Speaker: Welcome to Keynotes, a podcast just for Casago homeowners.
This is where we explore how to get the most out of your relationship with
Casago, learn tips and tricks on how to make more income with your property,
and learn a little bit about the short term rental industry along the way.
I've been a vacation rental nerd since my twenties, and the team has finally
let me have this podcast so I can share everything I've learned with you.
I'm your host, Steve Schwab, and this is Keynotes.
Thanks for watching.
Hey, welcome to Keynotes.
I'm your host, Steve Schwab.
Today, we're with Andrea and Cassandra from South Padre.
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 2: Thank you so much for having us, Steve.
Yes, thank you for having us, Steve.
Speaker: So, you guys started in the vacation rental industry
well before you were with Casago.
You guys have been doing a lot of interesting things to include accounting,
And tech, property tech in the industry.
Can you tell me a little bit about that?
Speaker 2: Sure.
So I started working for Streamline Vacation Rental
Software about eight years ago.
And that's where I started in the vacation rental industry.
Currently the development manager there.
So I oversee a lot of the new features, projects, and
oversee that entire department.
Um, so that was kind of my introduction, uh, into the industry
before I started managing properties.
Yeah.
And how about
Speaker 3: you, Cassandra?
Before managing properties, I've always been in a manager position.
I managed a wellness center for a few years.
And then I decided that I wanted to join Andrea in onboarding within Streamline.
Yeah.
And that's how I got my start knowing the system and learning how to set up systems
and just kind of give people a head start in learning how to Streamline works.
And
Speaker: off you went.
Speaker 3: And off I went.
Speaker 2: And then shortly after that she had her accounting company.
Yeah.
Versa Services, about
Speaker 3: four years now?
It's about four years now.
Yep.
Four years
Speaker 2: she's had that, supporting streamlined clients
in the accounting front.
Speaker: Yeah.
I mean it's kind of great because not only are you property managers here
with Casaco, but you're also so well versed in so many different parts of the
industry, whether it be tech, and all the different parts of tech you played, and.
Accounting, which is one of the hardest things there is
for a lot of property managers.
So the internal talent set you guys have at South Padre is really special.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it definitely sets us apart from
probably most property managers.
Um, we definitely have a different insight into property management
on many different levels.
On
Speaker 3: all fronts.
Speaker: So, tell me a little bit about your background.
You guys are from New Mexico, like me.
Yes.
Andrew, we went to the same college.
Speaker 2: Mm
Speaker: hmm.
Sure did.
And, uh, you guys met there.
We did.
And you guys are partners not just in business, but also in life.
Speaker 2: Yes, um, we have been partners for about 23 years now.
We started in hospitality, working in restaurants, and
actually, uh, many jobs together.
We worked in quite a few restaurants together over the years, and, uh,
I think that's really where we, you know, honed our skills and customer
service and taking care of people.
We did have a motorcycle gear and apparel shop for a couple years.
We did that there, um, right outside Las Cruces, New Mexico.
And then I got into property management for 55 plus communities.
Speaker 3: Well, we moved to Phoenix.
Yes, that, that's
Speaker 2: That's when
Speaker 3: we made our move to Phoenix.
We actually moved because Andrea got a job out there and that was our
first introduction to the vacation, I guess the vacation rental.
Speaker 2: Yeah, there's a little bit of short term there, but
it was some long term as well.
From there, when I went to Streamline, Cassandra's Art Versus Services,
and we started managing our own property in South Padre Island.
Back in 2020.
We moved out there and word of mouth.
We just started managing one property after another Owners kept coming on
until I got a call from you Steve
Speaker: And off we went and that's actually my next question.
So perfect segue.
How'd you guys end up being part of the saga?
Speaker 2: So of course, as you know, I was lucky enough to meet you in
2017 at my first streamlined summit.
So the streamlined annual conference, uh, Carlos introduced us.
Um, so got to know you through all those years.
And when you got wind, I was managing properties.
You decided to, I guess, give me a call and see if I wanted
to join the Casago family.
Speaker: Yeah.
And I'm really grateful you guys did.
What was one of the reasons that you guys decided that maybe Kasaka
was a good choice for both you and your homeowners as you came over?
Speaker 2: Sure, so I think when Cassandra and I got off that call
with you, it took us about five minutes to make the decision.
Because, you know, we're very familiar with, you know You, your leadership,
your team, how knowledgeable they are.
And really, we didn't want to try to figure it out on our own.
You know, we knew that take a lot longer.
I mean, it'd be a lot harder to grow and we knew you already had the
processes in place and would already be there to guide us and mentor us.
So it was, it was an easy decision.
Speaker: That makes me happy.
What are some of the philosophies you guys employ around making sure you take care
of homeowners and guests to make sure that they find really great satisfaction in
the property management that you offer?
Speaker 2: It's really making them a priority.
I mean, for guests, We try to treat them as if we were
hosting our friends and family.
