Air BnB Thoughts?

[Dobish]

Does anyone on hearth have any experiences with AirBnB Hosting? We have a little cottage that we had been renting out for the last couple of years, but when are tenant moved out, we were thinking about a short term solution.

We have a friend who will be moving in for the winter, and we have a bunch of family coming to stay, so we figured we would look into Air BnB. There are a lot of hoops and regulations in Golden, so we are working through that.

We ended up listing it in August, and we have had a really good response! So far we have had just about every night available booked!

Anyone have experiences (good or bad) that they would like to share?

here are a few pictures of our cozy little cottage!
This one is from 1965. you can see the little white cottage (built in 1948).

 

[begreen]

You'll get all kinds of renters, good and bad. Some people will treat things well and others will not. Have good insurance and budget for repairs. Looking at the pictures I was wondering where does one sit down and eat?

 

[Dobish]

It's a small space (350 sq ft), so we figured most people would just sit on the futon. We do have a table in the kitchen that has 2 sides that fold out, and some folding chairs.
We say it's good for two people, even though it could sleep 4.

 

[Dobish]

Had our first negative experience last night when the guests showed up at 2am, couldn't find the door, and managed to get the dogs to start barking for a good 20 minutes. They called me, and told me that the door was locked (because they were at the door to my bedroom, not the cottage) and I told them I would meet them at the door to the cottage. I went out there in my bathrobe and slippers, only to run into one of my neighbors wondering why I was out in the middle of the night in a bathrobe.

The guests finally meet up with me, and it turns out that they parked right next to the wood chip driveway that they couldn't find (probably as a result of intoxication, but I wasn't going to ask).

On the plus side, my neighbor at 2am had a very witty comment about me looking like the guy from Garfield

 

[begreen]

Hope the next customer is better. It's good to keep a sense of humor and to remember that there are all kinds of people in this world. Even some that think the world is flat.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I am renovating an apartment to do this very thing. Only time i ever made any real money with this real estate was on short term rentals Had goods luck with filipino medical professionals rotating through the local hospitals and nursing homes. Helps that my wife is filipino.

 

[Seasoned Oak]

Had our first negative experience last night when the guests showed up at 2am, couldn't find the door, and managed to get the dogs to start barking for a good 20 minutes.

Airbnb allows you to rate the tenants ,but dont be too hard on em, list the good points too, especially if they left the place relatively clean with no damage . The tenants can rate your place as well.

 

[Dobish]

Airbnb allows you to rate the tenants ,but dont be too hard on em, list the good points too, especially if they left the place relatively clean with no damage . The tenants can rate your place as well.

I generally try and find the positives... If I don't have to get in there with the drywall mud or the hazmat team, it probably isn't that bad...

 

[Seasoned Oak]

I generally try and find the positives... If I don't have to get in there with the drywall mud or the hazmat team, it probably isn't that bad...

Yea i like to have a drink or two now and then as well , so if that was the worst you got ,your probably doing pretty good.

 

[Dobish]

It was a little worse than that, but i didn't need to go into details. Nothing a little oxy clean and bleach didn't take care of

 

[begreen]

Be sure to give yourself fair compensation for anything over the normal cleaning deposit.