Find Your Stay

ABOUT TALO STAYS

Every Stay, With Purpose

Talo Stays was started by two Michigan natives who spent years managing vacation rentals the old way — and decided there was a better one.

"Every property gets noticed. Every guest gets remembered."

Before Talo Stays existed, Derek and Alison spent years working in vacation rental management together — inside someone else’s system, doing things someone else’s way. The more properties they touched, the more they kept noticing the same gaps: not enough transparency, not enough real strategy, relationships that felt more transactional than personal, reporting that told owners less than they deserved to know.

So they built the company they wished already existed.

We didn’t want to become a call center, and we still haven’t. When a guest leaves a review, one of us actually talked to them — we know what that stay was really like, not just the star rating. We know when a property needs our attention, and when it’s running exactly the way it should.

We’re both Michigan natives, and this state is personal to us — not a service area on a map. We think it’s one of the best places in the country to get away to, and we built Talo Stays around properties we’d want to stay at ourselves.

Real Transparency

You always know what's happening with your property — no black box, no vague monthly summary.

Real Strategy

Every property gets its own plan and pricing approach — not a copy-paste playbook.

Real Relationships

We talk to your guests ourselves — that's how we know what actually happened during a stay, not just the star rating.

Real Growth

Success means more than a full calendar — it's the trajectory of your property over time.

Our Team

Derek Stek

Co-Founder/Growth & Strategy

Derek's path here wasn't a straight line. Before vacation rentals, he worked as a chef, in marketing for a film school, and inside a communications agency — pairing a genuine feel for hospitality with a real background in brand and marketing. He spent years in vacation rental management next, convinced there was a better way to do it — more transparency, real strategy, real relationships — and co-founded Talo Stays with Alison to build exactly that. Derek leads marketing, growth, and the big-picture direction of the company today — but you'll still catch him answering the phone himself.

Alison Spicer

Co-Founder/Operations Manager

Alison built her career in hospitality — guest experience, operations, the day-to-day work that makes a stay feel effortless for everyone else. Alison spent years as a Regional Property Manager, overseeing multiple properties at once and learning firsthand what actually makes a stay go right. Now she runs the day-to-day at Talo Stays, making sure every property runs smoothly and every guest gets the kind of experience worth coming back for.

The Talo Journal

This is where we write about the two things we care about most: the properties we partner with, and the places they call home. Find Owner’s University for real talk on strategy, transparency, and what actually goes into doing this well — and Worth the Drive for local guides, seasonal picks, and reasons to book your next stay.