Setting up Rate Codes
Rate Codes must be setup in the system before rates can be entered. Go to Setup > Rates Management and press Setup Rate Codes in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen. A rate code must be entered for it to appear in the Rate Code drop down list when entering rate records.
How Rates are Calculated
Rates are a cumulative total of many different things such as the base rate, the derived rate, the extra adult and children charges, discounts and yielding adjustments. The following is exactly how rates are computed in roomMaster through-out the entire system.
Actual Base Rate = ((Base Rate +/- Base Rate Exceptions) +/- Derived Rate Adjustment)
Surcharge Base Rate = Actual Base Rate + Extra Adults + Extra Children
Rate Before Discount = Surcharge Base Rate +/- Any Yielding Adjustment
Final Rate To Charge = Rate Before Discount +/- Discount % or $
This means the final rate to charge would be in this order:
((Base Rate +/- Base Rate Exceptions) +/- Derived Rate Adjustment) + Extra Adults + Extra Child +/- Yielding Adjustment +/- Discount % or $
For properties using Yield Management, rates can be configured to apply the Yielding Adjustment prior to the Derived Rate. Click here for more information.
General
Rate Information
Rate Code - Enter a rate code, maximum of four characters, such as 'RACK' or 'GOVT' or 'PACK', etc.
Description - Enter a general description of the rate such as 'Government Rate' or 'Dive Package'. Avoid entering a seasonal time frame or room type. It should just be a description of the rate, not when or for what rooms it should be used.
Non-Commission Rate - If this rate is not subject to Travel Agent commissions, check this box. When a travel agent commission detail record is created during the night audit (payment to a travel agent) and the folio is for one of the rate types in this list, the travel agent detail record will not be created. You can use this listing if a travel agent books a special package detail, weekend rate or some type of special rate that they do not receive a commission for. For more information, see Travel Agent Information.
Hide Rate on Sign-In Sheet - If this is a negotiated rate, where you do not want to show the actual rate, rate information and total stay information to the guest on the Sign-In Sheet, check this box. This is usually done for Expedia rates for example.
Hide on Availability Screen - When checked, this rate code will not display on the Show Rates menu on the Availability (F4) screen. Use this option for special group rates or rates that would not be offered to a regular guest. It is recommended for any COMP or zero rates also.
Popular and Common Rate - When checked, this rate will appear as a default checked rate in iQ-WebBook (Hosted Web Engine) as well as at the top of the "Show Rates" button on the F4-Availability screen.
Charge Types
Daily Charge Rate will be charged every day.
Weekly Charge Rate will be charged every 7th day if the stay is in 7 day increments. If the Weekly increment is broken then the daily rate will be charged on all days between the increment. So if the stay is 14 days the weekly rate will post on day 1 and 7, but if the stay is 11 days, the weekly amount will post on day 1 and then there will be 4 nightly postings for days 7,8 9, and 10.
Monthly Charge Rate will be charged every month according to how many days are in each month. So, if the post was on October 24th, the next post would be 31 days from then since there are 31 days in October. If the post was on February 14th, then the next post would be 28 days from February 14th.
Beginning of Month Rate will be charged on the first of every month and a daily charge for any period outside a full month (1st day of the month to the last day of the month). If the guest checked in on 7/29 and checkout out on 8/31, they would be charged a daily charge on 7/29, 7/30 and 7/31 and then a monthly charge on 8/1.
Package Rate roomMaster allows you to set up packages to post other items besides room and tax with the daily posting. Click here for more information on setting up package rates.
Anniversary A monthly rate is charged every month according to the check in date. If the guest checked in on the 25th of the month, they will be charged a monthly rate on the 25th of every month. A daily charge will be charged for any part of the stay that is not on the anniversary date.
- Example: If a guest checks in on Feb 25th and checks out on July 28th, they will be charged on 2/25, 3/25, 4/25, 5/25, 6/25 and then daily rates on 7/25, 7/26 and 7/27.
It is possible for a guest to check in on a date that is not included in every month, like May 31. In this instance roomMaster automatically posts the monthly rate on the last day of the month, regardless of the date.
- Example: If a guest checks in on Jan 31st and checks out on July 2nd, they will be charged the monthly rate on 1/31, 2/28 (or 2/29 in a leap year), 3/31, 4/30, 5/31 and then daily rate on 6/30 and 7/1.
If the Recheckin with new folio option is selected for a folio that is checking out, the original check in date of the original folio is used as the starting date for posting the monthly amount.
- Example: A guest checks in on Mar 11th and is scheduled to depart August 13th. The monthly charges would be posted on 3/11, 4/11, 5/11. 6/11, 7/11 and daily charges on 8/11, 12 and 13. If the guest is checks out on 4/26 and the Recheckin feature is used to check the folio back in, the monthly postings would continue to be charged on the 11th of each month.
