Topic · 80 stories
Vrbo
Everything the Gazette has filed on Vrbo, newest first.
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Exposed
Hackers Steal Host Logins to Divert Payouts in Silent Digital Heist
Cybercriminals target property management credentials to quietly swap bank routing numbers, siphoning peak-season revenue before operators notice the
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Markets
The End of the Web-Based PMS: Why AI Will Redefine Vacation Rental Technology
The traditional property management system has become an operational bottleneck. As autonomous AI agents take over, the centralized dashboard is about
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Host Life
Why Real Plants Are the Ultimate Trust Signal in Short-Term Rental Photography
In a marketplace saturated with sterile, white-walled listings and clinical corporate design, the presence of real living greenery acts as a powerful
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Host Life
Vrbo Shifts to Flat Twelve Percent Commission Ending Era of Cheap Subscriptions
A sweeping policy change effective October 29, 2026, eliminates legacy subscriptions and PMS discounts, forcing hosts into a strict rate-parity framew
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Design
One Hero Material Beats a Full Renovation
Why spending thousands on minor cosmetic upgrades is a financial trap, and how a single, dramatic material statement drives bookings and protects your
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World
Airbnb Targets Family Travel Markets with Integrated Baby Gear Rental Partnership
A new partnership signals a major shift in the platform's battle for high-value family bookings, transferring operational headaches and liability off
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Crackdown
Annapolis Quintuples Short-Term Rental Fines in Warning to Event-Driven Markets
The era of treating municipal fines as a cost of doing business is over. As Annapolis moves to aggressively penalize unpermitted hosts, the entire ind
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The Social Arbitrage: How Small Hosts Beat Big Capital on Social Feeds
The era of listing and waiting is dead. Here is the workable playbook for seeding organic virality to fill your calendar without buying fake engagemen
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Exposed
The Ghost in the Garage: Why Hosts Secretly Live in Whole-Home Rentals
Crushed by debt service and falling revenue, hosts are hiding in basements and campers while renting out the main house. The fallout is about to deton
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Crackdown
Green Retrofit Mandates Are the New Backdoor Ban on Short-Term Rentals
Progressive cities are tying short-term rental permits directly to mandatory energy efficiency upgrades. The massive capital costs are clearing older
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World
British Columbia Crushed Investor Short-Term Rentals. The Mid-Term Pivot is Now a Fight for Survival.
When British Columbia outlawed non-primary short-term rentals, it did not just regulate the market. It fundamentally altered the economics of real est
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Platforms
The Digital Ghost in the Living Room: Why Smart TVs Are Your Rental’s Biggest Security Threat
Guests checkout but leave their digital identities behind. Here is why your smart TV is a ticking data bomb—and why the major platforms are ignoring i
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The Nostalgia Stay Sells a Whole Decade
Time-capsule rentals crush the beige box on feed clicks and off-season bookings, but half-hearted kitsch and fragile appliances will destroy review sc
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World
Mandy Rennehan Hands High-End Rental to Homeless Mission as Market Tightens
When an Atlantic contractor hands a premier vacation asset to an addiction charity, it exposes the brutal reckoning facing Canada's short-term rental
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Host Life
The Short-Term Rental Bathroom Standard That Saves Bookings
Why a minor investment in hospitality-grade bathroom amenities is the ultimate protection against bad reviews and falling search ranks.
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Platforms
Vrbo Sued Over Fatal Dominican Republic Fire as Safety Shield Cracks
A devastating wrongful death lawsuit over a Caribbean rental fire that killed four family members threatens to dismantle the legal shields of the shor
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Platforms
The Great Search Squeeze: Vrbo and Airbnb Push Pay-to-Play Just as AI Threatens to Bypass OTAs
As Vrbo launches sponsored listings and Airbnb eyes a billion-dollar ad business, emerging AI agents like Instinct are preparing to ignore paid rankin
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The Money
The Real Cost of Realtor.com's Secondary Market Predictions
Realtor.com wants owners to buy into under-the-radar markets. But the operational reality of secondary-market hosting is a far cry from the portal's r
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Platforms
Google Vacation Rentals Cuts Out the OTA Middleman
By opening direct booking links to property managers, the search monopoly takes aim at the multi-billion-dollar tollbooths of Airbnb and Vrbo.
