Experience with short term rental Airbnb? Profitable?

Question

What has been your experience with short term rentals such as Airbnb?

Do you find it profitable?

Could it be a strategy to buy a property and just do short term rental?

Zach Edelman · Answer

Yes, it can be very profitable. So much so that there are numerous conferences annually for Air BnB investors. There are so many opportunities to make $$$ with Air BnB (ownership vs. arbitrage vs. co-hosting vs. management) and hundreds of markets to choose from when it comes to picking where to invest!

Tim Schroeder · Answer

I am looking to purchase in a vacation destination specifically for AirBNB hosting. You can make a killing if you do it right. Here are some links that may help:

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/530-short-term-and-vacation-rental-discussion

https://www.zeonamcintyre.com/

http://blog.airdna.co/buy-vacation-home-properties-2017/

www.learnairbnb.com

getpaidforyourpad.com

Peter R. · Answer

Quite profitable, yes.

Where you buy, how much you pay, how much you can rent it for per night,  if there are local laws prohibiting STR, if you even like dealing with guests...all questions you need to research before you can really get a sense of if this business is for you.

Luke Carl · Answer

Don't buy something in a big city and expect it to last forever. Make sure you can put a lease on it and still make money if push comes to shove and it probably will.

If you're not managing you're not making money.

Buy a cabin on a lake. An actual Vacation house. Not a hotel alternative that they're just going to shove 15 people into to save money and party.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

They can be profitable but you have to be honest about the expenses. A lot of BP members will show their gross income without deducting fees for AirBnB, lodging taxes, credit card fees, furnishing the unit, utilities, landscaping, etc. I just saw a post last week where a guy bragged about earning $7,000 with three vacation rentals in one month but he refused to publish anything about his fees, taxes, etc.

It also depends on your ability to manage them yourself. Most people reporting high numbers live nearby and are able to handle cleaning and maintenance on their own. If you have to hire a property manager for these tasks, expect your income to drop significantly.

I think they are a great opportunity but they will not out-perform a long-term rental in many cases and they require a lot more work. I personally intend to purchase a couple in areas I frequently travel to. My intent is to cover the expenses so I have a "free" place to stay when I vacation. Just be realistic about your goals and do what works for you.

Ben Scarborough · Answer

We own 3 and host 5 and have had a great experience so far. You are providing a cool place for someone that has worked their tail off to enjoy. It is extremely rewarding when a guest says how much they enjoyed their vacation at your home. As for the profitability of it, the profitability is there, but at the end of the day it comes down to how much effort you are paying someone or doing yourself to get the home ready for guests. If you just buy and list, you aren't going to perform well and therefore won't be profitable. If you put a lot of time and thought into it, chances are you will perform great if you are in a popular market. As Zach mentioned earlier, there are several strategies for getting into the short term rental game. If you have the money to spend, buy... if you don't, try cohosting or arbitrage, although I will say I personally avoid arbitrage... It can be a lot more work than simply cohosting, but can also be a decent bit more income than cohosting. Take the time to get to know all the different strategies... There are infinite videos and podcasts that can get you going. Hope this helps, and feel free to reach out if there is anything else I can do to help!-Ben Scarborough

Shelby Pracht · Answer

@Nathan G. has a great point about being able to manage it yourself. We have a couple STRs that are incredibly profitable. (1.5-2k per month in CASH FLOW, not gross or even net, for a one bedroom condo) However, I manage the unit myself and clean it myself probably 65-70% of the time. We would still have good positive cash flow even if we had to hire a manager, but it definitely allows us to keep a larger portion of the profits.

January Johnson · Answer

Not "always".  In our market (Emerald Coast), this IS the economy.   No laws are changing here on that.

Tookie Nemchak · Answer

Yes, although it is more labor intensive than my straight rentals, it is the most profitable. Most of our rentals are for events at the university or lake related.

Experience with short term rental Airbnb? Profitable?

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