Cassandra, she loves to host.
Like my mother says, the hostess with the mostess.
You know, so, it was very easy I think for that transition to do it professionally.
She's really great at that and treating her guests.
You know, like they are friends or family coming to visit and our owners,
it's also really treat them like family.
We're available after hours for them.
We have owners that when they come down during the winter, we're
going to breakfast with them.
And it's really giving them that extra attention and having those
close personal relationships.
Speaker: Yeah, yeah.
We have something inside of CASAGO called Owner Centric.
And it's one of the principles that we always talk about inside of CASAGO.
What does it mean to you guys?
Speaker 3: Going above and beyond for your owners, making them feel like they're
the biggest priority, which they are.
And I guess one owner I could think of, it was a new owner that we
acquired and she was recently widowed.
Speaker 2: Yes, and this, uh, this owner was pretty lost.
Never done short term rentals before, wanted to make some extra income.
And she didn't even know about property insurance and property
taxes and even where to go.
So we really held her hand, gave her guidance, gave her contacts, and
really did much more than what we just did as a property manager for her.
And she is definitely extremely grateful for that.
She'll text me in the evening sometimes, or at night, and we text
back and forth, and, you know, like Cassandra said, going above and beyond,
that really is being owner centric.
Speaker: Yeah.
You know, part of our Orange Credo talks about building a relationship
that transcends business.
And I think you guys just demonstrated that part of it specifically because
ensuring that we're there for our homeowners, as you guys were in
ways that aren't monetized, but because it's a relationship and it
builds these relationships where.
We get text messages that have nothing to do with a property.
It's because we've built a relationship with these homeowners.
Yeah.
And, uh, I think it's germane to what we do at Pasago.
You guys, you know, really show that.
Speaker 2: And it's, uh, for, for us, I know I think I can speak for both of us.
It's really fulfilling because relationships, I think in general,
in our lives are very, very important in those connections.
And so to have these connections with their owners and to help them, especially
with their investments, you know, and, and to help them make that money and have
that revenue and just kind of feel secure and confident, it is very fulfilling.
Speaker: Yeah.
I'm going to go a little bit off script here and ask you guys a
question about something that I know is important to you all.
Environmental issues are dear to your heart and we've had
conversations about that before.
Can you tell me a little bit about that and maybe some of the practices
that you're doing to help the environment and maybe why that's
important to homeowners as well?
Speaker 2: Sure, absolutely.
So there's, there's kind of two parts here, people who actually care
about, you know, sustainability.
There's practices we put in place, like we use bamboo toilet paper so that, you
know, it's less trees that are cut down the same with our bamboo paper towels.
Our shampoo, conditioner, body washes are post consumer recycled
material, and they're the larger bottles that we keep refilling, so
we don't use single plastic at all.
We also try to promote Sea Turtle Inc., which is a non profit there in our area.
It's one of the largest sea turtle rescues in the world.
So we promote them on our website.
We also give guests the option to donate directly to them.
We push them to volunteer, maybe for Sea Turtle Inc.
Now, Not only, of course, is this just good for society and sustainability
for those purposes, but us being more sustainable can actually attract
travelers where that's important to them.
So it can actually increase occupancy and generate more revenue for our owners,
just by offering that and marketing that.
Speaker: Yeah.
I mean, it's an entire draw.
And I think there's even websites that are specific just to, um,
Sustainable vacation homes.
Right.
Certainly our leaders in that.
It's really cool.
Yeah.
. When it comes to how you're owner centric, how you've put them, you know,
at the center of your decisions that really can show a homeowner like, hey,
when you think about signing up with a property manager, think about Casago
because this is how we embody the types of values, you know, business values that
you would want to be part of, you know, a company that you want to be part of.
Speaker 2: You know, for some.
They have the money, you know, for onboarding they have, but others don't.
So what we've decided to do is do professional photos
at no cost to the owner.
And all we ask is that they commit to us for at least 90 days.
Yeah.
Let it, let us get some bookings in for them.
And we really try to lower those onboarding costs for them.
Because for some, you know, this is an investment for them, and I know they just,
they need that revenue coming in, and they don't need a lot of upfront cost.
So that's something we try to do for all of our owners.
There's sometimes minor maintenance jobs, too.
We don't even pass on to them if it's something my team can do quickly.
We're just gonna do it.
We're not gonna charge them for every minute we're in there.
Speaker: Yeah.
You guys are so kind hearted and it comes out both in your personal lives and
your professional lives and it's always such a pleasure being around you guys.
If a homeowner wants to get ahold of you to find out more
information, how would they do
Speaker 2: that?
So there's a couple ways.
Of course, they can email us at info at destinationpadre.
com or they can just give us a call directly at 956 410 2234.
That's perfect.
Speaker: All right guys.
Well, thank you so much for coming on.
Really appreciate y'all, and we'll talk to you soon.
Speaker 2: Alright, thank you Steve.
Thanks Steve.