Any Airbnbers on here

JuzaMum

Hi all
I am hoping to move in the new year to a house very near the sea. We will have a spare en-suite room and are considering air bnb to help cover the bills. Any advice or experience that you could share please? The room is ground floor so am wondering if it would be worth making it disability friendly?

elsien

What do you mean by making it disabled friendly, and how much money are you willing to spend on it? 

Are you talking the odd grab rail in the en-suite or fully wheelchair accessible wet room, for example? 

JuzaMum

elsien said:

What do you mean by making it disabled friendly, and how much money are you willing to spend on it? 

Are you talking the odd grab rail in the en-suite or fully wheelchair accessible wet room, for example? 

At this point, not a lot of spending. I'm thinking more for ambulatory wheelchair users and those who don't want stairs. The ensuite is quite spacious compared to most I've seen on airbnb. The parking space is also what they class as disabled parking.

Albermarle

JuzaMum said:

elsien said:

What do you mean by making it disabled friendly, and how much money are you willing to spend on it? 

Are you talking the odd grab rail in the en-suite or fully wheelchair accessible wet room, for example? 

At this point, not a lot of spending. I'm thinking more for ambulatory wheelchair users and those who don't want stairs. The ensuite is quite spacious compared to most I've seen on airbnb. The parking space is also what they class as disabled parking.

So basically you want to make it wheelchair accessible, but not fully equipped ( this is a much more major job).
From my experience, a lot more holiday lets are wheelchair accessible than there used to be, so probably a good selling point. 
You might have to fit a ramp, if there is a step up to the door. Also in theory you should have widened doorways ( expensive job to do a few of them) to fit big wheelchairs, but in fact most will go through normal doorways.

JuzaMum

@Ablermarle - exactly. I've just looked in my area for a weekend in May, there are no places with disabled parking, step free access to bedroom and bathroom, which is quite surprising. 

gwynlas

Not airbnb but we live near the sea and converted our garage into a studio apartment not wheelchair friendly as obviously small but self contained. What facilities will you provide for cooking?

We use a mainstream company for bookings as they advertise extensively and employ a local account manager we only book full weeks during peak season and 3 or 4 night breaks in off peak.

elsien

As well as possibly having rails, maybe think as well about smaller changes such as changing your taps and door handles for ones with handles that are easier to use for those who struggle with grip.

JuzaMum

gwynlas said:

Not airbnb but we live near the sea and converted our garage into a studio apartment not wheelchair friendly as obviously small but self contained. What facilities will you provide for cooking?

We use a mainstream company for bookings as they advertise extensively and employ a local account manager we only book full weeks during peak season and 3 or 4 night breaks in off peak.

I hadn't thought about cooking. What's normally provided with a room? I was thinking a kettle and tea making stuff only.

notsmithanymore

Hi! I’ve been hosting on Airbnb for 4 years and have had an overwhelmingly positive experience! That being said though, I am an extrovert and very much enjoy chatting and meeting new people. So if you’re someone who highly values privacy or your personal space it would probably not be a very comfortable experience. I would recommend starting out with a low nightly rate until you have a decent amount of good reviews to attract more bookings and then use the smart nightly rate calculator on AirBnB which automatically adjusts the rates in your calendar based on current demands and rates in your area. My income has increased since using this tool and has made the admin much easier! As such, I would also suggest holding off on any specific renovations until you generate an income. I invested my increased income on upgrading the room, which was essentially for free as I didn’t need to use any personal savings. As your rating goes up you can increase your rates and add amenities. I went from 10% booking capacity to now 57% since starting and am sure to not exceed the annual £7,500 limit of the rent-a-room scheme which allows you to take in a lodger for free (AirBnB is apparently included in this scheme!). Any earnings beyond that require reporting to HMRC. 

My room is not accessible but this has not affected my bookings. We are located near a university and close to a motorway junction,which mostly attracts visiting lecturers, parents of students, or people breaking up long driving journeys. Once you start renting out your room you’ll soon learn what type of guests you attract and can adapt the room accordingly. My room provides a double bed, wardrobe with hangers, full sized mirror, kettle, tea & coffe station, hairdryer, iron & ironing board, tv with access to streaming services, and access to a private bathroom. We share our kitchen but not our living room. I don’t accept instant bookings as I live with my children and base my decision on whether to accept a booking request on the message and the person’s previous reviews. I’m ready to add another upgrade to the room, which will be a small fold-away desk that’s big enough to use with a laptop for guests to use if they need to do some work. 

I have met some really lovely people through Airbnb, many of whom are now regulars and some have even become close friends! It’s a lovely community to be a part of if you’re an outgoing person and I see it as more of a hobby than a financial necessity (which is what it was when I started as a newly separated single mother). One of the best decisions I made in a long time, and I hope you also have a similar positive experience
Hope this helps and best of luck!

