A Shock to Short-Term Rentals: Vacasa Is Being Acquired!

At the beginning of 2025, the short-term rental industry experienced a dramatic change: Casago acquired Vacasa for US$128.6 million. Both companies lead their respective fields, and their merger will create one of the world’s largest and most influential short- and mid-term rental management platforms.

The merger will bring the number of properties managed by the two companies worldwide to more than 100,000, expanding their coverage from North America to Europe and Asia. The new company will be named CasaVacasa and headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, United States (Scottsdale).

In recent years, US short-term rentals have faced many challenges, and even industry leaders have struggled to escape them. Recently, US short-term rental manager Casago announced its acquisition of competitor Vacasa, which manages about eight times as many listings as Casago.

The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025 and take Vacasa private, removing it from the stock market.

Three years ago, Vacasa went public through a SPAC and reached a valuation of US$4.4 billion in 2021. Its performance has declined in recent years, however: revenue fell 6% year over year in 2023 and 17% year over year in the third quarter of 2024.

The acquisition reflects the weak US short-term rental market in recent years, with hosts’ income falling substantially.

For example, a tweet by Nick Gerli, CEO of property investment consultancy Reventure Consulting, went viral on Twitter as early as late June 2023. He said, “The Airbnb collapse is real.”

Changes in the regulatory environment have also hurt short-term rentals. Several US cities have introduced stricter rules, causing many listings to disappear from the market.

Regulators believe that unregulated short-term rentals encourage illegal hotel operations, create unnecessary risks for guests and neighbors, reduce the supply of long-term rental homes and push rents higher.

For homeowners, these industry changes warrant attention. Weak short-term rental conditions and stricter regulation may affect property earnings and investment returns.

In the present circumstances, homeowners should closely follow market developments and assess their investment strategies to address the challenges facing short-term rentals.

The Background and Significance of the Merger

1. Casago and Vacasa: The Development of Two Major Companies

Casago: distinguished by premium service and international operations, covering leading vacation destinations across North America and Latin America.

Casago has won over many homeowners and guests with its philosophy of local service.

Vacasa: a leader in North America’s short- and mid-term rental market, with a strong technology platform and broad market coverage. Known for dynamic pricing and large-scale operating capabilities, it provides comprehensive support for owners, from bookings to property management.

The two companies complement one another in positioning and technology. Industry observers have described the merger as an example of cooperation in which 1+1>2.

2. The Merger’s Strategic Significance

The merged company will combine technology, resources and market networks to provide a more convenient, efficient experience for owners and guests. The merger is expected to increase market share, improve operating efficiency and further strengthen leadership in global short- and mid-term rentals.

Conclusion

Attentive homeowners may already have noticed some key information in this article, for example:

Vacasa manages about eight times as many listings as Casago, yet ultimately could not avoid being acquired by Casago. This shows that management at scale is insufficient to address an industry-wide downturn.

Casago is distinguished by premium service and international operations, with many leading vacation destinations.

As the short-term rental market becomes saturated, the era of making money by winning on the number of homes is gone for good. With so many choices, guests are raising their expectations for cleanliness, location and distinctive experiences.

For example, a Booking.com survey shows that 72% of travelers are more willing to pay higher prices for high-quality short-term rentals offering distinctive experiences.

For individual hosts, high occupancy and good reviews are often directly related to professional management. An attractive home and professional operations—factors that improve the guest experience—will be critical in the future.

Only by focusing on listing quality, professional service and greater property value can hosts hold their ground in the market and stand out amid intense competition.

If you:

Hope to increase rental income through short-term rentals;

Cannot spare a great deal of time to handle the small details;

Occasionally need to use the home yourself, making it unsuitable to empty out the furniture for a long-term rental;

Then:

Snowball Rentals’ management team is your best choice.

From pre-launch vacation-rental styling, big-data analysis and online marketing to tenant screening, dynamic pricing, customer service and sales, cleaning and repairs, Snowball Rentals provides everything as one complete service for your home!

This Week’s Booking Results

Through long-standing relationships with insurers, assignment companies and technology companies, Snowball Rentals rents homes for medium- and long-term durations at short-term rates, then gives owners a rebate of 5% in management fees to maximize their income.

