2016
James and his brother Oliver buy an apartment in Gardens. Long-term tenants disappoint. An outside Airbnb manager disappoints next — so James takes over.
Why Elevate
Built for Cape Town, not cloned from anywhere else
85+ Cape Town homes under management
Focused on Cape Town short-stay; nothing else.
Rigorous guest screening on every booking
We turn away stays that don't fit your home.
Top-tier occupancy and nightly rates
Some of the highest in our Cape Town cluster, benchmarked against live market data.
In-house ops and maintenance team
Cape Town–based operations, photography, design, and at-cost maintenance; no outsourcing.
Meet the Team Behind the Magic
Get to know the talented individuals behind our company.
James
Founder | MD
James spent a decade managing technology projects in the fintech, edtech and healthcare sectors before starting Elevate. He’s passionate about sport, his pet cat and New York Bagels.
Chris
Operations Manager
After completing a hospitality degree, Chris started a six-year career at the Cape Grace Hotel before joining Elevate. He’s passionate about golf and braaiing in winter.
Claire
Accounting
Claire keeps our finances in check and SARS happy. She’s passionate about animals, cold swims and cooking in her free time.
Jardine
Office Manager
Jardine used to be in the navy before moving into admin and HR focused roles. She brings the order and organisation to our team as well as a healthy dose of Gees when we need it. She’s passionate about Turkish series, cats, and family birthdays.
Shamiel
Property Manager
Shamiel has a strong operations background and approaches problems calmly and rationally. We rely on him for new ideas and his long list of connections in Cape Town. He’s passionate about his dogs, squash and new business ideas.
Bianca
Property Manager
Bianca has a long list of talents. She’s owned and managed a bakery and opened a resort on a Thai island. She’s passionate about baking cakes for the office, having spotless sneakers and playing Mel C on repeat.
Anne
Property Manager
Anne worked in hospitality on sailing boats for a decade before joining Elevate. She’s obsessed with animals, working late and travel.
Jordanna
Property Manager
Jordanna has taken on numerous roles before joining Elevate, including the day-to-day operation of her own Airbnb. She’s passionate about being our office DJ, telling us facts that aren’t true and fixing geyers.
Trust
Maintenance
Trust can fix just about anything and does it all with a healthy sense of humour. He’s generally at the office first and enjoys pocket dialing our respective groups throughout the day.
Robin
Support
Robin goes above and beyond to provide outstanding support to our hosts and guests.
From the Beginning
The Elevate Story
Elevate started in 2016 with a single apartment in Gardens. What began as one owner trying to fix his own Airbnb has grown into a Cape Town team of eleven managing 86 homes across Sea Point, Camps Bay, Green Point, the V&A Waterfront, and Franschhoek.
2017
A second apartment, also in Gardens. The brothers commit to short-stay only — no more long-term tenants, no more outside management companies.
2018
Still working full-time in tech, James takes on a handful of Airbnbs for friends and family facing the same management issues he just fixed.
2019
James uses his tech background to build Elevate's stack: property management software, a pricing algorithm, and live-data benchmarking.
2020
Elevate launches full-time; two months before South Africa's first Covid lockdown. The team pivots to long-stay bookings from Cape Town locals.
2021
Borders reopen. Elevate rebuilds around international guests returning to Cape Town, adds in-house cleaning, and expands guest support.
2023
The portfolio crosses 50 managed properties. Elevate adds in-house photography and interior design, and moves into a brand new Cape Town office
2026
86 homes under management across Sea Point, Camps Bay, Green Point, the V&A Waterfront, and Franschhoek — with an eleven-person Cape Town team.
Our Mission
Make owning a Cape Town short-stay property feel as effortless as owning the one you live in. No 3am calls, no cleaner logistics, no second-guessing a price.
Our Northstar
We measure ourselves on two numbers: the money we return to owners, and the share of guests who book a second stay.
Professional
The Elevate values
Elevate, a leading Full Service Airbnb Management company, has been managing listings professionally since 2016.
We Only Earn If You Do
We believe in a partnership where our success is directly tied to your success.
Service Excellence
We strive to deliver exceptional service that exceeds our clients’ expectations.
Total Solution
We offer a comprehensive range of services to meet all your Airbnb management needs.
Integrity
We operate with honesty, transparency, and a commitment to ethical business practices.
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