Rate Designation
The Rate Designation section is where you configure derived rate codes. Derived rate codes have their amounts calculated by adding or subtracting a percentage or flat amount from the rate amounts set for another rate code. For example, if your RACK rate is $200, create a rate code of AAA and set it as a Derived Rate 10% less than RACK. Reservations using the AAA rate code would be charged $180. No rate entries appear on the rate table on the Rate Information screen. roomMaster completes all the calculations for you. Derived rates are designated in Setup Rate Codes by the Derived rate icon and the base rate code being used appears in the Derived column.
The advantage of derived rates is they allow you to maintain multiple rates while only creating a few rate entries. See Rate Records for information on rate entries. Continuing the previous example, if RACK increases to $220 next year, AAA rate will automatically increase to $198, 10% less than $220, and roomMaster will increase the rates for you.
Normal Rate - This is a rate which uses the rate amount information directly from the Rate Information screen.
Derived Rate - This is a rate which is based by information from another Rate Code with an adjustment (+/-) and mirrors that rate.
Hybrid Rate - This is a rate which is a combination of a Derived Rate and a Normal Rate. You have an option of creating rate records in the Rate Information screen for only certain periods and dates. If the rate record does not exist for a particular date, then it uses the entered rate code instead, either a Normal Rate or a Derived Rate. roomMaster will always look in Rate Information first to see if there is a particular rate record entered for that date. If there is, it will use it. If not, it will use the rate code entered for the Hybrid rate.
- Example: A Rate code of GRP is created to use for Groups with the Hybrid Rate option selected, RACK entered for Rate Code and -20 entered for each of the adjustment fields. Rate Records are created for the dates of the group stay, June 5 - 8 for example, and the rate is $100. The RACK rate during June is $300. A reservation for the group to arrive June 3rd and leave June 10th would have the following rates for the days of their stay:
| Date | Rate |
|---|---|
| June 3 | $240 |
| June 4 | $240 |
| June 5 | $100 |
| June 6 | $100 |
| June 7 | $100 |
| June 8 | $100 |
| June 9 | $240 |
$240 is $300*.80, the RACK rate with the 20% discount. It is only applied to the dates of the reservation that are not included in the rate record.
Rate Code - Enter the rate code to derive the amounts for this rate code from.
Adjustment Type - Select Amount, Percent, or % Rounded to adjust this rate from the base rate by either a specific amount or a percentage. If the % Rounded (Whole Dollar) is chosen, then the rate is changed by the percentage entered and then rounded (.50 or higher would be rounded up, while .49 and lower would be rounded down). The rounding is applied before the Extra Adults or Extra Child charges or Discounts are applied.
Adjustments - Enter a negative number to reduce the base rate by the flat amount or percentage. Amounts can be entered to adjust the base rate by for One, Two, Three and Four Adults.
Mirror Restrictions and Closures from Derived Rate - Check this option on a Rate Code designated as a Derived Rate to apply all minimum length of stay restrictions and rate closures from the derived Rate Code. NOTE: Global Stay Restrictions are not included in the mirror option and must continue to be set on each Rate Code.
In roomMaster, you cannot derive a rate from a derived rate. Only rate codes that have rate entries can be used as base rates. Using the example above, if you derive your AAA rate as 10% less than your RACK rate, you cannot then derive your government rate, GOVT, as 10% less than your AAA rate. You would derive the GOVT rate as 20% less than RACK.
Also, roomMaster will apply the charge type of the base rate as the charge type of the derived rate. You cannot use a daily rate code to derive the rate of a package rate code, or use a rate code with a weekly charge type to derive a monthly rate code. Use daily rate codes to derive daily rates codes, package rate codes to derive package rates, etc.
Derived Rates Examples
- Example 1: Expedia rate is 30% less than your RACK rate. Click Setup Rate Codes and enter EXP in the Rate Code field and Expedia Rate in the description. In Rate Designation check Derived Rate and enter RACK in the Derived Rate Code Field. Select Percent from the drop down and enter -30.00 in each of the Adjustment fields.
- Example 2: Internet/roomMaster.net rate is 10% less than your RACK rate. Click Setup Rate Codes and enter INT in the Rate Code field and Internet Rate in the description. In Rate Designation check Derived Rate and enter RACK in the Derived Rate Code Field. Select Percent from the drop down and enter -10.00 in each of the Adjustment fields. With both of these examples, no rate entries would need to be created in the Rate Information screen.
Click here for information on using derived rates with Packages.
Converting to Derived Rates
When a rate code is selected to be a derived rate, a prompt screen will appear if there are rate records using the rate code. The rate records will be designated with an exclamation point. It is recommended to review the marked rate records and delete them as needed.
Any current rate code can be converted to a derived rate code except a rate code that has rate records using the Discount feature.
If you are currently using the Discount feature in Rate Records to discount rates such as AAA, AARP(Seniors Discount) and GOVT(Government), you cannot use the same rate code as a derived rate since any reservations already made using this rate code would have the discount applied on the reservation. If the same rate code is then changed to a derived rate, the discount would be applied twice.
