Author: Shivam Kaushik

Airbnb Rental Arbitrage All About Airbnb

Rental Arbitrage California

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date August 15, 2021

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Introduction

Owning a property in the heart of California is probably one of the greatest accomplishments that a property investor can brag about. Not only will you be in the center of film, travel, or health care, but you’ll also get a chance to achieve financial freedom.

If you’re looking to start your Airbnb rental arbitrage journey in California, then this article is for you! Continue reading as we feature expert tips, initial costs, profitability, and more. Bonus: You’ll also learn about the best areas to do rental arbitrage in California!

What is Rental Arbitrage?

Rental Arbitrage is an expert technique where you sublease a property for the sole purpose of Airbnb. This is initially allowed with the property owner’s or landlord’s approval. Rental arbitrage is somehow similar to house hacking, except that you don’t own the property. Instead, you convince a landlord to lease you a property that you can then furnish and sublease on Airbnb and VRBO.

Rental Arbitrage is an efficient method for multifamily houses, duplexes, or triplexes. You can easily use the money from your short-term rental to pay off your lease and profit some more. If done right, this can be a full-fledged business!

If you own a duplex or triplex property, then it is pretty straightforward. You can live in one part of the house and rent out the other. This process is known as house hacking. Property investors try this method after taking a loan on a property and use the rent to pay off the mortgage. The short-term rent will help you pay for your property’s long-term lease. This helps you keep the difference at the month-end after paying for the long-term lease.

Here’s a perfect example to understand how rental arbitrage works. Assume that you are renting a duplex in California for $1,800/month. You are living by yourself in the property and you decide to sublease an extra room on Airbnb. Let’s say you listed it for $100/day and got 80% occupancy. This will generate approx $2,600/month in revenue. Not only will it help you pay off your complete rent, but give you a profit of $800. This, in a nutshell, is called Rental Arbitrage.

Is rental arbitrage allowed in California?

Yes, rental arbitrage is legal in California! With the landlord’s approval and a legal contract with the lessee, there are no restrictions in operating rental arbitrage. Thanks to its sunny weather, there has been a lot of growth in short-term rentals in the past decade – particularly in Hollywood and Silicon Valley, California.

It can be a haven for people starting in STR and Rental Arbitrage. But recently due to the residential housing shortage in the market, the government is starting to regulate the STR market. Especially in cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco where the rents and property prices are skyrocketing.

This is due to the high influx of investors buying residential and commercial properties for Rental. People are allowed to start their short-term rental business very easily in most parts of California, but in some parts, it can be quite challenging. This is considering the regulations and high state income tax as well.

Airbnb rules in Los Angeles

The City of Los Angeles has passed a law for its residents to obtain a permit from the city planning department to operate short-term rentals. Residents also have to include the registration number in the listing and display it on Airbnb.

Residents can only rent out the property in which they have been residing for at least 6 months in a year. These permits vary according to different categories, so it’s best to visit your local city hall for detailed information.

Airbnb rules in San Francisco

In San Francisco, particularly in Silicon Valley, STR was completely illegal before 2015. But laws have loosened up a bit since then. Currently, residents can rent out their place of residency for 275 days a year if they live in the same house.

They can host it for only 90 days a year if they don’t reside on the property. The owner also needs to register as a business or LLC with the city and get the certification. This certification number needs to be mentioned in the listing on Airbnb or any other form of short-term rental advertising.

Airbnb rules in San Francisco

Laws in San Francisco state that only permanent residents are allowed to operate short-term rentals. To be a permanent resident, you must reside in your unit for at least 275 nights per year. It’s also necessary to register with the city as a business and as a short-term rental.

How to start rental arbitrage in California?

1. Convince the landlord

Let’s say you want to get into rental arbitrage. You may be wondering, how do I find rental arbitrage properties and how should I convince the landlord? Later in the blog, we’ll be explaining how to find a good property by doing proper research using short-term rental analytics. In this section, we will be focusing more on how to convince a landlord to do rental arbitrage. As you’ll begin your rental arbitrage journey, you’ll come to know that this is the hardest part of the whole process.

You need to be prepared and well-researched about the popularity of Airbnb in your area. Having good communication skills will also come in handy! Here’s one thing that you should always keep in mind: never sublease without informing the landlord. There will be a huge number of people coming in and out when you’re sub-renting, so the landlord will most likely figure out that you are subletting and you might end up getting in trouble.

When convincing the landlord, rule number one is to always talk about the upsides. If you can rent the property on Airbnb, so can the landlord himself. You need to make a deal with the landlord that is beneficial to them. So in return, they lease the property to you instead of renting it by themselves.

Points To Tell An Indecisive Landlord:

Doing rental arbitrage is a full-time business. It doesn’t generate passive income like long-term leasing. You should try approaching older people who are looking for some sort of passive income.
They are more likely to agree to a fixed long-term lease. You can also reach out to full-time working professionals or business owners. They will also be happy with a source of passive income until their property is well maintained. This brings us to our next point.
You’ll take care of the house better than a normal renter. As you are using the property for Airbnb, you will maintain it very well to make sure you get better reviews. Having a beat-up property isn’t good for business and you are more likely to monitor it often.
Not monitoring it will affect your revenue a lot. You may end up paying a huge sum of money for damages done by someone else. So telling this to the landlord might instill some confidence in them.
You can ensure timely monthly rent. You can tell the landlord that doing rental arbitrage is a full-time business with ups and downs. It doesn’t guarantee fixed income at all like long-term leasing. But if they lease it to you, you’ll make sure to pay the lease no matter what. Either from the money made after rental arbitrage or from your savings. You need to ensure timely monthly lease payments to gain the trust of the landlord.

In conclusion, you need to take care of the property and treat it like your own. Make sure to timely pay the monthly lease and keep the situation beneficial for both parties. You can also use a free rental arbitrage email template and propose your ideas to landlords!

2. Ensure the property and gain the landlords’ trust

Being on the safe side is always a good idea. You need to make sure you are using the right tools to ensure that the property is safe and neighbors aren’t bothered by guests. Many landlords will have this concern when renting out their property to you. They will be worried about neighbors raising noise complaints and it’s a legitimate concern. To help you with all these problems, here are some suggestions that you can implement:

SimpliSafe– These are home monitoring tools that you can install in the house to make sure no suspicious activity is happening there. Make sure to let the guests know about them and have their consent.
Auto host– Automatically screens problematic tenants.
InsuraGuest– This insurance and tech company helps you with risk analysis and gives protection beyond Airbnb and VRBO policies.
Airbnb Profit Calculator– Give your landlord ease of mind by providing income estimates backed by Airbnb data.

On a side note, you can also integrate the majority of these tools with short-term rental management software such as Hostaway or Guesty.

Pros and Cons

What are the pros and cons of doing rental arbitrage in California? Here’s the part where you can set your expectations:

Pros
- No need to own, invest, or purchase a property
- Low upfront costs
- Higher chances to repeat and scale easily
- Generated profit can be used for other investments or businesses
Cons

- Invest money and time in furnishing the property

How much do Airbnb hosts make in California?

Airbtics’ data confirm that an Airbnb host in California, particularly in San Diego, can earn an average daily rate of $211. This is by operating a 2-bedroom apartment/flat alone! Airbnb hosts are expected to generate an annual revenue of $62,065 with a steady occupancy rate of 80%.

What are the initial costs of starting Rental Arbitrage in California?

You can expect to spend anywhere between $3,000 to $5,000. This includes deposit, furnishing, amenities, legal paperwork, and LLC Incorporation.

But doesn’t this contradict the Low upfront cost of Rental Arbitrage? Well, these estimates vary from city to city. There is a possibility to do rental arbitrage for even less than this depending upon your situation and the type of property you lease.

