Renting Out Your House

Giigs.us > Make Money > Renting Out Your House

By Michael Wong | January 3, 2022.

Renting Out Your House

If you own an investment property or holiday home, you are probably making money renting those out already.

If you are renting out your investment property on a long term lease, have you considered switching to short term rentals on online accommodation rental marketplaces? You could make a lot more money.

If you don't own an investment property, have you considered making money renting out your house when you are away on vacation? Or renting out a spare room in your house? Or renting out your granny flat?

If these ideas interest you, read on...

• Do Short Term Rentals Make More Money Than Long Term Rentals?
• Potential Legal And Regulatory Issues
• Top 5 Photo Tips
• Top 3 Sites To Make Money Renting Out Your House
1. Airbnb Host
2. HomeAway
3. Tripadvisor Rentals

Do Short Term Rentals Make More Money Than Long Term Rentals?

Property owners have reported generating more than double the income with short term rentals on online accommodation rental marketplaces, such as Airbnb, than traditional long term rentals.

Yes, there is more work involved with short term rentals. But the profits should make it more than worth your while.

You can outsource much of the work, such as cleaning and property management, to companies which specialise in short term rental properties.

Potential Legal And Regulatory Issues

Check with the relevant local authorities regarding these potential legal and regulatory issues:

• Zoning rules: Some cities have laws that restrict or prohibited you from hosting paying guests for short periods.
• Special permit: Some cities require a special permit before you can hosting paying guests for short periods.
• Business license: Some cities and counties require owners or operators of certain businesses to obtain a license.
• Taxes: Some cities and states require hosts to collect a tax for each overnight stay.
• Contracts: Make sure your home loan or lease agreement allows you to host paying guests for short periods.

Top 5 Photo Tips

Great looking photos of your property will help to attract potential guests.

Here are my top five photo tips:

1. The first photo is the most important, so use the best one to attract guests to click on your listing.
2. Use recent photos to set guest expectations, especially if you have recently renovated your property, or replaced a bed or couch.
3. Use fewer but great looking photos is better than using lots of photos with fillers that do nothing to sell your property.
4. Use photo editing software to brighten up and add color to your photos.
5. Keep it seasonal - For guests looking for lodging near ski resorts for example, photos with snow covered backdrops will look more enticing to potential guests than photos without any snow.

Top 3 Sites To Make Money Renting Out Your House

Here are my top three sites to make money renting out your house, a room in your house, investment property, granny flat, or holiday home. Visit each website for more information:

1. Airbnb Host (Visit airbnbhost):

• Make money renting out a shared room, private room, or an entire property as an Airbnb Host on their online accommodation rental marketplace.
• Benefits:
• List your spaces for free.
• You may charge a cleaning fee.
• You keep 97% of the booking fee.
• Earnings paid 24-hours after guests check in, by PayPal, direct deposit into your bank account, international money wire, Payoneer, or Western Union.
• Invite friends with a $50 Airbnb credit, by email, or share your referral code on Facebook or Twitter, and earn $25 in Travel Credits when they travel, and $100 in credits when they host ($5,000 max).
• Insurance provided by Airbnb:
• $1 million Host Guarantee protects your property and your stuff from accidental damage.
• $1 million Host Protection insurance provides primary liability coverage in the event of third party claims of bodily injury or property damage.
• You have full control over the availability, prices (nightly, weekly, and/or monthly rates), check-in and check-out times, and house rules.
• Smart Pricing tool can help you set your prices automatically.
• 24/7 email & phone support in 11 languages.
• Webinars, online forums, and local host meet-ups.
• Secure messaging with guests.
• Free smoke and carbon monoxide detector for your property.
• Guest screening:
• Full name.
• Date of birth.
• Photo.
• Verify their phone and email.
• Payment information.
• You may ask potential guests to provide an official ID and complete Airbnb's Verified ID process.
• Learn from other hosts' experiences with a guest with host reviews.
• Background check.
• Screen guests against regulatory, terrorist, and sanctions watch lists.
• Requirements:
• Maintain a high response rate by replying to booking enquiries and reservation requests within 24 hours.
• Accept reservation requests when the property is available.
• Avoid cancelling confirmed bookings, unless there are extenuating circumstances, or you face penalties, including financial penalties.
• Make sure your space is clean before the next guest arrives.
• Handoff keys to guests in person, or send them a door entry code for self check-in.
• Provide toilet paper, soap, linens/sheets, and at least one towel and one pillow per booked guest.
• Be proactive in your communication with guests.
• Functioning smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector.
• Clearly marked fire escape route.
• Make sure your property is safe for children, or notify guests of potential hazards.
• Make a first aid kit available.
• Property meets government safety guidelines for your area.
• Disclose whether there are security cameras or other surveillance equipment at or around your listing.
• Maintain a high overall rating.
• Make sure your homeowners or renters insurance policy has adequate coverage.
• Mobile app ratings:
• Android: 4.4 (270,000+ reviews / 10 million+ downloads)
• iOS: 4.7 (12,000+ ratings)
• Stats:
• 300 million+ guest arrivals all-time.
• 4.5 million+ listings worldwide.
• 19 offices globally.
• Funding: $4.4 billion (http://c1ick.us/airbnb-crb)
• Employees: 1,001+ (est. 2008) (http://c1ick.us/airbnb-lkd)
• Minimum age: 18+
• Countries: USA, worldwide.
• Free to join: Yes

