Sam was a typical guy trying to side hustle some extra money using the spare bedroom in his home.
After weeks of listing his room on multiple websites, he got little to no bookings.
The few people that did show interest were either not the cliental he was hoping to attract or the people would fall off and cancel last minute. This left Sam feeling very frustrated.
He knew that there were ways to make money using short term rentals and that he must have been going wrong somewhere.
One day, while talking with some work colleagues, he learned that they were also finding ways to make money by renting out their spare bedrooms.
The only difference was that their businesses were booming and his was not.
So naturally, he asked for some pointers-
They referred him to me.
Here’s what happened after one month:
Sam signed up for my course, Hosting Your Pad in February with an early access code. Here are his results as of the beginning of April.
· In March his occupancy increased to 87% from 23%.
· Earned $1,000 in extra income
· Five-star review from both guests.
It was the best month he had with short term rentals by far.
To see a course teaser video click here
The first thing Sam changed was the look of his profile. With the days of visual marketing at an all-time high- pictures need to be perfect. After all, this is how your guests are going to see your place for the first time: first impressions matter- always!
To ensure that your home is portrayed in the best light possible, there are a few things to keep in mind.
Obviously, making sure the place doesn’t look like a pigsty is first and foremost but after that, what is the next thing to do?
Lighting the space.
Lighting is important for many different reasons.
Just like when taking a picture of yourself you want it to be bright with no shadows. Same goes for your home; dark pictures are not ideal for showing off what you have to offer.
When capturing what your home looks like, try to make the pictures as bright and open as possible- nobody wants to pay to come and stay in a dark cave.
Choose a day where it is bright and sunny to take the photos. Open the curtains all the way. If there is a lamp in the picture, be sure to turn that on as well.
Having a well-lit place will make potential guests feel like they know what your house looks like and gives the impression that it is comfortable and clean.
Take pictures of your whole home, not just pictures of the room they will be in.
This is the exact reason why hotels and apartment websites list pictures of every aspect of their property. People want to see what amenities are offered, how spacious other rooms are and even what is in the surrounding area.
Bottom line: you want to make your guest feel as if they can’t wait to stay in your home.
Safety is your priority.
The first concern for most people who are renting out a portion of their home for a short term is safety.
Popular questions that seem to be slight concerns are usually regarding theft and damage; and rightly so. This is your home and your stuff. You are considering short term renting to make extra money, not have to replace everything you have.
Luckily, on most sites like Airbnb, they have all-encompassing security details. You can choose how secure you want your guests to be. As the host, you have the option to only take guests who have positive reviews, have their identification as well as their credit card information on file as extra safety precautions.
With those regulations and a fair price point, you are likely to keep any unwelcomed personalities from staying with you.
If by accident, something does get broken, many companies have insurance to help cover costs of damaged items.
Finally, another big question often asked is how to rank and appear higher in search results on the booking platform.
Sam used some of my super-secret hacks that I shared in Hosting Your Pad to help boost him to the top of the list. I discovered these tricks to appearing high in the search after a few months while I was doing some research hosting my first guests. I was happy to pass along the tip to other hosts who are busy working their way up to Super Host status.
That’s it!
After completing Hosting Your Pad and taking into account a few of the tips I just shared above, Sam was able to make an additional $1,000 in one month on top of his regular salary job by only renting out his apartment to two people.
UPDATE: Since taking the course, he has been able to increase his price per night and now earns on average $500 a week by renting out his spare bedroom.
Sam said that the money he invested in Hosting Your Pad easily made up for itself after just one guest.
What could you do with an extra $1,000 a month? Would it help you pay off some debt, save for a vacation or boost your retirement savings?
Have you already started short term renting your home but are not seeing the results that you were hoping for?
Go ahead, leave your thoughts or comments in the section below.
Want to learn other side hustle ideas? Check out these posts!