Still, the amount is lesser than investing in a new property and getting a mortgage of thousands of dollars. In addition to this, you won’t be on the hook for property maintenance expenses and being stuck for years with debt.

But this doesn’t mean that rental arbitrage can be done with zero or a very tight budget. There will be some upfront costs that you have to expect so it’s ideal to own some extra cash is also a good thing to have. This will help pay off the lease during the off-season in case bookings don’t happen right away. Check out some of the expenses that you have to prepare for:

Expense 1: Rental Deposits

A rental deposit is going to be one of the first major expenses. You will need money to be able to sign a long-term lease with the landlord. For that, you will need a security deposit and the first and last month’s rent. Sometimes you can negotiate with the landlord and use the first month’s rent as a security deposit.

Expense 2: Furnishing

Most of the time, you should always aim to lease a place that is semi-furnished. Furnishing a place from scratch can add anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 to your initial capital. Not choosing the right property can make rental arbitrage not so low cost, so choose wisely.

If the place is semi-furnished, then your best bet is to shop for cheap and affordable amenities. You can go and find cheap supplies from places like Home Depot and IKEA. Sometimes even Walmart offers hidden gems if you look closely.

Expense 3: Photography

It’s highly recommended to try DIY photography as a start to save money. You can even learn how to take the best Airbnb photos to highlight your listing! But if you have the budget, hiring a professional photographer is also an excellent option.

Expense 4: Cleaning Services

This is not a starting cost, but you will eventually end up spending on cleaning services. The best way to save money is to do the cleaning by yourself if you have the time, skills, and experience.

If you have no experience or don’t want to invest time in cleaning a place, then your best bet will be to hire a professional cleaner. This can cost you anywhere from $50 – $250 depending upon the size and location.

Expense 5: Legal Consultation

Maintaining a professional relationship with a real estate lawyer can be very helpful in the Airbnb business. Airbnb regulations are constantly changing and you will need some legal guidance to adjust your business accordingly.

Legal guidance can also come in handy if you face any legal issues with the landlord or guests. They can help in damage claims and insurance in case of any mishappening.

Best areas for Rental Arbitrage California

Some of the major cities in California are Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego. Though they do have good revenue and occupancy rates, these major cities were not included in our top 2 best picks because of their strict short-term rental laws.

Apart from the fact that a beginner will have a hard time to do rental arbitrage in the mentioned cities, it also comes at a small upfront cost. However, it’s also ideal to compare the best neighborhoods for Airbnb in Los Angeles to have a better outlook in the market.

You can consider these cities after you are generating some revenue from your other rentals. Here are the most recommended areas for rental arbitrage in California:

1. Napa

According to Airbtics Dashboard, Napa is the top market to start your rental arbitrage business. There are more than 820 Airbnb listings with 189 condo properties and 188 one-bedroom properties. The monthly revenue for most properties is more than $6,197.

2. Santa Barbara

Airbtics confirms that Santa Barbara is the second-best market to start your rental arbitrage business. There are more than 688 Airbnb listings with 143 private room properties and 176 one-bedroom properties. The monthly revenue for most properties is more than $8,023.

Conclusion

The State of California is certainly an eye-catcher to property investors. Not to mention the number of celebrities and tourists visiting the state for a sunny vacation! So if you’re planning to invest anywhere in California, make the best investment decision by using an accurate short-term rental analytics tool.

You can easily predict your property’s revenue with an Airbnb profit estimator. And in one click, you can also discover emerging markets and even speed up against your competitors by looking at their performance.

Learn more about Airbnb rental arbitrage in California: in this video!

Tags Airbnb Rental Arbitrage, lat_38.2971367, lng_-122.2855293

Airbnb Rental Arbitrage All About Airbnb

Rental Arbitrage Florida

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date August 11, 2021

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Introduction

The beautiful state of Florida attracts millions of visitors from around the globe for its coastlines and tourist attractions. It’s deemed to be a popular vacation destination, which is why most property investors are keen to invest in Florida. In fact, Airbnb even revealed the trending summer domestic destinations in 2022. And we found out that 6 out of 10 of the most profitable Airbnb cities in the USA are all in Florida!

But the question about profitability may still linger, which city in Florida is the best for rental arbitrage? Continue reading as we feature Airbnb rules in Florida, the process of rental arbitrage, and more.

What is Rental Arbitrage?

Here’s a perfect example to understand how rental arbitrage works. Assume that you are renting a duplex in Florida for $1,800/month. You are living by yourself in the property and you decide to sublease an extra room on Airbnb. Let’s say you listed it for $100/day and got 80% occupancy. This will generate approx $2,600/month in revenue. Not only will it help you pay off your complete rent, but give you a profit of $800. This, in a nutshell, is called Rental Arbitrage.

Is rental arbitrage allowed in Florida?

Yes, rental arbitrage is definitely legal in Florida! With the landlord’s approval and a legal contract with the lessee, there are no restrictions in operating rental arbitrage. And thanks to its warm & sunny climate, Florida has the most number of short-term rentals in the entire US. It’s a haven for people who are starting their STR and Rental Arbitrage journeys. As of now, the short-term market is not being regulated by the State of Florida.

All short-term rental owners are required to get a license from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), register with the Florida Department of Revenue for state taxes, and comply with building regulations and inspections. Some cities such as Miami also have city zoning regulations and requirements to obtain a certificate of use. It’s always best to visit your local city hall in Florida to learn more about their short-term rental laws!

How to start rental arbitrage in Florida?

1. Convince the landlord

Points To Tell An Indecisive Landlord:

Doing rental arbitrage is a full-time business. It doesn’t generate passive income like long-term leasing. You should try approaching older people who are looking for some sort of passive income.
They are more likely to agree to a fixed long-term lease. You can also reach out to full-time working professionals or business owners. They will also be happy with a source of passive income until their property is well maintained. This brings us to our next point.
You’ll take care of the house better than a normal renter. As you are using the property for Airbnb, you will maintain it very well to make sure you get better reviews. Having a beat-up property isn’t good for business and you are more likely to monitor it often.
Not monitoring it will affect your revenue a lot. You may end up paying a huge sum of money for damages done by someone else. So telling this to the landlord might instill some confidence in them.
You can ensure timely monthly rent. You can tell the landlord that doing rental arbitrage is a full-time business with ups and downs. It doesn’t guarantee fixed income at all like long-term leasing. But if they lease it to you, you’ll make sure to pay the lease no matter what. Either from the money made after rental arbitrage or from your savings. You need to ensure timely monthly lease payments to gain the trust of the landlord.

2. Ensure the property and gain the landlords’ trust

SimpliSafe– These are home monitoring tools that you can install in the house to make sure no suspicious activity is happening there. Make sure to let the guests know about them and have their consent.
Auto host– Automatically screens problematic tenants.
InsuraGuest– This insurance and tech company helps you with risk analysis and gives protection beyond Airbnb and VRBO policies.
Airbnb Profit Calculator– Give your landlord ease of mind by providing income estimates backed by Airbnb data.

On a side note, you can also integrate the majority of these tools with short-term rental management software such as Hostaway or Guesty.

Pros and Cons

What are the pros and cons of doing rental arbitrage in Florida? Here’s the part where you can set your expectations:

Pros
- No need to own, invest, or purchase a property
- Low upfront costs
- Higher chances to repeat and scale easily
- Generated profit can be used for other investments or businesses.
Cons

- Invest money and time in furnishing the property

DO YOU WANT TO SEE YOUR PREFERRED CITY IN FLORIDA?

Check out the average Airbnb occupancy rates by city now!

How much do Airbnb hosts make in Florida?

Airbtics’ data confirm that an Airbnb host in Florida, particularly in Orlando, can earn an average daily rate of $177. This is by operating a 2-bedroom apartment/flat alone! Airbnb hosts are expected to generate an annual revenue of $56,513 with a steady occupancy rate of 82%.