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World
The Peak District Tourist Tax Fight Signals a Dangerous New Era for UK Hosts
As the newly elected East Midlands Mayor faces pressure to introduce a tourism tax, rural holiday let operators warn of economic disaster for the Peak
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World
Labour Targets Holiday Cottages in a High-Stakes Tax Raid on British Hosts
The abolition of the Furnished Holiday Let regime is no longer a distant Tory threat. The new government is preparing a swift fiscal squeeze that will
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Crackdown
Historic Districts Are Banning Exterior Lockboxes to Deter short-term rentals
Preservation boards are using aesthetic guidelines to block automated check-ins, forcing physical key handoffs and pricing out remote investors.
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Crackdown
Skokie Rolls Back Rental Rules as Suburban Crackdowns Hit a Wall of Reality
When high taxes met high enforcement costs, this Chicago suburb realized that punishing local home-sharers was a losing game. Other towns are watching
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The Money
The Coastal Cool Down: What the Hilton Head Summer Showdown Means for Short Term Rentals
New data from South Carolina's premier beach market reveals a stark shift in the battle for occupancy. As traditional resorts claw back market share,
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Exposed
The Silent Parasite: How Crypto Miners Are Bankrupting Mid-Term Rental Hosts
Tech-savvy renters are converting month-long stays into makeshift server farms, leaving hosts with catastrophic utility bills that completely erase op
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Markets
First Chair Destinations Enters the New England Ski Rental Market
A new regional brand is targeting New England ski slopes, proving that the battle for premium vacation rentals has moved from national roll-ups to hyp
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The Money
Interest Rate Swaps Save Large Short Term Rental Portfolios From Insolvency
While individual hosts struggle under the weight of rising mortgage rates, institutional operators are using sophisticated financial derivatives to fr
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Platforms
Expedia Unified Loyalty Program Devastates Vrbo Visibility
By forcing independent vacation rentals into the same reward ecosystem as corporate hotel chains, Expedia Group has tilted the playing field against h
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The Money
Costa Rica Short-Term Rentals Face Oversupply as Tourist Numbers Lag
With active listings nearing 49,000 while international arrivals flatten, vacation rental hosts in Costa Rica are facing a brutal squeeze of high cost
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Host Life
The Cheap Nursery Hardware Quietly Locking In Four-Figure Bookings
Multigenerational travellers do not browse properties for design trends. They hunt down the listing that spares them dragging sixty pounds of baby gea
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Design
The Mid-Century Maintenance Trap: Renting Frank Lloyd Wright’s Michigan Masterpieces
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian homes in Michigan are architectural masterpieces. But running these historic properties as short-term rentals is an opera
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Crackdown
The Automated Dragnet: How Algorithmic Noise Patrols Are Killing Short-Term Rentals
Municipalities are writing connected decibel sensors and private security dispatches into local ordinances, shifting the entire cost of policing onto
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Platforms
How a Delayed Refund Exposes the Broken Payments of Vacation Rentals
A guest canceled a thirteen-thousand-dollar booking, and the refund took two years. The breakdown shows who really holds the cash and who gets burned.
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The Money
The Secondary Debt Trap Gutting Vacation Rental Portfolios
During the post-pandemic vacation rental rush, thousands of retail investors tapped their primary home equity to fund down payments. Now, the double-l
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World
England Mayors Set to Gain Tourist Tax Powers as Devolution Reshapes Short Term Rentals
The era of tax-free hosting in England is drawing to a close as the government prepares to hand metro mayors the statutory power to levy local visitor
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Exposed
Extortion Rings Threaten Ruinous Reviews for Cash Refunds
Predatory guests are exploiting platform safety policies, fabricating severe hazards, and forcing professional hosts to pay cash refunds or face ruino
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Design
The Retro Liquidation: Why BC's $1.8M Themed Mansion Signals the End of Algorithmic Design Arbitrage
As British Columbia's strict principal-residence rules choke off commercial short-term rentals, highly stylized properties are hitting the block. Here
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Crackdown
Tokyo Hotspot Bans Short-Term Rentals as Tourist Surge Overwhelms Ward Streets
A premier Tokyo destination cuts off short-term rentals following a spike in neighborhood complaints, exposing the fragile truce between municipal pow
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Crackdown
New York Short-Term Rentals Plummet 85 Percent Following Local Law 18 Crackdown
A year after the implementation of the city's aggressive registration system, the short-term-rental market in the five boroughs has been almost entire
