Anyone making money with AIRBNB

[Lesley Resnick]

Greetings BP

I have been looking at AIRBNB.  Has anyone been able to scale an AIRBNB business?  There has been a lot of chatter on BP about it.  I am interested in hearing from anyone whose is doing it in scale and making money 5+ units.  

I have seen a lot of XLS that at 50% rental you are $xxx profitable.  What is the reality of those assumptions?  You have all the traditional costs of owning RE, roof, plumbing, electric.  Additionally, you have a complete house full of furnishings.  Taken one step further instead of having one tenant you have 50 in a year?  

It seems to me that you would have to do it full time to effectively manage it.  Using a management company could be tough or really expensive.    

[Paul Sandhu]

I made $0.00 this year from Airbnb or any other vacation website.  But I've had about 75% occupancy on average with my STRs.  Sometimes it's 50-60 percent.  Other times it's 90-100 percent.  So it averages around 75%.

My renters are refinery contractors.  Welders, pipefitters, boilermakers, electricians and the like.  Big burly scary looking guys with neck tats that drive jacked up 4x4s.  They smell like diesel fuel and chew tobacco in their sleep.  You'd avoid the Wal Mart aisle if you saw one there.  I'd punch him in the arm and say "What's up mofo?"  If he saw me in a bar, he'd send the waitress with the most cleavage over to my table to deliver a round of drinks.  I decorate my STRs like Hugh Hefner would decorate his own place.

Craigslist, word of mouth and repeat customers are how most of my places get rented.  23 STRs, 83 beds.  All are 3-8 minutes away from my house, I self manage.  It's a full time job.  My part time job is working at a medical clinic doing pre-employment drug screens for contractors coming here to work at the refinery, a good way to meet potential tenants  My wife keeps the STRs clean, that's her full time occupation.