What are the initial costs of starting Rental Arbitrage in Florida?

You can expect to spend anywhere between $3,000 to $5,000. This includes deposit, furnishing, amenities, legal paperwork, and LLC Incorporation.

Expense 1: Rental Deposits

Expense 2: Furnishing

Expense 3: Photography

Expense 4: Cleaning Services

This is not a starting cost, but you will eventually end up spending on cleaning services. The best way to save money is to do the cleaning by yourself if you have the time, skills, and experience.

Expense 5: Legal Consultation

Legal guidance can also come in handy if you face any legal issues with the landlord or guests. They can help in damage claims and insurance in case of any mishappening.

Best areas for Rental Arbitrage in Florida

Some of the common places that you can think of in Florida are Panama City Beach and Fort Lauderdale. In general, Florida’s population and employment growth are accompanied by economic growth elastic. This promotes the growth of Florida’s real estate market.

1. Panama City Beach

According to Airbtics Dashboard, Panama City Beach is the top market to start your rental arbitrage business. There are more than 4,302 Airbnb listings with 3,653 condo properties and 1,436 one-bedroom properties. The monthly revenue for most properties is more than $4,189.

2. Fort Lauderdale

Airbtics confirms that Fort Lauderdale is the second-best market to start your rental arbitrage business. There are more than 2,581 Airbnb listings with 258 private room properties and 797 one-bedroom properties. The monthly revenue for most properties is more than $4,292.

Conclusion

There’s no doubt that Florida offers several exciting investment opportunities in 2023. Whether you’re considering looking into properties for sale in Fort Lauderdale or waterfront properties in Cape Coral, there’s always something great for investors in this State.

In fact, more property investors are looking for the best areas in Florida by visiting one city from another! However, in the digital era, there are more convenient options to discover profitable areas in just one click. Using an STR analytics tool like Airbtics, you can expand your opportunities with an accurate Airbnb income calculator.

Tags Airbnb Rental Arbitrage, lat_30.1765914, lng_-85.805386

All About Airbnb Hosting Tips

5 Short Term Rental Tools for Perfect Pricing

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date August 8, 2021

Figuring out how to price your property is one of the most crucial parts of Short Term Rental Business. Pricing your property too high will reduce your number of bookings drastically. Most of your competition will undercut your pricing and swoop away all the guests. Price low then, Right? Price it too low and you’ll be leaving money on the table and end up not making enough profits to cover maintenance and end up being non-profitable in the long run.

So what to do? Use Dynamic pricing tools! Since the launch of these dynamic pricing tools, both by Airbnb (which works just fine) and other companies(a few good ones here). Property managers got let off from manually scraping data and analyzing trends for hours to figure out the right pricing for their property. Dynamic pricing tools are a great addition to any property manager’s arsenal. They can help you boost your overall booking by suggesting the most optimized pricing. You can grow your revenue, increase your occupancy rate and save hours of manual work.

Let’s look at the best 5 Short Term Rental Pricing Tools in the market and which one would be best for you.

Read More:

Airbnb Smart Pricing Too Low

AirDNA vs Mashvisor

Why Manually Setting Your Price Sucks!

Just a few years ago, you would find property managers spending most of their time with spreadsheets and yearly pricing brochures to guess what they should price their property. Many small managers just used guesstimation to price a property. Without considering seasonality, events or demand.

This will not work anymore! You can make your guesstimation manually to a certain extent. You could be having some leads on demand spikes in the future based on upcoming holidays, events, etc. Maybe you have been seeing similar patterns regularly for years and just want to follow them. But, there are so many factors that affect the price of property nowadays. Major events, Seasonality, Competition, Saturation, Supply/Demand, and tons more.

How does dynamic pricing work?

Dynamic Price tools optimize your listing’s performance by dynamically adjusting your listing’s price based on supply and demand. These price suggestions are generated in real time based on the number of bookings happening in your area. This method takes multiple factors into consideration to give out final pricing. Demand, Supply, Property Size, Property Type, Reviews, Events, and Past Performance.

Using pricing software in your workflow can help you boost your revenue significantly and save you a lot of time that you would have spent manually researching. Many pricing tools claim that after using their pricing software revenue managers have seen as much as a 40% increase in their revenue.

Top 5 Short Term Rental tools for Perfect Pricing

A good short term rental pricing tool should not just be able to provide accurate data, but also integrate with other vacation rental software like Channel Managers, Property Management Systems, and Property Listing Sites for a better workflow and ease of use. Companies in this list have been in business for many years now and have very refined tools with great track records. All of them have been frequently updating their tools and improving on suggestions from their users. Many of these companies have even raised millions of dollars to maintain a high standard of accuracy and customer service.

Let’s take a look at the best short-term rental pricing tools out there.

1. Airbtics

Airbtics developed its own dynamic pricing tool in 2019. They have taken its Yearly Price Calendar, which allows users to filter daily prices of similar rentals, a step ahead. This short term rental pricing tool recommends the price of properties based on machine learning algorithms that are fed real-time booking data. This allows it to be accurate and even consider events and short-time spikes in supply and demand to give accurate results. It also helps you with custom integrations with any PMS or software you are using.

Airbtics team has tested this software with many vacation rental managers and has seen accurate results. The best part about this software and the reason we have put this on top is that it charges a fixed fee. Unlike many other pricing tools that take a commission anywhere from 1% to 2%. Airbtics charges a flat fee depending upon the number of listings and the size of the area. Free 15-Day Trial for property managers with more than 5 properties.

See Airbtics Pricing for your City

2. Beyond Pricing

Beyond Pricing has built an advanced dynamic pricing tool solution that accounts for changes in demand on a daily basis to help you maximize your short term rental revenue and occupancy.

The software assigns a pricing Health Score to your properties to make sure you’re always aware of opportunities for optimization.

You get detailed insights with every price recommendation, so you don’t need to wonder why prices are going up or down in your area on a given day. The tool also helps you plan ahead by providing a preview of pricing recommendations for the next year.

The Beyond Pricing platform connects seamlessly to the most popular property management systems and Channel Manager.

Pricing: 1-1.25% of total revenue. 30-day free trial available.

3. PriceLabs

PriceLabs offers customizable data-driven pricing to help boost your vacation rental revenue. Their price recommendations take into account market supply and demand, seasonal and day-of-week trends, special events/holidays, and lead time. They pinpoint dates that are in high demand by looking at data from nearby listings and hotels, track seasonality based on historical data, and analyze your listings’ performance to suggest pricing tweaks. Customization options include setting dynamic minimum stays, enabling occupancy-based adjustments, and more.

PriceLabs connects directly to over 30 PMSs and Channel Managers.

4. DPGO

DPGO is a dynamic pricing tool that was built keeping in mind the needs of professional property managers.

It has an AI-driven dynamic pricing algorithm with real-time market data. It helps you optimize your listing prices to match market demand, increase your occupancy and reduce gaps in your calendar. Not only that, it controls your length of stay and incorporates longer bookings into your strategy for more revenue.

The platform is all about giving you control. DPGO seamlessly integrates with tools that you likely already use so there’s no need to migrate or manually enter your data.

Pricing: Starts at 0.5% of the booked price or $1 per booked night (for 1 vacation rental property). 30-day free trial available.

5. Wheelhouse

Wheelhouse helps Airbnb hosts, vacation rental owners, and property managers run their businesses more efficiently with tools like dynamic pricing, powerful data insights, and a personalized revenue management strategy. They help you stay competitive throughout the year with more than 240 unique rates per year.

Wheelhouse many parameters into consideration when suggesting a price. Base Price, Last minute discounts, Minimum Night Stay, and many more. Advanced settings help you control how aggressive you want your pricing strategy to be and align it with your overall business goals. Wheelhouse integrates with several popular PMS providers.

