Hi @Katie1714 ,
That sounds like a great way to monetize your space and while not exactly like our circumstances, here's some info:
- we rent out our 4 bedroom home that is our 'personal' home. We are in the home once a month and view it as our personal space first not a rental. We are never in the home when rented so it is not a 'shared' space in that sense.
- we have several locked areas where we store our stuff. Most rentals have locked supply closets/owner closets so that is fairly normal. In your case it is an entire room, it doesn't matter though, in your case it is like a big closet. Guests don't need to know what is behind the locked door. Your listing would reference that there is a locked space that is not for guest access. In our case we have a locked shed, three locked closets/locked attic type space, utility room and locked cabinets in the garage.
- you would rent your space as a 2 bedroom, 1.5 bathroom home. Reference to a third bedroom or additional bathroom is unnecessary as that is behind the locked door/no guest access. Since you will NOT be in residence (or so that is what I gathered), the space wouldn't be shared while a guest was in your home. Put a sign on any spots that are not for guest access - we just have printed signs that say "NO GUEST ACCESS" and just taped to the exterior of the door, and in the listing we mention areas that are not for guest access (AIRBNB platform has a spot for your to mention). This isn't strange but fairly common as most homes have some sort of supply/owner closet.
- supplies - you mention kitchen supplies and guests would expect a kitchen to be outfitted. If you have an occupancy of 4 people, then you need supplies for at least 4 people. Rule of thumb is 'double' your occupancy. So at least 8 forks, 8 glasses, and so on. More is totally fine, significantly less would lead to complaints.
- if you have personal items that are too important to go missing or become damaged then those should be removed into your room and be locked.
- Fridge/Freezer - from my perspective, it would be odd to arrive and have owner food in the fridge. This probably was way more common prior to COVID and this practice has sort of disappeared, I think. If you anticipate guests arriving to your home and use the kitchen etc then they would expect to be able to store food in the fridge. If you leave items in the fridge you can anticipate being consumed by a guest. On the other hand, when the space is shared, like if you are in the home also, then it would not be odd for your food to be there and for you to request that your food be left unmolested. You would then provide a fridge/freezer spot for guest stuff, like a roommate situation.
- you could consider getting a small fridge/freezer unit that is placed elsewhere (garage?, your locked room? some other option) that is out of the way and labeled not for guest use.
Wishing you much success!
