All I can say is I am glad to be with Brindley Beach (formerly Shore Details) and that I talked my husband into leaving Vacasa last week. He literally gave notice 3 hours before the "your out" emails started coming in. I am already liking what I am seeing with Brindley Beach. They are obviously bigger than SD but still have the same totally local feel.

It will be interesting to see what unfolds on the rental market out there with Vacasa's troubles. I hate it for the employees who are getting laid off, but how you can charge more for worse service and expect to do well is beyond me (at least from a renters' perspective.) We decided a couple of years ago just to not use Vacasa. It takes some nice houses off the potential rental list, but again higher prices and poor service loses my business. This year we've got a couple of weeks in late spring booked with Midgett and are super excited.

A LOT of the guest families of renting age at this point have little experience renting prior to the late 2000s. Sure, there are long time renters, but almost 15 years on from the real estate bubble that decimated resident homeowners and second home owners, put them underwater, and then buried them in a decade of losses a large segment of renters is acclimated to an artificially suppressed market and a LOT of amenities, and to getting monetary compensation for a variety of issues long timers wouldn't call about.

Old timers would note a loose door knob and tighten it and maybe let someone know they did. The later crowd will call the office, expect an emergency call out, find 5 more small things and expect a same day fix and monetary compensation. In an effort to attract renters, any renters you end up with renters youre better off without - and those only get worse with time.

A LOT of the guest families of renting age at this point have little experience renting prior to the late 2000s. Sure, there are long time renters, but almost 15 years on from the real estate bubble that decimated resident homeowners and second home owners, put them underwater, and then buried them in a decade of losses a large segment of renters is acclimated to an artificially suppressed market and a LOT of amenities, and to getting monetary compensation for a variety of issues long timers wouldn't call about.

Old timers would note a loose door knob and tighten it and maybe let someone know they did. The later crowd will call the office, expect an emergency call out, find 5 more small things and expect a same day fix and monetary compensation. In an effort to attract renters, any renters you end up with renters youre better off without - and those only get worse with time.

Us old timers also knew we were getting good deals at the time, so we didn't mind the greater expectations around sharing the cleaning (e.g., vacuuming the floors before leaving) and tolerating damaged/missing amenities. But as prices increase, so do expectations. And that's understandable. But I would love to see the demographics of renters and how it's changed over the years. Anecdotally, I keep hearing how more and more people from NY/NJ area have discovered OBX, and they may just be wired culturally as higher maintenance...boy, I'm gonna get some backlash on that, I'm sure.

I'm not privy to what an owner can see about a guest rating. But I hope it lists the properties previously rented by a guest and then that owner could be contacted through the app website, just the same way I can to ask a question.

Anyway, it's a helpful way of bringing together good owners and good renters. I used it in October to spend a week in the Keys, got great inside info from them about who/what/where/when to do during our stay and we had a perfect week because of that help.

I stand corrected about VRBO and allowing owners comments regarding guests. Maybe that was allowed when it was HomeAway, I used HA too for about 5 years before it became part of VRBO.

VRBO states that...

"Guests are rated from one to five stars on their overall experience, cleanliness, communication and adherence to house rules."

Still, it's a significant plus for owners and they could inquire further directly with another previous owner about the rating given to a guest.

They can. The tricky part sometimes is tracking down the owners since you cannot contact them through either platform.

A LOT of the guest families of renting age at this point have little experience renting prior to the late 2000s. Sure, there are long time renters, but almost 15 years on from the real estate bubble that decimated resident homeowners and second home owners, put them underwater, and then buried them in a decade of losses a large segment of renters is acclimated to an artificially suppressed market and a LOT of amenities, and to getting monetary compensation for a variety of issues long timers wouldn't call about.

Old timers would note a loose door knob and tighten it and maybe let someone know they did. The later crowd will call the office, expect an emergency call out, find 5 more small things and expect a same day fix and monetary compensation. In an effort to attract renters, any renters you end up with renters youre better off without - and those only get worse with time.

