This forum is dedicated to connecting hosts with other hosts. Sign up to get the latest updates and news just for AirBnb hosts! Note that we are not affiliated with Airbnb - we are just passionate hosts!
I get the daily market report. Smartbnb.io pings my listing daily so it shows me as an active host which is some (probably miniscule) part of search. It tells me where I am ranked for various combos of days in search. So I knew from that report that my fall in search in Sept and Oct coincided with my drop in bookings. It messages me to let me know if a guest has asked a question about parking or pets. I could use other features but don’t. I do think it’s helpful but hard to quantify without cancelling the subscription and seeing if I miss it or have a decline in bookings. I think it would be even more helpful for someone with multiple listings.
If you have questions about the service I’ve always found Pierre to be very helpful.
I know how much time I spend per turnover, per day, and per guest. I know how much I want to get paid for that time. I make sure that my nightly fee doesn’t go below an amount that pays for all expenses.
I have been self-employed for many years. I have run large non-profits. I have been an auditor. I know how to do fund accounting. It really isn’t that hard.
Why do you doubt that I am capable of such simple accounting?
I don’t doubt you. I know nothing about your circumstances.
I do know from these forums you are in the minority.
Most hosts don’t factor in their time for managing guests, buying products, furniture etc for their listings, doing their accounts, buying their insurance etc.
you’re obviously super great at tracking expenses and calculating profit and loss to the nearest penny, Mike and Helsi aren’t suggesting you’re not. Mike was generalising that most people maybe don’t do it to that extent, no need to defend yourself, it wasn’t about you. It was about most other people.
I do so agree with you Heisi. MY rates are my rates and nothing to do with airbnb
They do not reduce the commission they take if you reduce your price. Ignore them.
Yes, we too have gotten a little panicky about the lack of guests in December. But when we are asked to reduce the fees, it really doesn’t make sense in many cases.
We just had our first guest ask us for a military discount. We gave them another night free since that did not change our profit or costs.
So grateful to connect with others who are in this business. Thanks for caring and sharing.
Well, she was the one to begin with who replied to Mike in a rather combative manner.
Mike’s Rule of Thirds makes sense to me.
Most of us are NOT accountants. I certainly am not. I am not a huge earner, yet I still need to pay a CPA $350 every year to do my taxes. She knows way more about the deductions and such that are available to me in my particular circumstances than I ever would. If I tried to save that $350 by using TurboTax, it might cost me thousands in credits or additional taxes. I will gladly pay a professional to do my taxes, just as my clients are glad to pay me for my professional services. We are all experts in our own fields.
I’m no dummy just because I don’t know much about taxes.
I think there’s a lot more to factor in here… What are our mortgage costs, for example? My mortgage reset to $1500 this year and next year will go to $1700. My homeowners goes up every year. HELCO rates are 47 cents per kilowatt hour, the highest in the nation. The mayor just raised our property taxes. It’s not free to live here. Why should I give away my room to people who cannot afford to stay in hotels because their own mortgages just reset, yet they still want to visit Hawaii?
There are a ton of costs to factor in, not the least of which is major stress and burnout, which eventually wear down our peace of mind.
so have been a host since start of 2011 - when i started i charged 55 - it has gone up to 57 - 62 at weekends - i am central 4 mins from tube and offer breakfast
in 2016 i turned our old artist studio into an Airbnb - whole place 155 per night - in the last 24 months changes to market, press mongering, algorithms and 90 day restrictions in cities are turning Airbnb guest back to hotels - china has a new competitive company bigger in 2 years that Airbnb in 9 - the system goes from volume rather than finance hense it takes what books first - that is cheap places - as hostel rates - a whole bedroom the same price to a travellers as a dorm is a no brainer and as hostels close - the top end of the market has been taken by one fine stay and newer companies looking at high end properties - the 90 day rule is not helping - so Airbnb is saying charge less and get the hostel market - if that is the case - take out the bed put in bunks 6-10 a room and charge your 35 dollars per night - but it wont be an Airbnb anymore… hosts dictate not Airbnb - and host need to realise they set the market not Airbnb -
they are ridiculous the lower you go the more creeps you might get , ,my price may be a bit high but i don’t care what they say I know it is right for what I offer , i do not listen to them , also they keep wanting me to have long stay and as far as I am concerned long stay are trouble so i ignore the call . don’t go down, ignore them.
Claudy
At first this used to worry me, and I would reduce the rates to somewhere close to what Airbnb were suggesting. Then I realised I was being ridiculous - that they weren’t comparing like for like - but perhaps suggesting I should charge the same for my 2 bedroomed cottage, as someone else was for a double room in a house. I’m in this to make some sort of income - and I would rather have it empty (tho it rarely is) than give it away for next to nothing.
Thanks so much for the info. I decided to try it out and have been using it for a week and it is a life changer! I just opened two new Airbnbs this month and was started to feel overwhelmed with all of the messages. Having some of my messages answered automatically is helping so much! Totally worth the money for the time it is saving me. And with 5 listings now it is nice to know that all of my messages are going out automatically so I don’t have to worry about accidentally missing something.
Yes - the software will respond to bookings and inquiries for you automatically. It’s so nice to wake up to bookings in the morning and see that they have all been answered already and all I have to do is review them in case I need to answer any questions! You can set it to respond instantly to inquiries and also to answer regular questions that guests ask (about pets, early check in, etc). I’m just starting to play with those features but they seem like they will be super helpful in limiting the amount of time I spend answering the same questions over and over!
Also, to answer the main question of this thread, I have figured that of my total incoming, about 25-30% goes to the cleaners, 30% (or a bit more) goes to mortgages, utilities, supplies, maintenance, etc, and about 25-30% goes to me. That is after the initial purchase of all the furnishings for the house.
So technically the mortgages count as profit as well since they are paying off the principle of the loan and that ultimately goes back in my pocket But as far as daily take home pay, I don’t count them.
And I should also say that I do not lower my prices to what Airbnb recommends. Although now that I’ve been a host for 2 years, Smart Pricing does seem to be getting smarter and accounting for what my places actually rent at. But I price in the upper range of my market.
But as far as daily take home pay, I don’t count them.