@Laura2592 @Flavia202 @Pete69 @Elaine701
The question does crop up continually now. It never used to, but when I started out in 2015 most people here in my country did not know what Airbnb was. It was growing rapidly but it was a curio rather than a (to be pursued) business model. Now things are different, everyone has an opinion, either good or bad, about Airbnb, and most are of the opinion, if it has grown so quickly it must be good, it must be worth being in.......people must be making money and plenty of it!
Whenever someone finds out I am involved with Airbnb the first thing they say is....."Do you make good money out of it"
If they are genuinely interested in knowing how it works I say to them......
"If you are fortunate to have a bit of real estate that is just sitting there doing nothing, it doesn't cost you anything or owe you anything and you are prepared to accept strangers and be something of a prisoner in your own space, then Airbnb is a great way to make a bit of money. If the property you wish to rent out is under mortgage and you are compelled to find a certain amount of money each week to cover expenses, Airbnb-ing your property could be a shortcut to financial ruin, the income is not reliable" !
They look at me and say....'Why do you do it then'?
I tell them I do it because I want to, not because I have to! Airbnb have introduced me to many hundreds of lovely people, and the fact that I have a bit of money over to put in my bank account is the icing on the cake!
If you are going to do Airbnb, you do it because you want to, not because you have to!
They have a puzzled look on their face and you can see their minds trying to comprehend what I have just said, as they wish they had not asked that question!
Cheers.........Rob