YourSTR / Short-term rental research
We're developing an evidence-led approach to understanding STR performance.
Through real-world experiments, independent-minded software evaluations and measurable business improvements, we're investigating what genuinely drives profitability, efficiency and long-term success.
We're working towards a more meaningful, evidence-led benchmark for STR business performance. Our own portfolio is the first case study.
Profitability
Revenue performance
Operational efficiency
Guest experience
Business resilience
The first case study
Our own portfolio is the first research environment.
We're doing the work ourselves before asking anyone else to trust the method. Planned for 1 November 2026 to 31 October 2027; October is preparation.
Question 01 · Success
A busy calendar can hide a weak business. We're researching five broad dimensions together. They're initial research dimensions, not a universal score, and we don't weight them.
How we approach itWhat does the business actually keep after its costs?
How effectively does it generate revenue from available accommodation?
How much time, labour and complexity does the business require?
Does the business consistently deliver a high-quality stay?
How well can it handle changes in demand, costs, distribution channels and operational risks?
Question 02 · Method
Nine existing UK properties, no new ones added. For every change we capture starting conditions, implementation date, cost, measurements, results and limitations. If the evidence is unclear, we say so.
Revenue
Demand
Stay
Operations
Owner
Starting conditions
Implementation date
Costs
Measurements
Results
Limitations
How each test is judged
Keep
The evidence supports paying for it again.
Question
Some value, but the cost, effort or evidence is mixed.
Cancel
It did not earn its place in the business.
Insufficient evidence
We can't honestly tell yet, so we say so.
Question 03 · Contribution
We're not just using software. We're evaluating what each system and specialist actually contributes, including combinations where several providers feed one outcome. Pricing software and a revenue management service are judged separately.
Question 04 · Findings
The research is active. The method is published, preparation and onboarding are underway, and the first changes are being recorded with their start dates and costs. No completed findings have been published yet, and we won't present plans as results.
Methodology
Published
Dimensions, record format, evaluation questions and verdicts.
Read the methodUnderway
October preparation
Revenue management with Destination Asset and website and CRM work with Boostly, ahead of the planned 1 November 2026 start.
See the experimentCompleted findings
None published yet
Reference period 1 Oct 2025 to 30 Sep 2026. Results will appear as each test can be judged.
FindingsResearch & insights
Practical guide · Guest Experience
Somewhere along the way, short-term rentals got sold as passive income. Buy a property, list it on Airbnb, sit back. The bookings come in, the money flows, and you barely have to think about it.
Practical guide · Revenue & Pricing
Pricing is probably the single area where STR operators lose the most money without realising it. Not because the rates are wildly wrong, but because small, repeated errors compound across the calendar. A rate that's £15 too low on a Saturday in peak season. A minimum stay that blocks a bookable night. A gap that sits empty because nobody thought to drop the price.
Practical guide · Direct Bookings
Most Airbnb hosts treat direct bookings as something that happens to big hotel brands. It doesn't. Any STR operator with a single property can start taking direct bookings, and the commercial case for doing so is stronger than most people realise.
Free tools
Working break-even occupancy and revenue-to-profit calculators, plus an optimisation checklist and a weekly KPI tracker. Unlock them with your name, email and clear consent to research emails.
Open the free toolsFounder
I'm Dave Thomas, founder of YourSTR. Dave Does Property is where I document the journey: “I'm giving myself one year to build the perfect Airbnb business.” YourSTR is the research behind it, and the findings are meant to be useful to operators well beyond our nine properties.
About DaveResearch updates by email, sent when there's something worth sharing.
Not every update has a big result. Some cover decisions, set-up or early evidence.