BELLEVUE, WA—Expedia Group Inc. has acquired Pillow, a software solution that helps building owners and managers empower their long-term residents to rent their residences, and ApartmentJet, a software solution enabling the rental of guest suites in multifamily communities.
Acquiring Pillow and ApartmentJet will help unlock urban growth opportunities that, over time, will contribute to HomeAway’s ability to add an even broader selection of accommodations to its marketplace and marketplaces across Expedia Group brands, ensuring travelers always find the perfect place to stay, the company reports.
“Demand for short-term rentals in U.S. urban destinations has been growing impressively over the past several years,” said Mark Okerstrom, president/CEO of Expedia Group. “In order to be able to deliver our customers what they are asking for while at the same time promoting responsible renting, Expedia Group is committed to delivering solutions that give urban building owners, managers and communities control and transparency over short-term rentals. Our acquisitions of Pillow and ApartmentJet are important and foundational investments in the Expedia Group platform. Through the acquisition of these innovative companies, we gain technologically advanced solutions that will help us give travelers new options for great places to stay in popular destinations, while benefitting residents, owners, managers and local tourism. These acquisitions are yet another step forward to delivering on our Expedia Group purpose of ‘Bringing the World within Reach’ for customers and partners around the globe.”
Pillow and ApartmentJet are both companies that help with different challenges faced by multifamily communities in urban markets. Pillow allows multifamily community owners to give residents the ability to list their apartment units as short-term rentals without violating their lease restrictions. Additionally, ApartmentJet enables owners to help visitors enjoy guest suites at their properties. Both solutions enable owners to set limitations on short-term rentals in their buildings, such as limiting the number of total rental nights per year for units or for an entire building. Both make it easy for multifamily owners to know exactly who is staying in their buildings and when.
