The four options
Anyone running short-term rentals or a hotel has four ways to handle pricing. I see all of them, every week, in the portfolios that reach me.
- Do it yourself. Free on paper. In practice it costs hours every week, and prices change when there is time, not when it matters.
- Dynamic pricing software only. A monthly fee per unit. It moves prices on its own, but someone has to set it up, check it and correct it when it gets things wrong.
- An in-house revenue manager. Maximum control, but a full-time salary plus contributions. It makes sense above a certain size.
- An external revenue manager. An expert who looks after your portfolio alongside others, at a fraction of the cost of an employee.
What I cost
My service starts from €1 per unit per day. It is an indicative price: the quote depends on the number of units, how complex the portfolio is and your goals, and I prepare it after a free first consultation.
The maths is simple. If a unit earns €30,000 a year, an increase of about 1.2% is enough to pay back €1 a day (€365 a year). For the 12 villas on the Costa Smeralda I managed in August 2026, revenue rose 40.4% on the year before.
What it does, week by week
An external revenue manager does more than send a rate sheet. In my work, every week I:
- check bookings on the books against last year on the same date;
- adjust prices and rules unit by unit, day by day;
- keep an eye on events, trade fairs and competitors in the area;
- make sure the booking engine, Booking, Airbnb and the channel manager are in sync;
- send a report with occupancy, average rate, RevPAR and what I changed.
My clients also see the same numbers in a reserved area, with a custom dashboard updated in real time.
What to ask before choosing one
Before handing your pricing to someone, ask these questions:
- Who actually looks after my units, and how many units do they handle in total?
- How often do you change prices, and with what rules?
- What report do I get, and how often?
- Can I see the numbers myself, whenever I want?
- Do you have measured results on properties like mine?
If the answers are vague, walk away. The numbers must be clear to you before they are clear to them.
When it does not pay off
If you have one or two units in a quiet area and you enjoy managing them, you probably do not need one. It pays off when your units grow, when a night is worth a lot, or when owners ask you to account for results.
To see how much more you could earn, try the simulator or look at the reserved area demo. If you want to talk it through, the first consultation is free.