Common Questions on Being an Airbnb Host

We recently had readers submit some great questions in regards to our previous stint renting our spare bedroom in Dublin on Airbnb. We’ve previously written about the Pros and Cons of Airbnb, which has been one of our most popular posts. At the time, we only hosted for extra money and didn’t use Airbnb for bookings while traveling ourselves, preferring apartment rental sites like only-apartments, guest houses and hotels.

We recently used Airbnb to stay in a private apartment in New York that our friend booked, which was a good experience. While you can rent private apartments in addition to shared rooms on Airbnb, sometimes issues like negotiating a check-in time can be tricky. Anyways, on to the questions and answers on important things to consider before becoming an Airbnb host!

How did you go always having a stranger in your house, in terms of privacy/feeling comfortable at home?

Having strangers in the house is so variable. It depends what the purpose of people staying is and the people themselves. We really enjoyed the company of some people. We also had a couple people stay for business and one guy we barely saw which was also great. He never even came into the living room and pretty much just came back to sleep. Others made use of the free tea and coffee and cooked some since we said that was ok. You make the rules!

Did you ask permission from your landlord?

We did not ask permission from our landlord as he owned all ten apartments in our building, plus other buildings so the anonymity worked well for us. However, there’s a risk in allowing strangers in your apartment so read their reviews carefully and proceed with some caution. With private landlords, you may need to discuss the situation and come to an agreement beforehand. In any case, hosting on Airbnb is a violation of many leases whether it’s from an individual or company and could potentially get you kicked out of your rental unit and you may be subjected to legal damages if something goes wrong. So we are not advocating that you break any laws! 

Baltimore Houses - where your Airbnb host could live!

This probably depends on your location, but could you rely on getting regular bookings? Are bookings ever inconsistent?

We had a great location in Dublin and could have been booked pretty much every night, after we had a couple good reviews, depending on the price point. Set your price lower in the beginning to get bookings and get a few good reviews and then you can set your price higher. Gauge the competition by looking at what others  with a similar location and quality are charging to set your prices accordingly. It’s better to charge a bit more and offer a better product (complimentary breakfast, nice room, clean place, etc) and give yourselves breaks between hosting.

What’s been the best and worst things about hosting?

The best thing about being an Airbnb host was meeting some great people from around Europe and making some extra money to travel. The worst thing was that we were used to having our apartment to ourselves and we did get a little burned out by the experience. I would be open to doing it again in the future but we only have a 1 bedroom apartment in Boston so it’s out for right now. We’ll see what the future holds at our next place as to whether we ever host on Airbnb again!

Want to make money renting out space or save cash when you travel?

Sign up for Airbnb here and first time users will receive Airbnb travel credit! For the best experience, travelers should book properties with consistently good reviews. And hosts should provide the best experience possible for guests. Think of running a professional hotel – reply to emails quickly, offer clean and comfortable accommodations. Hosts should also consider putting together a guest book packed with local recommendations.

Also, hosts should have rules in place to protect both guests and neighbors. It is in the best interests of everyone.

Disclosure; This article contains an affiliate link for Airbnb. We earn Airbnb credit when you sign up through our link. First time users also receive credit. So it’s a win-win. 

Author

  • Alex&Bell

    Alex and Bell originally met while solo traveling after finishing university in 2002, in Brugge, Belgium. Alex grew up in the USA and Bell hails from Australia. During our nearly 20 year marriage we've lived around the world, including spending six years living in the Netherlands and Ireland. We have traveled to nearly 70 countries and enjoy giving readers authentic and quality travel tips. Alex is an award winning travel journalist and travel planner, who also freelances for other outlets. Bell is an award winning PhD scientist who currently works for a non-profit lung cancer advocacy research organization called Lungevity. Happy travels and if you have any questions leave a comment or drop an email!

4 thoughts on “Common Questions on Being an Airbnb Host

  1. I have been an Airbnb host in the past. I had similar experiences: some people were fun and friendly, others kept to themselves, others I never saw. I also have a rather small place and got burned out. Taking an extended break for now.

    1. Thanks for sharing your experiences, Penny! Yeah, for lots of people its easy to get burned out if you’re sharing a small place. It’s not something that most people should *depend* on to supplement rent they can’t afford unless they have to. It’s best to use the service to make some extra money and bring travel into your home when you can’t travel yourself.

  2. The other thing, which my mom learned while renting out her room in Mexico, is how to deal with taxation. In the end she felt that if tax authorities in Canada learned that she was earning rental income that it could affect her Old Age Security payments. So there are a few legal and tax issues to keep in mind because eventually Airbnb asks you to fill out some tax info which may or may not be reported to authorities…

    Frank (bbqboy)

    1. Thank you for bringing up taxes and your mom’s situation, Frank! Her circumstances would be similar to some others out there, so yes, for people who depend on social security payments, they should indeed keep this in mind. It sounds like it wasn’t worth it for your mom to be an Airbnb host for too long. All the best to her and happy travels you all!

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