To BnB, or not to BnB

[Christopher Morris]

Hello BP, 

I just started looking for 1 year lease tenants in my duplex over in Northern NJ. It’s been a few weeks of my first unit on the market but I am confident I can find a quality tenant. 

But when talking to my neighbor who owns a few similar properties… he swears by Airbnb. That’s definitely something I want to get into, but never thought I’d be able to do that in my first property. 

BP, what would you do? Is it odd to have one unit be a year lease and the other unit Airbnb? Would you dive right into BnB with your first deal? I’ve done very little research on what it takes to furnish / maintain a Airbnb property but I imagine it’s not the easiest. 

Would love some advice, thanks! 

[Kristen L Garner]

Hi Christopher, You could start by getting some data from a site like airdna to see what your numbers would look like. I would also check your area for STR rules and regulations.

I don't personally own a short term rental but a lot of the investors I work with do and it can certainly increase your cash flow if done right! I work with one investor who has long term tenants in front units on his lots and STR on back units. The long term tenants came first and he gave them a small rental discount in exchange for their permission to add the STRs. That strategy and communication worked well for him.

Best of luck!