📝 Example: Your DLX rate type has a RACK rate of $100, but with AARP 10% discount, it is $90. If this discount was configured on the Discounts tab of the rate record, the 10% discount is applied on the reservation. If you then change the AARP rate code to a derived rate at 10% less than RACK, the AARP rate would be $90, same as before, BUT any currently existing reservations using the AARP rate code would have the 10% Discount applied on the reservation, making the guests final rate $81, which is not correct. Instead, you would create a new rate code for your AARP rates, maybe ARPB, and derive that rate code from RACK rate and use it from this point forward.
Yield Management Options
Include this rate in Yield Management - Check this option to apply Yield Management adjustments to this rate code. If a rate code being used to derive other rates is included in Yield Management, all rate codes derived from it are yielded also. For example, if you use RACK as your "base" rate code and derive AAA, AARP(Senior Discount), and EXP(Expedia) from it, and RACK is included in Yield Management, AAA, AARP, and EXP will automatically be included in Yield Management. Separate rate records would have to be created to not have the rate code yielded.
Yielded rate codes are designated by the yield mgt icon icon next to rates code in Setup Rate Codes. For more information, see Yield Management.
If you are using Yield Management, you might want to use the Apply Yielding before Applying Derived Rate Adjustment option. This applies any Yield amount to the base rate prior to deriving the rate. Click here for more information.
Rate is a "Discounted Rate" - Change to RACK when closed - Check this box to change this rate code to the RACK amount when the discounted rates allowed occupancy percentage has been reached. This option is not defaulted on for a derived rate included in Yield Management. Click here for more information on Yield Management and Discounted Rates.
Description
Enter the detailed description of the rate in both the Rate Description (Internal Use) and Web Booking Engine Description (For Public View) fields.
Rev Account Select the type of room revenue which will be posted when this rate is used. Room revenue accounts also determine the type of taxes which apply when this rate type is used. Room Revenue types are items like Taxable, Non-Taxable, Boat Slips, Meeting Rooms, etc. For more information on Room Revenue Accounts, see Account Codes in Guest Ledger Setup.
EPI Rate If using EPI (External Posting Interface - Call Accounting), and this rate is used, the EPI Rate entry on the guest record will be changed to this entry. Different EPI Rate entries allow you to charge different rates to guest when using phones in the room. Example: If this is a BUS (Business Rate), you may use EPI Rate 2 because the Business Rate includes Free Local Calls where-as your regular rack rate may not.
Discounts
The Discount tab is where you can apply a discount percent or discount amount for each rate. In addition, you can specify if the discount should be applied for the entire stay, after a certain number of days or on a certain day. If a discounted rate code is selected, roomMaster will apply the discount when room and tax is posted on the guest folio. If a rate is set up with a discount for a minimum number of nights, and the reservation does not meet that criteria, the discount percent field will still show the discount amount on the folio, but will not be applied. It is displayed in case the guest stay changes.
Discounts are always applied at the end of calculating rates. If the discount is set as a percentage, the discount percentage is applied to any extra adults and/or extra children charges. Extra adult and extra children amounts are charged in full, if applicable, if the discount is set as an amount.
Example: If Extra Adult and Extra Child charges are $12 and $8, respectively, and a 25% Discount is configured on the Discount tab, the Extra Adult and Extra Child charges applied would be $9 and $6 (.75 x $12 and .75 x $8).
Discounted rates can be overridden at the reservation and folio level. See Discount% for more information.
Users should also review Derived Rates to configure discounted rates codes in roomMaster.
Discounts entered for rate records are NOT included in rates sent to Global Distribution Systems (GDS) like Expedia, Booking.com, TravelClick, etc., since discounts are flexible enough to be applied on a certain day or days of within a guest stay.
Deposits
In this section you can define how much deposit is required for a reservation made with this rate code. A different amount can be specified for each rate code.
Deposit Requirements - Select the amount of deposit required for the rate code, or select No Deposit if you do not require one.
First Week With Tax - Select this option to require a deposit of the first seven days of the stay. If the reservation is for less than seven days, the full balance of the stay is the amount required. For example, if your rate is $100 per night plus tax, the deposit required for a five night stay would be $500 plus tax, for a 10 night stay it would be $700 plus tax. The option works the same regardless if the rate is a daily, weekly, or monthly charge.
Three Nights With or Without Tax - When selected, reservations of less than three nights will have only one night deposit amount required, while reservations of three or more nights will have three nights deposit amount required. This is common practice for Caribbean properties.
The amount selected appears in the Charge button in the Total Stay screen of the guest reservation. See Advance Deposits for more information.
Deposit Terms and Conditions - Enter your cancellation and deposit refund policy.
Deposits with WorldLink
For properties with a credit card interface, like Shift4's Dollars on the Net, the amount option selected here can post automatically for any reservations made through WorldLink.
With WorldLink - Select the Charge option on the Reservations tab of the WorldLink configuration to have the amount posted automatically. Click here for more information.
Defaults for Overridden Rates
Deposit Requirements and Restrictions can be configured for overridden rates by pressing Defaults for Overridden Rates.