This post is presented by Samantha Bell of Let’s Talk Real Estate

In my years of helping clients purchase and sell homes, I’ve been asked time and time again if buying a home is a good investment. Trust me, I get it – this is the single largest purchase you will probably ever make. One way to ease your worries about whether buying a house will pay off, is by purchasing an investment property. Turning all, or a portion, of your home into a long term rental unit or an Airbnb, can ease some of the financial stress and even allow you to pay off your mortgage sooner. All it takes is a little bit of smarts and the right property (that’s where I come in:).

I’ve been a landlord for the past 9 years; in a single family home, a basement apartment and most recently was crowned ‘Superhost’ status with the ever-popular “Airbnb”.

While Airbnb may not be for everybody, we love sharing our home with others and making their experience just right! So, this month I thought I’d share 4 important things to consider if you too are thinking about becoming an Airbnb (super) host!

1. Time Commitment

What does your day-to-day schedule look like, are you flexible? The reality is someone could make a very last minute booking into your suite and you need to have the flexibility or plan in place to handle these types of requests. It’s so important that you know what you can handle and use the tools in the Airbnb app to help you set boundaries around how much notice you require for bookings. Consider setting a minimum night stay requirement and/or block days that you might be occupied and unable to check a guest in. You also may want to schedule the time to do your own cleaning between guests, which can be time consuming when you have laundry involved. (Tip: having extra sheets and towels on hand can reduce the amount of time preparing between checkout and check-in for the next guest. Due to the limited amount of time we have we have chosen to hire a cleaner who we try to book in advance as much as can to take this responsibility off of us. There is also an option to charge an additional cleaning fee per stay to have the guest cover this expense.

2. Set-up Costs

Once you have decided that you have the time to invest into building your Airbnb profile and renting out your space, you must be  prepared financially to furnish and stock the space to accommodate guests. We spent a month preparing our two-bedroom apartment; furniture, bedroom & bathroom linens, décor, kitchen appliances, utensils, plates, bowls, glasses, cutlery and the list goes on… We gave it a fresh coat of paint, installed a new toilet, new kitchen countertops, kitchen faucet and new light fixtures. While I can’t put a number on it, as it will be different for everyone, the costs add up very quickly. You’ll want to decide on a budget to get started and maybe beg and borrow the rest?

3. Risk & Liability

Let’s be real, you’re inviting strangers into your home. Through Airbnb you do have the ability to screen your guests, review their previous stay reviews and communicate with them through their messaging system in the app. I would also recommend reviewing the host protection insurance program and talking with your personal insurance company to make sure you are protected and if you will be taking on any extra expense per month.

4. Location & Pricing

You have to use your judgement and decide how desirable your location is. The surrounding area will draw guests to book your suite. We initially thought our location might be a bit out of the way, but to our surprise it hasn’t been a deterrent at all. Also Airbnb does have a feature on their site to help you set pricing based on similar rentals in your area, but even with this feature you do have ultimate control over your nightly rates. It is important that you are constantly watching competing listings to ensure you’re positioned well and not missing any booking opportunities.

I would be happy to help you find YOUR perfect investment. We have had so much fun setting up our Airbnb and sharing the space with guests from all over the world. It has allowed us the ability to make extra money each month but still have the flexibility to not have tenants 24/7 which was our ultimate goal as a family.

If you’ve been thinking about converting an apartment in your own home or rental property into an Airbnb it’s an exciting experience. Be prepared to roll with the punches and learn along the way – if I can be of any help, get in touch!

Until next month,

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