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Hi all -
We are fortunate to own a piece of property in a highly walkable downtown ‘core’ (in beautiful central Oregon) which currently has a really horrendous house (ready to be torn-down, not worth saving – bad foundation, asbestos, 7’ ceilings, badly neglected). The neighbors are thrilled its going bye-bye.
We are planning to build a home with attached accessory dwelling unit. Sort of a duplex, but without separate utilities (and without the massive increase in permitting costs associated with a ‘proper’ duplex).
We will rent out one ‘half’ of the home as a medium/long-term unit, and the other as an Airbnb.
We plan to have the Airbnb accessed from the front (i.e. easy to find on GPS), and the long-termer accessed from the rear.
I’m curious what all you would think to do differently, given that this will be a Short Term Rental, from a building/layout perspective. I’m trying to think about things from a “more of this in exchange for less of that”, otherwise this build will just become prohibitively expensive.
For example, a walk-in pantry is quite common in new construction here, but I think that would really be excessive and a waste of space for an Airbnb.
A locking cabinet in several places (at least one in the kitchen, bathroom, laundry room)
Hard, very durable surfaces basically everywhere - maybe (MAYBE) not the bedroom, for ease of cleaning. I’m thinking probably high quality LVP or LVT, or slate.
Noise separation is paramount. I’m not exactly sure how I’ll do this, but the easy way is to avoid horizontal ‘stacking’ of living spaces. i.e. two side-by-side units, or maybe if there is a living space of unit A above unit B, the upper unit should be above a garage.
I’m not sure how to describe this, or even what it would entail, but I’d want a space that feels and photographs relatively large.
Heated bathroom floors. My theory (untested!) is that people on vacation are horrible about keeping bathroom floors dry and I worry about rot. If the floors are heated, that helps to dry the floor and the subfloor.
Tiled walls in the shower area with a fiberglass basin. Seems like a good bang:buck ratio. my concern is that fiberglass gets scuffed by housekeepers getting too aggressive, and once its scratched…its scratched. But full tiled floors are really expensive and easy to screw up (i.e. leak). Not sure what to do here. I wonder if a porcelain/enamel type pan exists – something that might stand up to harsh cleaning a bit better.
Automatic (i.e. humidity sensing) bath fan, automatic range hood (not sure this exists)
Large outdoor covered porch. Relatively cheap way to expand the effective living space.
Gas fireplace with thermostat (cozy, cheap, reliable heat). This is in addition to mini-splits in each room.
No lawn. Native plantings (drip irrigation) with an outdoor seating area around a gas fire pit.
Considering a “hide-a-hose” central vacuum. I love the idea of the vacuum exhausting dust outside, and not relying on battery powered vacuum. Everyone likes to use the Dyson stick-style vacuums but I am not at all convinced they do a great job. I think this “should be” relatively inexpensive to install if in a new build.
Exterior locking storage closets (at least two). One for guests to drop off luggage (early check-in), one for ‘ugly outdoor items’ (leaf blowers, snow shovels, propane tanks, etc.)
Storage for baby-goods (pack and play, stroller, high chair).
Wiring (power and ethernet) for security camera. Maybe think about ways to integrate camera into design so it doesn’t ‘stick out’ so bad.
All walkways/driveways designed for easy snow removal (i.e. smooth, no lips, no loose material).
EV charging near parking area
USB charging ports strategically located
“wall mount” fixtures where possible (kitchen, bathroom faucets) for easy cleaning (maybe even wall-mount toilets, though I have no idea how much that would cost)
Two washers and two dryers, perhaps in a shared space between the long-term and short term renter. On turnover days, that second washer/dryer would really facilitate processing laundry on-site.
Less storage in kitchen. We don’t really “want” to encourage 4 course meals and Thanksgiving day feasts. This will be a small unit and we think we can go quite a bit smaller on kitchen cabinet storage. Probably a full size fridge, even though that might be excessive size-wise…maybe a larger-apartment size would be sufficient.
Now that I look at this post, I realize I basically only “added” to a standard build…need to look for things to “take away”!
Not sure what’s available re sensor products, but what my friend did in her Airbnb bathroom was wire the fan and light to the same switch, as guests were neglecting to turn on the fan when they showered. It’s a windowless bathroom, so always pitch dark unless you turn on the light. The fan comes on when you flip the light on.
The fan needs to run an additional 20 mins or so AFTER you leave the bathroom to take care of humidity and/or smells, so turning off the light should not turn off the fan…
It was a quickey, inexpensive solution, albeit not ideal. That bathroom has a fiberglass shower stall, a rolled lino floor and is caulked well around the edges of everything, so water on the floor wasn’t really a huge issue.
As far as smell, it was just a bedroom/bath for 2, no shared bathroom, so I guess the guests just had to deal with their own smell if they weren’t smart enough to leave the light/fan on.
Maybe those renters in the larger unit could be co-hosts for a rent reduction. Or at least your eyes on the ground.
op> Your ideas generally are good. Do you have experience as guest or host with vacay rental? Do you plan to be nearby? Open plans with not many walls in kitchen to living area deliver that “looks large” type feel. I don’t personally like upper kitchen cabinets blocking views. You can use posts instead of whole walls in some places to achieve this.
For some of the kitchen storage you could have a hutch in the dining room; for bedroom storage an amoire.
In our home we have an all tile walk in shower. If the tiler is competent there should be no issues. In our vacay rental which is a vintage trailer there’s a tiled shower with an aluminum shower pan that has a teak grate over it. Not sure if this could be made to order but clearly this pan has lasted since 1954.
