Here is a simple concept of the Airbnb Arbitrage business: I have $10,000. What’s the fastest way to double this? I’d say rental arbitrage. In one of our interviews with an Airbnb host, we met a 21-year-old who rented three $1,000/mo condos in Miami, furnished them, and rented them out to generate $8,000 monthly revenue.

So, how can I find rental arbitrage properties? You can find them on property websites, Craiglist, realtors, social media, and so on. Then, you need to pitch to landlords to get permission to run the property as a short-term rental. In this blog, we will go in-depth to show you how you can find profitable rental properties like a pro!

Airbnb is undoubtedly an additional channel for people who are looking for extra income. However, they also have one common misinterpretation of the whole Airbnb idea:

You need to own a property in order to begin investing in Airbnb.

Quite frankly, it’s NOT necessary to own a property at all! You’d be surprised to know that there are numerous strategies that you can use to try out short-term rental investments without owning a property! In this article, you can learn how to find rental arbitrage properties and follow a step-by-step guide on how to set up and manage your Airbnb rental.

What is Airbnb rental arbitrage?

Airbnb rental arbitrage is renting one or more properties for the sole purpose of subletting them on Airbnb & other similar short-term rental platforms. In fact, this is the best way to try out the short-term rental industry without spending big bucks. Also, this will help you save up money if property ownership is one of your goals. 

This is how you do rental arbitrage in 3 simple ways:

Step 1. Find landlords who will allow you to arbitrage their property.

Step 2. Furnish it, take nice Airbnb photos, and upload them on Airbnb and similar platforms.

Step 3.  Wait for bookings!

Is Airbnb rental arbitrage legal?

It depends on the city. And in the areas where Airbnb arbitrage is legal, there are varying laws and guidelines that hosts must adhere to. In order for your business to successfully operate, make sure to check if it’s necessary to apply for a permit or license before starting to invest in Airbnb rental arbitrage.

5 Ways to Find Rental Arbitrage Properties

1. Look for properties on the best rental listing sites

Differentiate the properties in your preferred area and categorize them with ease according to the size & amenities of properties. Here are the top 3 of the most recommended listing sites:

• • Apartments.com – one of the major rental portals with simple tools designed for DIY landlords or small property management companies. 
  • Zillow
  • Zumper

2. Find an Airbnb-friendly landlord

 Some landlords may think subletting is illegal, but there are certainly numerous owners who allow subleasing. If you want to find an Airbnb-friendly landlord, cast your net wide and look them up on Google, Facebook Marketplace, and Craigslist! 

Then, send your pitch!

Be creative. Here’s my tip. This is just an example, and you can tweak this to find your own profitable property acquisition pipeline.

I noticed that many “expats” are not fond of advertising their properties to the local people. They tend to use Facebook groups for expats to look for tenants. Quite often, they are not even in the city, so they are looking for someone to take over and just maintain their property at a cheap price.. Just type “Expats in CITY_NAME (E.g. Lisbon)” on Facebook.

3. Join local real estate investor meetings & spark relationships

Through networking, you can easily meet people and get leads from them for your preferred property. You can also visit meetup.com and type in your target city. You now have access to real estate-related meetings & events!

4. Speak to your local real estate agents about finding the best rental arbitrage property

You can easily find local real estate agents online. Be honest with them that you want to start a rental arbitrage business. Tell them you are aiming to manage 20+ properties within the next 6 months if that’s your plan. This kind of pitching works well with realtors as you can potentially become their significant source of income. Here are some of the most recommended websites:

• • Realtor.com – the most extensive real estate website which is affiliated with the National Association of Realtors.