How to bill for utilities on the side when using AirBnB?

[Lance Tokuda]

Hello, my neighbor wants to rent my 2nd home in California while she is remodeling.  I was planning to use AirBnB to take care of liability and rent collection.  On the side, she has agreed to pay for utilities. 

1.  Do you have suggestions on how to make the utility bill official?  If you have pointers to any public domain documents I could copy or other advice, that would be greatly appreciated!

2.  She says that I should pay for water used to maintain the lawn (single-family home).  Who normally pays for the water used in lawn maintenance?  I agreed to pay for the lawn care.

Thanks in advance for any tips!

[Marcia Maynard]

Airbnb, VRBO, etc is not a good choice for your situation.  I've been a Superhost with Airbnb for over two years and understand quite a bit about the dynamics. They are primarily a booking service. They handle payments too, but you can do that yourself. Libability? Don't expect Airbnb to cover you. You need to get your own insurance and contract directly with the person you want to rent to.  Also, it would be more expensive for you and your "guest".  Expect as host to pay 3% to Airbnb. Expect as guest to pay a service fee of 6-12% to Airbnb and lodging taxes too. Depending on your jurisdiction, you may need special licensing to offer your home for rent in this manner.  Airbnb is considered a hospitality type business, so different laws apply.  Instead, make your place a furnished rental and rent it to your neighbor directly. Draw up a contract to fit the situation. Anything's negotiable.  If I were providing a furnished rental, I'd cover the utilities and factor that into amount I charge for rent. Easy-peasy.