HomeAway gets 1 million new listings, mostly in urban areas

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HomeAway took a hit when Expedia scaled back marketing efforts during its technology migration. Now the company is doing everything it can to bring it back.

Justin Dawes

Expedia Group has transferred 1 million Expedia-branded short-term rental listings to HomeAway, bringing more variety to the vacation rental industry and a stronger focus on urban stays.

Ariane Gorin, president and CEO of Expedia Group, said the move was part of an effort to expand Vrbo’s inventory and rebuild the brand. HomeAway and Hotels.com got hit when Expedia Group pulled back on marketing during its recently completed technology migration to the cloud.

Gorin said HomeAway has traditionally been known for its beach and mountain vacation homes. The new supply of urban inventory allows HomeAway to tap into a new group of customers.

“We think there are still opportunities for us to grow there, and we will also look at where else we can grow,” Gorin said Thursday on a call with investors to discuss third-quarter results.

Executives declined to share details about HomeAway’s financial performance, but Gorin said VRBO is “returning to growth.”

Other HomeAway features and growth plans

In addition to the larger inventory, HomeAway has added features such as discounts for longer stays and more flexible cancellation policies. And the app gets new features to streamline and make shopping faster.

The company ran a television ad this year featuring the legendary University of Alabama football coach and current ESPN analyst Nick Saban as host of a nightmare vacation home.

“As we think about VRBO in the future, we need to continue that formula of continuing to improve the product, continuing to expand the offerings and having great marketing,” Gorin said.

Gorin said she believes VRBO is under-penetrated in current markets, so there is a new general manager for the brand to set longer-term growth plans.

She added: “All the work we do to sell vacation rentals well on HomeAway will also help us sell vacation rentals on Expedia. So much has happened as a company in recent years that we have not put much effort into selling vacation rentals well under the Expedia brand.”

Expedia Group sold 97.4 million room nights in the third quarter of 2024, up 9% from the previous year and more than what the company expected. Total gross bookings were valued at $27.5 billion, up 7%.

Based on that growth, executives now expect 2024 gross bookings to increase 5% compared to 2023, one point higher than previously calculated. And they expect EBITDA and EBIT margins to be slightly higher than last year, although they initially expected no improvement.

Expedia Group also said this is the case on Thursday Chief Financial Officer Julie Whalen is resigning out of role. A successor is expected by February 17, 2025.