What Happens With Existing Reservations

Question

If no contract, what happens if owner wants to change PM when there are reservations on the book with both AirBNB and VRBO?

Andrew Steffens · Answer

I deal with this often, more often being switched to than from ;)

1. Every situation is usually a little unique - if the client's contract is up say Apr 1 but has a couple bookings in Apr/May I usually suggest delivering notice to the PM that they want to discontinue and that they can keep all reservations on the books and manage them.  We set up a new listing and block out already booked dates.  Its a little annoying but its temporary.

2. If they have a lot of bookings and it does not make sense to do the above, we pick a date in the future, lets say July 1.  They deliver notice and say they will discontinue on July 1 and they can continue business as usual until they.  We then would start a new listing on Jun with a calendar opening on July 1.

3. If an owner were to contact me (would need to be in writing) and instruct me that effective immediately the house is being changed to X management I would unfortunately have to show that written communication to the OTA and get it cancelled.  Hopefully penalty free and hopefully I can relocate the guest to another property in the portfolio.

4. There is one last option, the owner tells the PM to cancel all bookings beyond X date.  The OTA would cancel bookings from X date forward and provide refunds to the guests.  Hopefully penalty free.  If there was a new listing with new manager available the OTA can and do provide the link to the guest for them to rebook, however they are under no obligation to rebook.

Mike Grudzien · Answer

Thank you Andrew for doing the heavy lift.  Good breakdown!

Mark Miles · Answer

Don’t you own your Airbnb and VRBO listings? They should 100% be in your name so this isn’t an issue. Otherwise you’re at the whim of your PM. If they’re unhappy that you’re not working with them anymore, they’ll just close your listings and cancel all of those reservations

John Underwood · Answer

100% agree with Mark.

If PM owns the listings they can do what they want.

However try and negotiate those bookings where you both win.

Jules Aton · Answer

@Andrew Steffens appreciate the comprehensive response and not surprising at all that more are moving into your business than out.

Andrew Street · Answer

This comes up more often than people think, and I’ve managed transitions like this multiple times.

Even without a contract, reservations on both Airbnb and VRBO are tied to the listing account — not the property itself. There’s no true mechanism to “transfer” bookings to a new account.

On Airbnb, the cleanest solution is for the owner to take control of the existing account and remove the outgoing PM as co-host. Alternatively, the incoming PM can be added as co-host prior to the transition date to ensure continuity. Canceling and rebooking is never advisable due to penalties, ranking impact, and guest disruption.

On VRBO, it works similarly. Bookings remain attached to the account holder. If the PM created and controls the account, the most seamless option is login handover. If that’s not possible, a structured transition is needed where the outgoing PM services all existing reservations through completion, and the new PM begins managing new bookings only.

Best practice during any PM change:

• Establish a firm transition date in writing
• Document all upcoming reservations
• Clarify who is responsible for in-house guests and future bookings
• Transfer logins, payout methods, and communication access
• Avoid any guest-facing disruption

Establish a firm transition date in writing

Document all upcoming reservations

Clarify who is responsible for in-house guests and future bookings

Transfer logins, payout methods, and communication access

Avoid any guest-facing disruption

The priority should always be continuity and protecting listing performance. A well-managed handoff prevents penalties, protects ranking, and maintains guest trust.

Jules Aton · Answer

Asking for a friend literally ha. They are listed as co-hosts so I think they both have access to the sites?

What Happens With Existing Reservations

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