Meet Your Hosts

Erik and Hillary Applegate here. We’re a married couple based in Austin, TX, but we met in Phoenix, AZ. Since living in both markets, we’ve bought, sold, and hosted a handful of homes.

We became passionate about short-term rental hosting years ago, falling in love with giving a local experience to guests visiting from all over the world. With Erik’s analytical and operational expertise combined with Hillary’s creativity and entrepreneurial background, we decided to open up Hometown Hosts to share our enthusiasm and expertise with other property owners.

Whether you’re looking for a do-it-all solution or consultants to learn from with a proven success record, we’re the partners for the job. And we promise we’ll have some fun along the way!

Why Hometown Hosts?

We understand what it takes to make a guest experience a memorable one. We have experienced the frustration of messaging a mega-conglomerate hosting company and getting an automated, robotic response back. And that has inspired us to bring the human part back to hosting.

When you’re working with Hometown Hosts, your properties are managed by real people. We manage each property as if it were our own, bringing a neighborly friendliness to every communication.

Case Study: Barton Springs Condo

This tasteful, modern condo was beaming with potential for travelers visiting Austin.

But with only 6 bookings in 9 months, the owner was looking for a change.

Within 2 weeks of launching with Hometown Hosts, we secured 6 bookings.

Here’s how we did it.

Our Process

Your roadmap to 5-star hosting starts here.

  • We begin by understanding your specific goals, unique property attributes, and history of performance. This phase involves a comprehensive assessment of the property, market trends, and opportunities.

  • Based on our findings, we draft a tailored plan, incorporating pricing strategies, guest experience enhancements, and operational improvements.

  • Our team springs into action, setting everything in motion. From optimizing listings to streamlining guest communication, we ensure every detail is covered.

  • Beyond the initial setup, we take a hands-on approach to daily operations. This means handling bookings, addressing guest queries, and maintaining property standards to ensure consistent quality.

  • Continual improvement is at our core. We monitor performance, gather feedback, and fine-tune our strategies, ensuring your property remains competitive and appealing.