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tips for holiday rental hosts

When it comes to traveling and experiencing your chosen destination like a native resident of the area, opting for the use of private accommodation instead of hotels or purpose-built holiday complexes is becoming an increasingly popular choice. With over 150 million Airbnb users worldwide, it makes sense that renting your home or second property out to holidaymakers is a viable lifestyle choice and one that can make you money too.

But before you decide to become a host, getting reviews from current and previous hosts to help you hit the ground running and avoid common pitfalls of renting your home out to holidaymakers is vital to avoid any costly mistakes.

Marketing

Are you going to be hiring your property privately or will you be looking at adding it to the listings of companies specialising in this type of rental? Going privately means you don’t have to pay any fees to an external party. However, this can be offset by getting more interest and booking and giving you a level of security you may not have otherwise.

Becoming a private host and renting yourself directly means you have complete control and flexibility on the options you offer and take home all of the fees but it means you need to put in more work and get the bookings yourself, which could be a full-time job.

Security

Making sure your property is protected as are the renters is a top priority. Along with peace of mind for any close neighbours too. The last thing you want is for a party to go awry and suddenly you have a house that has been damaged, police attendance and complaints from nearby residents.

A smart home sensor, hiring a specialist security firm or installing external property alarms and motion-detecting cameras outside the property can help you keep an eye on comings and goings. Of course, you don’t want to be spying on your guest’s so internal camera systems might be best to be avoided but one placed on the entrance or exit doors could help add an extra level of security for you and your guests.

Be Welcoming

All good hosts have the needs of their guests at heart. Superhosts who have people returning time and again have a few tricks in their toolbag to make sure everyone is safe and happy when in their property.

How exactly do you do that?

  • Ask questions – know your guests, their food and drink preferences and how long they are travelling for and any flight details. this allows you to tailor a welcome package to have items ready on arrival for them after their journey such as fruit, snacks, hot drinks etc. Knowing their flight times means you can be ready at the property without having to wait around for them upon their arrival.
  • Be Honest – share your properties, quirks and charms. Let guests know of any issues and ways to navigate the property and all its
  • appliances. Some even label light switches so people can easily figure out which switch lights up each part of a room—the more detailed, the better to allow for a seamless stay and fewer interruptions for small details.
  • Clean – Clean thoroughly and meticulously. Guests will be looking at this when they arrive, and if they feel their own levels of cleanliness haven’t been met, they may be likely to make a complaint or leave lower ratings. So pay time and attention to your cleaning schedule and leave no stone unturned or cleaned.

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