By Tina Liptai
‘Just do it’ is the motto Rebecca Cribbin lives by. This mindset has helped Rebecca make the most of opportunities, build two successful real estate businesses, and write a book to share her expertise with others who want to take the leap into managing holiday and short-term rentals.
While real estate has proven to be a dream career, it’s a path Rebecca stumbled upon by chance.
“I was looking for a change, but I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she said. “A friend of the family suggested that I’d be a good real estate agent. I’d never even sold my own house before, but it sounded like an interesting job – so I went ahead and obtained my Real Estate Licence and set up my own business.
“I really jumped right into the deep end and loved it. What I enjoyed most – and still do – was setting up the business and developing processes that ensure that the day-to-day running of the business is smooth.”
Foundation for success
This love of business management developed early in Rebecca’s career, when she worked in the telco and finance industries in Europe. In these roles, she gained a good foundation knowledge in business and the corporate world.
“I learnt about the value of processes, documentation and training, as well as people management, sales and customer service. This has all helped me in building and running my own businesses,” Rebecca said.
After her first child, Alexie, was born, Rebecca decided it was time to leave her role as a consultant in England and move her family back to the Southern Highlands, where her parents lived. It wasn’t long before Rebecca took up the opportunity to work in the family business – her father’s car dealership.
“I had the best of both worlds,” Rebecca explained. “I was able to spend time with my parents and my daughter, while also enjoying the mental stimulation of working.”
By the time she had her second child, Austen, Rebecca was General Manager of the business and was closing deals with her baby son on her hip.
“My experience as a working mother has shaped how I run my business today,” she said. “I have no hesitation hiring mothers, because I know they bring a lot of experience, energy and motivation to the work they do.
“I have a lot of wonderful women working in the business, and I know they have a great work ethic and want to get the job done.”
Five years after Rebecca joined the car dealership, her father decided to sell the business and retire. That’s when Rebecca took the leap into the real estate industry, because she felt it was time to start something new.
Into the unknown
Rebecca started out in residential sales, but soon added property management to the business and built a rent roll of 150 properties. Then, one day in 2010, an unexpected request changed the course of her business and career.
“Someone came into the office and said they were buying a property and wanted it to be a holiday rental,” Rebecca recalled. “They were wondering if we could manage it.”
While Rebecca had no experience in holiday rentals, one of her team did. So, together, they decided to take the plunge. It was the start of her business – Holiday Rental Specialists – and she’s never looked back.
“At that time, there weren’t many people doing holiday rentals – and certainly not in the Southern Highlands,” she said. “But, we decided to have faith in ourselves and make it happen.
“What I worked out very quickly was, unlike every other part of the real estate industry, there were no resources or support I could find that were specific for managing holiday rentals. So, I created all the processes, forms, checklists and everything we needed from scratch with no guidance at all.
“I definitely learnt some things the hard way and made some mistakes along the way, but I really enjoyed the challenge.
“In many ways, our agency was there at the infancy of the holiday and short-term rental and accommodation management industry. It was hard work, but very exciting.”
Growing success
By 2014, Rebecca’s team was managing 40 holiday and short-term rental properties and she’d sold the residential and property management side of the business. Today, Rebecca has grown the business to 50 staff and 400 properties.
And while Rebecca loves the hospitality side of holiday rentals, she warned that it’s not for everyone.
“Holiday rentals are a completely different side of the real estate industry,” she said. “It’s like organising a rental tenancy 52 times a year for each property. And, because it’s a holiday rental, the peak times are over the weekends, after hours and during school holidays, so you really can’t ever have your phone off in case you’re needed.”
Rebecca says approximately 85,000 people will stay at the properties she manages this year, which is very welcome after the challenges of the past three years.
“It really has been a rollercoaster, with desperate downs and elating highs,” Rebecca said.
“It started with the bushfires, which caused a lot of confusion and fear for holidaymakers. Many people cancelled their bookings, even though the homes weren’t near active fires.
“Then COVID-19 lockdowns caused havoc with bookings. After the first lockdown was over, people seemed very excited to travel again and bookings bounced back. But, after the second lockdown in New South Wales, people were slower to book and there were significant cancellations due to rules around close contacts.