My whole design sense is based on aesthetics for beauty, uniqueness, style and comfort so the higher end finishes and nicer things such as furnishings I think will make a difference in guest happiness about their stay and expense to do so.
Just make sure you don’t take those real estate-type photos that are wide angle that distort and make the space look larger than it is.
Guests can give bad reviews if a room looks larger than it is in reality. It’s best to have 2 or 3 photos of each room, taken from different angles, so guests can see what is there. Some hosts also include a floor plan diagram in their photo gallery.
I think you should be very clear about the attached STR with your long term tenant, OR just stick to corporate-type medium term rentals.
As a long-term renter, I would expect a price break being next door to an Airbnb, e.g. never knowing who would be next door, having to share common space with them, having to possibly put up with that one-out-of-100 guest who is loud late into the night, has sketchy visitors, or whatever.
Are you in the vicinity to address any Airbnb-related complaints from a long-term tenant? Think of worst-case scenarios, e.g., “Your guest locked themselves out and is banging on my door asking for help;” “Your guest just backed into my car;” “Your creepy guest is hitting on me,” and be prepared.
You might want to find a ‘long term’ tenant who would be interested in a job - looking after your airbnb folks. Having an ‘onsite’ co-host, or at least a ‘super’, would be a win-win; they could make money and you would have someone onsite.
My airbnb is in my house. The most important factor i would say is noise. I can hear their conversations, tv, music. That is what you should address in your build is your noise absorbing materials, placement of rooms etc
Also make sure the mains power is seperate from the main house.
My Airbnb suite was originally separated from the main house by a pocket door, with its exterior door to the backyard on the opposite side. The interior entrance to the addition was cut through the wood framing and solid brick veneer exterior wall of the 1941 house, leaving a wide threshold.
I spent a significant amount of time plus some expense to research and install sound-deadening construction, including adding a sound-baffling exterior door on the main house side with dead space between it and the pocket door, installing sound-deadening door jamb tape and a dropped sound-deadening threshhold attached to the exterior door, hanging a studio sound curtain in the dead space between the two doors, and filling the remainder of the dead space with studio-quality eggcrate foam panels. I considered ripping out drywall to blow in sound-deadening foam around the door on the main house side, but with connection between door headers and framing on both sides, determined it would probably not add enough sound-proofing value to be worth the expense.
It was an effort, but I can watch TV 6 feet from the closed-off passageway and know my guests can’t hear it.
Excellent! Luckily for me, the main living area in my place is well away from the Airbnb apartment. My advice re noise was for the person requesting tips. What you have done with your place is terrific. Well done
It depends on how the house is build.
Is it cardboard and sticks, or is it a real house.
Glued PVC flooring everywhere. Even in the bathroom. Robust and easy to clean.
Bathroom:
Glued PVC floor, 100% waterproof, electric heating can be used under the floor.
Large walk in shower with low composite basin. No doors, one glass wall.
The walls inside the shower made of aluminium composite glued to the walls. Robust and easy to clean. Other walls can be tiled.
Toilets: You want them floating, so you can mob under them. Saves a lot of time cleaning.
Kitchen: Keep it cheap, guest will destroy an expensive kitchen just as fast as a cheap one.
Look for easy to clean surfaces (no high gloss or big texture)
No central vaccuum. They are expensive and can get damaged easily. Just an old fashion corded one. I have a central system in my building, but we only use corded ones, also easier for a guest to use.
But with PVC flooring you do not need a vacuum that often.
This is what I use in all my full bathrooms. I might consider including in your house manual the info that it is automatic.
I had an Airbnb guest in a room in my house who did not lock his private bathroom door when he showered and it turned on while he was in the shower (as it is supposed to) and he initially thought I had opened the door and turned it on while he was showering!
@muddy Well, we absolutely do use wide-angle real estate photography techniques to make a space appear larger…thats just marketing. We accurately list the square footage but your eyes are wide-angle, so why shouldn’t the camera lens be?
In the 3000 reviews we’ve received, we have never had a person complain that a space is “smaller than it appeared”. That would be quite a fussy guest.
Regarding the issue of a long-term tenant: I certainly understand that for some people, being nearby (i.e. sharing walls) with an STR would be a deal-breaker. But with all things like this – full disclosure is the solution. We live in a very high cost of living area and we’ll trust the “free market” (i.e. we’ll play with pricing to balance maximum rent with occupancy rate) to take care of this.
@Chris: when you say “PVC floor”, do you mean something like “Luxury Vinyl Plank”?
I’ve used these style of automatic moisture-sensing switches and have been less than impressed. In fact I have them in my personal bathroom, as my better-half is prone to forgetting to turn on the fan. But what I’ve discovered: steam rises. I take relatively short showers and the thing won’t turn on at all. If my wife takes a long, hot one – it might turn on, but only after a 5’ “deep” wall of steamy air has moved down to the sensor/switch. Yes, its probably better than nothing, but having a humidity sensor UP at ceiling height, right above the shower…that would be far, far superior.
Your eyes see the space when you are in it, so you have an accurate idea of how large it is. I don’t know what your photos look like- I’m not a photographer, so it might be possible to take wide angle photos that don’t distort the space. I’ve just seen photos that make a queen size bed look like it could sleep a family of 5, or that make a normal size living room look like a ballroom.
It’s great that no one has ever complained that the photos weren’t accurate- like I said, maybe your photos aren’t misleading.
But I have read threads by guests complaining about photos making the space seem 3 times as big as it is, with the guests posting the listing photo next to the photo they took when they were actually there and the contrast was extreme. So I don’t think in those cases it indicates an overly fussy guest.
