STR Audit Checklist: 25 Things Every Property Manager Should Review Every Quarter

Most property managers review their portfolio when something goes wrong — a slow month, an owner asking questions, a competitor undercutting on price. A quarterly review catches the same issues before an owner notices them. This is the checklist Rentally works through as part of a Strategic Portfolio Audit, broken into five areas worth reviewing every quarter.

Pricing and revenue

1. Has the nightly rate been reviewed property-by-property in the last 90 days, rather than through a single blanket seasonal change?
2. Does the rate for each property sit within 5–10% of comparable listings nearby for the same dates?
3. Are minimum-stay rules adjusted for shoulder-season demand, or left the same year-round?
4. Is midweek pricing reviewed separately from weekend pricing, rather than as a single average?
5. Has RevPAR (revenue per available night) been checked against the same quarter last year?

Distribution and listings

6. Is each property listed on more than one major booking platform?
7. Are listing photos current, and do they reflect any recent renovations or furniture changes?
8. Is the listing description still accurate — amenities, capacity, house rules?
9. Are calendars synced correctly across every platform, with no risk of double-booking?
10. Has search ranking or visibility dropped on any platform compared to last quarter?

Guest experience and reputation

11. Has average review score moved up or down over the past quarter, and is there a clear reason why?
12. Are there unanswered guest reviews older than two weeks?
13. Is average response time to guest messages within the target you've set?
14. Have any recurring guest complaints shown up more than once (noise, cleanliness, check-in process)?
15. Is the check-in/check-out process still the fastest reasonable option, or has a better one become available?

Reporting and admin

16. Has each owner received a report every month, on time, without needing to ask?
17. Does the report clearly show occupancy, revenue and a comparison to the prior period?
18. Are maintenance costs and any one-off expenses reconciled and visible to the owner?
19. Is there a clear record of any rate changes made and why, in case an owner asks?
20. Is there a cover plan in place for the next time you're unreachable for more than a weekend?

Compliance

21. Is each property's local licence or registration current and matched to the correct address?
22. Have any local council or regional rules changed since the last review?
23. Are safety requirements (smoke alarms, fire safety, electrical checks) documented and up to date?
24. Is insurance coverage still appropriate for how each property is actually being used?
25. Would you be able to produce proof of compliance within 48 hours if a platform or authority asked for it?

What to do with the results

Going through all 25 manually takes real time, and most managers get through it in fits and starts rather than all at once. A Strategic Portfolio Audit from Rentally covers the pricing, distribution and reputation sections directly, with a benchmarked report delivered in around 6 business days — the same review, done once, properly, rather than revisited every quarter under pressure.