How Away by the Sea Protects Owner Trust and Guest Relationships with Hostaway Insurance Powered by Safely

At a glance:

• Company: Away by the Sea LLC

• Founder: Landie Canfield

• Founded: Late 2024

• Team: Solo operator, supported by a local vendor network

• Portfolio: 21 active listings

• Location: Crystal Coast, North Carolina, US

• Started with Hostaway: Signed up before acquiring her first property

• Key integration: Hostaway Insurance powered by Safely

• Website: www.awaybythesea.com

From Real Estate to a Away by the Sea LLC

After a decade in real estate, Landie Canfield made the leap into short-term rental property management for one simple reason: a passion for building long-lasting relationships with both property owners and traveling guests. Real estate transactions end the moment a deal closes. Property management doesn't have to.

Launching Away by the Sea on North Carolina's Crystal Coast in late 2024, Landie took an unusual first step, she signed up for Hostaway before she owned a single property. Knowing she'd be running the business solo, she wanted the operational foundation in place before the pressure of active bookings hit.

It worked. Today, Landie runs 21 active listings as a solo operator, backed by a close network of cleaners, stagers, photographers, and maintenance partners she considers part of the team in everything but title.

"I didn't want to scramble. I didn't want there to be a steep learning curve once I had properties and reservations— where I would find myself in a position where I didn't know what I was doing." — Landie Canfield, Founder, Away by the Sea

The Challenge: Every Damage Claim Risked a Guest Relationship

Personalized service is Landie's whole model, she texts every guest from her personal cell phone and builds the kind of trust that keeps owners with her for years. But that model has a natural weak point: what happens when a guest breaks something?

The standard options all created friction. Security deposits meant awkward money conversations. Airbnb's AirCover left too much to chance, no guarantee, no predictable process, and no way to reassure an anxious property owner in the moment.

Landie said, "I don't want to ask the guest for anything, even if they're in the wrong. That turns something really wonderful into something potentially uncomfortable, or ugly."  

She needed a way to cover damage that didn't put her in the middle of a confrontation, something automated, predictable, and invisible to the guest.

The Fix: Hostaway Insurance Powered by Safely

When Hostaway introduced its insurance add-on powered by Safely, Landie signed up immediately. The setup, in her words, was "click, click, and you're done," a small insurance fee built directly into each reservation, with no guest involvement required.

That simplicity maps directly to what makes the product work for operators like Landie:

• No guest or OTA interaction: claims are filed and resolved without ever putting the guest in an uncomfortable position

• Fast turnaround: most claims are paid out within a day of filing, so Landie isn't left carrying costs or chasing resolutions

• No deductible on content damage: up to $3,000 per incident, meaning even a several-hundred-dollar claim gets paid in full

• No minimum listing requirement: coverage that scales down to a solo operator with 21 units just as easily as it scales up

For Landie, that's not a feature list, it's the difference between a stressful phone call and one she can handle without breaking a sweat. One recent claim made that especially clear.

Inside a Claim:

A $900 rug, zero guest conflict

During a recent stay, a guest accidentally spilled a Liquid IV-mixed drink on a property's rug. Landie brought in her expert steam cleaner, but the stain wouldn't lift. Replacement cost: close to $900.

The property belonged to a retiree on a tight budget. Telling her she'd need to cover the bill herself wasn't an option Landie wanted to consider, and asking the guest, who'd made an honest mistake on a trip, wasn't either.

She filed the claim through Hostaway. It was covered in full, no questions asked.

According to Landie, "It saved our relationship with a guest who just had an honest accident, and it completely protected the owner financially." 

When a guest's bike accident became a non-issue

The rug wasn't a one-off. In another stay, a guest went over the handlebars of one of the property's bikes, bending the frame. Landie filed a claim for the damaged bike, no drawn-out back-and-forth, no argument about fault, just a straightforward replacement.

"No one was hurt, and we were able to easily get the bike replaced! " was the whole situation in a nutshell, as Landie describes it. Two very different incidents, the same outcome: the guest experience stayed intact, and the owner didn't pay a cent.

What This Means for Growing a Solo Business

Beyond individual claims, having automated insurance coverage built into every reservation has become part of how Landie sells her services to new property owners. It's included in her onboarding materials as a standing reassurance: every stay is protected, no exceptions, no fine print to negotiate later.

That confidence extends to how she talks about her business more broadly. Landie also points to Hostaway's live support team as a reason she can run a 21-listing operation solo, knowing she can get a real person on the phone when a claim or a question needs immediate attention.

Landie's Advice to Other Property Managers

"Automated insurance is the easiest, most efficient way to protect yourself, your guests, and your owners, a true win-win-win. Instead of managing security deposits or relying on the unpredictability of Airbnb's AirCover, embed a small insurance fee directly into the guest's reservation. It keeps everything painless, operates entirely behind the scenes, and protects your client relationships. You never have to accuse a guest, argue with them, or ask them for money out of pocket for an honest accident." — Landie Canfield

What's Next for Away by the Sea

Landie's plans are deliberately unhurried: steady growth, a first hire on the horizon, and a portfolio she expects could eventually double. Whatever that growth looks like, automated protection is no longer something she has to think about; it's just part of how the business runs.

Company details

• Name: Away by the Sea LLC

• Founder: Landie Canfield

• Primary market: Crystal Coast, North Carolina, US

• Website: https://www.awaybythesea.com/

• Integrations used: Hostaway Insurance powered by Safely