Starting with Airbnb: A Comprehensive Guide

If you’re looking into investing in real estate for short-term rental or thinking about creating a listing for your existing one, it’s always a good idea to think about how to best position your property before going to market. Years of property management experience has shown us how to set up an Airbnb for success from the start. To help you get started, we’ve outlined some of the most significant factors new Airbnb hosts and investors should keep in mind.

Property Location

Airbnbs can be found around the globe and it is also true across Australia. Whether your property is located in vacation areas or in the central business district, there are a lot of opportunities in both. The location of your property is important as it guides you to which part of the property you would like to highlight in your listing.

Anticipate some of the common reasons why guests would want to stay in that particular location. If it’s in the centre of a bustling city, tell guests about the vibrant neighbourhood surrounding it and how accessible it is to nearby establishments or iconic landmarks. If your property is in a vacation area, consider featuring the outdoor spaces or the picturesque views from the windows.

Remote Working Amenities

With the new normal, more employers have adopted remote work policies and as a result, employees are now free to move further away from their offices. This sudden adoption of remote work has also given a rise to so-called Zoom Airbnbs. Looking at this from a host standpoint, we understand that the primary motivation for this use case is usually related to a desire for a better-suited work environment than their own homes.

Equip your property with a stable internet connection, some furniture that guests can use as a workstation and a bit of outdoor furniture even if the space is small. This will still help create a set up that will cater to prospective clients on the lookout for a place to stay where they can do productive work in a relaxing environment.

Secure Parking

As many international destinations remain on lockdown, domestic travel will be more important than ever for Australians. In fact, Deloitte released a study stating that in 2019, out of the 117 million overnight domestic trips taken, 7 out of 10 were self-drive trips. This accounted for nearly $70 billion in expenditure across the country for self-drive trips overall, approximately half of all the domestic and international tourism expenditure during the same year.

It just makes sense that now, more than ever, a secure parking spot would be an advantage considering the mode of transportation most guests would utilise. Vacationers are looking for recreation but are justifiably more cautious than they were before about their travel plans. People looking for this experience are aware that airports expose them to others. Cars, on the other hand, are personal properties and people have more control over who gets in and out of their own vehicles, making short-term rental properties that are easily accessible by car and have a secure parking spot, extra appealing.

Professional Photography

The first thing that prospective customers will see on your listing is your property’s photos. Clearly, as one of the first things that potential guests are presented with, it’s imperative that the photos you display on your listing showcase your space in the best possible way. Airbnb actually did an internal study on this and found that listings with professional-level photographs earn 40% more revenue than those without. High-quality photos of the space also yielded 24% increase in bookings and 26% higher nightly rates.

Key Furniture Pieces

While expensive furniture is not a must, creative and nice little touches could go a long way. When you list your property, photos that feature an accent piece adding a pop of colour in the room can help your listing stand out. After all, 58% of millennials indicate social media worthiness as a major factor in booking decisions. This does not have to be costly, however, as buying high-end furniture and investing in pricey décor may do more harm than good.

A property owner can be too emotionally invested if too much time, money, and effort go into styling and may believe that their rental space is worth more than its actual market value. Invest in a few but interesting pieces instead and get your property noticed without overspending.

Enquire About Our Services and Optimise Your Listing

After taking all these factors into account, you might start to think about the day to day operation of running a short-term rental property. How much should you charge for your nightly rate initially, how to best adjust your pricing during peak and off-peak seasons, the best marketing approach, the new standard of cleanliness that guests nowadays expect from hosts, and many more.