Affirm Teams With Vacasa For Flexible Vacation Rental Payments

Vacation rental management platform Vacasa is partnering with buy now, pay later (BNPL) FinTech Affirm to bring flexible payments to the travel industry, the companies announced on Tuesday (Feb. 23).

Mike Dodson, chief revenue officer for Vacasa, said the company is looking forward to being able to offer its clients payment options with Affirm.

“Professionally managed vacation rentals have become the preferred accommodation type for travelers,” he said. “We want to ensure that those who book with Vacasa have flexibility throughout the booking process and become excited about their trip — without worrying about paying for their entire vacation upfront.”

Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Vacasa was founded in 2009 by Eric Breonoffers to offer professionally-managed vacation rentals across North America, Belize and Costa Rica. The company said every home is professionally taken care of by local teams and follow the company’s “enhanced Premium Clean standards.”

“According to a recent Affirm survey, 49 percent of consumers said they intend to travel more in 2021 and Vacasa’s booking data shows that vacation rental demand is on the rise,” said Affirm Chief Commercial Officer Silvija Martincevic.

“By giving travelers the ability to pay over time, our partnership with Vacasa will make their high-quality portfolio of vacation rentals available to even more consumers. In addition, consumers will have peace of mind while booking their travel and during their stay because they know that with Affirm, they will never be charged hidden or late fees,” Martincevic said.

When people book a trip on Vacasa, they will have the option of selecting Affirm at checkout, and divide the cost of a U.S. vacation into monthly payments over three, six, or 12 months with an APR that can be as low as 0 percent. Customers are shown in advance what the total cost will be. Affirm doesn’t charge late fees.

Affirm is already a payment option at more than 6,500 merchants in a cross-section of  categories. Affirm has travel merchant partnerships with Expedia, Priceline, Delta Vacations, CheapOair, Karisma Hotels & Resorts and Great Wolf Lodge, among others.

Vacasa said earlier this month that the pandemic has solidified its business model in the home-sharing space, which has largely remained resilient. Overall, the travel industry has taken a major hit as people stopped traveling for business and pleasure due to the coronavirus.