Vacasa To Acquire Wyndham Vacation Rentals To Increase Its Portfolio

“We are excited to partner with the pioneering company in the short-term rental industry that helped make vacation homes popular for so many families around the world,” quoted Eric Breon, founder and CEO of Vacasa, on acquiring Wyndham Vacation Rentals from Wyndham Destinations. The deal was closed at $162 million of which $45 million will be paid in cash, $30 million in equity, and the remaining in seller financing. Wyndham Vacation Rentals has a long list of brands including ResortQuest, kaiser Realty and Vacation Palm Springs which will now be under the control of Vacasa.

Founded in 2009, the Portland-based startup operates in the US, Europe, Africa, Central, and South America. The company has witnessed tremendous growth since its launch and has over 14,000 vacation homes onboard their platform. Considered to be North America’s largest vacation rental management platform, it offers real estate services and brings homeowners and guests together. Breon stated that the combination of Wyndham Vacation Rentals decades of operational excellence and Vacasa’s next-generation technology would result in the industry’s best vacation rental experiences. The company has raised $207.5 million in venture capital funds to date from capital firms such as Assurant Growth Investing and NewSpring Capital. 

Michael D.Brown, President and CEO of Wyndham Destinations, stated that the closure of the deal with Vacasa was the best way to return value to shareholders and facilitate the long term growth of the company. He further added that the company conducted a rigorous strategic review process that attracted interest from multiple parties before arriving at Vacasa. 

The complete integration of both companies is expected to close by the end of 2020. With the acquisition of Wyndham Vacation Rentals, the product portfolio of Vacasa will increase to over 9000 properties. Several industry experts believe that this acquisition might pose a threat to Airbnb that operates in the same sector. It would be interesting to see the response measures from Airbnb to cement their position as the leading global hospitality service provider.