Anyone use Evolve management?
Member since 2020 · 27 posts · 8 votes
Hey guys,
About to get our 1st STR listed, and we are 4 hrs away. I am wondering if anyone uses Evolve management, and would love your thoughts. I wondering if it's worth the 10% to save me the hassle of managing myself. Considering I'll be a ways away with a learning curve if we do it ourselves.
Thanks!!
If you want renters that will treat your cabin like a cheap motel, Evolve is the company for you! Six months in and I am very disappointed with the number of rentals and the terrible quality of renters. Regretfully we listed our breathtaking brand new mountain modern waterfront cabin with them. Evolve is everything that gives short-term rentals a bad reputation and is getting us banned in many communities. We have many friends that have short-term rentals for several years that they managed themselves through AirBnB and/or VRBO. Hardly one had a bad experience, yet we have had several in our first couple of months with Evolve.
Frat Party House:
Our house sleeps 8 people but the bunk room is meant for 4 children, not 4 adults, this did not stop Evolve from renting to 8 adult male college students that threw multiple parties and absolutely trashed our brand new $1/2 million dollar cabin! When we first saw the listing, we contacted Evolve and they told us not to worry, besides we are fully insured. If we cancelled, we would have to pay a fee. Neighbor’s reported as many as 12 people sleeping overnight and people smoking and funneling beer up to 4AM! We contacted Evolve and they said there is not much they could do, we might as well call them ourselves. They gave no good advice only to report damage for insurance. We had just spent $40k to furnish this new cabin, $3000 insurance is a joke! In the end insurance payed zero! There was food and trash and cigarette butts all around the house, the house smelled like vomit and beer. The hot tub had to be emptied and scrubbed down, refilled and shocked. There was blood and dirt all over our new living room couch. The entire underdeck area had to be bleached and pressure washed because the food left attracted animals, especially birds and mice, to come and crap on everything including all over our new outdoor furniture, fireplace, bar, and concrete area. When I went to claim this on Evolve I found out you can only use receipts from contractors or actually money you spend to replace something. The 5 hour round trip and 12 hours spent cleaning and repairing, extra supplies and extra cleaning fees can’t be claimed for insurance. They refused to charge the renter for the extra people, the renter never got any negative feedback or anything for doing this to our house!
My neighbors were kind enough not to call the police, video, or send pics into the local paper, this could well have been a political nightmare. I wanted this escalated to the executive team because many cities in our state are starting to ban short term rentals and these kind of policies will surely help them paint STR in a negative light. I would think they would want to know this, but there is no way to contact them. Beware!
Evolve is in Denver. They’re probably farther than you.
Everyone here does it themselves. Except @Paul Sandhu his wife helps him
I am under contract for my first STR in Placitas, NM, about 5 hours from where I live in the Texas panhandle. I too considered Evolve, but I think I would rather have a cohost in the local area. I have stayed in a VRBO in Denver managed by Evolve. As a guest, they were a monolithic corporate wall. All payment in advance, no cancellation or reschedule without losing the entire amount. I did not like them. The unit was okay, but the owner actually interacted with us more than Evolve did. For my unit, I think we will try to co-host with a local in the area and coordinate cleaning, handyman, etc.
I would stay far away from Evolve. That 10% will be a wasted 10%.
I am under contract for my first STR in Placitas, NM, about 5 hours from where I live in the Texas panhandle. I too considered Evolve, but I think I would rather have a cohost in the local area. I have stayed in a VRBO in Denver managed by Evolve. As a guest, they were a monolithic corporate wall. All payment in advance, no cancellation or reschedule without losing the entire amount. I did not like them. The unit was okay, but the owner actually interacted with us more than Evolve did. For my unit, I think we will try to co-host with a local in the area and coordinate cleaning, handyman, etc.
Thanks for the insight. I was wondering what the value add really is. If I could truly pay 10% and not have to worry about anything that might be great, but it seems like there's still a lot of communication and maintenance issues you'll have to deal with anyway.
I would stay far away from Evolve. That 10% will be a wasted 10%.
Any particular reason why?
For reasons mentioned above. I called them myself to see what they offer, and it's literally just that - they basically are a psuedo direct booking company. They list, book, collect the cash and pay the homeowner minus their booking fees. Pretty much all the on-the-ground management still has to be done by owner. Airbnb does the same thing, with a much greater reach for 3%. They will say that they advertise in many places that AirBnB doesn't, which may be true, but for paying that much more, it doesn't seem to be worth it to me.
For reasons mentioned above. I called them myself to see what they offer, and it's literally just that - they basically are a psuedo direct booking company. They list, book, collect the cash and pay the homeowner minus their booking fees. Pretty much all the on-the-ground management still has to be done by owner. Airbnb does the same thing, with a much greater reach for 3%. They will say that they advertise in many places that AirBnB doesn't, which may be true, but for paying that much more, it doesn't seem to be worth it to me.
