prepare for Airbnb

How to prepare your house for Airbnb

Top picks

With Mortgage prices going high and people being able to work from anywhere this might be the best time to start Airbnbing. Everything is rising in price and let’s face it you might need the extra cash. Have you thought about Airbnbing but don’t know where to start? Well we are here to help you Prepare for Airbnb guests!

Getting started – How to Prepare Your House For Airbnb

Setting up

You want at least one bedroom and if possible a sofa bed. If you have a sofa bed you can fit more people into the place. This means you can charge extra amounts. However, if you feel too many people on your property might destroy it then stay away from that.

Have a desk area as people do want to work from home and this will increase the clicks on your property if you have a work-from-home setup.

Small breakfast table is always nice. If you have a smaller place and want to fit a table in get a small breakfast table with a few chairs or those tables that can extend when needed.

I would recommend having at least one sofa.

Having your own dryer, washer, and kitchen area can make your place more appealing. However, this isn’t a must for Airbnb

You want to add that extra element in your Airbnb by adding some frames, pillows, and fake plants. It will add that wow factor to your Airbnb. However, stay away from adding small decorations as they can become cluttery.

Take Pictures

Now that you have set the place up you can move on to taking pictures. You want a full view of the house or the area, the place where the guests will enter, the driveway, the living room, and the bedroom. The Kitchen area and work area pictures will add an extra understanding of your place. If there are is anything nearby that would attract people to your property that is good as well. Do you have a hot tub, patio, back yard and swimming pool that you are letting people use? Well, show it off! People love the extra additions you give them.

After you put the pictures preview your listing to make sure you understand how they are showing off. Lighting is key! If you are in this for the long run take some professional pictures!

You can even ask a professional on the Airbnb app to come take a picture. The best thing about that is you don’t have to pay upfront it comes out from the money you make on the app. Your pictures will sell your property so it is a great investment.

Put up your listing

Now that you have the pictures done you can set up your listing. Write a short sweet description of your place. What makes it stand out? Where are you located? Is it central? Are you offering something someone else isn’t? Make it catchy so people stop and look.

Airbnb will let you add all the features you want. It will ask you what areas there are, is it shared, and what will you provide. From what you will provide you will also get a better understanding of what you need to buy.

What is usually in Airbnb? – Prepare for Airbnb checklist

Bedroom

  • Bedsheets
  • Pillows
  • Extra pillows
  • Quilt
  • Extra quilt
  • Side lamps
  • Mirror
  • Notepad/pen
  • Tissues
  • Hangers

Washroom

  • Plunger
  • Toilet cleaner
  • Toilet paper
  • Shampoo
  • Soap or gel
  • Towels
  • Hand towels

Kitchen

  • Coffee
  • Tea
  • Sugar
  • Oil
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Chilli Flakes
  • Pot
  • Frying pan
  • Kettle
  • Toaster
  • Kitchen roll
  • Cutlery
  • Glasses
  • Mugs
  • Oven mitt
  • Plates/bowls
  • Ice tray
  • Utensils for cooking (spatula, big spoon, corkscrew, bottle opener, can opener, and knives)
  • Kitchen towels
  • Dishwashing liquid
  • Hand soap
  • Tupperware
  • Sponge

Cleaning supplies

  • Dishwashing liquid
  • Trash bags
  • Broom
  • Mop
  • Dustpan
  • All-purpose spray
  • Lysol

Getting your first client

Once you have put the ad Airbnb will try to boost your listing as you are new. Take advantage of this. You can also give a discount to the first 3 customers. This will allow you to get customers fast and start getting reviews. Some frequent Airbnb users don’t trust properties with no reviews. So the faster you get reviews well the better it is for you in the long run.

After 6 months airbnb won’t promote you as much so take advantage of the era you are getting boosted in to become a super host.

Be responsive

When someone asks you for information respond quickly. Based on what they are asking update the information in your profile. This will decrease the number of questions you get asked and increase the number of people requesting bookings.

For example questions I get asked are is anything shared and what is the parking situation. I added some details about that to make it more clear.

Don’t do instant booking at the beginning

Instant booking allows people to book immediately. It will boost your property if you have this feature and people will find it easier to book. For your first client, I would avoid it as it does take time to mentally prep for Airbnb.