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Platforms
Vrbo’s Global Sponsored Listings Just Killed the Organic Meritocracy
Expedia Group is bringing the pay-to-play model to vacation rentals worldwide. Prepare for a margin-crushing bidding war where the mega-managers hold
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Markets
The End of the Scarcity War: Why the STR Industry Must Now Fix Dying Towns
For a decade, the short-term rental debate was defined by housing shortages. Now, the industry is being asked to absorb millions of empty homes in shr
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The Single Feature That Drives Listings Viral
Forget scattered upgrades. The short-term rental market's new arbiters are algorithms, and they demand a singular, jaw-dropping visual hook that sells
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Design
The Mirror Cabin Disappears Into the Treeline and the Balance Sheet
Mirrored glass structures generate massive social media saves and high average daily rates, but operational realities like bird strikes and thermal lo
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Crackdown
The Revolt Begins: Folly Beach Hosts File Class-Action Over Permit Fees
The era of pleading at city council meetings is over. Owners in South Carolina are taking the city to court over alleged shadow taxes, and the whole i
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Platforms
Vrbo Just Lit the Fuse on a Bidding War: Pay Up or Fade Out
The platform's global rollout of sponsored listings isn't just a new feature; it's a seismic shift, forcing hosts and managers into a brutal pay-to-pl
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Platforms
Vrbo Just Lit the Fuse: The Great Pay-to-Play War for Listing Visibility Has Begun
The short-term rental giant's new 'Sponsored Listings' aren't just a feature; they're a tectonic shift, forcing hosts to buy their way to the top and
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Crackdown
Clark County Unleashes Legal Bomb on Airbnb, Vrbo: The War for Vegas STR Just Got Personal
Vegas regulators just voted to ban platforms from processing bookings for unlicensed short-term rentals, unleashing a legal and operational nightmare
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The Money
INSURANCE BOMB DROPS: Your Airbnb Listing Just Canceled Your Homeowner's Policy
The nightmare scenario for every short-term rental host is no longer a 'what if' but a brutal reality. Insurers are lurking, ready to deny claims when
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Exposed
Oak Park Shooting: The Blood on the Balcony and the Bill Coming Due for Every STR Host
Another short-term rental turned into a crime scene, two dead, two wounded. This isn't just a local tragedy. It's a flashing red light for an industry
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Host Life
When the Storm Hits: Who Really Pays for the Refund?
A hurricane barrels in. A blizzard buries the roads. Your guest cancels, and you get nothing. The Extenuating Circumstances Policy looms large. STR NE
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Platforms
The Cash-Flow Black Hole: How Platforms Hold Your Money Hostage
Your payouts are stalled, your bills are mounting, and the platform offers no answers. This isn't a glitch; it's a systemic trap that burns hosts. STR
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Markets
The Market Meltdown: Why 2026 Will Separate the Pros From the Pretenders
The data is clear: listing growth is still outrunning demand in too many markets. The party's over for accidental hosts, but quiet stabilization is re
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Host Life
The Amenity Arms Race Is Out of Control, And It's Burning Hosts
The siren call of the next big feature — another hot tub, a bigger arcade, a home theater — is luring hosts into a financial trap. When does adding am
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The Money
Platform Addiction Is Bleeding You Dry: Direct Booking Is Your Only Escape
For too long, hosts have surrendered their profits and their futures to the whims of the booking giants. It’s time to stare down the real cost of depe
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Platforms
Cancellation Policies: The Silent Battleground for STR Profits
Your choice of refund rules isn't just about guest convenience; it's a brutal calculation of risk, reward, and pure market power. Get it wrong, and wa
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The Money
The Quiet Audit Trigger: STR Tax Moves That Draw IRS Fire
Hosts chasing maximum deductions often flirt with danger. We break down the aggressive tax strategies that flag your short-term rental business for an
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Platforms
The Channel Manager Lie: Why 'Too Expensive' Costs You More Than Software
Every serious host faces the same fork in the road: manually juggling Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com, praying for no double bookings, or investing in t
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Crackdown
The Permit Armageddon You Didn't See Coming: Your Deadlines Are Ticking
Hosts are sleepwalking into a regulatory nightmare, blowing critical renewal deadlines and facing automatic fines, license revocations, and even platf
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Exposed
The Passive-Income Lie: Why Mailbox Money is the Most Expensive Myth in STR
The glossy pitch of easy money and remote management has lured countless into short-term rentals. But behind the promise of 'passive income' lies a br
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Exposed
The Host-Guest Claim War: Lies, Losses, and The Fight for Fair Play