“I think we’re coming out of it now – but with borders now open, people will also be looking at holidays in other states and overseas, as well as within New South Wales.”
Looking to the future
After years of learning almost everything there is to know about how to start and grow a holiday and short-term rental business, Rebecca said she’s keen to share her expertise with others.
Later this year, Rebecca will launch her first book called Ready, Set, Booked, which is a 10-step guide to setting up a successful holiday rental property. And she’s also hoping to focus more on developing and delivering industry training and coaching specifically for holiday and short-term rentals.
Rebecca said she’s looking forward to branching out and feels her real estate business is in safe hands with her daughter Alexie, who has been working alongside her for the past five years.
“I’m very proud of what Alexie has achieved,” Rebecca said. “She’s taken on the challenge, and I feel like we have a good succession plan in place for the business. Alexie has a very different personality to me, but I can see myself handing over the business to her and it makes me feel great.
“I’m more of an entrepreneur than a CEO and I recognise that. I’ve loved building the business, putting the processes in place and helping it grow, but I don’t think I’m the best person to take the business forward. I have an amazing leadership team, who I know will take the business to the next level.”
“I really jumped right into the deep end and loved it. What I enjoyed most – and still do – was setting up the business and developing processes that ensure that the day-to-day running of the business is smooth.”
In many ways, our agency was there at the infancy of the holiday and short-term rental and accommodation management industry. It was hard work, but very exciting.”
“It’s like organising a rental tenancy 52 times a year for each property. And, because it’s a holiday rental, the peak times are over the weekends, after hours and during school holidays, so you really can’t ever have your phone off in case you’re needed.”
Why I love real estate
“I love that the real estate industry is full of opportunities,” Rebecca explained. “When I was starting out, I didn’t know anything about setting up my own real estate business, but there was so much training and lots of workshops, conferences and resources available that it was very easy to get started.
“It’s also been valuable to have so many industry leaders available and willing to share their expertise with others. And, of course, REINSW is a great support with the Helpline and other resources.
“Another thing that I think is fairly unique to real estate is that you can buy tried and tested processes and programs, which makes it so much easier to run your business efficiently.
“The real estate industry has been good for me. I think it rewards people who are resourceful and prepared to give things a go and take calculated risks.
“I’m also very proud of the fabulous team I’ve built. I love working with them and supporting them to grow and develop professionally.”
Career tips
1. Develop a thick skin quickly
Not all holiday and short-term rental guests will have nice things to say about their experience. Don’t take it personally.
2. Take time to spend with your family and friends
There’s always more work to be done, but spending time with family and friends is important – so make it part of your schedule, otherwise you’ll never fit it in.
3. Recruit the best people for the money you can afford
It’s going to be so much better for your business if you surround yourself with the best people.
4. Don’t be afraid to recruit people who are better than you
Diversity in experience and skill set is going to make your business stronger.
5. Learn to be a delegator
It might seem easier in the moment, but you can’t do everything yourself.
6. Only take calculated risks
Taking risks is how you grow and learn, but make sure you do due diligence first.
Working in holiday and short-term rentals
Besides her passion for processes, Rebecca says her love of spending time with family and friends is part of the reason she loves working in holiday and short-term rentals.
“I’m a big believer in celebrating the good times with family and friends,” Rebecca explained. “I love that we’re helping people create great memories together – that’s what holidays are all about. A holiday house is a very different experience to staying in a hotel, because you have the space to bring more people together, share meals, cups of tea or whatever you like.”
And it’s never boring.
“I know lots of people say this about their work – but you really never know what’s going to happen next with holiday rentals, it keeps you on your toes,” Rebecca said.
“We don’t just work in one or two suburbs. We span New South Wales, so you need to be across what’s happening in a lot of regions, otherwise you run the risk of your owners losing bookings if there is someone charging less in the area. You need to be ready to give your clients expert advice and respond quickly.
“I’ve also had to develop a very thick skin over the past 10 years. Guests can be quite scathing in their comments about the property or the service they receive. You need to learn not to take things personally. Their feelings are heightened because they’re on holiday. So when things don’t go to plan – or even if there’s something minor like there are five wine glasses instead of six because the previous guest broke one – they tend to get very upset. But that’s just part of working in the industry.”