Vacasa Launches Second Annual Home for the Holidays Giving Campaign to Combat Homelessness in Portland

November 9, 2017

Portland, Ore., Nov. 9, 2017 — Vacasa, one of the largest U.S. vacation rental management companies, today announced the launch of its second annual Home for the Holidays giving campaign to combat homelessness in its headquarter city of Portland, Oregon. The giving campaign will run through the first week of December and benefit Central City Concern, one of Portland's oldest and most reputable transitional housing and rehabilitation organizations dedicated to providing long-term solutions that promote self-sufficiency.

Vacasa’s annual community giving campaign comes at a time when the issue of homelessness is top of mind for Portlanders. Last month, a KGW study revealed that more than half of Portlanders are dissatisfied with how the city is addressing homelessness and that over one third of residents have considered leaving Portland due to the growing issue.

“The Vacasa community is passionate about providing safe shelter and we want to do our part to help our neighbors in need,” says Cliff Johnson, Co-founder and Head of International at Vacasa.
Home for the Holidays has three different levels of engagement. First, Vacasa is asking its vacation rental owners who have homes in Oregon to donate $100 from their Thanksgiving weekend revenue—one of the busiest days in the year in the vacation rental industry—as part of Home for the Holidays. Vacasa will then match each donation, sending all proceeds to Central City Concern to help provide housing and rehabilitation for those in need.

“Vacasa’s ongoing support of Central City Concern is incredibly important and meaningful to us, especially during the holiday season,” says Central City Concern President & CEO Rachel Solotaroff, MD. “The funds raised from Home for the Holidays will be put toward affordable housing projects throughout the city of Portland.”

Corporate sponsorship is the second element of Home for the Holidays. Leading national and local organizations including Assurant, AWS Elemental, DBA Templeton Property Management, JLL, Matterport, PointCentral, SellPDX, and Studio Mega have joined Vacasa in support of the cause as community partners. 

Direct donations to Central City Concern from Vacasa employees, their friends, family, and larger social media communities, as well as anyone who’d like to donate is the third element of the campaign. Interested individuals can donate with a click of a button via the Home for the Holidays page. Unlike other giving campaigns, there are no administrative costs associated with Home for the Holidays, and 100% of funds raised are directly remitted to the non-profit. 

Last year marked the beginning of the annual giving tradition for Vacasa. In 2016, the company raised $30,000 through the support of its community of homeowners, corporate sponsors and employees who donated to the cause. Homelessness has directly impacted many people who live in Portland, with forty-one percent of Portlanders having a friend or family member who has been homeless and twenty-one percent having personally been homeless at some time in their lives. In its second year, Vacasa hopes to raise $50,000 for Home for the Holidays to directly address this wide-reaching issue. 

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About Vacasa

Vacasa is one of the largest U.S. full service vacation rental companies. Leveraging industry-leading technology, Vacasa drives revenue for homeowners and provides unforgettable experiences for guests. Founded in 2009 and based in Portland, Oregon, Vacasa manages a growing portfolio of more than 7,000 vacation homes in the U.S.; Europe; Central and South America; and South Africa. In eight years, Vacasa has grown from two to more than 1,700 employees, has been honored as the Oregon Better Business Bureau Large Business of the Year and was ranked ninth on the Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies list. For more information, visit https://www.vacasa.ca.