KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Industry guides commonly cite full-service management fees of roughly 20–35% of revenue, and many managers calculate their percentage on the gross booking total — which can mean paying commission on cleaning fees and platform fees owners never pocket.
- Hooray Stays’ commission starts at 20% of NET nightly revenue, with daily human review of pricing that capture surge demand during Texans games, Astros playoffs, concerts, and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
- In the hypothetical examples below, the difference between a manager charging 28% of gross and 20% of net is roughly $38–50 per one-night reservation.
- Hooray Stays management includes consumables with no markup, a $1,500 damage waiver on reservations, and listing on Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com plus a direct booking site.
- Matt Codd answers his own phone at (832) 224-6713, and he and Carissa run their own short-term rentals too.
Houston’s event calendar doesn’t slow down. From a J. Cole show at Toyota Center to a potential Astros playoff run at Daikin Park, from Houston Texans games at NRG Stadium to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, this city generates event-driven short-term rental demand. If your property sits within a few miles of a major Houston venue and your manager is running automated pricing with no human oversight, you may be leaving money on the table on event weekends.
And if that manager charges a percentage of your gross booking total, you may be paying more than you realize.
🎯 The Houston Event Calendar Is a Revenue Engine (If Your Manager Knows How to Use It)
Houston has a dense event calendar. A single weekend in September can stack a J. Cole: The Fall-Off Tour date at Toyota Center, an Astros game at Daikin Park, multiple shows at White Oak Music Hall and House of Blues, and corporate travel tied to the Texas Medical Center, all at the same time. Savvy owners know these windows are worth targeting. The problem is that pricing with no human review can treat a peak-demand Friday much like an off-season Tuesday.
Automated pricing software largely reacts to what competitors are doing. It may not proactively adjust rates weeks before a major concert sells out. It may not account for how Rodeo visitors book differently from concert-goers. And it does not have a human being reviewing your listing every morning to ask: “Is this priced right for what’s happening in this city right now?”
That distinction is exactly what separates a real operator from a management company running a hands-off portfolio.
💸 The Fee Structure Problem: Gross vs. Net (And Why It Matters More Than You Think)
Many Houston property owners don’t realize there are two completely different ways to calculate a management commission. Industry guides commonly cite full-service management fees of roughly 20–35% of revenue, and many managers calculate their percentage on the gross booking total (source). Understanding the difference can add up over a year.
Gross commission: The manager takes a percentage of the total booking amount before anything is deducted. That includes Airbnb’s platform fee and your cleaning fee. You never actually receive that money, but your manager still takes a cut of it.
Net commission: The manager takes a percentage of net nightly revenue — the nightly rate after the booking platform’s host fee, with cleaning fees and taxes excluded. You’re paying on revenue that actually reaches you.
Here’s a hypothetical example using a Houston property near Toyota Center (one-night stays; platform host fee assumed at about 15.5% of the nightly rate):
Normal Week vs. Event Night: Hypothetical Fee Math
- Normal weeknight nightly rate: $150
- Platform host fee (assumed): about $23
- Cleaning fee (example): $75
- Gross booking total: $225
- A manager charging 28% of gross: $63.00 in fees
- 20% of net ($150 minus $23 = $127): $25.40 in fees
- Difference: $37.60 per reservation
- Event night nightly rate (hypothetical, e.g. a major concert at Toyota Center): $260
- Platform host fee (assumed): about $40.30
- Cleaning fee: $75
- Gross booking total: $335
- A manager charging 28% of gross: $93.80 in fees
- 20% of net ($260 minus $40.30 = $219.70): $43.94 in fees
- Difference: $49.86 per reservation
In this hypothetical, two event-night reservations a month at that gap would add up to roughly $1,200 over a year. Actual results depend on your platform, pricing, and agreement.
If you want to go deeper on how this plays out specifically for Medical Center properties, our post on Houston STR management fees and corporate housing at the Medical Center walks through the full breakdown.
📊 Hooray Stays Compared: Questions to Ask Any Manager
| WHAT MATTERS | HOORAY STAYS | QUESTION TO ASK ANY MANAGER |
|---|---|---|
| Commission structure | ✅ Starts at 20% of NET nightly revenue | Is your percentage calculated on the gross booking total or net nightly revenue? |
| Event pricing strategy | ✅ Daily human review, proactive event calendar monitoring | Does a person review pricing around events, or only software? |
| Guest communication | ✅ Matt and Carissa run the operation themselves | Who handles guest messages, and how quickly? |
| Consumables (soap, coffee, paper goods) | ✅ Included, no markup | Are consumables billed back to the owner, and with a markup? |
| In-person property visits | ✅ Quarterly in-person walk-throughs | How often does someone physically visit the property? |
| Direct booking capability | ✅ Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com + direct booking site | Which channels will my property be listed on, and is there a direct booking site? |
| Damage protection | ✅ $1,500 damage waiver on reservations | What damage protection applies, and who handles claims? |
| Who answers the phone | ✅ Matt Codd, co-owner and actual STR operator | Who answers when I call, and how quickly? |
🏟️ Why Houston’s Venue Geography Demands a Local Manager
Houston’s major event venues are not clustered in one neighborhood. NRG Stadium, home of the Houston Texans and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, sits in the Medical Center corridor. Toyota Center, home of the Rockets and a primary concert venue, is in downtown Houston. Daikin Park, where the Astros play, is on the east side of downtown. White Oak Music Hall draws a different crowd entirely, north of the urban core.
