Start with control and day-to-day work
Co-hosting usually describes a host sharing specified hosting tasks with another person or a software service. The host may keep the listing, guest relationship and final decisions while delegating selected work. The label alone does not tell you whether a co-host drafts a message, sends it, coordinates a cleaner or simply helps you organise the task.
Managed hosting usually means a provider takes the agreed lead on more of the daily operation. That can reduce the work an owner handles directly, but it does not transfer ownership of the property. The written scope still matters: it should explain which decisions the manager can make, which need your approval and what remains yours or another supplier’s responsibility.
Before comparing fees, write down the tasks you want to keep, the decisions you want to approve and the work you want someone else to carry out. Then check whether each provider has actually agreed to those duties.
Put responsibilities in writing
For every task, agree who does it, who pays, what authority they have and how an exception is escalated.
Guest messages
Who watches enquiries and in-stay messages? Are replies drafted for your review or sent by the provider? Define coverage hours, handover when someone is unavailable and the situations that need your decision.
Check-in and access
Who prepares arrival instructions, manages keys or access codes and responds to a lockout? Agree who can issue or change access details and who handles a failed entry.
Turnovers
Who books the cleaning team, confirms timing, pays the invoice and checks the property is ready? Clarify who responds if a turnover is late or the work needs to be repeated.
Maintenance and repairs
Set an approval limit for routine work, a route for urgent repairs and a record of supplier quotes and invoices. Name who can authorise work when you cannot be reached.
Restocking
Specify which supplies are checked, who buys them, how purchases are approved and whether the goods or delivery are charged separately.
Reviews
Agree who drafts or posts a review response and how complaints, refund requests or disputed accounts are brought to you before a commitment is made.
After-hours support and escalation
Ask what hours are covered, how to reach the person on duty, what counts as urgent and who is the backup. Put any response-time commitment and escalation path in the agreement.
Check booking channels and synchronisation
A provider’s channel list is not the same as a promise that calendars, rates or restrictions stay in sync. Ask for the workflow that applies to your property and accounts.
- Channels
- Which booking channels and direct-booking sources are included in the agreed scope, and who owns each listing and guest account?
- Availability
- How are availability calendars, minimum stays and reservation changes shared? Is the process automatic or manual, and who checks for conflicts?
- Rates
- Who changes nightly prices and restrictions on each channel? If a rate is changed in one place, when and how is it reflected elsewhere?
- Failures
- What happens when a connection fails, a platform changes its rules or a booking arrives before calendars update?
Compare the fee basis and separate costs
Compare the same property, period and operating scope. A flat subscription, a percentage of bookings and a managed service can include different work, so a headline rate alone is not an all-in comparison.
- Fee basis
- Is the charge a flat monthly subscription, a per-listing amount, a percentage or a combination? If it is a percentage, exactly which booking amounts are included in the base?
- Additional fees
- Are there onboarding charges, minimum monthly fees, payment or platform charges, taxes, cancellation terms or other conditions? When can each charge change?
- Property costs
- Are cleaning, laundry, maintenance, repairs, restocking, utilities, insurance and taxes included, passed through or paid by you separately?
- Written total
- Can the provider show the fee basis and likely separate costs in writing for your scope, including who approves each expense?
Verify screening, insurance and damage terms
Do not infer guest screening, damage protection, insurance limits or liability coverage from the service label. Ask each provider and check the applicable written terms and policies.
- Screening
- What checks, if any, are performed, by whom and at what stage? Who decides whether to accept a booking, and what information is collected or shared?
- Insurance
- Which policy applies to the property and activity, who is insured, where does it apply, and what are its limits, excesses and exclusions? Who handles a claim?
- Damage
- Who records damage, contacts the guest or platform, files any claim and pays costs that are disputed or not covered?
- Responsibility
- How do the agreement and your own policy allocate responsibility for guest incidents, access issues, supplier work and property damage?
A quick fit check
Use your preferred level of involvement as the starting point, then verify that the provider’s actual scope matches it.
You want to keep decisions close.
A co-hosting arrangement or host-controlled software may fit if you want to approve guest replies, prices and operating choices, and you are prepared to do the remaining work.
You want someone to lead daily hosting.
A managed service may fit if the property is eligible and you are comfortable agreeing the provider’s authority, included tasks, approval limits and separate costs in writing.
You are unsure what is covered.
Ask each provider to complete the same responsibility list and fee comparison before you decide. Keep unresolved duties, exclusions and escalation contacts visible.
You are weighing a performance promise.
Ask what evidence and terms support it. Do not base the choice on assumed revenue, occupancy, nightly-rate, response-time or search-placement gains.
How SmartStay Co-Host and Managed differ
These are separate routes with different responsibilities and next steps. Review the current offer pages for the applicable scope and terms.
SmartStay offer
SmartStay Co-Host
Host-controlled software for independent Airbnb and Vrbo hosts. You keep property ownership and day-to-day decisions, review guest-reply drafts and nightly price suggestions, send replies yourself and change Airbnb or Vrbo prices manually. Co-Host uses a flat monthly subscription without booking commission.
Explore SmartStay Co-HostSmartStay offer
SmartStay Managed
A separate service assessed for selected UK properties. SmartStay leads the day-to-day hosting agreed in the written scope; the owner retains property ownership. The 15% of gross booking revenue rate applies only where the property is suitable and the written terms agree it. Onboarding or minimum fees and direct property costs may be separate where applicable and agreed.
Explore SmartStay ManagedOffer details can change. Check the current offer page and written terms for the scope and charges that apply to your property.