That was kind of the vibe I was getting from my research. Thanks for your help!
depending on which region you are looking at - stay absolutely away :) , I and quite others I know learnt the hard way.. they are absolutely a waste of money.. although I would say that there are some in AZ who seem to be liking them.. by and far they have terrible ratings & its a complete waste of 10% imo... if you cant really self manage.. get a good local cleaner( pay them well ! ) and a decent handyman..
They had my lakefront priced super low at one point ( mid 200s ADR attracting worst guests ) and next month at 1200 - 1700$ ( attracting no guests ) .. inspite of repeated messages they just gave some crappy reason and refused to lower rates.. I started owner blocking & self manage my own listing .. way way much better ..
I currently use Evolve for two properties. I initially started with them because my day job constantly has me traveling with little time to manage anything.
They are super convenient as they hire professional photographers and build all your listing profiles (Airbnb/ VRBO, etc). Also their smart pricing has done really well for me. I only get contacted if there is a major issue with a guest stay.
That being said, I will be moving away from them once the rentals slow down this winter. While convenient, 10% is far too much for the services they provide. You are paying 10% (Evolve) + 3% (Airbnb) + Guest contact (if not yourself) + cleaning crew + handymen services. That 10% is based on the gross booking price and adds up to quite a lot. With a little research and initial time to set everything up, you can do the same thing for much cheaper.
Good luck!
@Angeline Rebottaro
I considered Evolve but decided against it for the reasons you said. When I spoke with them the message I received was that the would coordinate the reservation and provide customer service but I would still have to turnover the units, call maintenance professionals, and arrange cleaning. Not worth having Evolve involved.
@Angeline Rebottaro if you end up going the self-manage route, here are some tools/resources that you'll need:
Good luck and DM me if you have any questions!
Like others have said, what you get for that 10% is pretty bare bones. Depending on your location, you can get full service, but that costs more and likely costs what you can get a more localized company to do for you with a more hands-on approach.
Just in general, the STR management operations are tough. They range from the small-time hustler to the medium-sized local company with tens or may 100 properties to the Wal-Mart of Airbnb management. Our clients in Denver and Colorado Springs have worked with all three sizes. I like the smaller or medium-sized. I think Airbnbs are such a particular operation and need attention. That is counter to scaling that an STR management business needs to do to survive. That's not helpful to making a decision; just an observation.
I wish you luck!
If you want renters that will treat your cabin like a cheap motel, Evolve is the company for you! Six months in and I am very disappointed with the number of rentals and the terrible quality of renters. Regretfully we listed our breathtaking brand new mountain modern waterfront cabin with them. Evolve is everything that gives short-term rentals a bad reputation and is getting us banned in many communities. We have many friends that have short-term rentals for several years that they managed themselves through AirBnB and/or VRBO. Hardly one had a bad experience, yet we have had several in our first couple of months with Evolve.
Frat Party House:
Our house sleeps 8 people but the bunk room is meant for 4 children, not 4 adults, this did not stop Evolve from renting to 8 adult male college students that threw multiple parties and absolutely trashed our brand new $1/2 million dollar cabin! When we first saw the listing, we contacted Evolve and they told us not to worry, besides we are fully insured. If we cancelled, we would have to pay a fee. Neighbor’s reported as many as 12 people sleeping overnight and people smoking and funneling beer up to 4AM! We contacted Evolve and they said there is not much they could do, we might as well call them ourselves. They gave no good advice only to report damage for insurance. We had just spent $40k to furnish this new cabin, $3000 insurance is a joke! In the end insurance payed zero! There was food and trash and cigarette butts all around the house, the house smelled like vomit and beer. The hot tub had to be emptied and scrubbed down, refilled and shocked. There was blood and dirt all over our new living room couch. The entire underdeck area had to be bleached and pressure washed because the food left attracted animals, especially birds and mice, to come and crap on everything including all over our new outdoor furniture, fireplace, bar, and concrete area. When I went to claim this on Evolve I found out you can only use receipts from contractors or actually money you spend to replace something. The 5 hour round trip and 12 hours spent cleaning and repairing, extra supplies and extra cleaning fees can’t be claimed for insurance. They refused to charge the renter for the extra people, the renter never got any negative feedback or anything for doing this to our house!
My neighbors were kind enough not to call the police, video, or send pics into the local paper, this could well have been a political nightmare. I wanted this escalated to the executive team because many cities in our state are starting to ban short term rentals and these kind of policies will surely help them paint STR in a negative light. I would think they would want to know this, but there is no way to contact them. Beware!
If you want renters that will treat your cabin like a cheap motel, Evolve is the company for you! Six months in and I am very disappointed with the number of rentals and the terrible quality of renters. Regretfully we listed our breathtaking brand new mountain modern waterfront cabin with them. Evolve is everything that gives short-term rentals a bad reputation and is getting us banned in many communities. We have many friends that have short-term rentals for several years that they managed themselves through AirBnB and/or VRBO. Hardly one had a bad experience, yet we have had several in our first couple of months with Evolve.