Pricing: 1% of total revenue. 30-day free trial available.

Tags Hosting Tips

All About Airbnb Hosting Tips

Airbnb Smart Pricing Too Low?

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date August 1, 2021

Since its launch in 2015, Airbnb Smart pricing feature has been getting mixed reviews from hosts all over the world. Some like it, some just use it and some outright hate it. If you are not familiar with Airbnb smart pricing, let me tell you. It’s a feature that helps you set the ideal price for your rental listing on Airbnb so you don’t leave anything on the table. But does it? That’s what we’ll be discussing in this blog and provide you with some alternative dynamic pricing tools as well.

If you have already used this feature then you must already know all the benefits it claims to provide. Dynamic pricing, competitive rates, optimized listing with better conversion rate, and higher booking rate to name a few. All these features are great to have as an Airbnb host but after real-life testing, over the years many hosts have reported issues with this feature. When it comes to Airbnb pricing and a lot of hosts don’t seem to be satisfied with the features and report that Airbnb smart pricing is too low and it undervalues their property.

What is Airbnb Smart Pricing?

Airbnb Smart Pricing is an Airbnb feature/tool that will help you dynamically price your property. It does this by analyzing similar properties in your area and their pricing data to help you dynamically change your price for more optimized bookings. It automatically changes the pricing of your listing based on the demand and supply in the market after analyzing the booking data of similar properties. You can choose to set a minimum and maximum price so your property isn’t undervalued when the demand is low.

How does Airbnb Smart Pricing work?

The smart pricing feature checks the demand and supply in your neighborhood for similar houses like yours. The criteria are that the houses should be of similar size and have similar amenities. Based on the occupancy rate and average booking price it dynamically changes the price of your listing to ensure a higher booking rate.

What criteria are used to dynamically price a listing?

1. Property Type

What kind of property or room you are offering plays an important role in determining the dynamic smart price. Usually, Airbnb’s algorithm will find similar properties in your area to estimate the price. Also if you want to have an edge over the other listing, try adding some amenities that most properties in this price range generally don’t offer. It can be an extra air bed, or a TV, whatever your budget allows, this will show Airbnb’s algorithm that you are offering a better property at a reasonable price and it will push it more to its users.

2. Demand in your neighborhood

If the number of bookings per week is on a decline in your area for some reason, smart pricing usually gives a discount on your property to encourage people to book more in this area and make it more appealing to guests and vice versa when the booking rate is high.

3. Listing characteristics and amenities

Having more amenities and character in your house also affects your listing price. Offering more amenities makes your place a steal and an ideal property for Airbnb to promote.

Don’t worry if you have a limited budget and can’t invest in more premium amenities like pools etc. You can also positively influence the algorithm by highlighting the characters of your house which makes it more unique than the house next door. It can be an open brick wall, or a fruit garden in your backyard, highlighting anything that will make smart pricing recognize your house as unique and promote it to more guests.

4. Average Rating of your listing

If your property is constantly getting good ratings and positive reviews Airbnb algorithm will publish it to more people searching for similar properties in your area. This will also help you yield higher prices as more than amenities and character people like to have a hassle-free experience with a good host and having positive ratings will help you with just that.

Why shouldn’t you use Airbnb smart pricing?

With all the benefits Airbnb claims smart pricing has, it sounds pretty obvious to use it right? But the ground reality is most hosts avoid using smart pricing. Hosts have told that their overall monthly revenue decreases when they use smart pricing or that this tool underprices their property even during the peak season. They feel more in control when pricing the property by themselves. Let’s see if we have also seen similar results or not!

Still speculation, but many guests believe that dynamic pricing prioritizes the number of bookings over the host’s earnings because commissions on each booking increase Airbnb’s revenue. This has not been confirmed by Airbnb officials.
The dynamic price may offer your property for cheaper than you would have otherwise, affecting your overall monthly revenue.
Smart Pricing algorithm doesn’t properly consider specific things about your house like the quality of furniture, quality of flooring and overall feel of the house, it will put you in the same category as other same-size apartments in your area even if your place is much nicer.
Some hosts complained that their listing was receiving bookings for almost the same price throughout the year. They complained that the tool sometimes doesn’t consider the seasonality. Although Airbnb denies these claims.
One of the major downsides of Airbnb smart pricing is that it doesn’t recognize upcoming events in your area until it’s too late. As it makes its decision to up the price based on demand going up and many people book their Airbnb weeks prior to the event.

How should you strategize and price your Airbnb?

Even if you are using Airbnb smart pricing or any other dynamic pricing tool, you should do some research of your own and spend some time figuring out what pricing strategy works for you the best. Here are some things you can consider while making your pricing strategy.

1. Max Booking Price Possible Strategy

In this method, you aim to charge the highest someone is willing to pay for your property. This can be found easily out by an incremental increase in your per night charges to see when the bookings drastically drop. This method will bring fewer bookings but the goal is to cover up for that lost revenue by charging higher than average. For this method to work you should have a high ticket premium property so that guests are able to justify the premium they are paying to stay at your property.

2. Maximum Occupancy Strategy

In the pricing strategy, you aim to book your property for a less-than-average price but for longer durations.

You need to undercut the price of similar properties and also choose booking dates wisely to keep your monthly occupancy rate at the highest. This will help you keep your house occupied for more days thus bringing in more revenue. The downside of this strategy is the same as well. Due to longer booking durations maintenance, time and effort will increase.

This is an ideal strategy if your area is in a low season, and if you have some credible resources to keep your cleaning turnaround time low. Just make sure not to undercut the market too much as you would not be able to make a profit after paying off other expenses.

3. Balanced Airbnb Pricing Strategy

The Balanced Airbnb Pricing Strategy is a combination of max occupancy and revenue methods to earn the most revenue possible throughout the year even in low seasons.

It’s based on a flexible approach, meaning that during your low season you can use the Max occupancy pricing strategy to keep your property filled. Then, during your high season and any special events, you can employ the Maximum Revenue approach to optimize your earnings.

This strategy does require more attention and time but will yield consistently high occupancy and higher income than sticking to one strategy or just Airbnb’s smart pricing tool. This can be a downside as well as you would have to put in extra work and more hours. To help you avoid that, in the next section we will be suggesting some tools that can help you implement the strategy of your choice and not put in extra hours each day on research.

So when it comes to Airbnb pricing you should take a look at your situation and consider what is your priority. No strategy is perfect, they all cater to different individuals with different goals. Some want to spend less time on research and maintenance of the listing, some are fine with it till brings in more revenue. Just one suggestion, always do your research before pricing and don’t just use intuition or guess to price your property otherwise you may end up not generating revenue.

Top Airbnb Smart Pricing Tool Alternatives

Airbtics: Airbtics Dynamic pricing is a great tool if you are a property manager or an investor who needs to be looking after multiple properties and research different areas at once. The biggest strong point that Airbtics has is the customizability of the data and the turnaround time. It also offers an interactive dashboard, API, and Downloadable data for more data manipulations.
PriceLabs: PriceLabs enables you to manage multiple listings at once with their easy-to-use dashboard. You can also integrate their tool with more than 50+ leading property management software.
BeyondPricing: BeyondPricing is a reliable revenue management software that’s been in existence since 2013. It offers dynamic pricing that is accurate and data-driven, its other tools also offer insights about the industry and personalized guidance to use them.
Wheelhouse: Wheelhouse is revenue management and market-insight software designed for effective business management. It also offers important comp set intel to help you understand how your rental is performing against the market.

Conclusion

Using any smart pricing tool is a great thing as it removes the hassle to look at data and figure out things for yourself. But if you are looking for maximum revenue generation then pairing good dynamic tools with some of your own research will yield a much higher return.

