Do You Want to Rent Out Your Home Short-Term? Here Are Some Good Tips

Probably many readers have some experience using guest apartments through Airbnb or some other service provider. But how many have tried renting out their own home for a weekend or summer period on a short-term basis? Perhaps you've considered it, but haven't dared to take the step?

Here are 8 things you might think about if you're planning to rent out your home on a short-term basis.

What is your goal?

Think through why you want to rent out your home on a short-term basis. Are you: 1) wanting to do it once as a trial, 2) wanting to create a side income from it, 3) wanting to start doing it as your main occupation. The last option, of course, assumes that you have multiple apartments and can invest both time and money.

But even with the second option, you need to take into account that dealing with short-term rentals requires time and planning.

Imagine strangers under your roof. And in the bathroom… and in bed

If you're not frightened by the idea of completely strange people moving around in your beloved home, then continue reading. If this mental image doesn't sit well with you at all, then perhaps there's no point in considering short-term rental at all. But if short-term rental is still something you want to try, you should buy a separate apartment for it.

Keep in mind that short-term rental requires time

All the people offering short-term rentals we've spoken with say that it requires much more time and planning than they initially thought.

Once one set of guests leaves, the rooms need to be thoroughly cleaned and prepared for new arrivals. Planning also involves handing over keys to the client and getting them back, which often means waiting for hours. Third, you need to be prepared for emergencies when a tenant calls with some unavoidable problem.

We don't want to frighten you at all; we're simply pointing out some circumstances that you might not initially account for.

Research taxes

Make it clear to yourself how and how much tax you need to pay on such activities. For help, for example, this article.

Contact your insurance company

If your guests (or tenants, if you want to call them that) break or damage something, your insurance may not count it as an insurable event and won't compensate you for the damage caused. This is the case if you haven't informed the insurance company that you're engaged in something like short-term rental.

That's why it would be wise to update your insurance policy to avoid further trouble if you want to get serious about short-term rental.

Find out how your homeowners' association views your plans

If you live in your own house, there's no problem, but if your home is in an apartment building, check the association's charter to see if they haven't perhaps banned the operation of guest apartments. Such notices are heard increasingly often.

Choose your guests. Carefully!

If you've listed your home on, for example, the Airbnb platform and the app alerts you to a first booking request, keep a cool head and choose your guests carefully. Let into your home people who have a lot of positive feedback and who otherwise seem trustworthy.

Incidents where tenants have completely destroyed someone's home are rare, of course, but trust us, you don't want to be among them.

Prepare your home for your guests' arrival

If it seems there are no obstacles and you're excited about your new venture, then there's nothing left but to prepare your rooms for your guests. If you want to get excellent reviews, keep in mind that your guests are coming to relax and want to feel as comfortable as possible.

Some suggestions:

• Clean the apartment properly! A poorly cleaned kitchen or bathroom will bring you lower ratings, which leads to lower prices. If you plan to get serious about running a guest apartment, it makes sense to hire a cleaner to help you.
• Make the bed nicely, that is, put clean bedding and place an extra blanket in a visible place.
• Put nice fluffy towels in the bathroom and rather more than less.
• Put away as many personal items as possible.
• Wait! Sofa cushions don't belong there. Rather add a few more.
• Put board games, materials introducing the area and other reading material in a visible place.
• Don't pack away your good dishes. Guests want to drink wine from beautiful wine glasses and cut Muhu bread with a good sharp knife.
• Stock the kitchen with coffee and tea. The ability to make coffee as soon as you step in the door should be elementary.
• And if you want your guests to feel particularly welcome, stock the fridge with eggs and other things needed for the first breakfast.

Inform your guests

Write your guests a longer letter before they arrive, where you explain where everything is located, what the weather is like, where the car can be parked, who will meet them, where the nearest place to smoke is, etc.

Also note things that may not be as they should be, for example, if the basement bar makes terrible noise on weekends, you should definitely mention this in your listing and leave ear plugs on the bedside table.

If you want to get acquainted with short-term rental offers, click here >>