The Real Estate Rundown

In Episode 2 of The Real Estate Rundown, host Whitley Stewart sits down with Brittany Berry, co-owner of The Next Stop Collective, a luxury vacation rental management and co-hosting company for a grounded, practical conversation about what it really takes to build a short-term rental business the right way. From buying their first Airbnb as a side hustle in 2019 to leaving corporate life behind and building a multi-market portfolio across the Carolinas, Brittany brings the kind of hard-won insight that only comes from figuring it out yourself. The two discuss what separates a casual host from a serious operator, where to spend and where to save when furnishing a property, the systems and tools that make scaling possible, and why generational wealth through real estate is more attainable than most people think. This is the episode for anyone who's ever thought about investing in short-term rentals, but wasn't sure how to do it right.ABOUT OUR GUEST:Brittany Berry is the co-owner of The Next Stop Collective, a luxury vacation rental management and co-hosting company operating across North and South Carolina. Brittany and her husband began investing in short-term rentals in 2019, growing from a single Asheville property to a multi-market portfolio of owned and co-hosted rentals. In 2022, Brittany left her corporate marketing career to run The Next Stop Collective full time. Her company offers end-to-end co-hosting services from furnishing consultation and listing creation to ongoing pricing, guest communication, and turnover management with an unwavering focus on quality, consistency, and investor peace of mind. She is also a real estate investor herself, currently undertaking a full studs-out renovation in Charleston, South Carolina, with a custom build planned on the coast of Oak Island, North Carolina.🌐 Website: thenextstopco.com📸 Instagram: @thenextstopcollectiveEPISODE NAVIGATION:1:07 — Origin Story: From Side Hustle to Full-Time Business2:02 — The Covid Pivot: Why the Pandemic Accelerated Everything3:01 — Casual Host vs. Full Operator: What Actually Separates Them5:59 — Starting with $100K: How Brittany Would Invest Today7:23 — Is Airbnb Still Worth It? The Case for Doing It Right11:16 — Marketing, Photography & Floor Plans: Why Visuals Are Non-Negotiable12:29 — Essential Systems for Scaling: Price Labs & Hospitable13:49 — Team Structure: Virtual Assistants, Local Vendors & Multi-Market Operations16:23 — Building Long-Term Wealth: The Stair-Step Strategy21:29 — What's Next: Charleston Renovation & Oak Island BuildWatch full episodes of The Real Estate Rundown on YouTube.Instagram: The Real Estate Rundown