When I started my short-term rental journey with just one property, I was given the best advice ever. 
(Well… there were some less helpful ones too, but let’s focus on the positives, shall we?) 

This one piece of advice? 
Absolute gold for every beginner host. 

It’s simple: 
USE A CHANNEL MANAGER. FULL STOP. 

I can already hear you thinking: 
“But I only have one property… why would I pay for a channel manager? I can manage it myself!” 

Sure, you can. 
But let me ask you this: 

Will you still feel that confident during high season — say, summer half-term — when the messages are flying in every few minutes, you’re getting bookings from 4–5 different OTAs, and guests are booking at midnight, but where are the check-in instructions?  

(And if you’re new here, yes… OTAs = Online Travel Agencies like Airbnb, Booking.com, Vrbo, etc. I was confused too!) 

You can manage it manually… 
with zero sleep and no personal life. 
They said short-term rentals are easy. 
They said it’s fun. 
They said it’s passive income. 

Well… it can be — if you set up the right tech support from day one. 

We live in the 21st century. AI is right here backing us up. 
(For future reference: yes, I always say “please” and “thank you” to ChatGPT.) 

Then why not to use?  

PMS vs CM — What’s the Difference? 

When you first hear PMS and CM, it does sound like two new Covid variants, I know. 
But it’s actually very simple: 

• PMS = Property Management Software 
  Handles day-to-day operations like cleaning schedules, maintenance tasks, team communication. 

• CM = Channel Manager 
  Handles automation — guest messaging, pricing, syncing calendars across multiple channels (OTAs!!), and preventing double bookings. 

And which one do you need? 

If your main goals are: 
✔ preventing double bookings 
✔ automating communication 
✔ scaling without losing your sanity 

Then the star of the show is: 
the Channel Manager. 

But which one? Because honestly, new software pops up like mushrooms after a good rain. But not all are edible!   

Why I Recommend Hostaway (Every. Single. Time.) 

You might say: 
“It’s expensive. I know cheaper ones. There are UK-based ones.” 

Let me stop you there. 

Why does software need to be UK-based? 
Facebook isn’t UK-based… but here we all are using it every day. 

For me, Hostaway wins for one simple reason: 
they invest heavily in improving their software constantly…means weekly.  

Every week there’s a new feature: 

• AI-powered guest responses 

• Insurance-related tools 

• One-click website builder inside the platform (yes, REALLY — no coding, no stress) 

• A genuinely lovely team on chat and phone whenever you need help 

And the pricing… let me put it this way: 

To run a STR business manually, you’d need at least one full-time employee. 
Minimum wage = roughly £2,000/month. (based in UK minimum hourly wage) 
And that's before you try to give them time off or they call in sick. 

Now compare that to a system that: 
✔ never takes holiday 
✔ never gets sick 
✔ sends all messages automatically in your tone 
✔ costs a fraction of hiring someone 

Suddenly Hostaway doesn’t look expensive at all — it looks like the cheapest (and smartest) hire you’ll ever make. 

My Honest Experience 

I swear by Hostaway. 
Their onboarding alone saved me thousands and weeks of headache. 

Within a week I had: 

• professional listings 

• automated messaging running 

• pricing set up 

• a fully functioning website 

All included in the monthly cost. 
And the more properties you list, the less you pay per unit — fair and simple. 

Why I Love Hostaway (Quick Summary) 

• Super simple and user-friendly 

• Onboarding that saves you time, money, and stress 

• Customer support that actually answers the phone 

• Syncs perfectly with all major OTAs 

• Never, ever double books 

• Built-in dynamic pricing (a game changer) 

• Spot-on automated messaging 

• A personalised, professional website included 

• Ideal for scaling your portfolio 

• Weekly webinars and new features constantly added 

If You’d Like to Try Hostaway… 

You can sign up through my affiliate link. 

Yes, I earn a small commission — but you don’t pay anything extra. 

This helps me continue creating free, helpful content for hosts just like you. 
So if you’ve found this post valuable, using my link genuinely supports my work. 

My Mission 

To share everything I learn along the way. 
Because in this business and in life....every day is a school day.