7 things to watch out for when renting out
All those apartment offers on Airbnb look so great and unique. It must be fun decorating and meeting people from around the globe all the while making money off of it. You could do this, right? Sure you can! But how to avoid pitfalls and issues? Just read up on the things to watch out for when renting out your home.
1. Decoration
Ok, so let’s start with the fun stuff! You can let your creativity loose, when it comes to decorating your apartment to rent. You don’t need to go out of your way though. People do like to experiment with fun and unique homes when they book for short term, however that is not necessarily the greatest selling point and you might not have the time or funds to give a designer style look to your place. Provide the necessities, and make sure to remove any personal items from the accommodation.
2. Pricing and Availability
Consider your market and consider the season. If you’re not sure how to start it’s always good to check out your nearby competition through online travel agents. Here’s a detailed article on what prices to set. In any case, make sure to be able to update your online presence and availability as often as needed. You wouldn’t want a guest to book last minute and show up on your doorstep while you’re away for the weekend, right?
3. Cleaning and Maintenance
If you have guests coming and going, you need to think about cleaning between such shifts. For longer stays, it might also be prudent to offer cleaning during the stay. The same goes for maintenance. You don’t need to be able to fix everything on your own, but should be able to organize a quick solution. Overall you will have a lot of traffic, different people with different habits and culture, so expect things to get dirty and expire quicker than in your regular life.
4. Language and 24/7 support
Having 24 hour support is something that you definitely won’t be able to provide. That’s fine. But be prepared that some guests will mistake you for a travel agency or might have no one else to turn to when they urgently need help in the middle of the night. You also don’t need to speak all languages. Just make sure to be open minded and don’t shy away from a little bit of monkey talk.
5. Insurance
A good decor increases value for sure. But it also increases risk. Accidents happen and items can break, you might have a plumbing situation and urgently need to have funds to get it taken care of. Insurance is highly recommended when getting into this business.
6. Legal
With any business, there are legislatives to abide with. This varies from government to government, but make sure you are aware of regulations. The most general practice is to be registered with the state. This might require a fee or tax to be payed and in some cases the license number needs to be portrayed on all sites, where you are selling.
7. Neighbors
Try to have a relationship with the neighbors or the building community. Even if you are not living there, this is your property and your responsibility. Having a relationship with the neighbors is actually in your best interest. In case your bathroom plumbing is leaking who else would notice it first then your downstairs neighbor? If the elevator will be out due to maintenance for weeks, you’ll only hear about it from other residents.
Management Company
If this is all too much hassle and you can’t manage it on your own, you can always seek out an Agency to do it on your behalf for a fee. They have the resources to advertise your property to a wider audience, provide support to your guests, arrange cleaning, maintenance, even insurance for you and need to be quite aware of any regulatory changes.
