NICK, DAN AND MATT FALCONE
Rentyl, Kissimmee

The “aha” moment for the three Falcone brothers came when sales opened for a vacation real estate project in Orlando developed by their father, the legendary Art Falcone. The first 100 or so buyers didn’t want the houses for vacations. The buyers wanted them as investment properties to rent out to vacationers.

Nick Falcone, the eldest of the three, says he and brothers Dan and Matt realized over dinner that night that they could form a company that would play to resort developers, the investors buying the product and consumers wanting a place to stay.

Rentyl — pronounced like “rental” — was born. The Kissimmee-based company is a platform through which people book a house or condo at a resort. Rentyl has grown to represent 11,000 units in 75 resorts in 25 markets. Nick Falcone says the company aims to have 500 resorts in five years.

Rentyl is the newest unit of the brothers’ umbrella company, NDM Hospitality — a name taken from the first initials for Nick, 35, Dan, 33, and Matt, 31.

In 2011, in their early 20s, the brothers followed their father’s quick-service restaurant path by becoming franchisees for BurgerFi, at the time a one-store company. Their NDM — their father isn’t an investor — now owns 10 BurgerFi and other restaurants. NDM’s other subsidiaries do property management for resorts and clubs. NDM numbers 700 employees.

The case for Rentyl is that it offers developers the flexibility to continue to own units and derive booking revenue from them rather than selling. Nick Falcone says allying with Rentyl also stimulates buying from investors, leading to higher prices per square foot for the developer and a 200% to 400% increase in sales velocity. That in turn helps developers in obtaining project financing. For owners, whether a developer, individual investor or an existing resort, it’s another way to manage and market the property.

For vacationing families, the draw is getting the value of a house or condo rental, avoiding having to book a bunch of hotel rooms, but still receiving the consistency of a hotel brand with hotel service and resort amenities like a pool and golf course.

Rentyl faces plenty of competition from other online platforms, from resort and hotel chains’ own booking services and from vacation rental companies such as Vrbo and Airbnb. One advantage Rentyl properties offer is no Airbnb-like list of chores for visitors to complete upon checking out, Nick Falcone says.

Rentyl in 2019 posted $25 million in booking revenue and hit $150 million in 2021. Nick Falcone projects $1 billion in 2023. Rentyl retains an undisclosed portion. The lion’s share goes to the property owner. Florida resorts working with Rentyl include Jack Nicklaus’ Bear’s Den Resort Orlando and resorts developed by the Falcones’ father — Eagle Trace Resort Orlando, Encore Resort at Reunion, Margaritaville Orlando and Spectrum Resort Orlando. Beyond Florida, resorts accessible through Rentyl are across the country, the Caribbean and other locales. Says Nick Falcone, “We’re looking to replicate that experience all over the world.”