How do I move my cottage rental portfolio’s guest messages to a buyer?

Guest messages carry promises: arrival times, early check-ins, pet permissions and special requests. When ownership changes, those promises have to survive. List every channel guests use, such as booking platforms, email, text and phone, and decide with the buyer which ones change names or logins and which stay.

Go through upcoming stays first. For each one, note what has been agreed and whether the guest was told anything unusual. Hand over your saved replies, directions, house manuals and common answers so the new team responds the same way. Guests tend to judge a business by how quickly and clearly it answers.

Ask your lawyer what guest information may be shared and what the platforms’ terms allow when accounts move. The purchase agreement should say when the buyer takes over responses and who answers in the gap. Keep a log of anything unusual. If you stay on for a transition, split the inbox by date so nothing is answered twice or missed, and agree who handles urgent arrival-day messages. A short, friendly note to guests with future bookings explains the change. Test the plan before closing. Ask the buyer to send a sample message from the new account, and check that guests can still find directions, codes and house rules without confusion.

Key takeaways

• List every channel guests use and agree which accounts transfer.
• Review upcoming stays for special promises and pass on saved replies.
• Decide who answers messages during the changeover.