Airbnb Bad Review: Use them to your advantage.

Alternatives & Reviews

AirDNA vs Mashvisor: Which works best for you?

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date July 29, 2021

This post is only relevant if you are currently based in the US – if not, feel free to check out our article on various short-term rental analytics. Fact: Mashvisor only supports US-based clients. Since Airbnb’s launch in 2008, it has attracted many ambitious entrepreneurs in the short-term rental industry. Some of those built 7 figure businesses from nothing in a year or two. They achieved such numbers by 1. investing in vacation homes, 2. conducting Airbnb arbitrage, or co-hosting. The key point here is that they increased the number of units they manage FAST. And like every investment, what allowed them to move fast is accurate due to diligence powered by their experience and data. When it comes to data-driven Airbnb due diligence, they have two options in mind: AirDNA and Mashvisor. To make your decision-making easier, here is a comparison between Airdna vs Mashvisor. Let’s see which one is best for you!

If you are looking to invest in a property exclusively for renting it on Airbnb, then you need accurate and reliable data that you can study in order to make the right decisions.

Having a good knowledge of certain considerations such as the right neighborhoods, occupancy rates, and monthly revenue of an area will help you estimate the ROI and how much should you initially be investing in a property. Having the right tool will not only save you time but money as well!

Quick Pros and Cons

AirDNA Pros

It has more short-term rental data points, such as forward-looking data, guest demographics, booking lead time, and so on
It has a monthly plan

Mashvisor Pros

It has traditional rental data
It shows properties for sale in the market
You gain access to the entire US market

What is Mashvisor?

Mashvisor is a US property analysis platform that shows both long-term and short-term rental data. Their subscription allows you to explore the entire US market, unlike AirDNA. They also show the properties for sale from their app, which makes it easier for you to discover high-return investments.

Overview

As a software primarily focused on real estate investors, Mashvisor has helped users to do the following:

Optimize their rental strategy and estimate how much revenue the property will generate
Understand which is better: traditional or short-term rental for the property and neighborhood
Follow specific markets and growth over the years
Find undervalued properties and investment opportunities in upcoming or established areas

Mashvisor uses the help of various data input streams to scrape through large amounts of data and gives you a simpler overview presented nicely in their dashboard.

Let’s go through some of the features of Mashvisor:

New Property Finder
Short/Long Term Rent Analysis
Purchase Analysis
Reports & Insights
ROI Calculator

New Property Finder

This tool helps people to filter out properties based on various criteria such as the Listing Price, Size, No of Bedrooms, Cash on cash return, Average occupancy rate, and the like. You can narrow down your search by filters by availability, ROI, Return on investment timeframe, Initial Capital required, etc.

Having these many filters helps narrow down the right set of properties and helps investors to find exactly what they are looking for. This feature also enables users to multitask and search this data for multiple cities simultaneously, so you can compare between cities to make an informed decision while choosing the city to invest in.

Short/Long Term Rent Analysis

Having a rough estimate of monthly rent is very crucial when investing in a property as it helps you to determine metrics like mortgage payments, ROI timespan, yearly yield, and the like.

Mashvisor has a tool that helps you calculate estimated rental revenue for both traditional and short-term renting. These estimations are based on the real-time performance of similar properties in the area and using that data will predict cash flow for properties of your size. This turns out to be very useful to plan your other expenses and renovation of the house, cash on cash return, and other metrics to determine successful investment.

Purchase Analysis

Purchase Analysis is another feature that enables you to fine-tune your costs and view updated returns based on the interest rate, property taxes, and yearly maintenance. This feature is very useful in calculating your overall in-hand cash flow after all the expenses from an individual property.

Interactive Reports and Insights

This feature allows users not only to see reports and insights but to interact with them. You can bookmark, comment, and make notes in the dashboard itself for individual property to check back later. You can also download or directly share an individual property with your friends and agents to get suggestions from the dashboard itself.

Rental Strategy Comparison

Know how much you’ll make on a property whether you list it on Airbnb or other booking sites. Use the comparing values to decide which strategy is more lucrative for a particular property. The comparison shows the difference in:

Rental Income
Cash Flow
Cash on Cash Return
Cap Rate
Occupancy Rate
Monthly Expenses

What is AirDNA?

As the leading source of vacation rental data, AirDNA offers a wide range of tools to help its users find profitable investment properties. It offers competitive insights, custom reporting, and interactive dashboards covering more than 10 million rentals across 120,000 markets worldwide.

It also provides an opportunity for vacation rental investors to understand and analyze key trends in the short-term rental industry leveraging historical and future-looking data to maximize revenue potential.

MarketMinder: Product overview and key features

As a solution designed to get useful information on the performance of vast amounts of rentals and examine how the short-term rental industry is changing, MarketMinder helps potential investors understand how their vacation rentals are performing compared to others and to study real-time future demand to set their prices.

MarketMinder can help investors to:

Locate investment opportunities
Compare future demand with nearby comps
Price smartly and accurately
Grow portfolio with profitable listings

Market Comparison

The Market Comparison tool in MarketMinder allows Airbnb investors to compare cities, neighborhoods, zip codes with the number of bedrooms, and guests it can accommodate. Investors and second-home buyers can analyze annual revenue, ADR, and occupancy trends over the past years to find the most profitable properties.

Calculate Revenue Potential & Cap Rate

AirDNA Rentalizer, the Airbnb Financial Calculator, allows you to enter any address in the world and immediately receive projections on revenue, occupancy, ADR, and nearby comps. By customizing your bedroom count, purchase price, and major expenses, you can also receive operating income figures and cap rates to guide your investment decision.

These are MarketMinder’s most important features:

Short-Term Rental Research feature with interactive maps
Data-Driven Dynamic Pricing
Customized Comp Sets
Forward-Looking Airbnb Data
Market Comparison
Calculate Revenue Potential & Cap Rate

Short-Term Rental Research

This feature is handy for gaining competitive insights on Airbnb and Vrbo rental properties. You can use interactive maps to examine how some neighborhoods and vacation rental properties perform. The feature includes over 25 crucial performance metrics: average daily rate, occupancy, rental revenue, booking lead times, active listing, etc.

Data-Driven Dynamic Pricing

With this feature, one might compare market rates to recommended rates based on property performance to have the most personalized dynamic pricing recommendations. Among the questions that could be answered are: “At what particular hours guests are willing to pay a premium?”, “How probable is it to be booked last minute?”, or “What type of events are increasing rates in your area?”.

Customized Comp Sets

MarketMinder also allows you to upload your property and connect your listings. One can leverage the dataset to curate an accurate list of nearby akin listings. The feature provides sorting and filtering the competitive set according to ARD, occupancy rate, amenities, revenue, distance, experience, and quality. Hosts can compare pricing, demand, and historical insights to their competitors.

Forward-Looking Airbnb Data

This feature analyzes Vrbo and Airbnb data by providing a forward-looking view of the exact dates over the next six months that are getting booked now. By doing so, one can adapt their strategy and gain a competitive advantage. This feature is also useful in understanding the difference between how the specific market is advertising the prices and the rate at which they are booked.

Conclusion

If you are purchasing 5+ properties every year, Mashvisor’s yearly plan ($600/yr) can be a good investment.

If you are purchasing 1-2 properties, it might work out better to subscribe to 3-5 AirDNA’s markets for a month.

Airbtics is another short-term rental data & analytics platform. It provides as many short-term rental data points as AirDNA, while it has an affordable US Nationwide subscription-like Mashvisor. Airbtics is designed for a smart investor looking to expand aggressively using the power of technology and data. It is built for you to discover emerging markets and identify high-return investments.

Note, you can subscribe to 5 markets on Airbtics at $149/mo.

