US: Portland-based vacation rental management platform Vacasa has completed a pair of major acquisitions in California and Alabama.
The company has confirmed the purchase of SeaBreeze Vacation Rentals, a premier management company in Southern California, and Meyer Vacation Rentals and Meyer Services from SH Enterprises, on the Alabama Gulf Coast.
With the SeaBreeze transaction, Vacasa will add more than 400 luxury homes and condos in desirable oceanfront vacation destinations, including La Jolla, Del Mar and Malibu, and support continued growth with an investment in local operations. The company will now manage nearly 600 vacation rentals in the region.
Zac Monahan, vice president of corporate development at Vacasa, said: “Southern California’s beaches have mass appeal as top tourist destinations and are profitable places for second homeowners to invest in vacation rentals. Vacasa has a seasoned team and established presence throughout Orange and San Diego County, already providing an exceptional level of service, but this investment in SeaBreeze’s high-end inventory, operations and infrastructure will allow us to introduce more homeowners and guests to the trusted Vacasa experience.”
Jonah Mechanic and Vanessa Neff started SeaBreeze Vacation Rentals in 2002 with Mechanic’s single vacation home in San Diego and grew it into one of the region’s top vacation rental management companies along the California coastline. The company expanded to a multi-city operation when the pair partnered with brothers Brian and Jeff Bosson in early 2015, establishing SeaBreeze Vacation Rentals as it is known today.
Vacasa will welcome 130 employees to its operations and management teams as part of the deal, and retain five SeaBreeze offices and laundry facilities throughout Southern California. Mechanic, Neff and the Bossons will also remain with Vacasa through the transition.
All SeaBreeze vacation homes will be listed and bookable on Vacasa.com, as well as the SeaBreeze Vacation Rentals website, by this autumn.
Mechanic said: “All of us at SeaBreeze Vacation Rentals are extremely proud of the company we built and the close relationships we’ve developed with our homeowners. Vacasa gave us an opportunity to advance the business to the next level, and I trust them to carry on—and grow—our legacy.
“Vacasa understands our region and how to market and optimise revenue for this calibre of vacation rental, and our customers can benefit from Vacasa’s advanced technology and revenue management system. I’m excited to see this transition through, knowing the opportunities ahead and that our homeowners, guests and vendors will receive the same level of care and service,” he added.
Vacasa has also confirmed the purchase of Meyer Vacation Rentals and Meyer Services from SH Enterprises, to double its short-term rental footprint along the Alabama Gulf Coast. Following the transaction, Vacasa will assume management of 980 vacation properties, predominantly in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Alabama, and Perdido Key, Florida.
Founded in 1967, Meyer Vacation Rentals has become one of the largest property management companies on the Alabama-Florida Coast. The area’s popularity is supported by Vacasa’s 2021 Vacation Rental Search and Booking Report, in which cities along the Gulf Coast ranked as the four most-searched destinations on Vacasa.com over the past 12 months.
Vacasa SVP of operations, Bob Milne, said: “Guest demand for vacations to Alabama’s Gulf Coast and the Florida Panhandle is soaring, so we’re excited to expand our portfolio and operations in the area, and help more homeowners capitalise on the opportunities ahead. Our teams, along with our advanced technology and marketing, have proven that Vacasa can optimise income for vacation rental owners.”
To support the portfolio expansion and continuation of service standards, Vacasa will maintain the Meyer Vacation Rentals Gulf Shores office and the Meyer Services office in Foley, Alabama, in addition to welcoming more than 200 employees to its field and management team.
Michelle Hodges, owner of Meyer Vacation Rentals, said: “Meyer has been a locally-owned business serving guests for generations. When we discussed the future of the company, and how to best care for homeowners while opening up new opportunities for employees, this sale was the best path forward for everyone.
“By transitioning to Meyer Vacation Rentals by Vacasa, we have a proven growth partner that can enhance homeowners’ return on investment and create upward mobility for our incredibly talented team,” she added.
Meyer Vacation Rentals’ homes are expected to be fully integrated and bookable on Vacasa’s website by October.
Vacasa is set to go public via a merger with special purpose acquisition company [SPAC] TPG Pace Solutions before the end of the year, at a valuation of approximately $4.5 billion.
It follows the company’s significant acquisitions of Wyndham Vacation Rentals for $162 million in October 2019 and TurnKey Vacation Rentals’ 6,000-strong premium home portfolio in April, which took Vacasa’s inventory above 30,000 homes in North America, Belize and Costa Rica.
