Short-term rental glossary: key terms in Italian property management

ADR (Average Daily Rate)

Average rate per night sold.

ADR = total room revenue ÷ nights sold. One of the most used KPIs to measure the commercial performance of a short-term rental property. It rises with higher prices or favorable seasonality and falls with discounts or longer stays at discounted rates.

RevPAR (Revenue Per Available Room)

Revenue per available night, whether occupied or not.

RevPAR = total revenue ÷ available nights = ADR × occupancy. It measures how much the property actually yields, accounting for its sell-through capacity. Two properties with the same ADR but different occupancy have very different RevPAR.

Occupancy rate

% of nights sold over total nights available in the period.

Occupancy = nights sold ÷ nights available × 100. Healthy value in the Italian short-term market: 65-80% annual, peaking at 90%+ in high season. Below 50% the property is likely underpriced (price or channel) or has a positioning problem.

EBITDA

Property manager's gross operating margin.

Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization. For a property manager: net revenue minus operating and fixed costs, before taxes. The true profitability indicator of the business. See the margin calculation guide for the detailed breakdown.

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GBV (Gross Booking Value)

Gross transaction value of a booking, before commissions and costs.

GBV is the total amount collected from the OTA (online travel agency) or directly, before deducting platform commissions and operating costs. It is the starting point of the margin waterfall.

Revenue share

Model where the PM (property manager) keeps a % of the net OTA revenue.

The property manager collects on behalf of the owner and keeps a percentage (typically 15-30%) of net OTA revenue. The owner receives the remainder. Commercial risk is shared: fewer bookings means lower fees for both.

Master lease (subletting)

The PM rents the property from the owner and sublets it.

The PM pays a fixed rent to the owner and keeps all the revenue from the short-term rental activity. A riskier model (the rent is due even with zero occupancy) but potentially more profitable. The 'critical threshold' is the monthly break-even.

Flat fee

Fixed monthly amount paid to the PM, independent of performance.

Model where the owner pays the PM a fixed monthly amount (e.g. €500-1,500 per property) for management services. Suitable for luxury portfolios or long-term relationships, less common for standard portfolios.

PMS (Property Management System)

Software that manages calendars, bookings and channels.

Examples: Krossbooking, Avantio, Guesty, Smoobu, Hostaway. The PMS is the property manager's operating system: it syncs calendars, imports OTA bookings, handles guest communications. It does NOT handle financial control (see Dott.House).

Channel manager

PMS component that syncs rates and availability across OTAs.

Prevents overbooking by propagating reservations in real time across Airbnb, Booking, Vrbo and other platforms. Often integrated into the PMS, sometimes sold separately.

OTA (Online Travel Agency)

Online booking platform (Airbnb, Booking, Vrbo, Expedia).

OTAs bring traffic in exchange for a percentage commission that varies by platform and listing type. They are the main sales channel for most Italian property managers.

Booking engine

Booking module embedded in the PM's website.

Allows guests to book directly on the property manager's website without going through OTAs, avoiding commissions. Often part of the PMS (e.g. Avantio, Krossbooking) or available as a stand-alone product.

CIN (National Identification Code)

Mandatory unique code for every short-term rental property in Italy.

Introduced by the 2023 Decreto Anticipi (Italian budget anticipation decree), it is assigned by the Italian Ministry of Tourism to each unit and is mandatory on all OTA listings. It replaces and unifies the previous regional codes (CIR, CIPAT, etc.).

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CIR (Regional Identification Code)

Regional registration code for accommodation properties.

Code introduced by individual Italian regions (e.g. CIR Lombardia, CIR Lazio) to identify accommodation properties within their territory. In many cases now alongside or replaced by the national CIN from 2024 onwards.

Cedolare secca (Italian flat-rate rental tax)

Substitute tax for short-term rentals: 21% on the first property.

A preferential rate that replaces IRPEF, regional surcharges and registration tax for private owners. 21% on the first property, 26% on the second. From the third property onward the owner must switch to the business tax scheme.

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Regime forfettario (Italian flat-rate tax scheme)

Preferential tax scheme for partita IVA (P.IVA) holders: 15% (5% startup).

Substitute rate of 15% (or 5% for new activities during the first 5 years). For short-term rentals a 40% profitability coefficient applies. Annual revenue ceiling €85,000. Even with a single property, above about €15,000 in annual turnover the startup regime forfettario can win over the 21% cedolare secca.

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Fiscal break-even threshold

The turnover level at which regime forfettario and cedolare secca leave the same net profit.

Above the threshold it pays to open a partita IVA (regime forfettario); below it, staying on cedolare secca is better. For startup regime forfettario with 35% INPS contribution reduction vs. the 21% cedolare, the threshold is about €15,000 in annual turnover. For regime forfettario without the INPS reduction it rises to about €22,700. Against the 26% cedolare (second property), the threshold drops to about €10,000.

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Cassetto fiscale (Italian tax-records portal)

Agenzia delle Entrate (Italian Revenue Agency) portal with the taxpayer's fiscal data.

Contains issued and received electronic invoices, single certifications (Certificazioni Uniche), pre-filled returns, F24 payment positions. Dott.House integrates with the cassetto fiscale to download documents automatically.

Tourist tax (tassa di soggiorno)

Local tax that the Italian municipality charges guests.

Collected by the OTA or host and paid to the municipality within local deadlines. It is not a cost for the PM or owner (it passes through) but must be tracked for audits and shown in owner statements.

Owner statement

Monthly report that the PM produces for the owner.

Document that summarizes bookings, revenue, commissions, costs incurred, PM fees and the owner's net for the period. One of the few tangible touchpoints between PM and owner — it weighs heavily on retention.

Break-even

Minimum bookings required to cover fixed costs.

In a master lease, the point where revenue equals fixed costs (rent, utilities, PM cost share). Below the threshold you lose, above it you earn. Critical calculation for anyone operating under master lease.

Zero occupancy

Month with no bookings: all fixed costs still hit.

Worst-case scenario for a PM under master lease (fixed rent due even with zero revenue). Even on revenue share, the PM's fixed costs (staff, software, office) spread across active months and weigh on low-season months.

Turnover (guest changeover)

Costs and activities between check-out and the next check-in.

Includes deep cleaning, linen change, reset, possible maintenance, welcome kit. Each turnover has a variable cost (€30-80 average in Italy, depending on size and tier) that hits the operating margin per booking.

Pet fee

Surcharge the host bills for guests with pets.

Typically €15-50 per stay or €5-15 per night. Compensates for any extra cleaning. It is an additional service margin for the PM (see operating margin calculation).

Late check-in

Out-of-hours welcome service, billed.

Surcharge the host bills for guests arriving outside standard hours (typically after 10:00 PM). Usually €15-30. A service margin for the PM.

Lead magnet

Free content offered in exchange for the prospect's email.

Examples: margin calculator, Excel owner-statement template, 'State of the Italian PM' ebook, pre-season checklist. The main lead-generation tool in B2B content marketing.

ICP (Ideal Customer Profile)

Profile of the ideal customer for a B2B product.

For Dott.House the main ICPs are: (1) property managers with 5-50 units on revenue share or master lease, (2) private hosts with 3+ properties, (3) structured B&Bs / guesthouses. Defining precise ICPs guides ad targeting, copy and product.