As the weather gets cooler, Seattle’s short-term rental low season is approaching again.

Short-term rentals in peak season and mid-term rentals in low season: this is the new strategy we have repeatedly emphasized and tried this year!

Some recent large bookings have been like a ray of sunshine. Homeowners, let us support one another and face the approaching low season with confidence.

For the following detached home in Bellevue, Zillow shows an estimated long-term monthly rent of about US$11,774.

With the owner’s trust and support, we carefully furnished the home and immediately began short-term rental operations. Fortunately, because the home’s condition and location are both good, short- and mid-term bookings have continued to come in.

As shown in the booking screenshot below, a guest recently contacted us directly to rent this home from December 26 last year to June 30 this year, a total of 186 nights, at an average monthly rent of about US$15,580.

In summary, after Snowball Rentals operated this property, monthly rental income rose from US$11,774 to US$15,580, an increase of about 32% .

Securing such a large booking in low season is no easy feat!

For homeowners, combining short- and mid-term rentals in this way can earn more in peak season and help them get through low season smoothly. Even if the low-season rental figures look less dramatic, they still outperform long-term rentals and give homeowners a strong sense of financial security.

More importantly, the owner does not have to worry about maintenance or cleaning. When something needs to be discussed with guests, we also help with communication and oversight.

Here, we again thank the owner for placing trust in the Snowball Rentals team!

After nearly two years of Airbnb’s downturn, we at Snowball Rentals hope to help owners make steady progress in low season, navigate the challenges safely and lay a better foundation for next year’s peak season.

Once again, heartfelt thanks to our homeowners for their trust and support. Whether the market is strong or weak, Snowball Rentals will stand with you and look for ways to increase your income!

Some homeowners will surely ask the hard question:

Was a large booking like this just a stroke of luck? What if the home does not rent? A long-term rental is more stable—even earning less is better than earning nothing!

Our answer is: the outcome depends on what we do.

Vacation-Rental Styling

Competition on Airbnb is becoming increasingly intense. The days of piecing together secondhand furniture, taking phone photos and earning easy money on Airbnb are over. Airbnb hosts have moved toward professional operations.

Careful design and furnishing before launch, followed by professional short-term rental operations, will be the only choice for a rental that continues to generate high income.

Here is another of Snowball Rentals’ core services: vacation-rental styling!

Using the home above as an example, let us look together at its appearance after furnishing:

When choosing a short-term rental on Airbnb, would this home’s appearance attract you?

If you would also like to make your home more attractive and earn more rent, please contact us at any time!

We also share practical vacation-rental styling plans and creative ideas to help you achieve more with less spending!

Keep rental income growing!

Referral Rewards

If you are already a Snowball Rentals homeowner, you receive a US$500 referral fee for each referral.

If you are not yet a Snowball Rentals homeowner, you receive a US$250 shopping voucher for each referral.

Snowball Rentals Management

1. Full service — We provide pre-launch rental design, furniture procurement, furnishing, professional photography, online marketing, copywriting, tenant service and sales, cleaning, supply purchasing and property repairs. You only need to be a hands-off owner; we handle the rest.

2. Multi-platform promotion — We promote the home on Airbnb, VRBO, HomeAway and other mainstream platforms for maximum exposure.

3. Dynamic pricing — Using big data, we adjust prices every day according to seasonal demand, holidays, last-minute vacancy offers, weekends and local activities, maximizing the owner’s income.

4. Income-improvement SOP — We follow 44 secrets for maximizing short-term rental income, optimizing each property’s online marketing, on-site operations and other aspects to work toward maximum income.

5. Flexible owner stays — Owners can flexibly choose when to stay themselves. This is especially suitable for owners with multiple residences around the world.

6. Terminate at any time — Management does not require an annual commitment. The owner can end the agreement with one month’s advance notice.

7. Corporate housing — In addition to nightly rentals, we work with insurers and assignment companies to provide executives with hotel-style managed accommodation for stays 30 days or more.

8. Transparent fees — For rentals 30 days or more, we charge 15% of accommodation revenue. For nightly rentals 30 days or less, we charge 20% of accommodation revenue.