JuzaMum

notsmithanymore said:

Hi! I’ve been hosting on Airbnb for 4 years and have had an overwhelmingly positive experience! That being said though, I am an extrovert and very much enjoy chatting and meeting new people. So if you’re someone who highly values privacy or your personal space it would probably not be a very comfortable experience. I would recommend starting out with a low nightly rate until you have a decent amount of good reviews to attract more bookings and then use the smart nightly rate calculator on AirBnB which automatically adjusts the rates in your calendar based on current demands and rates in your area. My income has increased since using this tool and has made the admin much easier! As such, I would also suggest holding off on any specific renovations until you generate an income. I invested my increased income on upgrading the room, which was essentially for free as I didn’t need to use any personal savings. As your rating goes up you can increase your rates and add amenities. I went from 10% booking capacity to now 57% since starting and am sure to not exceed the annual £7,500 limit of the rent-a-room scheme which allows you to take in a lodger for free (AirBnB is apparently included in this scheme!). Any earnings beyond that require reporting to HMRC. 

My room is not accessible but this has not affected my bookings. We are located near a university and close to a motorway junction,which mostly attracts visiting lecturers, parents of students, or people breaking up long driving journeys. Once you start renting out your room you’ll soon learn what type of guests you attract and can adapt the room accordingly. My room provides a double bed, wardrobe with hangers, full sized mirror, kettle, tea & coffe station, hairdryer, iron & ironing board, tv with access to streaming services, and access to a private bathroom. We share our kitchen but not our living room. I don’t accept instant bookings as I live with my children and base my decision on whether to accept a booking request on the message and the person’s previous reviews. I’m ready to add another upgrade to the room, which will be a small fold-away desk that’s big enough to use with a laptop for guests to use if they need to do some work. 

I have met some really lovely people through Airbnb, many of whom are now regulars and some have even become close friends! It’s a lovely community to be a part of if you’re an outgoing person and I see it as more of a hobby than a financial necessity (which is what it was when I started as a newly separated single mother). One of the best decisions I made in a long time, and I hope you also have a similar positive experience
Hope this helps and best of luck!

Thanks so much for the detailed reply. We're not very social due to my younger children's autism, I used to host foreign students before they arrived. The room is the first in the house so no need for visitors to venture into the rest of the house. I will probably add an extra doorway in the hall for separation. I'm happy to greet guests but need to keep them separate from my family.  

Albermarle

JuzaMum said:

notsmithanymore said:

Hi! I’ve been hosting on Airbnb for 4 years and have had an overwhelmingly positive experience! That being said though, I am an extrovert and very much enjoy chatting and meeting new people. So if you’re someone who highly values privacy or your personal space it would probably not be a very comfortable experience. I would recommend starting out with a low nightly rate until you have a decent amount of good reviews to attract more bookings and then use the smart nightly rate calculator on AirBnB which automatically adjusts the rates in your calendar based on current demands and rates in your area. My income has increased since using this tool and has made the admin much easier! As such, I would also suggest holding off on any specific renovations until you generate an income. I invested my increased income on upgrading the room, which was essentially for free as I didn’t need to use any personal savings. As your rating goes up you can increase your rates and add amenities. I went from 10% booking capacity to now 57% since starting and am sure to not exceed the annual £7,500 limit of the rent-a-room scheme which allows you to take in a lodger for free (AirBnB is apparently included in this scheme!). Any earnings beyond that require reporting to HMRC. 

My room is not accessible but this has not affected my bookings. We are located near a university and close to a motorway junction,which mostly attracts visiting lecturers, parents of students, or people breaking up long driving journeys. Once you start renting out your room you’ll soon learn what type of guests you attract and can adapt the room accordingly. My room provides a double bed, wardrobe with hangers, full sized mirror, kettle, tea & coffe station, hairdryer, iron & ironing board, tv with access to streaming services, and access to a private bathroom. We share our kitchen but not our living room. I don’t accept instant bookings as I live with my children and base my decision on whether to accept a booking request on the message and the person’s previous reviews. I’m ready to add another upgrade to the room, which will be a small fold-away desk that’s big enough to use with a laptop for guests to use if they need to do some work. 

I have met some really lovely people through Airbnb, many of whom are now regulars and some have even become close friends! It’s a lovely community to be a part of if you’re an outgoing person and I see it as more of a hobby than a financial necessity (which is what it was when I started as a newly separated single mother). One of the best decisions I made in a long time, and I hope you also have a similar positive experience
Hope this helps and best of luck!

Thanks so much for the detailed reply. We're not very social due to my younger children's autism, I used to host foreign students before they arrived. The room is the first in the house so no need for visitors to venture into the rest of the house. I will probably add an extra doorway in the hall for separation. I'm happy to greet guests but need to keep them separate from my family.  

You may need to add a small microwave, and you can get one ring cooking devices cheap on Amazon.