Fractional CTO for STR, MTR and LTR Operators

Your properties are running.
Your systems are probably
holding you back.

I work with short-term, mid-term, and long-term rental operators who are done patching tools together and ready to build something that actually scales. I come in at the strategy level, help you make the right tech decisions, and stay on to make sure they hold up.

Book a Discovery Call
STR / MTR / LTR
Full Rental Spectrum
3 Tiers
10 to 500+ Properties
US + EU
Markets Served
CTO Level
Strategy, Not Just Execution

The Real Problem

Most rental operators are running
serious portfolios
on improvised systems.

  • 01 OTA dependency is deeper than most operators realise. When the majority of your bookings come through Airbnb or VRBO, you don't fully control your business. Every algorithm change, every policy update, every fee increase affects you directly and there is nothing you can do about it unless you have built something outside of it.
  • 02 Mid-term and long-term stays break the standard tools. Corporate leases, 21-plus night billing cycles, executive clients who need a proper invoice, extended stay tax logic, annual lease management. The software built for short-term vacation rentals was never designed for any of this. So operators end up handling it manually, every single time.
  • 03 The tech stack grew by accident. A PMS here, a pricing tool there, a channel manager added because someone in a Facebook group recommended it. Nobody planned how these connect. Data ends up in five different places and the team spends more time working around the gaps than actually managing properties.
  • 04 Direct booking never got properly built. Most operators try it with discount codes and a decent-looking website. But without a real system behind it, a booking engine, a guest CRM, a payment flow that handles all stay types, it stays a side experiment instead of a channel you can actually rely on.

"The operators who scale past 20 properties are not the ones who found better listings. They are the ones who stopped improvising and started building systems that run without them."

Ritik Kachhot, Fractional CTO

Services and Pricing

Three ways to work together.
One thing I actually care about:
your operation running better.

All retainers are month-to-month. No long contracts, no lock-in. I price at roughly half of US market rates because my cost base is lower and I pass that on to you. The quality of thinking does not change.

Tier 01
Tech Advisor
10 to 20 properties

You do not need a full-time CTO right now. You need someone who looks at your tech with fresh eyes every quarter and tells you honestly what is working, what to fix, and what to stop paying for.

  • Onboarding tech stack assessment
  • Quarterly tech stack audit and recommendations
  • PMS and channel manager evaluation and selection
  • OTA distribution strategy for Airbnb and VRBO
  • MTR billing guidance and mid-term stay setup
  • LTR tech guidance for lease and tenant management platforms
  • Direct booking foundation planning
  • Automation opportunity identification
  • Quarterly roadmap review
  • Monthly 60-minute strategy call
  • Email for deliverables, WhatsApp within 48 hours
$1,000 /mo
Month-to-month retainer
A US-based Fractional CTO charges $2,500 to $3,000 for this.
Tier 02
Tech Strategist
20 to 100 properties

You are growing and the tech decisions are starting to cost real money when you get them wrong. This is where we meet regularly, build a real roadmap, and I stay close enough to catch problems before they get expensive.

  • Everything in Tier 1
  • Full technology roadmap with quarterly updates
  • MTR system architecture and corporate lease workflow design
  • LTR platform guidance including AppFolio, Buildium, Propertyware
  • OTA reduction strategy and direct booking infrastructure planning
  • Vendor evaluation and negotiation across PMS, pricing tools, smart locks, guest comms
  • Integration architecture planning across your full stack
  • Data and reporting strategy covering RevPAR, occupancy, ADR
  • Hiring guidance for in-house tech roles
  • Bi-weekly strategy calls
  • Email for deliverables, WhatsApp within 24 hours
$3,000 /mo
Month-to-month retainer
A US-based Fractional CTO charges $6,000 to $8,000 for this.
Tier 03
Embedded CTO
100 to 500+ properties

At this scale you need someone who owns the technology decisions end to end. I come in as your CTO without the full-time cost. I own the roadmap, oversee the builds, manage the vendors, and report directly to you.

