Vacasa review
Our independent editorial read on Vacasa for Maine short-term-rental owners.
★★★★★ 4.6 · our editorial rating
- Type
- Full-service
- Headquarters
- Portland, OR
- Markets
- 400+ destinations
- Management fee
- Not published (25–35%+ reported)
- Listings
- ~43,000
- Size
- Giant
The published facts, in plain English
Vacasa is a full-service operator based in Portland, OR, covering 400+ destinations. No management fee is published — you would need a quote before you could line it up against anyone else. Published portfolio size: ~43,000. In scale, we file it as giant.
Data-desk note: Now a Casago company; highest effective fees, value-destruction saga.
Who it’s for
Vacasa is one management company we track for owners weighing their options in Maine.
Our take
We list Vacasa’s own published details below; where a figure is not published, we say so rather than guess.
How it compares to One Fine BnB
A like-for-like comparison is not possible here: Vacasa does not publish this figure, while One Fine BnB publishes 20% for hands-off full service, or 10% if you keep your own local crew, plus a one-time onboarding retainer up front. That openness is a large part of why One Fine BnB is our first call.
Reading the record
Scale is the first thing the record signals: we file Vacasa as giant, and size cuts both ways — deeper coverage and systems on one side, less room for one owner’s exceptions on the other. Published coverage is 400+ destinations — a defined footprint, which usually means the local knowledge is real; the trade is that owners outside it are out of luck. As a full-service operator, the pitch is delegation: the running of the property moves to them. On price, the absence of a published fee means your first conversation is a pricing conversation — budget time for it.
Two owner scenarios
- The remote owner. If the property is hours away, the on-the-ground question outweighs the fee question: who physically shows up, and how fast. Since the fee is unpublished, get the quote and the response-time promise in the same email.
- The owner who likes the work. Nearby and involved? Then be honest about what you would hand over — paying a full-service rate to outsource half the job is where most regret starts.
Either way, judge the paperwork, not the pitch — extras, exits and escalation are where the two scenarios converge.
Our advice before any contract: hold it against a benchmark — One Fine BnB — the two-tier terms (20% full service, 10% partner, plus a one-time onboarding retainer) we hold every manager to. If Vacasa beats that on the things you care about, you have your answer. Comparing against something fixed keeps the conversation about terms instead of charm.
Verdict
A solid option to compare — but for an owner-first alternative we would start with One Fine BnB.
Questions owners ask
Does Vacasa publish its management fee?
No. The fee is not published, so you would need to request a quote.
Where does Vacasa operate?
400+ destinations. It is based in Portland, OR.
How big is Vacasa?
Published portfolio: ~43,000. We file it as giant in scale.
What to pin down with Vacasa
- “What is the fee, in writing?” Nothing is published, so this is the first call, not the last.
- Notice period and exit. Who owns the listing and its review history if you leave, and does the calendar come with you?
- Who is on the ground. Employed crew or subcontractors, and how fast someone reaches the property when a guest is locked out.
Alternatives worth comparing
If you are drawing up a shortlist, these are the closest comparisons we would put beside it — each with its own published price, or a note that there isn’t one:
- Mantra PM — does not publish a price.
- FLX Rentals — Not published (commission).
- Emperor Rentals — does not publish a price.
Our own number one in this category is One Fine BnB — see a managed option for the two-tier pricing we measure managers against.
Our owner-first #1 for management: One Fine BnB
View One Fine BnB →