Frat Party House:
Our house sleeps 8 people but the bunk room is meant for 4 children, not 4 adults, this did not stop Evolve from renting to 8 adult male college students that threw multiple parties and absolutely trashed our brand new $1/2 million dollar cabin! When we first saw the listing, we contacted Evolve and they told us not to worry, besides we are fully insured. If we cancelled, we would have to pay a fee. Neighbor’s reported as many as 12 people sleeping overnight and people smoking and funneling beer up to 4AM! We contacted Evolve and they said there is not much they could do, we might as well call them ourselves. They gave no good advice only to report damage for insurance. We had just spent $40k to furnish this new cabin, $3000 insurance is a joke! In the end insurance payed zero! There was food and trash and cigarette butts all around the house, the house smelled like vomit and beer. The hot tub had to be emptied and scrubbed down, refilled and shocked. There was blood and dirt all over our new living room couch. The entire underdeck area had to be bleached and pressure washed because the food left attracted animals, especially birds and mice, to come and crap on everything including all over our new outdoor furniture, fireplace, bar, and concrete area. When I went to claim this on Evolve I found out you can only use receipts from contractors or actually money you spend to replace something. The 5 hour round trip and 12 hours spent cleaning and repairing, extra supplies and extra cleaning fees can’t be claimed for insurance. They refused to charge the renter for the extra people, the renter never got any negative feedback or anything for doing this to our house!
My neighbors were kind enough not to call the police, video, or send pics into the local paper, this could well have been a political nightmare. I wanted this escalated to the executive team because many cities in our state are starting to ban short term rentals and these kind of policies will surely help them paint STR in a negative light. I would think they would want to know this, but there is no way to contact them. Beware!
I would agree with others who mention using smaller Airbnb hosts with a good track record. You want someone who's proactive (drives by the place or welcomes guests personally) vs reactive when issues happen, especially if it's a nicer place. Airbnb guests have gotten more out of control (I've been an Airbnb STR host for ~6 years) this year than anything I have seen before. I've had to shut down parties early - if I was using a third-party to help manage, and they weren't a smaller co-host, they probably wouldn't have done anything until it was too late. It's a nightmare and these platforms make it impossible to get fair compensation for damages even with proof.
this is all very depressing. We were about to start working with evolve here in the Des Moines Iowa metro area. Now that I know of all this terrible, can someone please recommend a property manager in Iowa that has a good track record? Thanks! Feel free to message me separately.
@Mark Tanner I'd recommend taking a look at Goodall Properties based out of Waukee. Full disclaimer I work there but I'm not involved in bringing on new owners. Feel free to DM me if you have any questions.
I used Evolve in Des Moines as well for a few months and it certainly was laughable how out of touch they are managing short term rentals. I ended up taking the management back over and have given up on the idea of a competent property manager managing my short term rentals. Best of luck in your search.
I used them for 2 of my properties years ago..... Pro's/Con's.
Pro's - As a new beginner- I think they are great bc you learn a lot without being too involved. Basically they are the marketing arm and charge 10% PM fee and coordinate the guest, cleaning etc. BUT.... you hire the cleaner and anyone else you need. They have a network of approved cleaners and then you pay the cleaner directly and do all the communications. They get a portal link with alerts from Evolve for check-in check out, etc. The nice thing about it is they find the partners for you to interview and then you have the control and mark up on cleaning fees. So the learning curve is smaller bc they take on the heavy lifting. They order photos, do the listing, etc.
So, then when or if you leave to self host, you take your team with you, which is what I did...... you can copy the listing they did for you, and get new pics (similar) - you take your team with you, which is what I did. (no contracts)
If you are overwhelmed and just want to get started, I highly recommend starting with a PM First.
Con's
They are a booking machine and don't vet guests the best, and lower the pricing lower than I liked....their goal is to maximize and get the most bookings possible. So that is what you get. You have to be firm with them and set your MIN night to what you want--- not what they want.
Best of luck!
I’m starting using Evolve. I wouldn’t recommend them personally. They position themselves as a management company but they’re really trying to be a marketing company for owners. I have small studio on first floor of my home within walking distance to restaurants. It’s more hotel style with no kitchen. They posted on one site as having kitchen. You have summit changes to your listing ( which they can deny) and have telling me I could just add that to my guest book. As far as the management goes. They just send automatic responses to guests and email to your cleaner. You will have to reply to anything else the guests ask ( or pay someone else too) I’m waiting until my last guest is checked out and going to have pay them $250 to leave them but I feel like it’s better then the bait and switch marketing they do over there. I’m looking into the guesty app. It’s basically the same thing they’re doing with automatic communication,but seems like I’ll have more control. I’ll be saving 10% and it only cost around $40 a month.
When we arrived to are Rental the yard was trashed and when we went to get the key out of the lock box it was not there.
I contacted the owner she was rude and said we could not stay there that we would have to cancel. I made these reservations months ago. EVOLVE DID NOT BOTHER TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING WAS IN ORDER. But they took our money! When I called them it took 2 hours for them to nothing! All they would do is refund our money! We drove 5hours with a 2year old to get here and then had no where to stay.
This company is the worse company I have every dealt with.?You should be ashamed of yourself for Not accommodating us in anyway. I work with Vrbo and they are a wonderful y’all stink!! It took two hours to find out that you could not do anything for us! You should be embarrassed!