Useful resources for short-term rental investors

Comparison & Review of 5 short-term rental analytics tools

Airbnb Calculator

Best places to buy airbnb property in 2022

Average Airbnb occupancy rates in top 100 cities around the world

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Ultimate Airbnb House cleaning checklist 2021

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date July 27, 2021

A clean home is a happy home, even if it’s only temporary. Your Airbnb listing serves as a temporary home for your guests. When they walk through the door, make them feel the need to come back. One of the best ways to ensure a repeat guest or referral is to operate a clean listing. Whether you are a DIY Master and handling the cleaning tasks yourself or outsourcing the deed – do it right. We have created the ultimate 2021 AirBnB house cleaning checklist.

Access the home: Remove all trash and left-behind items of previous guests

The very first thing to do following the completion of a stay is to access the entire house. Take a few minutes and walk the home, inspecting each room. It doesn’t hurt to take along a pen and pad or take notes on your phone. If you see something that is going to need a repair of some sort, make a note. Identifying damage beforehand is necessary for any damages needing to be billed and repaired.

While some may prefer to focus on one room at a time, removing all large and obvious trash during your walkthrough will carve your cleaning time. It also allows an easier maneuver when cleaning.

Start the laundry: This can be done while simultaneously cleaning.

Before starting the actual wipe-down and sanitizing of your Airbnb, remove all linen and towels. If they are a color other than white, be sure to separate the laundry accordingly. Color separation is necessary to avoid any color bleeding or fading.

Now, your space is free of trash, all damages, if any, have been noted, and the laundry is going – let’s clean.

Clean the kitchen

Two spaces will make or break your listing. The kitchen is one of them. Follow this list to get a spot-free kitchen.

Clear the refrigerator of any items from the previous guest.
Wipe and sanitize the fridge.
Wash and dry the dishes. Clear the dishwasher as well. Place the items neatly in the cabinets.
Thoroughly wipe the stove and oven of any residue.
Clear the countertops, returning any condiments or other items to their rightful place.
Wipe countertops, appliances, and sink (hardware included).
Sweep and mop the floor
Empty the trash.

Clean the bathroom

The bathroom is the second space. A clean bathroom means comfort.

Clean the mirrors
Wipe and sanitize the sinks
Properly clean the toilets. No stains, no residue! Pro tip (When done cleaning, pour a little fragranced cleaner in the toilet bowl for a lingering clean scent.)
Clean the shower and tubs. If the shower has glass or tiled enclosures, scrub away soap residue and scum.
Sweep and mop the floor
Empty the trash.

Dusting, Tidying, Reset and Restock

A clean home gives a clean feeling. Your guests will appreciate the sense of cleanliness from the moment they walk through the door.

Dust the common areas, including nightstands, entertainment center, and other end tables.
Double-check the bulbs to ensure all are adequately lit.
Remove removable cushions to check for any remaining items, food, or other debris. Fluff the cushions and pillows. (Bonus tip, a fabric freshening mist will give the furniture a lasting pleasant smell.)
Straighten any ornamental decor (table magazines/books, flowers, centerpieces)
Restock all fresh items (milk, condiments, etc.) and paper and hygiene products (paper towel, shampoo, tissue, etc.)

The final thing to remember is to conduct a walkthrough to ensure you’ve taken care of each space entirely.

Keep in mind that the level of cleanliness can vary based on the home’s condition after the previous stay. It is also essential to conduct a deep cleaning of your Airbnb at least once a month. A deep cleaning will be the same as your typical cleaning except on a more intense level with greater detail.

During your scheduled deep cleans, be sure to inspect for cobwebs, steam clean the carpet, and check the wear of your linens and towels for replacements.

Pro Tip: Small things to keep in mind that can significantly impact your guest are in-home gifts such as a small basket of goodies. Great items to consider are wine and desserts or fresh fruits. If you prefer to avoid all food and beverage items, consider fresh flowers.

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Enhance your Airbnb Title Listing + great examples 2022

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date July 23, 2021

Airbnb best titles. Airbnb best titles

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Since there are numerous Airbnb listings on the internet, you want to make sure that you choose the right keywords and optimize the title to catch your reader’s attention.

Primarily, if you do this part correctly, it can increase your bookings, help you rank better in the search results, and bring more traffic to your listing.

There are many complex things that need to be taken into consideration when writing a title for your listing such as the title length, optimal keywords, symbols/icons, and abbreviations. Your title should be thorough enough to give a brief idea about your property in less than 50 characters.

Though this may sound a little bit difficult, we have compiled a list of the best Airbnb titles to help you enhance your ideas and bring out the best version of your listings in the business!

How to write an attention-grabbing title?

Image and title are going to be the most important factor in optimizing your conversion rate and increasing your bookings. Having a catchy and attention-grabbing title can do wonders if you keep a few things in the back of your mind while writing it and make sure to include all the things we are about to tell you in this blog.

1. Use the right and relevant keywords

After the pandemic, people’s habits and perceptions of cleanliness have changed a lot. This pandemic has made hygiene and cleanliness the topmost priority when moving into a vacation home. Our research found out that before the pandemic words like “Modern”, “Historic”, and “Luxury” were some of the best performing keywords but after the pandemic words like “Seclude”, “Sanitized”, “No sharing” etc were the top-performing words.

This same logic can be applied in other areas as well, for example, if your property is near a ski lodge or a beach using that in the title can help you land more guests on your listing. Also if there is some big event or conference happening in your city, having that in the title can also help attract people who will be visiting your city to attend that event, and having the name of the conference or event in the title will definitely grab their attention and let them know that your property is in the vicinity of that location thus making it an ideal place.

2. Use all 50 characters

Airbnb limits title length to 50 characters, make sure you are using them all. By keeping your title shorter you will not be able to use the right keywords and describe your property to the guests.

Using all the characters and many keywords will help to grab the attention of people who are looking for something specific, like a certain number of rooms, or amenities. Having all of these things will broaden your spectrum of potential guests.

3. Use abbreviations and symbols to save Characters

As mentioned above Airbnb only provides 50 characters, so you need to be a little creative to fit all the details about your property into these 50 characters. Using some abbreviations and symbols which are largely recognized can help you save a lot of characters.

Example:

Air Conditioning – AC
And – &
Apartment – Apt
Bathroom – Bath
Bedroom – BR
Downtown – Dt
House – HS
Private – Pvt
With – W/

4. Keep the title audience-specific!

What do I mean by “audience-specific”? Well if you are a new host then it is going to be a lot harder to identify this but if you have some experience hosting then you will have a brief idea of who your ideal guests are and what kind of guest keep booking your place frequently.

Are most people on a business trip, solo travelers, or young couples? Once you have that figured out make sure to have something in your title that is specific to the needs of this particular demographic.

5. Avoid using generic adjectives

If you want to stand out from the crowd then avoid using very generic adjectives like “Good”, “Nice”, “Comfy”, and “Lovely”. From the guests’ perspective, you are saying all these nice words about your own house, which don’t have a significant impact on the guest and don’t give them an idea about the house. Instead, use adjectives that describe what you are offering because that gives them some image in their minds about the house.

Example:

Airy
Apartment
Artsy
Clean
Green
Hidden Gem
Hygienic
Modern
New Construction
Remodeled
Renovated
Rustic
Secluded
Spacious
Villa
Working station

6. Remove irrelevant words

As mentioned above, having the right words in the title is very important but not having the wrong words is even more important. As they eat up most of your 50-character limit and don’t help in conveying any message about the property.

Some of these things are mentioning your street name or your neighborhood name. The guest doesn’t know anything about your area so mentioning street names will not help at all. Also, most people filter their searches by bedroom and locality so mentioning them again in your title is a waste of title space that can be utilized for something else.

