Rocky Shores Retreat
First full calendar year: $101,185 — 2.5× its projection. Every season since has held between $85,000 and $101,000. One bathroom. Read that spec line again. See its brand and booking site →
The record
Five seasons, no outliers.
We tested this with our own money before we offered it to anyone. Here is every year, including the weak one.
Gross booking revenue
| Combined, two cottages | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Booked | $173,699 | $184,854 | $203,118 | $183,279 | $202,611 |
| vs. $80,000 projected | 2.2× | 2.3× | 2.5× | 2.3× | 2.5× |
Read the bottom row, not the big numbers. The multiple never dips below 2.2× — through a market peak in 2024, a market cooldown in 2025, and a 2026 already at 2.5× — both cottages past $100,000, within $600 of the 2024 peak, with the holidays still to sell.
One big year is a story. Five in a row, on two properties on two different bodies of water, through a hot market and a cool one, is a system.
4.97 average across 445 guest reviews
433 of them five stars — and twelve that weren't. A 4.76 property can't charge $495 a night; a 4.97 can. Reviews aren't vanity, they're what sustains the rate.
$457–$556 average nightly booking value
Against a market running near $346, on roughly 200 booked nights a season in a 48%-occupancy market.
About $565,000 booked above projection
Across five seasons, against a projection baseline of roughly $383,000.
The test
Two ordinary cottages, not trophy homes.
If we'd done this with a $2M waterfront showpiece you could dismiss the result — great properties forgive average management. So note what these actually are: modest three-bedroom cottages of roughly 1,300 and 1,400 square feet, neither of which had ever hosted a paying guest. Whatever they earned, the management earned.
Sawyer Harbor Retreat
Grossed $72,514 in a partial first year, then $96,182, $104,841 and $89,155 — a 2.4× average against projection. See its brand and booking site →
“The cleanest airbnb I've stayed in. The host thought of everything including chargers, speaker, spices, utensils, cooking oil…”
Lorena C. · Sawyer Harbor Retreat · Airbnb, Aug 2024
“Very clean home with an extremely attentive host who was easy to reach both before and during our stay.”
Julia P. · Rocky Shores Retreat · Vrbo, Dec 2025
The guest record
445 reviews. Five years. Two properties. Four channels.
Revenue tells you what the management earned. Reviews tell you what the guests experienced — and on a property you are thinking of handing to somebody else, that is the number worth reading closely.
445
Rated reviews
4.97
Average rating
4.99
Communication
4.94
Cleanliness
Rocky Shores since August 2021, Sawyer Harbor since June 2022. Airbnb, Vrbo, Facebook and direct. Twelve of the 445 weren't five stars — we'd rather show you the average than the highlight reel.
What guests notice when the maintenance is working
“Hosts were proactive and super responsive when there was an issue with the air conditioning, and got someone out to fix things very quickly.”
Chrystal M. · Rocky Shores Retreat · Airbnb, Aug 2025
“The Cottage was in pristine condition. It was well furnished and totally uncluttered. Communication was excellent.”
Marjorie D. · Rocky Shores Retreat · Airbnb, Sep 2024
“This home is clean and very well maintained. Peaceful and private surroundings.”
Michael B. · Sawyer Harbor Retreat · Airbnb, Aug 2026
And what brings them back
“We made our second annual visit to Rocky Shores, which is a favorite of ours! The home and location are beautiful and Dana's attention to detail makes it feel like our second home, but pampered a little!”
Sheila W. · Rocky Shores Retreat · Direct booking, Jul 2025
“Immaculately clean. Generous abundance of high quality amenities. Great attention to small details that made for a delightful stay.”
Lois W. · Sawyer Harbor Retreat · Airbnb, Apr 2026
“The host was incredibly easy to reach and responsive throughout our trip.”
Tim M. · Rocky Shores Retreat · Airbnb, Sep 2026
Reviews as published on Airbnb, Vrbo and our own direct booking sites, exported from OwnerRez on 3 September 2026. Guest names shown as the platforms display them.
Why it transfers
None of the four disciplines depends on these two cottages.
On a larger or better-located property they have more to work with, not less.
Projections price average management
Your property's projection isn't its ceiling — it's a report card on the management the data assumes.
Revenue is won in the off-peak
Anyone can book July. Weekly pricing work and compression events are where the extra lives.
Reviews are an operations outcome
Guests reward a property where everything simply works. Preventive maintenance isn't a cost centre; it's the engine that sustains premium pricing.
Consistency is the real proof
Five seasons in a row, on two different properties on two different bodies of water, is a system rather than a run of luck.
Who's behind this
I'm Dana. My wife and I have owned and operated real estate — commercial, residential, and short-term rental — for more than 15 years. These two cottages are ours. Every system in this record was built and refined on them first, with our own money at stake, before we ever offered it to another owner.
Figures are gross booking revenue from our OwnerRez records, including cleaning fees and guest charges. AirDNA projections are from the pre-purchase market analysis. Results are for properties owned and operated by Baylake's founders and are not a guarantee of performance for any other property.