Noise Control Tools Improve Property Care in the Pandemic

Emily Hancock
Emily Hancock

November 4, 2020

We sat down with Michael Goldin, the Director of Business Development at NoiseAware, to get up to speed with recent developments in the noise monitoring world. We discussed the impact of COVID-19 on the short-term rental industry, new partnerships, their first virtual event, and the importance of adopting smart technology.

Breezeway: Exciting news with the announcement of your latest partnership with Vrbo! Tell us more about the value for property managers? 

Michael: Thanks! It’s been a great start to the partnership. Noise is not a new issue for vacation rentals, but it’s certainly been amplified during COVID-19 due to people's basic need to socialize. With bars, nightclubs, concerts and the like all closed or restricted, people are turning to short-term rentals. 

Homeowners, property managers, neighbors and communities all want to be good stewards of their towns. By installing NoiseAware to prevent noise and party disturbances, property managers can confidently tell their homeowners that the horror stories they’ve read about will not happen in their properties. 

Vrbo is dedicated to providing a safe and secure marketplace for travelers, homeowners, and property managers. Our partnership highlights the furthering of that commitment.

Breezeway: We’re thrilled we were able to join your Return on Rentals online event. Where did the idea for this initiative come from?

Michael: With everything going virtual this year, we thought we’d mix it up how other virtual events have played out. We didn’t want to get the same set of speakers every conference has involved. Our format had picked a handful of our favorite vendors (Breezeway, Guardhog, BookingPal, Stayfi, and Vrbo)  and had them interview one of their customers. That way, both companies were able to  share their stories and how  they ended up working together.

We also hosted a fun happy hour ‘speed dating’ event to replicate one of the primary benefits of conferences, the networking.

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Breezeway: The short-term rental industry has been through a lot this year. Do you have data points from NoiseAware users that shows how the pandemic has impacted noise monitoring at vacation rentals?

Michael: For one, the Covid ‘house party’ narrative people hear in the media is in fact true. We’ve seen an increase in noise events by 47% year over year. Historically, we’ve seen a house party in one of every 200 reservations, but now that number is closer to one in every 100. There are changes short-term rental managers can make in order to minimize this risk. Vrbo, for example, eliminated one night stays in Arizona and quickly saw a 36% decrease in significant noise events! Not to mention, the managers we work use our technology to resolve 75% of noise events within 15 minutes, and 95% of all noise events through remote intervention.

Breezeway: Travelers expect more from vacation rentals during the pandemic, which has added to the existing operational challenges that managers face. How important is it for operators to adopt smart technology to drive more predictive property management?

Michael: Everyone is focused on providing more service (while being as lean as possible), thus making technology adoption more important than ever. Smart technology with the right partners can automate workflows and take tasks off of property managers’ plates.

For example, 44% of noise events at vacation rentals happen between 12-5 a.m.. We recognized that it can be a burden on property managers' staff to be awake and respond to these alerts at those hours, so we created a tool that reaches out to the guests on the PM’s behalf, and provides a friendly nudge to comply with the agreed upon quiet hours and house rules. Had COVID-19 hit the industry 5 years ago, I’m not sure the industry would have been ready, but today, there are so many great tools available to help vacation rental managers better operate during tough times. The future is bright!

Breezeway: We’ve heard a lot of talk about professionalizing operations since the start of the pandemic. How much of an impact do you think noise monitoring solutions will have on the professionalization of the short-term rental industry?

Michael: Noise monitoring will be an industry standard in a matter of years. It's too important not to be. Sustainable tourism is vital to keep the world's most amazing neighbors authentic. Noise monitoring plays a key role in ensuring tourists aren’t being disruptive to the locations they are visiting.

Additionally, regulators are seeking ways to keep the tourism tax revenue flowing while balancing that with its top residents’ complaints; mainly noise, parking and trash. NoiseAware can help take noise out of the equation, clearing a path for sensible short term rental legislation, ultimately leading to a favorable outcome for all parties involved, the travelers, the homeowners, property managers, neighbors and local authorities.


For more resources on noise monitoring, visit NoiseAware.io