There’s a thin line between a smart home and a tech flex. One makes your Airbnb easier to manage, reduces guest friction, and keeps you off the phone at 11:43 p.m. because “the AC won’t turn on.”
The other? That’s when you’ve got LED strip lights that change color based on your mood ring.

This isn’t that post.

These are the actually useful smart devices you want in your short-term rental. Not to show off, but to show up—because time is money, and both are bleeding out every time you do something manually that could’ve been automated.

1. Smart Lock (Because Key Exchanges Are for Boomers)

Your guest lands late. They text you while you’re in the middle of dinner asking which rock the key’s under.
Now your night is over.

A smart lock ends this whole conversation. Set a temporary code, send it over, and let them roll in whenever. No keys, no meetups, no broken deadbolts because someone panicked at 1 a.m.

Top pick: August Smart Lock or Schlage Encode
Bonus move: Link it to your cleaner’s code and revoke it after their shift.

2. Smart Thermostat (Because Your Utility Bill Is Crying)

Guests love cranking the heat. Then opening the window. Then leaving for four hours.

Smart thermostats like Ecobee or Nest let you:

• Set heating/cooling limits (no sauna houses in July)
• Monitor use from your phone
• Automatically adjust when no one’s there

They pay for themselves faster than your guests can say “Is it hot in here?”

3. Noise Monitor (Because You Don’t Want to Be That Airbnb)

You don’t need to hear what your guests are doing. But you do need to know when they’re doing it loudly enough to summon the cops or your HOA.

Enter: Minut or Roomonitor.
These devices track noise levels without recording audio—so your guests still have privacy, but your neighbors don’t have rage blackouts.

They’ll ping you when the volume spikes. You text the guest. Problem solved before it escalates.

4. Smart Plugs (For the Stuff You Always Forget to Check)

Ever driven 45 minutes to unplug a lamp? Or worried your guest left the iron on while they checked out?

Smart plugs like TP-Link Kasa or Wemo give you remote control over appliances. Lamps. Fans. Heaters. Even that random string of patio lights no one ever turns off.

Schedule them. Turn them off remotely. Save your sanity and a few watts.

5. Security Cameras (Outside Only. Always. Outside.)

No one wants to feel like they’re being watched while trying to enjoy their weekend away. But a camera pointed at the front door? That’s just smart.

Helps you:

• Verify guest headcount
• Monitor check-in/check-out activity
• Confirm your cleaner actually showed up

Ring Doorbell or Arlo Pro are solid picks. But always, always disclose them in your listing. Hidden cameras are a fast track to lawsuits and bad juju.

6. Leak Detectors (Because Water Is the Silent Killer)

One leaky toilet. One flooded laundry room. One guest who “thought it was normal.”
Now you’re looking at a four-figure repair and a week of lost bookings.

Get a cheap smart leak sensor (try YoLink or Honeywell Lyric) and drop them near:

• Water heaters
• Under sinks
• Washer/dryer units

They’ll alert you the second moisture hits the sensor. Before your baseboards swell and the drywall smells like regret.

7. Smart Lights (Only If They Make Things Easier)

Look—we’re not here to turn your Airbnb into a nightclub. But setting lights to turn on automatically at dusk? That’s hospitality.

Use Philips Hue or LIFX to:

• Set ambient lighting when guests arrive
• Automate porch lights for safety
• Control switches without needing 400 light instructions

Bonus: it looks polished as hell.

The Final Word

Smart tech isn’t just about showing off to your guests or feeling like Iron Man. It’s about reducing friction—for them and for you. Every minute you don’t spend coordinating keys, resetting thermostats, or fixing broken stuff is a minute you can spend scaling your listings, fixing your margins, or gasp actually enjoying your life.

Want help setting this up? We’ve already got it dialed.

At JLT Management, we build automation into every property we manage—so you can stay hands-off without being out of touch. We'll make sure your smart home is actually smart… not just shiny.