Are you new to Airbnb property management? Investing in Airbnb properties is an exciting business opportunity because owning short term rental properties is a great way to generate income.
Airbnbs tend to yield greater rental income than traditional investment properties due to the increased rates and high demand associated with the vacation home market. However, all great opportunities come with great responsibility, and Airbnb property management is no exception.
As an Airbnb property manager, you are responsible for attracting and pleasing your guests, maintaining a top-notch rental space, and managing all of the legal and financial aspects of being a real estate investor.
In order for your Airbnb business to be a success, you must educate yourself and set up a solid plan for managing your Airbnb investment property. In this article, we will discuss 8 tips for succeeding as a new Airbnb property manager.
1. Use Airbnb Property Management Software
Owning an Airbnb requires quite a bit of administrative work. You could easily spend hours each week carrying out tasks that could easily be automated. Airbnb property management doesn’t have to be difficult if you have the right tools. Try investing in Airbnb property management software to streamline your listings, reviews, Airbnb guest communications, and your calendar.
Airbnb property management software to consider:
- Hostaway
- Guesty for Hosts
- Lodgify
- Wishbox
Using this kind of software is the key to a more efficient and automated Airbnb property management experience.
Related: 5 Best Tools for Airbnb Property Management
2. Track Your Expenses
Tracking expenses in an organized way is essential for an Airbnb host. Profits can easily be eaten up by extra purchases like stocking the bathroom with toiletries, paying for cleaning services, etc. These added costs that traditional real estate investors don’t have to worry about can amount to more than you think.
By using software that tracks and organizes your expenses and income, you can gather a clear picture of your true profits.
3. Use a Business Account
This might seem like an unnecessary step, but it can save you a lot of time and money. By creating separation between your personal and business expenses, you are saving:
- Time preparing your taxes
- Money on additional deductions you may have missed
In a separate business account, your cash flow can be easily tracked which will save you hours of trying to figure out deductions before tax time. You probably think you’ll remember what each of your purchases was for, but were those paper towels and toothpaste tubes for yourself or for your Airbnb rental property? A few months later, it can be hard to tell.
4. Understand Insurance
An important step in Airbnb property management is protecting your assets. As with any type of investment, to invest in Airbnb is a risk. However, by having insurance and understanding your coverage, it can be a safely calculated risk.
Typically, homeowner’s insurance does not cover you in the case of renting your property. Luckily, if you are listing your rental property on Airbnb’s website, a part of their fee includes up to 1 million dollars in coverage for property damage or injuries. If your property is listed through a different platform, you should check their insurance policies.
Depending on your needs, you may want to get supplemental insurance if your hosting platform doesn’t offer enough coverage.
5. Offer an Abundance of Amenities
Successful Airbnb property management is a matter of making your Airbnb stand out from the rest. In a saturated market, why should an Airbnb guest stay at your rental property?
Make sure you offer things like convenient parking spaces, extra appliances, everyday items that people often forget to pack, maps, lists of local recommendations for restaurants with phone numbers and websites, and a packet of helpful information on local attractions.
Going the extra mile is what makes your property more attractive than others in the neighborhood and ultimately brings your Airbnb occupancy rate up.
6. Set the Right Price
While there are many factors that will determine your success as an Airbnb host, getting the price right is crucial. Knowing how much to charge for rent can be tricky, especially when managing an Airbnb for the first time.
The most important aspect of Airbnb property management is making sure you start earning right away. You don’t want to fall behind or end up losing money.
Without the support of Airbnb reviews when first starting out, setting your prices slightly lower than market value could provide you with a great advantage. You will have a higher Airbnb occupancy rate, entice and impress Airbnb guests with a great deal, and kickstart your cash flow. Over time, with rave reviews to back you up, you can start increasing your rent to maximize your profits.
But what’s a fair price? How do you know how much to charge for rent in the first place?
Hint: You don’t need an Airbnb spreadsheet.
By utilizing Mashvisor’s Airbnb comps, you can quickly determine similar properties in the same neighborhood and compare rental rates. No need to search around for Airbnb data and manually enter it into an Airbnb spreadsheet. Mashvisor speeds up the process of accessing rental comps, so you can quickly and accurately set your rental rates.
Mashvisor’s Airbnb Comps
Airbnb property management is best executed when your time is used efficiently, making Mashvisor an indispensable tool.
Learn more about our product.
7. Avoid Amateur Photography
When it comes to getting bookings, the photos you use to represent your Airbnb rental property will make a difference. Airbnb guests are attracted to quality photos that show off what a space has to offer.
Airbnb property management is challenging because you must acquire various skills to be successful. While you might end up becoming a jack of all trades, you certainly don’t need to be an expert at everything. Photographing your property well won’t require special equipment or training. Just use these tips to ensure your listing photos are eye-catching:
- Clean your space thoroughly
- Make sure it is well lit
- Decorate and accent to make it look welcoming
- Add a personal touch like flowers on a table
- Shoot from a high angle from corner to corner
- Take 2-3 pictures of each room
Above all, make sure your pictures look bright, welcoming, and reflect the features of the property.
8. Write Great Descriptions
It can be tempting to dump every possible detail into your descriptions or skip writing a listing description altogether, but this is an essential step in consistently scoring bookings for your Airbnb investment property.
Make your description detailed and informative without being overly wordy. Think about the most important, unique, and impressive features of your rental property and deliver those in a concise, easy to read paragraph.
Airbnb property management is an exciting and lucrative endeavor. For real estate investors who apply best industry practices and work smart, success in generating income with short term rental properties is inevitable.
Looking to purchase another Airbnb investment property?
Mashvisor can help you determine useful metrics such as the cash on cash return and cash flow of a potential investment by using the Airbnb calculator.
To take advantage of powerful tools designed for Airbnb investors, start out your 7-day free trial with Mashvisor now.