7. Avoid Capitalization

Never have your title in all caps! Using all capital letters is considered to be shouting in internet language. Also, not only will it look like you are screaming the title of your listing but, capital letters tend to occupy more space and your whole title might not show up in search results, cutting out the last few words of your title.

8. Make sure it doesn’t look scammy

When writing your perfect title you need to make sure you are not having any spelling mistakes, grammar mistakes, or ALL CAP titles as mentioned above. These make your listing look unprofessional and scammy and might steer away guests from trusting the host.

9. Mention upgrades & what’s unique about the property

Highlight something which is unique and different about the property, like if the building recently got remodeled or renovated. If you did the flooring again, or if you replaced the furniture. These things ensure the guest that the property is in optimum condition and they’ll have a better experience.

10. Mention a Nearby Landmark

If your property is near an important landmark or if your city is famous for something, make sure to mention it in the title, like a stadium or a big hospital. Having them in your title will grab the attention of people who are specifically coming to visit these places and your property will stand out to them.

Real-World Best Airbnb Titles Example

Using the Airbtics Data Analytics dashboard we can see the list of trending listings in different cities around the globe. Most of them are using similar formats and tips that we have shared above.

Check Out the data for your own city! Click Here!

New York:

London:

Paris:

Formula to create the best Airbnb titles!

Formula 1: {Adjective} {Property Type} w/ {Top Features}

Example 1: Modern Villa w/ 2 Queen Bed & Lake View

Formula 2: {Adjective} {Property Type} Near {Landmark} – {Distance}

Example 2: Secluded Studio Apt Near Time Square – 3 Min Walk

Formula 3: {Adjective} {Property Type} Great for {Vacation Type}

Example 3: Renovated Beach House Great for Long Weekend Getaway

Formula 4: Relish {Selling Point} at {Adjective} {Property Type} in/at {Location}

Example 4: Relish Mountain View at a Fully Equipped 2BR cottage in the Alps

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Airbnb Bad Reviews: Use them to your Advantage

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date June 28, 2021

There is nothing more demoralizing than receiving a bad review on Airbnb, especially when you go above and beyond to take care of your guests and host them to the best of your abilities but they still leave a negative or unsatisfactory review. Getting a lot of bad reviews can negatively impact your future bookings as the majority of guests go through negative reviews to make a decision before booking a property.

Every Airbnb host has to deal with unsatisfied guests and bad reviews at least once during their hosting career, and if not dealt with properly could do a lot of harm. In this blog, we will tell you what to do if you get a negative review and how to deal with the guests and convince them to delete the negative review, and also some methods to harness bad reviews on Airbnb and use them to your advantage.

Getting rid of Negative Reviews

1. Requesting the Guest

If a guest leaves a negative review on your listing, you should try and reach out to them as soon as possible. Ask them what you could have improved to make their experience better. Let’s say if the guest pinpoints out something that you disagree with, you should not dismiss that and become defensive as it will cause a conflict, instead, you should agree and tell the guest that “they are right and you’ll try to improve on the suggestions given by them”.

Doing this will help the guest realize that you have acknowledged the issue right away instead of dismissing it and then this will make them more receptive to your request of deleting the bad review. Then you should ask them to remove their bad review and explain how it negatively affects your business, and if done right will most likely work.

2. Give Discount/Compensate

If the above method of “Requesting the Guest” doesn’t work out and the guest is still not ready to change their negative review, then you can try to compensate them for the unpleasant experience they had. You need to be careful while using this method as if not done correctly it could backfire and leave a bad impression on the guest as you may sound arrogant. Choose the right words and way of compensation.

You can give your guest a discount for their next booking or send them a gift card which they can use to pay for their next booking at a discounted price. This compensation can help you get a negative review removed and retain a guest as well. Many airlines and professional services use this method to make amends with unhappy customers.

3. Don’t Rush to Review the Guest

Don’t rush in to leave a review for your guest after they leave, wait till they have left you a review especially if you feel they will leave a bad review. This will help you decide on how to review them based on the honest experience review. Also, it’ll discourage them to leave an unreasonable review as they’ll be worried about you reviewing them negatively, which might make it harder for them to book good properties in the future.

Also, guests just have 14 days to review a property and if you feel there is a slight chance that this guest might review your property badly then you should not write a review about them. Airbnb will prompt them as well to write a review about the property if you write the review early. If you do write a review, write it after a few weeks so that the guest doesn’t recall small things to nitpick and give you a positive review.

4. Reach Out to Airbnb

If you feel that the bad review you have received is unjustified and does not express the real experience of the guest then you can raise a review removal complaint to Airbnb. Airbnb reviews also fall under Airbnb’s Content Policy which monitors if a review is a spam, a threat, use of foul language, maliciously motivated, or fabrication of real experience.

If you followed all the Terms of Services and kept your conversation with the guest on the Airbnb platform then it’ll help you a lot to convince Airbnb to get rid of the review. You need to be able to prove that you are in the right and the review violates Airbnb’s Content Policy to use this approach.

Use them to your advantage

Leave detailed responses

When you receive a negative review make sure to respond back. Make sure to pinpoint every detail of the guest’s stay. Keep it as brief as possible and mention all the minute details. This will help in making a positive impression on the other reader as you’ll seem like someone who cares and takes notice of guests’ needs.

Focus on the Positive

When responding back to a bad review make sure to highlight the positive aspects of the guest’s stay and don’t blatantly disagree with negative reviews. You shouldn’t accept them either if you feel you were not in the wrong, but do acknowledge them. Acknowledging them and then telling why those issues occurred and how you are working on making sure other aspects of your guest’s stay were up to mark will help you build trust with readers.

Show what you have learned

If you were in the wrong then accept the mistake and if you weren’t in the wrong then acknowledging it will go a long way. Telling what you have learned from it and what you have you are doing to improve on it leaves the reviewer with nothing to defend and argue about.

Highlight the steps you have taken after this last negative review to improve future guests’ experience. Also, go through all the negative feedback to get a broad understanding of all things you can change to have more satisfied guests in the future, and use negative remarks as a guidebook to improve your hosting.

Don’t bad mouth the guest

Arguing or speaking unfavorably about your previous guest will portray you as rude and make you an undesirable host for future guests. You need to be calm and professional throughout and realize bad reviews are part of being in the Airbnb business and should be handled professionally and strategically.

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Red Flags to Look for When Renting on Airbnb (Airbnb Guest with No Reviews)

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date June 17, 2021

Airbnb guest with no reviews is a major red flag when accepting a request. Learn how to onboard this kind of guest from this article!

Home > Resources > Hosting Tips >

Airbnb guest with no reviews is a major red flag when accepting a request. Learn how to onboard this kind of guest from this article!

December 18, 2023

Being a host is never an easy task. For starters, you have to take care of marketing your listings, communicating with guests, and property management. Recently, hosts have started to report scams and illegal activities that have started taking place due to the massive reach & popularity of short-term rental platforms. These people are taking advantage of hosts and their property by finding a loophole in the system. Usually, they are Airbnb guests with no reviews.

In this blog, we surveyed over 100+ super hosts to take note of the red flags when renting your property on Airbnb so you make the best decisions when hosting an Airbnb guest with no reviews. Continue reading to learn more!

1. Airbnb Guest with No Reviews

When you come up with profiles with no single reviews, this could indicate that the person is using Airbnb for the first time or has created a duplicate account. It gets very hard to judge guests based on their type of profiles. Your best bet here would be to communicate with the guest and request them to complete their profiles. This is especially necessary if they already don’t have an ID and photos.

Questions to ask Airbnb guests with no reviews

But fret not! Of course, we can give guests with no reviews the benefit of our doubt. But just to safeguard your interest as a host, you can ask the guests the following basic questions:

What is your purpose for visiting?
How many people will be staying?

