Beginner's Guide to Airbnb Hosting
How to Start, Ultimate Beginner's Guide, Best Practices, Hosting Tips
We’ve written so many times about the many challenges that current hosts face and how to resolve them - however, we still keep getting messages from everyone who aren’t currently hosts but are seriously thinking about pursuing their career in hosting.
Here’s How We Start
If you’re hoping to become a host, start here and follow these steps to give yourself the best chance of success.
This is the Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Airbnb Hosting.
Before You Even List on Airbnb
There are a few things to think about before you even consider listing on Airbnb. It doesn't matter what you're going through right now or why you're doing it. You should give these matters serious thought.
What Are Your Goals?
Do you have any objectives besides making some money off of your Airbnb listing? Are you seriously considering making this your main source of income or are you just looking to do it occasionally for some "occasional" money? You must assess the quantity of capital required and the potential level of risk based on these objectives.
Remember That Different People Will Be In Your Home
You are essentially letting strangers into your house when you host an Airbnb listing. This is probably not the best course of action for you to take if that component of this business endeavour even remotely unnerves you. However, it is definitely something to have on your list if you believe you can interact with strangers effectively and host them.
Recognize Rental Arbitrage
The short-term rental market as a whole is supported by a fundamental market force. Rental arbitrage is one such force. This will be present in EVERY market that makes it possible for hosts to accept payments via Airbnb, but not every market is the same.
Understand what it means to rapidly determine how well-suited your location is for you to host.
Things to Think About Before Hosting on Airbnb
Here are some hosting points to think about before we go into some of the details. Your path to hosting will be much easier if you have a better understanding of these things. Airbnb hosting may require more people and effort than you anticipated and may not simply be you and your extra space.
Although you are not yet required to respond, the questions following do benefit from the context they provide.
What Kind of Host Do You Want to Be?
Yes, we know you want to make some money doing this, but there are more than financial benefits to becoming an Airbnb host.
What Do You Hope to Accomplish by Hosting?
There are three basic categories of hosts: those who want to use their available space to earn a few extra dollars, those who want a reliable supplementary source of income, and those who are serious about growing their Airbnb business and making it their primary source of revenue.
You will need to invest more time, money, effort, and risk if you want a higher prospective income. The positioning, scope, and type of your listings, as well as the methods and techniques you employ, will depend on what you hope to accomplish.
Even so, are you qualified to host? Please refrain from hosting on Airbnb if you fall into one of these categories and spoil it for everyone else.
Do you have the six qualities that make a great entrepreneur?
Be Realistic
You don't simply list your apartment and wait for the money to start rolling in. Before a potential guest is willing to book with you, you need to have a conversation with them and address their concerns. To receive positive reviews, you must work hard over time. The check-in and check-out processes take time.
Set the right expectations about time commitment by evaluating how much time it’ll likely take for you to host on Airbnb.
Beginner hosts are frequently taken aback by the amount of time and work required to regularly provide an experience for their guests when they first start out and handle everything on their own.
But when they settle in, become more effective, and start using automation tools, hosts discover methods to save time and energy without compromising their level of service.
You will undoubtedly need to dedicate some time and effort to the process if you want to maintain an extensive and effective Airbnb listing. Even if you have everything under control, you will still need to spend a lot of time managing any bookings you may have and making sure that everything is set up for your visitors. You might want to reconsider being an Airbnb host if you don't have this kind of time and flexibility.
BEFORE hosting, do some research on how much you will earn
Would you leave your current job before learning the wage at your new one? Obviously not.
But the majority of new hosts act exactly that way. They host on Airbnb before they even know how much they will win.
Even while Airbnb has experienced tremendous growth, some markets continue to lack the demand necessary to sustain hosting. If you reside in one of these markets, wouldn't you want to know?
On the other hand, you should also research whether your area has a booming Airbnb industry. If not, you might be content with your monthly salary of $2000 even though it should be double that.
How do you determine the size of your prize, then? Get a market study from a reliable source of information. In order to get a realistic idea of how much money you can anticipate to make hosting on Airbnb in your area with your listing, LearnAirbnb suggests checking out AirDNA. They have detailed data for all major Airbnb markets.
Be Familiar With Your Insurance
Your home insurance policy is almost certainly not going to cover any damage that occurs as a result of short-term renting, especially if you're renting out your own residence.
Yes, Airbnb's $1 million guarantee is reassuring, but you may need supplementary insurance if you have unique products or risk factors that aren't covered by their coverage.
Find out all there is to know about Airbnb's liability insurance here, and decide if it's adequate for you.
Be Discreet
Are your neighbours in a peaceful gated neighbourhood who like to go to bed early and are extremely sensitive to noise or visitors? You must consider your neighbours if you live in a unit that is a part of a community with common space.
Even if you live independently, you should think about managing your relationships with your neighbours. Your hopes of hosting an Airbnb could be dashed by an irate neighbour.
Noise complaints are the biggest indicator for unhappy neighbours. Check out a nifty product that can help you prevent and manage noise issues with guests.
Subleasing Will Require Your Landlord’s OK
Yes, if your present landlord forbids it, it can imply that you are unable to host in your existing flat. Many flats don't allow for temporary subleasing. However, if you approach your landlord in the proper manner, there are ways to improve your chances.
If all else fails, think about moving into an apartment that allows hosting or look into purchasing a specialised unit.
