The best full-service USVI property management companies operate and control all aspects of vacation rentals on the owner’s behalf. Typical services include:

• listing and marketing the vacation rental properties on major platforms like VRBO, Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com, etc. These platforms are also referred to as booking channels.
• managing and coordinating the booking calendar across these various platforms
• managing every aspect of guest interaction, from initial contact, to “meet and greet” at the St. Croix airport, to handing over the keys or codes, to post-trip follow-up with guests
• adjusting pricing to stay competitive in the St. Croix rentals market, and to maximize occupancy rates & rental income
• billing & collecting payment from guests
• actively encouraging guests to leave good reviews (either on the property’s website, or on major platforms like TripAdvisor) — this can boost a vacation rental’s profile quite a lot, and in turn revenues and profits
• managing the cleaning & maintenance of the property (including being on call 24/7 for emergency repairs, which is a critical service on an island like St. Croix)
• regularly inspecting the property (doors, locks, windows, plumbing, pool and cistern levels, hurricane readiness)
• restocking supplies in the rental property
• paying on-island bills
• providing monthly and annual financial statements to the owner, especially income statements and net cash flow accounting, with all receipts for expenses
• assisting with local tax filings and reporting
• maintaining any vehicles of the owner in St. Croix, including license, insurance, and registration

The best St. Croix property management companies will ensure that the owner’s properties are being maximized to their greatest potential and also run smoothly with minimal work or hassle for the owner.

Average USVI property management fees can range from 20-50% of the property’s income. The actual fee will depend on the level of services provided. Since this can dramatically impact an owner’s profit, you should always “shop around” and try to negotiate either the fee level or the quality of services being provided.

Property management in St. Croix USVI has certain nuances, so picking a reputable St. Croix property manager is of great importance. Your property is literally in their hands, as is the success or failure of your property as an investment. So carefully research each prospective PM both online and the “real world” by speaking with other owners and real estate agents.

And definitely choose a St. Croix property manager who guarantees a high level of direct bookings and minimizes the use of 3rd-party booking middlemen (VRBO, etc). Overreliance on these booking middlemen significantly reduces an owner’s net income and yield, and frankly these days is just plain lazy.

Obviously the 15-23% fees which these platforms charge comes directly out of the owner’s pocket, and smart PMs know how to win customers with successful direct marketing & promotion of properties.

Ask for proof of their direct-marketing success, the volume of repeat guests (which again avoids the booking fees), and investigate their web presence. Good managers will have an attractive web presence which consistently performs at the top of Google search results.

And they are usually expert in vacation rental SEO (search engine optimization) that is critical to attracting potential vacation rental guests FOR FREE.

Vacation rental property management fees in St. Croix come in one of three forms, although they’re not mutually exclusive and can often be combined:

• Commission fee model: The manager charges a % of the total rental income for services. They charge on a monthly basis or with each booking. Usually they automatically deduct their fees from the guest’s payment with no interaction required by the owner.
• Fixed-rate fee model: here the owner pays a fixed fee / flat fee for someone to manage their vacation rental properties. So this smooths the cash flow and makes budgeting easier and more predictable for the property manager because it is not dependent on the number of bookings each month.  Some managers prefer model this because short-term vacation rentals is a highly-seasonal business, and St. Croix is no exception.
• Guaranteed-income fee model: in this fee model, the property management company pays the owner a fixed amount each month. Any additional profits or losses are kept/borne by the PM. It’s often a good option for owners with vacation rentals located in areas with high seasonality (like the US Virgin Islands), because it guarantees them stable income month-to-month. However, the clear weakness of this model is the owner might be overpaying a manager, or the property manager low-balls the estimated income to keep more for themselves

Owners of vacation rental properties in St. Croix can choose which model works best for them. Regardless of the fee model chosen, every owner should carefully compare models in consultation with a local vacation rentals expert, and clearly understand any extra fees that a property manager may charge.

Unless you a) live full time on St. Croix, b) have a lot of time to physically manage a property yourself, and c) are at least somewhat sophisticated in managing a vacation rental, then yes, you’ll need to hire a local property manager. Managing a rental is time-consuming anywhere but it’s particularly challenging on an island. It’s also physically impossible without a solid on-island presence in St. Croix.

That said, it is possible for owners to do their own marketing, billing, & guest relationships to keep more income for themselves. The choice is really how much time & energy you want to spend managing your property.

If you’re an owner who simply wants an OK income stream with little work, then chose a reputable full-service property manager. On the other hand, if you want to maximize profits and are willing to do some work yourself, then contract a PM with a smaller scope of responsibility and lower fees, and keep more income for yourself.

Managing any rental on an island can be tricky unless you know the market well. However, there are simple steps that owners can take to effectively manage their St. Croix properties and not give away too much to the manager.

Increasing direct bookings is probably is simplest way. There are many low-cost property management software systems out there. And while anyone can set up a website these days, getting to the top of search results requires work and SEO expertise, which is critical for getting more direct bookings and avoiding high middleman fees.

Let us guide you through the various options.

Some off-island owners choose to handle all marketing, securing guests, and collecting payments themselves, and contract a local PM only to handle check-ins, cleanings and repairs for a much lower fee. Other owners choose to have local full-service PMs run the entire business, with correspondingly higher fees.

Whichever route you choose, it’s important to shop around and always demand value for money. Always compare the potential income & costs of outsourcing to a vacation rental management firm vs. what you can earn doing more work yourself.

Good property managers can easily prove how they can generate higher income for you with their expertise. If they can’t, then it’s better to keep looking.

It’s critical to chose the right USVI property management company for your St. Croix rental property. Getting it wrong can be very costly. So owners need to do serious homework on PMC track records, individuals, and local reputation. At a minimum, ask the following:

• What management services do you offer?
• Provide a full list of all potential fees that may be charged.
• Which fee models do you offer (i.e. fixed, commission etc.)?
• What’s the estimated income and yield on my property, and how was it determined?
• What software / hardware do you use to manage properties?
• How will you promote my property?
• What level of direct bookings do you normally achieve?
• How do you manage maintenance & repairs?
• How do you handle interactions with guests? Potential complaints?
• How will you protect my property?
• How will you report & communicate with me?
• How long have you been working as a property manager in St. Croix / elsewhere?
• How large is your team in St. Croix / elsewhere?
• What local St. Croix contractors & service providers do you regularly use?
• Please provide references from current clients whom I can contact.