Take Back Your Profits,
Your Guests, and Your Freedom
A DirectStay Manifesto for Independent Hosts
A Note from the CEO
On behalf of the DirectStay family, I want to personally welcome you into a new era of freedom, true ownership, and prosperity, where you're no longer just a host, but the master of your business, your brand, and your future. Welcome home. We created DirectStay because the short-term rental economy is broken. For years, short-term rental hosts like you and I have built businesses, poured in time, money, sweat, and visionβonly to watch the platforms we depended on claim ownership of the entire relationship.
They take the guest, the brand, the booking, and the lionβs share of the profit. They act like they own our homes, our income, our overall business, and even our identity as hosts.
DirectStay exists to restore whatβs been taken, and to help you build something better.
Weβre not just another platform. We are a movement of true ownership, real freedom, and lasting wealth. This guide is your invitation to step fully into the way to build your own real business. Itβs a blueprint to break free from the platform trap, reclaim your business, and join a community of empowered hosts who are choosing true ownership over the enslavement of big platforms. You are not just a user. Youβre a builder and part of a movement that is empowering hosts to take their power back. A master of your own domain. And everything in this guide is designed to help you rise as suchβmore bookings, more revenue, deeper guest relationships, and zero reliance on the big OTAs.
Welcome to DirectStay. Welcome home. Letβs build together the business that you have always envisioned from the very beginning.
Grace and momentum,
β¨Breck Rubin,
Founder & CEO, DirectStay.
The OTA Trap β Why Hosts Are Stuck
You didnβt become a host to hand over your profits, guest relationships, and control. Yet thatβs exactly whatβs happened under todayβs major booking platforms
Problems
Traditional OTAs
(Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com)
Fees
8β30%+ commission on every booking
Guest
Ownership
Guests belong to the platform, not you
Communication
Messaging is filtered and monitored
Restrictions
Constantly changing rules & removals
Payout Delays
Payments held, disputed, or reversed
Problem
Traditional OTAs (Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com)
Fees
8β20%+ commission on every booking
Guest Ownership
Guests belong to the platform, not you
Communication
Messaging is filtered and monitored
Restrictions
Constantly changing rules & removals
Payout Delays
Payments held, disputed, or reversed
These platforms built their business on your effortβand took your guest loyalty with them.
What Hosts Really Want
Independent hosts today are clear on what matters
Freedom from punitive policies and high fees
Direct relationships with guests
Recurring bookings without middlemen
Brand control across listings, photos, and tone
Higher margins without extra effort
But most havenβt had the tools to do itβuntil now.
π Meet DirectStay β Built to
Empower Hosts
DirectStay is not another middleman. Itβs a host-first booking platform designed for one thing: Liberation.
No guest platform
fees per booking
You own the guest
data & relationship
Simple interactive
booking calendar, & direct messaging with no filters on contact information
Top Tier Embedded
Insurance, Fraud Protection,
and Lodging Tax Systems
Set your own policies,
and choose a custom
slug for your listing
Become the
Merchant Of Record
and
Own your Transaction
from End to End
Profit Recovery-How Much Youβre Losing
Letβs look at real numbers:
Booking Total
Airbnb/VRBO Payout (minus fees)
DirectStay Payout
$500
~$430
$500
$2,000
~$1,740
$2,000
$5000
~$4350
$5000
Booking Total
Airbnb/VRBO Payout (minus fees)
DirectStay Payout
$500
~$430
$500
$2,000
~$1,740
$2,000
$5000
~$4,350
$5000
If you book 5 stays/month at $2,000 each,
thatβs $15,600/year in lost revenue.
The Host Liberation Roadmap
Your 5 Steps to Freedom: Your A game
1. Awaken
Understand the hidden cost of dependence and fees.
2. Access
Review your current tech stack, OTA dependency, and guest reach.
3. Align
Listing to promote your brand and business.
4. Attract
Understand the hidden cost of dependence and fees.
5. Ascend
Use your booking link, personalized content, and social media presence.
You donβt need to cancel your Airbnb accountβjust stop relying on it.
Join the Host Liberation Movement
You donβt need to play by their rules anymore.
Your business. Your terms. Your guests.
π Ready to Begin?
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