Read Time: 3 minutes

Our favorite sponsors who help keep this content free for you:

Jasmine Mortgage Team now offers HELOCs on investment properties!  Home Equity Lines of Credit are the best way to pull out equity without refinancing your current interest rate. Work with a lender that understands real estate. Book a free 15-minute consultation with Jasmine today. 

Screen your tenants, run background checks, and search up criminal history of your tenants and applicants using TransUnion SmartMove. Free for landlords to get all the information they need at tenant screening. Test run your next rental applicant at TransUnion SmartMove.

Picture it: your house is one of a million listed on Airbnb, VRBO, or HomeAway and you are struggling for bookings.

Maybe there is already a superhost with 5,000 5-star reviews on the same block that you are competing with. Instead of accepting just being a small fish in a big pond, consider these 4 alternatives for other short-term rental platforms as location, location, location matters online as well as in real estate.

Wow, no alternative? I think someone is a little worried these other options may be better than Airbnb one day.

Alternative 1: Hopper, for last minute bookings

Hopper is an app that combines travel booking options (think Kayak, Orbitz) like plane travel with short-term rental lodging stays. The focus is on quick, instant approvals of guest bookings. Getting your STR on here early may work wonders as the app continues to grow.

Alternative 2: Kid & Coe, for family bookings

Consider Kid & Coe if your STR is family-friendly with games, playgrounds, and more. This is a family-only booking site looking to recommend the best family-oriented short-term rentals in town. You even have the opportunity to house swap with other families.

Alternative 3: Peerspace, for booking spaces

The website Peerspace is for booking activities and spaces. Is your place suitable for a small corporate war room, hosting a game night, or making the perfect backdrop for a wedding shoot? If so, then definitely list on here. Or maybe you have a spare garage, basement, or unique structure that can be useful to someone else? You'll no doubt find a way to make income off your short-term rental assets here with the right marketing and photos.

Alternative 4: Flok, for booking retreats

Flok is where you go to book corporate retreats and smaller business meetups. Small businesses and startups love to host offsites in homes with large gathering areas with outdoor spaces, basements, or workshops to brainstorm new ideas and team-building. List your STR on here as well for some guests that are sure to be fairly well-behaved since the boss is coming as well.

Glad to see it, that's all I ask. Now, go get some additional bookings on these alternate platforms and throw me a referral fee! 

In other words:

• Don't be beholden to one platform ever as consumer preferences are ever-changing
• Bookings in downtime between other tradtional stays can be very profitable
• Understand what problem your STR can solve and lean into it on the right platform