Airbnb has come a long way from its startup years. Founded in 2008, the company has since accumulated 5.6 million active listings worldwide, encompassing 100,000 cities spread across more than 220 countries. The platform maintains four million hosts and has served more than 800 million guests as of 2020. It has generated a gross income of $110 billion, with average annual host earnings valued at $7,900.
If you are often out of your house or apartment because you are a frequent traveler, listing your property on Airbnb is a clever idea. That’s passive income you could use to support your nomadic lifestyle.
To ensure that your listing gets positive feedbacks from guests and more bookings come your way, you need to make essential preparations. Here are some of them.
General cleaning
When you visit hotels, you expect the room you get to be spotlessly clean. That’s most true if the room has cost you an arm and a leg. Of course, you want to get your money’s worth. The same goes for the visitors you will host via Airbnb. They, too, will expect that your listing is as clean and well-maintained IRL as it looks online.
If you’re listing a studio apartment, that’s pretty easy to maintain. If you have a house with multiple rooms, however, things can become a little challenging. Here the key is to segmentize. Approach the cleaning process room by room. Follow a schedule that comes with a checklist. That way you won’t miss anything.
Be careful in choosing cleaning products. Avoid those with harmful chemicals. If you can, use eco-friendly brands.
If you are going away, leave the cleaning responsibility to someone you can trust. Pay them sufficiently so that they get inspired to do their job as best they can and not compromise your Airbnb rating.
De-clutter
Cleaning is not limited to wiping windows and sweeping floors. Take it to the next level by doing serious de-cluttering. If you are leaving the house for a long-ish period, you do not want any personal implements littering the property. It’s like letting your guest get to know you very intimately. That can only be uncomfortable for you and your guests. Unless, of course, that’s the kind of thing that gets them off.
Get rid of things your guests will have no use for. If you can’t throw them away permanently, lock them up in a spare room if you have one. Or, if that’s not possible, find a storage facility where you can rent a cheap room for your valued clutter.
Check your house’s air quality
Now, more than ever, people are conscious of indoor air quality. Everyone knows poor indoor quality exacerbates the spread of harmful viruses and bacteria that cause life-threatening diseases. Do not put your guests’ health at risk. Invest in an air purification system.
Make sure that your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system gets regular checkups and maintenance too. Keep in mind that something as seemingly innocuous as vents and heater filters may host harmful particles that can trigger allergies and other respiratory conditions. If a visitor gets an asthma attack while staying at your apartment, it won’t reflect well on your listing.
Buff up security
Make sure all the locks in your property are sturdy. If something happens to your guests, you’ll be partly accountable. If you can afford to install security cameras, please do so for your peace of mind. Should there be security concerns in your area that your guests should know about, let them know. It’s better to be honest from the get-go than, again, be the recipient of an unfavorable Airbnb rating.
Inform the people who need to know
Maybe you’re close to your neighbors. Let them know about your plans, so they’re not caught by surprise when they see strangers coming in and out of your property. If you’re not the sole owner of the property, tell your co-owner as well.
An Airbnb listing could be lucrative if done right. Start by making the recommendations we have mentioned here. They are a worthy investment if you want to take the whole business model seriously. Keep in mind that Airbnb clients are discerning individuals. They wouldn’t mince words if their booking resulted in a dismal experience. They will go online to share with the world whatever unsatisfactory details they’ve come across. Negative client feedback would dissuade others from booking your listing.
On the flip side, you must be a cautious host as well. The last thing you want to happen is to be on the receiving end of an Airbnb horror story wherein you unwittingly welcome creeps into your home. That notwithstanding, this is a passive income idea worth exploring.
