Does anyone here actually do the Airbnb thing? I was thinking about doing it and wanted to get some feedback.
I was considering buying a condo for Airbnb, share your experience. I feel SFH is not suitable. Agree?
i haven’t done it yet so i don’t know. I was thinking about starting out at comic-con. Even the cheap hotels are $220 a night. I have a townhouse so I think it might be suitable. I was also thinking about renting out a room and staying home.
That is almost like house hacking 
which is very popular in Australia. Also had similar concept like what you are thinking but is registered as a motel
How’s the regulation for short term rentals in your area? Do they restrict how many nights you can AirBnB?
Go stay in one and talk to host about all the issues
They don’t care about it. They are discussing it in San Diego but not Chula Vista.
A good idea.
Why not just host for a month or two and see how it goes? Do you need to take out a license? I think it’s a good source of income.
Airbnb is taxable income . They 1099 you. They get about 15% off the top. Plus TOT tax in most cities of 10-15%. So you are out 30% plus state and fed income taxes of another 30%.
Better off just getting a roommate paying cash under the table.
Don’t have to clean his shit, make him breakfast kiss his ass and he can pay his share of utilities. Their are a lot of part time roommates that make better sense than Airbnb where you have strangers coming and going. Rating you on your services and being bitchy and demanding. Traveling nurses, airline employees and commuters all are good part time roommates.
Since Airbnb is taxable income you can deduct expenses and depreciate the room. But when you sell that portion of the house is a rental. Not your home and is taxable including recapture of depreciation. Not included in the $500k tax free give away.
Example
Roommates pay $1000/m cash plus $50 in utilities
Airbnb occupancies average less than 50%. So at $100/n a room might gross $1500/m less fees and taxes at 60%
Net is only $600/m
Roommate is a better deal plus less work. Partime roommates even better.
Airbnb is better at $200/n but there is a lot of competition and your room might only get $50/n. Depending on the local market and season.
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I have done this and it works great - cashflow is higher then long term rentals - although it’s not for the faint of heart (meaning if you have a month where no one has booked and you wonder how that could be:)
The good news is it usually works out with last minute bookings. (at least it has for me so far)
We’ve owned long term real estate for 35 years and just a year ago we decided to sell one and 1031 it into a vacation rental.
As was talked about above - taxes and fees - Airbnb charges 3% in booking fees and collect the taxes for you (they may or may not in your city but they do in ALOT) so the taxes get charged to the guest renting the space.
So for me the only thing that gets taken out is the 3% (which I’ll gladly give up for the services they offer) VRBO charges a bit more unless you pay the yearly price - which I haven’t done yet as I’m new at it.
But so far it’s been a good thing - And there are a lot of ways to do it besides having to purchase a property, so lots of options.
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You have a lot to learn. Airbnb takes up 13% mostly from guests. Managers take up to 30%. Cities TOT tax can take up to 15%.
Long term tenants require a lot less work and pay utilities. I traded my VRBO/Airbnb rental to long term . Sick of cleaning up after parties every week. Wait till your place is trashed and when you get bad reviews.
Plus 50% occupancy or worse is very common.
I have been involved with Airbnb since 2008.
Both as a guest and host. Can be a great experience. But Airbnb since 2008 has doubled the fees it charges guests and has created a lot of anxiety with their instant bookings.
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Typical fake news. These are gross revenues not net.
The trend now is to ban vacation rentals from HOAs to cities like South Lake Tahoe and SF. There is huge backlash from tenants rights groups and people concerned about noise, trash and parking. AIRBNB is making huge money off the backs of the hosts. Much more profitable than Uber.
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Parasitic? Airbnb and Uber operate like Hollywood carte. Hosts don’t have the resources to achieve similar marketing reach. We need to regulate them like utilities 
We did AirBNB on our last trip in June–3 different places.
The thing going for AirBNB is that it seems to be easier to use than the vrbo.com interface (though it’s been a while).
Drawback is getting a new rental up and going. And we went ahead and rented one of those. Worst part wasn’t the experience, but that the guy was asking us for a 5* rating when the places deserved maybe a 2.5. I gave him a positive sounding, but honest review. Didn’t mention the dead cockroach under the bathroom sink. Anyways. I’ll probably try AirBNB again. The other two places we stayed were excellent.
AirBnB is great for families, especially for people who like to cook their own meals. As a business though I agree with @Elt1. The only people who are making good money is AirBnB itself.
They are being regulated all over. Banned in South Lake Tahoe, Carmel, Pacific Grove, Santa Monica. Controlled in SF, Sonoma County and many other areas. I am a big fan and will invest in their IPO… Cash cow
Owned a rental house in Tahoe in NV. Made $40k annual net on a $550k house. Used Vrbo and Airbnb. Vrbo is better for houses, Airbnb for rooms. Got sick of dealing with entitled sloppy asshole tenants. Neighborhood complaints were an issue too. Too many wild parties and people complaining about just about everything.
Didn’t use vrbo. For Airbnb, rented apartments, few weeks to few months, cheaper than hotels. Usually can rent fairly close to downtown. Apartment so far very clean, well supplied, some have fancy lighting and furniture. For a few days, prefer hotels.
No such issue. I target families with school going kids, all near schools, many within walking distance to elementary.
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As a customer, I love using VRBO and AirBNB. It’s convenient and comfortable for family or big group. We don’t party though. Too lazy, too old so sleep early.
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