From guests faking falls to hosts inventing damage, the resolution center is a digital battlefield. Here's how honest operators weaponize evidence to
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Exposed
The Ghost in the Listing: How Fake Rentals Haunt Real Hosts and Drain Guests
A new wave of sophisticated clone scams is eroding trust, stealing guest cash, and dragging innocent short-term rental operators into a nightmare of f
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Exposed
The Hidden Lens: Why Undisclosed Cameras Are a Death Sentence for STR Hosts
A disturbing pattern of secret indoor surveillance has guests scanning for pinholes and platforms bringing the hammer down. For hosts, this isn't just
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Exposed
The Review Racket: Inside the Gray Market Stealing Stars from Honest Hosts
The short-term rental industry’s most insidious secret isn't a secret at all: it’s the shadow economy of fake reviews and weaponized star ratings. STR
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Markets
The Wild West Is Over: Amateur Hosts Face Extinction as Operators Seize Control
The short-term rental market once promised easy riches for anyone with a spare room. Now, a perfect storm of regulation, professionalization, and razo
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Markets
Sun Belt STR Glut: The Reckoning for an Industry That Grew Too Fast
The gold rush is over. Where builders and investors piled into the Sun Belt, a brutal supply glut has crushed rates and occupancy, forcing a painful s
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Markets
Scottsdale's Party Apocalypse: How a Boomtown Busted Itself into Regulation
Scottsdale became a bachelorette mecca, then cities fought back. What happens when a party market grows up, and how do hosts survive the inevitable ha
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Markets
The Brutal Truth: Why Smart Money Is Bailing Out of Oversaturated STR Markets
The party's over for many short-term rental operators. We break down the chilling signs of RevPAR compression, the markets drowning in supply, and whe
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Host Life
Pet-Friendly Is a High-Wire Act: Free Money Until You Fall
The siren song of pet-owner dollars can be deafening, but unprepared hosts face a costly plunge. This isn't about cuddly companions; it's about cold,
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Host Life
THE CALENDAR KILLER: Double-Bookings Are A Threat. Here's How To Win.
A double booking isn't just an inconvenience; it's a financial gut-punch and a reputational nightmare. We dig into why cross-listing can be a trap, th
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Host Life
Your Listing Title Is a Wasted Asset. Stop Burning Money on Bad Headlines.
Most hosts treat their listing title as an afterthought, a quick label for their property. They are dead wrong. The title is the sharpest weapon in th
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Host Life
Rental Arbitrage: The High-Stakes Gamble That Can Pay Big or Burn You Down
It looks like easy money: lease an apartment, list it on Airbnb, and watch the cash roll in. But the real story of rental arbitrage is a brutal calcul
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Host Life
One-Star Extortion: Hosts Fight Back Against Review Blackmail
The threat of a bad review for a refund is a weapon in the guest's arsenal. Hosts are tired of it. Here's how to hold the line, understand platform po
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Host Life
Your Listing Photos Are Killing Your Revenue. Here's How to Fix It.
In the brutal fight for bookings, amateur photos scream 'amateur host' to guests. Stop leaving money on the table. We break down the visual strategy t
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Host Life
The Security Deposit Is a Myth. Your Bank Account Is Not.
Every host thinks a security deposit is their shield against damage. They're wrong. This is the truth about how claims really work, and the digital ar
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Host Life
The Nightmare Guest: How to Win the Fight for Your Property
Your STR is a business, not a charity. When a guest goes rogue, the stakes are brutal. Here’s the STR NEWS playbook for spotting the threat and securi
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Host Life
Camera Inside? You Just Threw Your Entire Business Into the Fire
STR NEWS pulls no punches: The 'security camera' in your rental could cost you everything. This is the hard truth on surveillance, what's allowed, and
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Host Life
Smart Locks Are a Revenue Trap If You Don't Plan for the Worst
The promise of seamless self-check-in is a host's dream, but when the tech fails at 11 p.m., it can turn your profitable rental into a money pit. Here
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Host Life
The 4.7-Star Trap Is Burning Your Profits — Stop Bending for Bad Guests
That seemingly innocuous decimal point has become the short-term rental industry's great unspoken terror. It's time to stop letting platform algorithm
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Host Life
Your Cleaner Just Quit By Text. It's A Crisis You Built.
The STR industry's dirty secret: Cleaning teams are fed up. Bad pay, impossible demands, and zero respect are costing hosts a fortune. Here's how to f
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The Money
The $120K Rental Brag That's Hiding a Total Financial Disaster
Online, they show off booking screenshots. But the net math tells a brutal, often ignored truth: most 'successful' short-term rentals are barely break
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