it a serious upgrade technologically, but you’ll be using energy-saving bulbs, too
Smart locks and video doorbells
Two important Smart security tools are smart locks and video doorbells. A smart lock is simply a technological system for allowing property access in lieu of a physical key. This device removes risks of lost keys falling into the wrong hands. Instead, you give temporary access codes to guests and property service providers. These codes give you insight on who accessed the property if a security incident arises.
Video doorbells offer security for you and guests. On the guest side, lodgers can see who is ringing the bell before opening the door. On the operator side, you have some visibility into who is accessing the property, which is helpful to guarding against excessive occupancy or pet-code violations.
At just over $200 on Amazon, August Smart Lock was recently named 2017’s best by PCMag. Skybell is one of the more popular video doorbell providers.
August Smart Lock enables you to give temporary key passes to guests, revoking their entry access when their stay is complete
Luxury and entertainment amenities
Add to the allure, and potential price point, of your property with some modest investments in luxury and entertainment products. Remote-controlled fireplaces and automated shower systems make guests feel like they are living in class during their stay.
Adding smart technology converts televisions into full-fledged entertainment systems. The affordable Amazon Echo enables guests to efficiently add music and sounds in the home.
Check out the product description, customer reviews, and ratings of the Amazon Echo, which currently sells for $179.99.
Your guests can find out tomorrow’s weather forecast or listen to Jimmy Hendrix without having to lift a finger
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