When you understand how Airbnb works then move it to Instant booking. You can block of dates between clients to prepare for cleaning. Airbnb has an option to select that.

If you do put on instant booking you will get more reservations. So, once you are more comfortable put it on.

Be patient

It can take some time for people to respond when they inquire. That is okay they might just have gotten busy.

Give discounts for long stay

You can add an extra discount if people stay longer. If someone stays longer there won’t be that headache of cleaning in the middle and setting up the whole place. Keeping extended stay open also boosts your profile.

Pricing

Look up the listing near you and see what they are going for. Give a bit of discount since you are new. But you will understand how much you can earn. Summer holidays and Christmas holidays might have different dates than a random date in February.

You can use smart pricing to allow you determine the price based on other facilities in your area. But you get to choose the minimum and maximum.

Learn as you go

Google is your best friend. There will be things you don’t understand how to do at the beginning for adding cleaning fees. Google it and you will understand. Cleaning fees are usually 60 dollars to 80 dollars. You don’t want to put a cleaning fee on a very short stay. Imagine seeing a listing where the room is for 80 dollars and cleaning for 60 dollars. It is like a delivery fee no one wants to pay for a cleaning fee. You might be better off adding it to your booking fee.

Set up house manual 

Ready for your first guest? It is time to make a manual. You wanted a printed version as well as one on the Airbnb app.

It should have things like

  • Snow shoveling instructions
  • Garbage instructions ( For super short rentals I don’t request that they take garbage out)
  • Fuse box instructions
  • Where certain are
  • Wifi password
  • Netflix password
  • Departure instructions

The Day Before

Send a message to your guest with certain instructions on how to get into the house. You can even send it the morning off. Welcome them to their new home. You want them to have sufficient instructions that they are able to access everything without approaching you. Let them know you are available though if they face any difficulties. 

I have red chairs outside my house so I let them know how to easily spot the house. They then have to go in an alley way to get to the door so I give them directions. I give them my number in case they need anything. Everyone always says my instructions are very clear. Make sure yours are as well.

Honestly, to create the instructions you can also use Chat gpt.

The Day off

Make sure the code and keys are available. It is more convenient to give a client a code if you are doing this long-term. You can automatically lock the house and open the house.

For the first few guests, you might want to buy something inexpensive to greet them. This can be from chocolates to wine. Just make their stay more special. I give a 3 piece chocolate. It costs me 1 dollar and is always finished by the client. If you give something they feel more appreciated. One time I had extra flowers so I put it there in the Airbnb and the woman was so happy. 

Give them the option to see you or just privately do their thing. It depends on the person some people want complete privacy so give them that option.

Departure

You want to give them instructions on what to do when leaving.

  • Put the dishes in the dishwasher
  • Put the bed sheet and towels in the washing machine ( I found this not useful so I stopped requesting guests to do this)
  • Close windows
  • Put the furniture back where it was
  • Shut the lights
  • Turn off the AC
  • Where to leave the key
  • Ask them to leave a review

Give the client a review so they give you a review. It is all about hospitality. You  can use Chat GPT to help you write the review.

Cleaning

Use Turno to find cleaners near you. It is super easy as it can be linked to your Airbnb Calendar. Once you have some bookings you can assign a cleaner of your choice. These cleaners are Airbnb cleaning professionals so they know exactly how to work. You can provide them with a checklist and they will send you pictures as well. This removes you having to worry about what is happening on the property.

Honestly, Turno is a game changer when it comes to Airbnb Hosting.

Wrap Up – Prepare for Airbnb

Make this process repeatable. Keep a checklist of what you need to clean and refill. The manual each time will be the same. The greeting message and departure message can also be a template.

Now that you have all the information it is time to get started. The first step is downloading the Airbnb app.

Comment below and let us know how you prepare for Airbnb guests!

 

PigeonTalk

A place to find information on all things wellness, dating, food and movies related. Basically our version of Netflix and Chill. If you are looking for advice and want the unfiltered truth well you have come to the right place. Read our insightful blogs and you will leave inspired. Welcome to Pigeon Talk!

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

twelve − twelve =