Us old timers also knew we were getting good deals at the time, so we didn't mind the greater expectations around sharing the cleaning (e.g., vacuuming the floors before leaving) and tolerating damaged/missing amenities. But as prices increase, so do expectations. And that's understandable. But I would love to see the demographics of renters and how it's changed over the years. Anecdotally, I keep hearing how more and more people from NY/NJ area have discovered OBX, and they may just be wired culturally as higher maintenance...boy, I'm gonna get some backlash on that, I'm sure.

I stand corrected about VRBO and allowing owners comments regarding guests. Maybe that was allowed when it was HomeAway, I used HA too for about 5 years before it became part of VRBO.

VRBO states that...

"Guests are rated from one to five stars on their overall experience, cleanliness, communication and adherence to house rules."

Still, it's a significant plus for owners and they could inquire further directly with another previous owner about the rating given to a guest.

They can. The tricky part sometimes is tracking down the owners since you cannot contact them through either platform.

The problem with VRBO and owners and renters knowing who they are dealing with is that VRBO blocks their info UNTIL they rent the house. You can see they rented in the past but can't see the review(s) on them, if you type a phone number or email into the messenger it will block it out because they got tired as being used by both parties to advertise and then both parties would complete the rental outside the VRBO booking procedure and avoid the VRBO fees.
Once the rental agreement is approved both sides are provided with the emails and phone numbers to communicate.
My only hiccup with a renter since switching to VRBO 6 years ago is that we clearly state we provide linens but do not provide towels. It is stated in the listing. In the house rules and in the contract they acknowledge.

Last summer we had a rental that was upset by that and voiced her opinion in the review.

The only other "different" issue we had was a couple rented the house and thought the cleaner would come everyday to "freshen up".

Speaking from a lowly renters POV, when you rule out Vacasa, it's slim pickings.

Edited to add: I've not given up yet.

Speaking from a lowly renters POV, when you rule out Vacasa, it's slim pickings.

Edited to add: I've not given up yet.

Did you look at the link Alexy provided? I've never stayed sound front, but when we do, that's the first house we'll look at.

As with most layoffs, do more with less and exhaust the ones left behind.

But for me the straw that broke the camel’s back is the lack of consistency in property managers. We are now on our fifth. The 4th in less than seven months. I get some change, and if someone decides to move away, but to continue to shuffle people around without even considering the owners who are trying to establish a long-term relationship is where I have to finally draw the line.

I am sure it will impact our 2024 season to change, costs us more to change locks, etc., but with our fourth season starting I just can’t deal with the constant property manager shuffle, and this will be my final season with them.

Jessica or Rhaun, or whoever might know this. If VACASA crashes and burns on the Outer Banks, what happens? Would they just close up what used to be Hatteras Realty and Outer Beaches, leaving their massive number of houses to be absorbed by the current property managers (Surf or Sound, Midgett, Sun, etc.)? Or would those two pieces possibly get bought up by other companies whether local or national? Clearly though, if you're renting from VACASA this summer it will be an adventure of the wrong type. Thanks in advance!

The Vacasa saga reminds me of Resort Quest (Last Resort) of years past. Big corporate companies buy up little companies thinking they know how to do better and increase profits only to crash and burn because OBX market like no other.

Jessica or Rhaun, or whoever might know this. If VACASA crashes and burns on the Outer Banks, what happens? Would they just close up what used to be Hatteras Realty and Outer Beaches, leaving their massive number of houses to be absorbed by the current property managers (Surf or Sound, Midgett, Sun, etc.)? Or would those two pieces possibly get bought up by other companies whether local or national? Clearly though, if you're renting from VACASA this summer it will be an adventure of the wrong type. Thanks in advance!

I know of quite a few homeowners who have been with Hatteras Realty for many years, who have either already gone with another company, or are planning to once their contract is up. I expect the uncertainty and lack of staff will only be another catalyst for others to jump ship, as well.

No idea what the future will bring, but I know other Realty companies here have been snatching up some of the people who just lost their jobs, so I’m guessing the other companies are doing OK, as I know they have also been gaining a lot of Vacasa houses.