At the same time, hosts can also use this simple message template for Airbnb guests with no reviews but are showing interest in the property.

Hey there {{guest’s name}}

Thank you for showing interest in my property and welcome to the Airbnb community. As your host, I want to make sure that your first stay with us will go smoothly. Before I approve your booking, please verify your profile photo with a government ID & kindly fulfill the required information below:

1). Brief information about your stay & number of guests
2) What brings you to the neighborhood & what are your expectations?

I look forward to approving your request pending this information.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions!

Cheers,

{{Host name}}

2. Not reading/following the rules and guidelines

To avoid Airbnb guests from having last-minute changes such as bringing extra people or pets, it’s ideal to remind them of the rules and regulations prior to confirming their stay. Although this isn’t always a red flag, Airbnb guests who keep changing their statements that are against rules and regulations should be reminded to read the listings to avoid complaints and confusion.

3. Having inappropriate photos or no photos

Similar to Airbnb’s no review guest’s account, an Airbnb guest with inappropriate photos or photos that don’t show their face clearly could be considered a red flag. Having no photo might also indicate that the profile is new, and if that is the case, you can request the guest to update his/her profile using the message template indicated above. If they hesitate to upload a photo or the uploaded photos seem altered, then it is certainly another red flag. As an Airbnb host, you should ask for proper verification in case of any suspicion before confirming the stay.

4. Convincing to book a listing outside of Airbnb

If a guest is trying to use alternate methods to share his number to book the Airbnb listing, then it’s a major red flag. Keeping all the chats and conversations on the Airbnb app is really important. This is truly necessary in case of damages to the property or any other mishappening during the guest’s stay. It also helps you to be on the safe side in terms of receiving the money and having proof of conversation in case of any legal action. Taking the conversation on some other platform will not only increase the chances of a scam, but it’ll also leave you stranded without anyone to reach out for help in case of a mishap.

5. Unconventional name or email

In 2022, getting a decent email without numbers and weird symbols is next to impossible. While there are some odd emails that use offensive words, and sexist or racist remarks, this can be a red flag as a lot of scammers use pseudo emails to make Airbnb accounts. It’s important to be aware of unconventional names or emails. These people often do this to prevent leaving traces of their personal identity in case of any investigation.

6. Broken language

Many times, scammers who pretend to be Airbnb guests run bots and reach out to multiple hosts at once. They send them personalized messages based on their listing using learning bots. You can identify these messages if the grammar is incorrect or if even a single sentence just doesn’t make sense. Usually, these bots have the conversion for a few seconds until some human switches over. You need to be careful and look for these types of sentences that sound auto-generated by a bot.

7. Exchanging services in return for a stay

Another red flag is if a guest offers to clean the house or do any other service in return for a stay instead of paying money. The chances of that person leaving without cleaning the place are very high. At the same time, this is not a good practice to follow as an Airbnb host. It’s still advisable to have your property cleaned by a reliable cleaner as the chances of getting scammed are very high in these types of situations.

8. Asking the right screening questions

If the Airbnb guests are local and staying for one night, you may want to ask their motive for visiting the property and confirm if they agree with your house policies. If they are visiting from outside of town, you can casually ask what they would like to do in the city. This way, you can easily identify the intention of guests while giving some helpful suggestions depending on what they want to do.

9. Do what your gut says

Sometimes you don’t need any red flags. If you have a feeling of uncertainty when giving your property to a guest based on his/her profile and messages, it is best to drop that guest as your gut instinct could be right.

When to take the risk of accepting bookings from Airbnb guests with no reviews?

While there are red flags to look out for when accepting Airbnb guests, it’s important to take note that there are some Airbnb guests who might have difficulty creating their accounts as they are new on the platform. Here are some of the go signals for Airbnb hosts to take the risk:

1. Airbnb guest provides necessary data

If you require the guest to provide a valid government ID and a clear photo, and they promptly follow along with a clear intention of their purpose of visit, then your worries should at least be minimized.

2. Airbnb guest instantly confirms the payment

The majority of Airbnb hosts are usually worried about guests with no reviews because they might be a no-show and waste the bookings on their calendars. However, if the Airbnb guest instantly confirms their payment online, then it’s recommended to take the risk (and still follow the mentioned precautions).

3. Airbnb guest is willing to go through security checks & verify account

Airbnb guests who are willing to go through security checks & verification on the platform should be considered as a go signal for hosts to accept the booking. At the same time, it’s necessary for Airbnb hosts to make sure that the guests are responsive and agree to the rules & regulations of your property.

How to decline an Airbnb guest with no reviews?

If you see all these red flags and you can’t see any redeeming quality in your guest, now is the time to decline the booking request. Declining a guest is a delicate process. So, be sure that you keep the conversation professional and courteous until the end.

Remember, maintaining professionalism and politeness is key when communicating with potential guests, even if you need to decline a booking request. This approach will uphold your reputation as a host and align with Airbnb’s community standards.

1. Start with Gratitude:

Begin your message by expressing your appreciation for their interest in your listing. This sets a positive tone for the conversation.

2. Explain Your Policy as a Host:

Let the guest know that, as part of your hosting policy, you usually prefer guests with reviews to ensure a smooth experience for both parties. Make this sound like a general policy rather than singling out the guest.

3. Apologize and Explain:

Apologize for any inconvenience and explain that you are unable to make exceptions at this time. Make sure your message is respectful and understanding.

4. Suggest Solutions:

If possible, offer some alternative solutions that could help the guest build their Airbnb profile and increase their chances of securing future bookings. For instance, suggest that they consider booking with hosts who are open to new users or recommend ways they can improve their profile.

5. End on a Positive Note:

Conclude the message with well wishes and a friendly tone. This helps to maintain a positive reputation and ensure a good impression of you as a host.

Feel free to use the sample template below for declining guests who show red flags

Hi {{guest’s name}}

Thank you for considering my Airbnb listing for your upcoming stay. I appreciate your interest in my space. As a part of my hosting practice, I typically consider guests who have reviews from previous stays. This helps ensure a positive experience for both guests and hosts. I'm sorry for any inconvenience this might cause, but I currently don't have the flexibility to make exceptions regarding the review policy.

However, I suggest you explore other listings where hosts might be more open to hosting guests without reviews. You could also enhance your profile by verifying your identity and completing your Airbnb profile, which will increase your credibility in the community.

Best of luck with your travel plans, and I hope you have a wonderful experience using Airbnb in the future.
{{Host name}}

Conclusion

I hope this checklist is somewhat useful in your hosting journey!

If you are just getting started with hosting, I believe you want to get more quality bookings. The first step is to have a clear picture on your listing’s performance against to similar listings in your area. This allows you to set a realistic goal.

Compare your occupancy rate against to other similar listings around your area using Airbnb Analytics tool (Click the banner below). Once you are in the app, search for your market, and zoom into the area where your listing is located. Then, you can find the average occupancy rate of the area you are seeing in the map.

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Best Airbnb deals in Dallas (2021 Updated)

Post author By Shivam Kaushik
Post date June 9, 2021

Bring out your cowboy boots and get ready to explore the best deals in yet another amazing southern city of Dallas, being bordered with Mexico and with more than 42% Hispanic population, you’ll find fusion foods that are so amazing and unique that it’ll be hard to find such combinations anywhere else in the country. Dallas is the fastest growing city in the US currently with a 1.3 million population and it’s inviting more people to come and explore the culture. Here is the list of 9 Best Airbnb deals in Dallas that you can’t find anywhere else.

Downtown/Deep Ellum 1 BR – 3 guests ($60)

Located within walking distance to the city center, this place is great if you aren’t bringing your car with you, Sheraton Downtown and Deep Ellum are 2 min walking from this location. At this price point finding a place in the city center is near impossible.