How We Made 18K Renting Our Guest Room on Airbnb

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We made over $18,000 renting our guest room out on Airbnb. Today I’m sharing why you should rent your guest room on Airbnb and tips for being successful.

Why should you rent your guest room out on airbnb?

We rented our guest room on Airbnb for just over two years (minus a few months after I gave birth.) And it was such an easy way to make extra money. I wish everyone would consider taking advantage of underutilized space to make money!

Click here to list your room on Airbnb!

Too fast? Ok, I’ll slow down. There are a few legit reasons I think renting your spare room on Airbnb is a good idea.

You can make more money than a roommate with more control of your house and privacy.

A roommate makes themself at home so it’s hard to feel in control of your house. But Airbnb guests are super respectful of shared spaces, you control how short or long their stay can be, and you can block out days you don’t want people there. I hate doing laundry so I made our minimum stay 2 nights but no more than 2 weeks because I didn’t want anyone getting too comfortable.

You meet cool people.

The people who stay in “shared” spaces are usually the most laid back and only there for a place to crash. Think about it, why would you choose someone’s guest room over a whole house? You want a cheap place to crash because you’re not going to be there much and you generally like people. And of the hundreds of people who’ve stayed with us that’s what we experienced.

You have no money to lose.

You’re already paying your mortgage and the spare room is likely already set up as a guest room so you don’t lose anything if no one rents out the room. 

Is Renting Your Guest Room on Airbnb Safe? 

I’ll admit when that first guest booked I was super nervous but everything was fine and I’ve always felt safe with our guests. They used our entrance to the house, their bathroom was private but not attached to the room, and we shared the living room and kitchen with them though few used it.

Far fewer things get stolen or destroyed in a shared space because they know you’re there. If I heard something break I’d knock on the door and ask if everything’s ok. If something is destroyed I know immediately that it’s happened and who did it. 

And we configured our booking setting so no guest could book to us unless they had a verified government ID and had connected their social media accounts. And only guests who’ve had positive reviews from other hosts could instantly book. I felt safe enough that we continued to host guests after having our son up until he started sleeping in his own room.

And if you’re worried about someone stealing something, don’t keep anything of value in the room then install security cameras in common areas so you have evidence to submit to Airbnb.

if you’re worried about cleanliness, we shut down our listing right before COVID happened (literally lost our last guest because of international travel restrictions) so I haven’t experienced this but if we were still hosting I’d restrict the areas guests are allowed to be to just the room and require masks and hand washing/ sanitizing in the common areas. And I’d personally clean with a mask and gloves and give a day or two between guests.

Tips for renting out your guest room on Airbnb

Take great pictures

First and foremost, you need good pictures. This will also tell you how much or how little you need to decorate. The best Airbnb pictures are very minimalistic with only one or two decorative items per picture.

I’m not very good at home design so I just made sure to follow that rule, take pictures of all useful amenities, and go into each picture afterward and brighten them with a filter. You can do it right on your phone by pulling up the photo and hitting “Edit.” Brighter pictures stand out better in the sea of listings.

Use positive descriptors

I sprinkled our listing with positive words like stylish, cozy, private, clean etc. Jazz up your listing with descriptors that make your place feel more attractive and it’ll help your listing stand out over another.

Get a great mattress

People will forgive a lot about your house and room if you have a stellar mattress. Alternatively, you could have a great place and do everything right but if your mattress stinks you’ll get bad reviews. Remember, people staying in a shared house are there primarily to sleep.

Answer questions before they ask

The number one question we got from guests is “What are the best restaurants?” So we left takeout menus to our favorite local restaurants as well as some city guides on the nightstand.

If you get questions then answer them in a house guide you leave in the room. There’s a place to do it on Airbnb as well and you should definitely have it in there but very few people look at it.

Price competitively but offer more

You don’t have to be the lowest priced listing or have the most reviews to get more bookings. We looked at our most comparable listing and charged a little more because we made our guest bathroom private. It was no biggie we just used our master bath.

We also made sure to list as many amenities as possible including beach towels, curling iron, and other random amenities. And we didn’t listen to Airbnb’s suggested pricing. We typically charged more. We charged anywhere from $30-$48 per night depending on the season and charged a $12 cleaning fee.

Those are my top tips. If you’re ready to list your space on Airbnb click here! You’ll get a $10 bonus with your first payout! And let me know if you have any questions, I’d be happy to help.