2. HomeAway (Visit homeaway):

• Make money renting out your house, condo, villa, barn, boat, bungalow, cabin, castle, chalet, chateau, cottages, estate, mansion, yacht, or yurt (whole properties only) on the HomeAway online accommodation rental marketplace.
• Two listing options:
• Make money renting out your house, condo, villa, barn, boat, bungalow, cabin, castle, chalet, chateau, cottages, estate, mansion, yacht, or yurt (whole properties only) on the HomeAway online accommodation rental marketplace.
• Two listing options:
• Pay-per-booking: 8%+ commission per booking (no annual fee).
• 5% commission of the rental, any fees (cleaning or pet fees), and any additional payments.
• 3% credit card processing fee, including taxes and refundable damage deposits (processing fee refunded when you refund the deposit).
• 2% international surcharge may apply if traveler uses a non-US credit card.
• Subscription: $499 per year (no pay-per-booking fee).
• Convert pay-per-booking listing to subscription at anytime.
• Benefits:
• MarketMaker helps you set a competitive nighty rate by showing data of your market's average nightly rates 365 days into the future for both booked and unbooked properties.
• Set minimum stay requirements.
• Set discounts.
• Set fees for extra guests, cleaning and pets.
• Set payment terms, such as 100% at the time of booking, or multiple payments scheduled for future dates.
• Build trust with travelers by offering HomeAway Payments, which guarantee travelers against internet fraud.
• Listing on VRBO's top 25 international sites.
• Reservation Manager access.
• Add up to 50 HD photos.
• Add YouTube video.
• Interactive map.
• Reservation calendar.
• 24/7 phone and email support.
• Online forums, webinars, community events, download forms and templates.
• Two-factor authentication to help protect your account.
• $1 million Liability Insurance coverage, per property, per year, for all rentals processed through the HomeAway checkout.
• Mobile app ratings:
• Android: 4.3 (27,000+ reviews / 5 million+ downloads)
• iOS: 4.8 (68,000+ ratings)
• Stats:
• 44 million+ monthly travelers.
• 2 million+ listings.
• The HomeAway family includes:
• US: HomeAway, VRBO, VacationRentals.
• Australia: HomeAway, Stayz.
• Brazil: AlugueTemporada.
• France: Abritel, Homelidays.
• Germany: FeWo-direkt, HomeAway.
• New Zealand: Bookabach.
• Singapore: HomeAway.
• Spain: HomeAway, Toprural.
• UK: HomeAway, OwnersDirect.
• Funding: HomeAway, Inc., raised $510.3 million (http://c1ick.us/homeaway-crb), before it was acquired by Expedia, Inc., a $16 billion publicly traded company (http://c1ick.us/expedia-ndq), in 2015.
• Employees: 1,001+ (est. 2005) (http://c1ick.us/homeaway-lkd)
• Minimum age: 18+
• Countries: USA, worldwide.
• Free to join: Yes (8%+ commission per booking, or $499 per year subscription)

3. TripAdvisor Rentals (Visit tripadvisorrentals):

• Make money renting out your private room, house, villa, castle, or houseboat on Tripadvisor Rentals marketplace.
• Two listing options:
• Free listing: 3% processing fee from the total rent, including any required and optional fees you specify for your property (cleaning, etc.).
• Annual listing: $360 per year, per property - receive payments from guests directly, or online through the Tripadvisor website (3% processing fee).
• Earnings paid 24-hours after guests check in, by direct deposit into your bank account, or PayPal.
• Damage Deposits cover physical damage, such as broken items, to your property.
• TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence award requirements:
• Great reviews.
• Responsive owner.
• Provide a positive traveller experience.
• Mobile app ratings:
• Android: 4.4 (1.1 million+ reviews / 100 million+ downloads)
• iOS: 4.1 (1,000+ ratings)
• Stats:
• 390 million+ monthly visitors.
• 96 million+ members.
• The Tripadvisor family includes:
• US: Tripadvisor, FlipKey, Vacation Home Rentals.
• Spain: Niumba
• Switzerland: HouseTrip
• UK: Holiday Lettings
• Funding: Tripadvisor, Inc., is a $6 billion publicly traded company (http://c1ick.us/tripadvisor-ndq).
• Employees: 1,001+ (est. 2000) (http://c1ick.us/tripadvisor-lkd)
• Minimum age: 18+
• Countries: USA, worldwide.
• Free to join: Yes (3% processing per booking, or $360 per year, per property)