STR Investing, The Podcast
Unlock financial freedom through short-term rental investing with hosts Taylor Jones and Mark Lumpkin. Each week, they sit down with the biggest names in the STR industry to uncover what’s working right now — from acquisitions and design to operations, marketing, and scaling portfolios.
Taylor has helped acquire and manage over 500+ STRs, while Mark brings years of hands-on experience transforming properties into high-performing investments.
Together, they break down real strategies, real numbers, and real stories that help investors grow smarter and faster.
Whether you’re buying your first Airbnb or expanding a multi-market portfolio, this show is your roadmap to building wealth and freedom through short-term rentals.
Subscribe and start turning your STR goals into results.
Episodes
120 episodes
AI-Generated Direct Bookings
AI is moving faster than most short-term rental hosts realize.In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, Mark Lumpkin welcomes back Boostly founder Mark Simpson for a deep dive into how AI agents, automation, and direct booking techno...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Galveston, TX Market
Mark Lumpkin breaks down the short-term rental market in Galveston — one of the fastest-growing and most competitive beach markets on the Gulf Coast.With over 6,000 active listings and supply up more than 50% in just two years, Galveston...
STR Lessons From Surviving a Million Dollar COVID Loss
What happens when a short-term rental operator loses over $1,000,000 during COVID?In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, Mark Lumpkin sits down with Jason Baxter to talk about the highs, lows, and future of the short-term rental i...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Charleston, SC Market
Mark Lumpkin breaks down the short-term rental market in Charleston — one of the most desirable and tightly regulated STR markets in the Southeast.Charleston is a heavyweight market: Over 8 million annual visitors
Smart Locks, Smarter Stays with Amber Baron
Smart locks are no longer optional in short-term rentals.In this episode, Mark Lumpkin sits down with Amber Baron from Dormakaba to talk about why access control is one of the most overlooked parts of the guest experience — and how bad s...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Chattanooga, TN Market
Chattanooga might be one of the biggest STR opportunities flying under the radar.In this week’s Monday Market Data Report, Mark Lumpkin breaks down why Chattanooga is still in the early innings of the amenity arms race — and how investor...
Building my First Micro Resort
AI is changing business faster than ever — and short-term rentals are no exception.Mark Lumpkin sits down with Nick Korwin to talk about building a luxury micro resort from the ground up while working full-time in the AI and autonomous v...
STR Marketing Without Airbnb
STR software is evolving fast - but the best operators know the real edge isn’t just automation.In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, Mark Lumpkin sits down with Amber Knight from bookingcloud.com to break down where the industry...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Scottsdale, AZ Market
In this week’s Monday Market Data Report, Mark Lumpkin breaks down the short-term rental data for Scottsdale and the greater Phoenix market — and answers the big question:Is it actually oversaturated?Using real data and strategy f...
RVs The Next STR!
What if your next investment wasn’t a house… but something on wheels?In this episode, Mark Lumpkin sits down with Gar Russell, founder of Fireside RV Rental, to break down an entirely different angle on hospitality investing.Gar s...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Big Bear, CA Amenities Market
In this week’s Monday Market Data Report, Mark Lumpkin breaks down the short-term rental data for Big Bear Lake — including a full market snapshot + amenity performance breakdown.This episode introduces a new format, giving you a clearer...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Poconos, PA Amenities Market
In this week’s Monday Market Data Report, Mark Lumpkin breaks down the amenity data for The Poconos — one of the most competitive and heavily amenitized STR markets in the country.This episode reveals a massive truth about the Poconos:
Free PMS Changing the Industry!
In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, Mark Lumpkin sits down with Pierre-Camille Hamana, founder and CEO of Hospitable, to break down how short-term rental software has evolved over the last decade and where the industry is heading next...
Building a Buy Box
In this episode, co-host Taylor Jones breaks down a simple, practical framework for building your short-term rental buy box without needing expensive tools or large amounts of capital.If you’ve ever asked yourself where to buy, what to b...
The Instagram Strategy Behind $1M+ in STR Bookings
We’re bringing back one of our most actionable episodes on using Instagram to drive real bookings.In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, co-host Taylor Jones sits down with Ben Wolff, founder of Onera and a pioneer in the unique s...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Blue Ridge, GA Amenities Market
Mark Lumpkin breaks down the amenity data for Blue Ridge, one of the most popular cabin markets in the Southeast.Using insights from STR Search, this episode dives into which amenities top-performing properties are using to dominate the ...
Hospitality with the Queen
In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, co-host Mark Lumpkin sits down with Tyann Marcink - Hammond, owner of Tyann Hospitality and one of the newest VRMA board members, to talk about what actually drives five star stays: hospitalit...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Bend, OR Amenities Market
In this week’s Monday Market Data Report, Mark Lumpkin breaks down the short-term rental amenity data for Bend, a popular mountain destination known for skiing, outdoor recreation, breweries, and year-round tourism.Using data from STR Se...
Growing to 350 Properties and Fighting with Airbnb
In this episode, co-host Mark Lumpkin sits down with Hunter Harrelson of Beachball Properties — one of the most recognizable vacation rental management brands on Alabama’s Gulf Coast.Hunter breaks down how he and his wife Ginger bootstra...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Sedona, AZ Amenities Market
In this Monday Morning Market Data Report on the STR Investing Podcast, co-host Mark Lumpkin breaks down the latest amenity data for Sedona, Arizona using insights from STR Search.If you’re investing in Sedona—or considering it—this epis...
The Queen of STR Sales!
In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, co-host Mark Lumpkin sits down with Jack Roberts from STR Cribs to talk sales, design, and what it really takes to build high-performing short-term rentals today.Jack breaks down why “being r...
Send Your Kids to College for Free, with STRs
In this episode of the STR Investing Podcast, co-host Mark Lumpkin sits down with Lance Morgan, founder of College Funding Secrets, to break down a different way to think about short-term rentals—using them to help pay for college and ...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Flagstaff, AZ Amenities Market
In this week’s Monday Market Data Report, we continue our amenity-focused series — breaking down which upgrades actually drive revenue — and this time we’re diving into Flagstaff.Flagstaff isn’t overly saturated like some major Arizona m...
From Drug House to $1.5M Airbnb – Our Most Downloaded Episode
⭐ This is a featured encore of one of our most downloaded STR Investing episodes. Originally released on June 6th 2024, this episode continues to inspire investors to think bigger and execute smarter.In this episode of the STR Investing ...
Monday Market Data: Breakdown of Austin, TX Amenities Market
In this Monday Market Data Report, co-host Mark Lumpkin kicks off a brand-new series focused on amenity-driven revenue — and we’re starting in Austin.Instead of just bedroom count, this episode breaks down which amenities actually move t...