Casago completes transition of former Vacasa markets to local ownership

Just over a year after acquiring Vacasa, Casago has completed the sale of its former markets to franchise owners, marking the final stage of one of the short-term rental industry’s biggest operational transformations.

Casago has completed the sale of all former Vacasa markets, bringing its plan to move the portfolio from a centrally managed model towards local franchise ownership close to completion.

The company said the final market transitions will take place in September, just over a year after Casago completed its acquisition of Vacasa on 1 May 2025.

The deal brought together two significantly different approaches to vacation rental management. Vacasa had built one of North America’s largest centrally managed vacation rental platforms, while Casago’s model is based around locally owned franchises supported by a wider national network.

The acquisition created a combined business managing more than 40,000 properties across North America, Belize, Costa Rica and the Caribbean.

From centralised management to local ownership

From the outset, Casago made clear that it intended to transition Vacasa’s former markets towards its franchise model rather than simply absorb them into a larger centrally operated business.

That process has now seen former Vacasa markets transferred to local franchise owners and other new ownership structures. Some markets are being operated by destination-based owners, while larger regional operators have taken responsibility for multiple markets using dedicated local teams.

The operators remain part of the wider Casago network, with access to the company’s technology, distribution, operational standards and central resources.

For Casago, the model is intended to combine the scale and infrastructure of a national brand with decision-making and accountability at destination level.

Casago President Joe Riley said the company had entered the acquisition with a clear objective of returning vacation rental management to “local ownership, local accountability and local hospitality.”

“The former Vacasa markets are all in the hands of franchise owners who know their communities, care deeply about homeowners and guests, and are committed to building sustainable businesses in the destinations they serve,” he said.

Riley also credited Casago’s Franchise Sales team with completing the market sales within a relatively short period following the acquisition.

A different approach to scale

The transition is particularly significant given the size of the former Vacasa operation.

Rather than using the acquisition to build an even larger centrally managed portfolio, Casago has effectively used scale to create a network of smaller, locally accountable businesses operating under a common brand and infrastructure.

It reflects a wider question facing large property management businesses across the short-term rental sector: how to gain the efficiencies, technology and distribution advantages that come with scale without losing local knowledge, homeowner relationships and destination-level service.

Casago believes its franchise model provides that balance.

According to Riley, changing expectations among homeowners, guests and communities are also influencing the company’s approach.

“Homeowners want trusted local partners. Guests want consistent service with a personal touch. Communities want operators who are invested for the long term,” he said.

More than 40,000 properties through a major transition

Completing the structural transition while continuing to serve homeowners and guests across the former Vacasa network has also represented a significant operational undertaking.

Casago Chief Operations Officer John Banczak described the speed and scale of the process as “remarkable.”

“In just over 12 months, Casago has moved from acquisition to full market transition while maintaining continuity for homeowners, guests and local teams,” he said.

Banczak added that teams across the company’s Franchise Conversion operation had been responsible for creating the processes needed to prepare incoming franchise partners to take control of their markets.

From local ownership to more human hospitality

Casago founder and CEO Steve Schwab will also be joining SCALE Fest in Barcelona this October to explore another side of the company’s approach to hospitality.

In his session, Omotenashi: What Vacation Rentals Can Learn from True Hospitality, Schwab will draw on a recent trip to Japan and the Japanese philosophy of omotenashi — hospitality rooted in anticipation, intention and genuine care.

He will explore what professional property managers can learn from the philosophy and how guest experiences can be elevated by making hospitality more human, rather than simply more automated.

Schwab will share these insights for the first time at SCALE Fest, taking place at the World Trade Centre Barcelona on 24–25 October.

With the final Vacasa market transitions expected to conclude in September, Casago will have completed one of the most closely watched integrations in recent vacation rental industry history.

The acquisition itself created scale. What Casago has done with that scale since may prove the more interesting part of the story: breaking a large centrally managed portfolio back down into locally operated businesses, while attempting to retain the technology, distribution and infrastructure of a much larger network.