Barcelona: Channel manager Rentals United has announced its second annual World’s Top 50 Short Term Property Managers list.
The challenges that surfaced from the pandemic have led to some striking changes from last year. In the list compiled by Rentals United, 50 companies are highlighted who are seen to be leading the way in vacation rental property management using state-of-the-art technology and sophisticated growth strategies.
Dominating the top ten positions of this prestigious list this year are eight European companies [Awaze, Interhome, Sykes Holiday Cottages, Homerez, Direct Booker, Feriepartner, The Travel Chapter and Sol og Strand], along with two companies from North America in Vacasa and Evolve. All of the ten highlighted companies primarily represent leisure rentals [villas, chalets, cottages etc].
Topping the list again this year with 90,000 properties, UK-based Awaze is the largest property management company in the world. The 30-year-old company has been shifting its portfolio this year through its brands [Novasol, cottages.com, Hoseasons and James Villa Holidays], bringing its total properties down from 110,000 last year.
An Awaze spokesperson said: “We are delighted to have made the top ten in Rentals United’s Top 50 Property Managers of the World list. We constantly strive to provide amazing everyday experiences for our owners and guests, so this is very welcome news!”
The second spot goes to Zurich-based Interhome [up from third place last year], which manages 40,000 vacation rentals in 31 countries, was founded in 1965 in Switzerland and has 15 regional subsidiaries.
Jörg Herrmann, CEO of Interhome, said: “We feel honoured to be ranked among the best property managers of the world. Such a ranking is only possible thanks to the commitment and dedication of our employees, and they do a great job for our company, our owners and our customers every day.”
[Stay tuned for a ShortTermRentalz video interview recorded with Joaquim Leal, general manager Spain at Interhome, at last week’s VITUR Summit in Malaga.]
North America represents in the top three, with Vacasa holding 30,000 properties. As the largest property manager in North America, the company has been in the news frequently, announcing both acquisitions and consolidations this past year.
UK-based Sykes Holiday Cottages, which has 21,437 properties across the UK, Ireland and New Zealand, comes up fourth on the list, up from fifth last year.
Rounding up the top five is Evolve, holding the second-largest position in North America at 16,000 properties.
Brian Egan, co-founder and CEO of Evolve, said: “We’re honoured to be recognised on this list. It’s a testament to the hard work and perseverance of our amazing team and their dedication to our guests and owners. We are still in the early days of our journey and we’re excited to be pursuing our mission to make vacation rental easy for everyone with partners like Rentals United.”
The list shows that nine of the ten Top Ten property managers on the list from 2021 are in the Top Ten list again this year, and nine new property management companies made the list this year, including Hosteeva and My Property Host. It also reveals that 60 per cent of the largest property managers are located in Europe, and the rest in North America.
The total number of rentals that these 50 property managers represent is just over 330,000, down 13.16 per cent compared to last year’s Top 50 list.
Close to 50 per cent of the companies were founded in the last ten years, and the majority of the companies were founded in the last 20 years.
Similar to last year, when it comes to growth and funding, over half of the companies are self-funded, and more than 60 per cent have grown organically, while the rest are a mix of organic growth and acquisitions. Six out of the first ten on the list are backed by equity.
Loic Dupont, co-founder of Homerez, said: “We are proud to be in top ten following such challenging times for us all. We are so thankful for the amazing trust and support we received from our owners and distribution partners.
“This definitely reflects the hard work and effort of our team in pushing forward to ensure that we continue to grow our inventory and bring global demand and distribution to our owners with a simple, yet highly intuitive piece of technology,” he added.
The World’s Top 50 Short Term Property Managers is a ranking by rental numbers of the world’s largest short-term rental property managers, compiled and published in October annually by channel manager Rentals United. Members of this prestigious list receive a ‘Top 50’ badge for their website, allowing them to gain visibility amongst property owners worldwide.
View The World’s Top 50 Short Term Property Managers at this link.