Be Selective
Yes, you enjoy your home, but not everyone who comes to visit will feel the same way. You must position your unit's listing to appeal to the clients who are most likely to make a reservation with you if you want to increase your chances of success.
Sure, business travelers could be prepared to pay higher prices, but if your apartment is outside of the local business district, it would be wiser to focus your Airbnb marketing efforts elsewhere.
Learn From Other Hosts
There will be competition because you are not the only game in town. The more you are aware of them and the better you comprehend what attracts or repels potential visitors, the better you can modify your offering to have a successful Airbnb listing. However, you must first be able to recognize the appropriate competition.
Make A List Of The Essentials
The expectations of guests have increased as more hosts compete for travelers by putting listings on the market. What was once considered a nice-to-have is now a must. The provision of certain amenities is definitely necessary for a positive experience.
Your furnishings and facilities could make a significant difference if you're serious about hosting. What should you take into account while buying furniture as every apartment must have furniture?
Furniture selection comes down to two factors: utility and form. You need to think about what matters to your visitors. What need does it satisfy?
Be aware that achieving 5-star reviews depends on having the guest's sleep experience just right.
There aren't enough positive things you can do to make up for a bad night's sleep. You shouldn't skimp on any expenditures that have to do with sleep.
Crunch The Numbers
If you’re going to be doing a dedicated Airbnb unit, rather than just renting out extra space in your current home, do a sanity check with the figures and make sure it’s worth your time and money.
Use free Airbnb calculator to evaluate any new potential listings BEFORE spending money on furniture and committing to a lease agreement. But use the figures you obtained from AirDNA to inform your income assumptions in the calculator.
Work On Your Airbnb Listing
Here are some aspects you need to know once you're prepared to create your listing on Airbnb.
Placements for Success in Your Listing
It's important to distinguish your Airbnb listing from those of your rivals in addition to having excellent listing photographs and descriptions.
Recall the method you used to locate your target client above? So instead of attempting to make your listing appealing to everyone, take this opportunity to genuinely target them.
Set House Rules
Be specific about what is prohibited without going overboard and making conditions that are so annoying that no guests would want to book with you (e.g. no smoking). When establishing house rules, strike the correct balance.
Make Sure Your Listing Isn’t Lame
- Don’t have a lame title
- Don’t have lame descriptions
- Don’t have lame photos. Do make sure you get GREAT photos.
- Don’t get lame reviews
- Don’t have a lame host profile
Just ask yourself if it will help make the photo Instagram-worthy before you decide how to capture your space. What would inspire your visitors to take a photo of your property and share it with their social networks?
Smart Hosting from the Beginning
There are horror stories abound on the internet about nightmare guests who trash a place or end up squatting and refusing to leave. But those are all very rare, and Airbnb has every incentive to ensure that its hosts have the confidence to keep hosting through their platform.
Here are some ways to stay smart as a new Airbnb host.
Don’t Give Out Your Location (unless they rent) or Identity
Although the majority of visitors will be wonderful, there are some jerks who would take advantage of a situation if it arose. Take any of these quick, easy steps to stop identity theft from happening while you are an Airbnb host.
Spot and Avoid Potential Squatters
Keeping your bookings brief is the simplest way to accomplish this. Since most bookings last no more than a week, you shouldn't start your Airbnb hosting career by accepting reservations longer than 30 days unless you live in a location where guests frequently stay for several weeks or months at a time.
Though it's unlikely, you may keep in mind these straightforward suggestions to make your listing a challenging and undesirable target for would-be squatters.
Use Smart Pricing Feature
The proper price must be established, and it must be checked and updated frequently. If you overcharge, you run the risk of having more empty days, but if you undercharge, you're leaving money on the table. Create a pricing plan that will enable your property to generate the rents it is capable of.
PRO PRICING TIP: Better yet, work with a trusted third-party pricing partner such as Wheelhouse to make sure your pricing is always and automatically optimized to maximize your profits. Why 3rd party and not use Airbnb’s pricing recommendations?
The suggested prices of Airbnb are frequently much lower than what is feasible on the market. Airbnb frequently suggests price that is 15% or more less than Wheelhouse while obtaining comparable occupancy levels, according to hosts who have tested both.
Meaning: Airbnb aims to increase reservations, not your revenue. Wheelhouse only receives payment after you do.
Prepare & Keep Making Things Easier For Guests
Sometimes from halfway around the world, your Airbnb visitors have gone a long distance to stay there. It can also be stressful. Flight delays are possible. Keys can disappear.
Therefore, addressing some of these most frequent guest annoyances thoughtfully and proactively could go a long way toward transforming potentially stressful circumstances into instances where you excel as a host.
It will not only make your guests pleased to have a basic lockbox to put an extra set of keys in, but it will also save you time when some of your guests are certain to get locked out late at night.
Another excellent chance to give a superior guest experience is to offer a solution to reduce the burden for visitors who must either check in early or depart late.
Optimize, Automate, or Outsource
You'll need to increase your efficiency and learn how to remove yourself from the situation. Your time has a limited capacity.
Optimize initially. Are visitors asking the same questions repeatedly? Save each response as a template so that you can quickly copy and paste them. When performing remote check-ins and check-outs, think about employing smart locks or keypads.
Next, automate. Some hosts wind up replying to the same visitor requests for up to 2-3 hours a day because they have many ads. But it’s not simply the time. It’s also the response rate.
Talk to our team about outsourcing your listing.