What this means for a short-term rental owner is that a property’s optimal pricing window depends entirely on which venue is active, what type of event it is, and how far in advance demand is building. Automated pricing alone can miss that nuance, such as how far ahead demand builds for a playoff game versus a concert, or how Rodeo visitors’ booking patterns differ from concert-goers’.
Matt and Carissa Codd are based in Katy, TX, and manage their own short-term rentals alongside client properties. They watch the Houston event calendar the same way an owner should: as a revenue map, not background noise.
What’s Actually Included When You Work With Hooray Stays 🔑
Whoever you hire, ask for a written list of everything billed separately. Here’s what Hooray Stays includes (depending on the agreement, a monthly technology fee may apply for the smart lock, Ring exterior camera, and guest WiFi system; exact terms vary by property):
- Guest consumables stocked at every turnover with no markup: soaps, shampoos, conditioners, coffee, paper goods
- Smart lock with a unique door code for every guest, no lost keys or lockbox exposure
- Ring exterior camera for arrival awareness and security
- Guest WiFi system
- $1,500 damage waiver included on reservations
- Signed rental agreement and government-issued photo ID from every guest before check-in
- Quarterly in-person property walk-throughs by the actual Hooray Stays team
- STR permitting guidance for owners navigating Houston’s local ordinance landscape
- Breezeway safety certification
No markup on guest consumables, and when something goes wrong at 11 PM on a Saturday during a Texans home game, you can reach Matt directly at (832) 224-6713.
The Direct Booking Advantage: Why Your Manager Should Be Building Your List
If every booking comes through Airbnb, every repeat guest who returns through Airbnb costs the platform fee all over again. Hooray Stays lists properties on Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com plus a direct booking site at rent.hooray-stays.com, where guests pay no guest service fees — giving repeat guests a way to book without platform fees.
For Houston owners near event venues, where repeat corporate travelers and returning concert-goers are a real segment, a direct booking channel can be a meaningful advantage.
The same direct-booking philosophy applies at our Gulf Coast properties. If you’re curious how it plays out in a beach market context, take a look at our breakdown of Surfside Beach vacation rentals and direct booking strategy for peak weekends.
Contract Flexibility That Matches Where You Are as an Owner
Not every owner is ready to commit to a multi-year agreement on day one. Hooray Stays agreements can be cancelled with 30 days’ notice. The setup fee is waived on select longer-term agreements, and new owners currently get the first 30 days commission-free. Exact terms vary by property and agreement.
To see how this works for your property, read about our Houston Airbnb property management and what’s included in Hooray Stays property management, or call Matt at (832) 224-6713.
Frequently Asked Questions ❓
How does Hooray Stays calculate its management fee compared to typical Houston STR managers?
Hooray Stays’ commission starts at 20% of NET nightly revenue — the nightly rate after the booking platform’s host fee, with cleaning fees and taxes excluded. Industry guides commonly cite full-service management fees of roughly 20–35% of revenue, and many managers calculate their percentage on the gross booking total, which can include fees the owner never actually receives. Always ask what the percentage is calculated on.
Do Houston STR managers really adjust pricing for events like J. Cole at Toyota Center or Astros playoff games?
It varies, so ask. Automated pricing software largely reacts to competitor rates rather than anticipating demand weeks in advance. Hooray Stays uses daily human revenue management to review and adjust pricing around Houston’s full event calendar, including concerts, Texans and Astros games, and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
What is included in Hooray Stays management for Houston properties at no extra charge?
Hooray Stays management includes guest consumables with no markup, a smart lock, a Ring exterior camera, a $1,500 damage waiver per reservation, signed guest rental agreements with ID verification, and quarterly in-person walk-throughs. Depending on the agreement, a monthly technology fee may apply for the smart lock, Ring camera and guest WiFi system.
What contract terms does Hooray Stays offer, and do I need a long-term contract?
Hooray Stays agreements can be cancelled with 30 days’ notice. The setup fee is waived on select longer-term agreements, and new owners currently get the first 30 days commission-free. Exact terms vary by property and agreement.
Why does it matter that Hooray Stays is run by local Texans who own their own STRs?
Matt and Carissa Codd operate their own short-term rentals alongside client properties, which means their incentives are aligned with owners rather than just collecting a management fee. Matt answers his own phone at (832) 224-6713.
How does Hooray Stays help Houston STR owners get direct bookings instead of relying entirely on Airbnb?
Hooray Stays lists properties on Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com plus a direct booking site at rent.hooray-stays.com, where guests pay no guest service fees, so repeat guests can book without platform fees.
Keep reading 📚
- Dynamic Pricing for Freeport Vacation Rentals: How to Maximize Revenue During Fishing Season, Holidays & Local Events (2026 Strategy)
- Best Airbnb Management Companies in Sargent TX: What Gulf Coast Cabin Owners Need to Know Before Hiring
- Houston Airbnb Photos That Convert: How to Photograph Your STR for Medical Center Guests, Corporate Travelers & Event Visitors
Thinking about professional management? 🏡
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Written by Matt & Carissa Codd, owners of Hooray Stays and active Texas Gulf Coast short-term rental operators. Last updated September 16, 2026. Questions? Call 832-224-6713.