  • Everything in Tier 2
  • Full tech leadership and decision-making authority
  • MTR billing system design and corporate lease infrastructure
  • LTR platform migration, integration, and full stack management
  • Tech budget planning and cost optimisation
  • Security, compliance, and data privacy oversight
  • Scalability planning for multi-market expansion
  • Tech due diligence for fundraising, acquisitions, or partnerships
  • Internal team structure and hiring roadmap
  • KPI framework setup and performance tracking
  • Weekly leadership calls
  • Email for deliverables, WhatsApp same-day response
$7,000 /mo
Month-to-month retainer
A US-based Fractional CTO charges $12,000 to $15,000 for this.
Not included

Custom software development, integration builds, direct booking platform development, mobile apps, and automation implementation are not part of the CTO retainer. When execution is needed, I bring in a trusted development team. That keeps my strategic advice honest. I am not recommending a build because I want to sell you one.

Why Operators Stay

The work does not stop
after the first 90 days.

A good tech strategy is not a one-time project. Here is what keeps the engagement valuable month after month.

01 / QUARTERLY AUDITS
Your stack needs watching

New tools launch, OTA policies change, PMS vendors update their APIs. Every quarter we review what is working, what has shifted, and what your next move should be. There is always something worth finding.

02 / VENDOR OVERSIGHT
You keep getting pitched

Software vendors will come at you constantly with new features, upgrades, and renewal conversations. I filter that for you. You stop wasting time on tools that are not right for your operation and start making faster, better decisions.

03 / GROWTH PLANNING
Adding properties changes everything

Every time you add properties, enter a new market, or bring someone new onto the team, the tech decisions shift. What worked at 15 properties does not work at 40. I stay close enough to catch those inflection points before they become expensive problems.

How It Works

From first conversation
to systems that run themselves.

Three steps. No pressure at any point. If I genuinely do not think I can help, I will tell you that in the first call.

Step 01
Discovery Call

30 minutes. You tell me about your operation, your properties, what tools you are running, and where things are breaking down. I ask specific questions. No pitch, no slides. Just an honest conversation about what you are dealing with.

Step 02
Tech Audit

I go through your current stack, find the gaps, the redundancies, and the risks, and put together a written assessment with clear priorities. You will know exactly what to fix first, what to stop paying for, and what actually needs to be built.

Step 03
Ongoing Retainer

We pick the tier that fits your scale and set a rhythm that works for your schedule. Strategy calls, vendor decisions, quarterly audits, roadmap updates. All of it with someone who actually knows STR, MTR, and LTR operations.

Ritik Kachhot, Fractional CTO

About

I work with operators
who think like owners.

I'm Ritik Kachhot. I work as a Fractional CTO for short-term, mid-term, and long-term rental operators in the US and Europe. My background is in software development and system architecture, but what I actually spend most of my time on is strategy. Helping property management companies make better technology decisions at the business level, not just the implementation level.

I focus on the rental space specifically because the problems here are genuinely different from other industries. Corporate stay billing, mid-term lease complexity, LTR platform migrations, OTA channel management, direct booking infrastructure — none of this gets solved well by generic tools or generalist tech consultants. It takes someone who has spent real time in this space and knows what questions to ask before recommending anything.

When execution is needed, I bring in a trusted development team. The CTO engagement stays focused on strategy. That separation matters because it keeps my advice honest. I am not recommending a build because I want to sell you one. I am recommending it because it is the right move for your operation.

STR Operations MTR and Corporate Stays LTR Platforms Direct Booking Systems PMS Architecture OTA Reduction Revenue Architecture Vendor Negotiation Automation Design Tech Stack Simplification

Let's talk

30 minutes.
You tell me what is going on.
I will tell you what I think.

Book through Calendly and pick a time that works for you. I will come prepared with specific questions about your operation. No generic consulting conversation, no pitch at the end.

Book a Discovery Call

US and European operators welcome  ·  All timezones accommodated