We're just about halfway through our busy season, and have added to our tenant base a list of pleased consumers who have utilized our services through the rental of your home or another property. However, frustrations are running high as we and some of our guests encounter issues that could have been prevented with more forethought and attention. In this issue we have a friendly reminder to homeowners of West Cape May to have their mercantile license renewed, and we offer a new feature on our website.

       When one of our reservationists has worked hard via ongoing emails and phone conversations to convince a potential guest that your property fits that guest's needs and time frame to find out that you "forgot" to let us know that the property was not available that week it is frustrating. We ever so often hear, "Ooops I'm sorry didn't we tell you that we rented that week ourselves?" "Ooops didn't we tell you that Aunt Tilly is using it?" One Owner recently responded "Well .....we have sent a lease out but not yet received money so we don't let you know it is rented until we receive a deposit." If you take a reservation for a particular week on your own ..... IT IS RENTED! You must notify the office immediately as soon as you hang up the phone or end your email. Do NOT inform us when you get your first deposit; that is too late. It is imperative that we are working together not against one another. When this happens we end up more often than not loosing that guest all together because they are so disappointed and lose faith in us. That situation costs us money and could have been avoided by a simple phone call or email.
      Another frustrating problem is when a guest checks into a property all ready for a nice vacation week only to find the house dirty and neglected. Owners PLEASE take pride in your vacation rental properties and treat these vacation homes like a business. CLEANLINESS is the most important factor in renting your property; maintenance is a close second to cleanliness.
      Already this season we have had the following maintenance complaints: non working AC units, light bulbs burnt out, dirty ovens, broken porch furniture, hornets' nest over the door jambs, somke detectors beeping, dirty kitchen drawers, no recycling containers, dirty pillows, uncomfortable sofa beds, washer not working, no cable TV, no internet, no internet instructions, no running water, birds in the attic, raccoons in the eves and the list goes on and on.
       HomeStead takes pride in being the premier service provider on the island. We offer more guest pleasing features than any other company. We offer online booking, virtual tours, guest reviews, and separate website from the sales site, separate rental department, full time reservationists, on site linen service, Drive through check-in and we are the ONLY Company offering Credit Card use. We continue to improve our business which is always at a cost to us. We have NOT passed the credit card costs on to you the owner which is extremely expensive that cost comes right off our commission. We have NOT raised our commission pricing since our inception and have done everything possible within these difficult economic times to not do so. We are continuing to do our part by making continued improvements to better serve today's demanding guests' needs and all we ask is that you do your part and maintain your property and make improvements year after year.
      Remember your business, like ours, needs constant improvement and maintenance in order to be at the top of the game. Guests no longer are willing to rent Grandmas house they are looking for fresh, clean, well maintained properties in which to enjoy their vacations. Most Guests today are coming from well appointed lovely homes and are no longer willing to sacrifice comfort and cleanliness they are expecting hotel like accommodations and hotel like services.
      Together with your cooperation we at HomeSteadwill continue to make improvements to better your chances of capturing the guest. It is your job to ensure they return year after year.

Friendly Reminder to West Cape May Property Owners
      If you are renting your home by the week, month, year, etc. you are required to register with the Borough of West Cape May and obtain a mercantile license. The license year is July 1, 2011 thru June 30, 2012. The mercantile license is discounted prior to July 1, 2011. Call the Clerks office, 609-884-1005, ext. 101 to obtain an application or go online at www.WestCapeMay.us to download the form.

Owners Login
      You can now log on to your RealTimeRental account directly through our website by going to the Owners Corner at www.HomeSteadCapeMayRentals.com/Owner-Login.cfm. This new feature offers the same capabilities you've always had but now you have a one stop portal to access all of your rental information. You can see all of the brokers attached to your rental as well as who rented which week. You can even view which specific agent booked a particular week. You can view all of your leases for 2011 and even set the date range to view prior years. From this portal you can get to all of your brokers' websites and email the broker directly.
       This is a good argument for retaining only agencies that use the RealTimeRental system. When things get crazy and you can't remember who did what this will be a nice way to help you sort it all out. If you have misplaced your owner login information, contact us and we will be happy to look it up and send to you.

Cape May Experts
      This past April (ok this piece is a little late, but we've been busy trying to get homes rented) HomeStead was recognized by the New York Times as the Cape May Experts. Our own Kate Brown was quoted in an article about Summer Rental Deals at the Jersey Shore. Of course Kate encouraged renters to book early for the best deal. But the point here is that when the New York Times needed a qualified comment, they came to the HomeStead Rental Team - the Cape May Experts!