Should I pull the trigger? How do I approximate income? El Dorado County, California

[Brian252]

I have a cute little cabin in a mountain town half way between Sacramento and Tahoe, at 4000 feet elevation. It is a 2 story 2 bedroom, 1 bath with 1000 square feet. Lots of new work inside, including new flooring and lots of natural wood work. I am thinking of charging 85-115/night. Probably no cleaning fee if I go with the higher rate.

There is a water skiing lake in my town with a campground that sells out every weekend in the summer, but I am 15 minutes from it. I have plenty of room for boat parking, and my house can sleep 5 right now.

I would not be there and I would hire someone to clean. I'm thinking I might need to pay $60-$75 between guests to clean.

I pay $600/year to my current property insurance carrier, who will not cover me if I go abnb. I found Proper Insurance, thanks to this site, and got a quote for $1600/year. 

Is there any way I can project how much I'll make? If I could net $700/month, including setting aside a little money for wear and tear, I'd move forward. To make this happen, I would need to rent 10 nights/month, with a 2 night stay minimum. 

Is this at all realistic? I realize it's hard to make any guesses with what little info I've provided, but I'm certainly willing to provide more. I would love to talk to other abnb hosts in my area, but I don't know how to contact them. It doesn't seem right to pretend like I'm booking so I can send a message. Also, I don't know how much info they would be willing to give a competitor.

Ryan

[Hilary-And-Ed0]

Hello @Brian252,

The best way to price your place is to look at similar places (with similar amenities/lake nearby, etc).  Then, the best way to see how it will rent, is to give it a trial run.

This site (the community) has "home sharing clubs" in the drop down menu under discover.  You may find one near you with people renting in your area.  You'll find most people here are very ready to offer useful advice.

[Oomesh-Kumarsingh0]

@Brian252 Place your bet trust me its worth taking the risk renting your place but calculate and put a fair and competitive pricing when you start on the network you need to be competitive and make a name then its your name that will do the job for you and you will be able to raise your pricing later on. Good luck and welcome to Airbnb!!!

[Brian252]

Thank you for the quick replies. I went to the home sharing groups link and found one close to my area. In order to participate, however, it looks like I have to have an active listing.

I am hesitant to pull the trigger because it is difficult to get home insurance in my area. I have a carrier now, for a reasonable price. If I go abnb, and nearly triple my insurance cost, and I don't make money, I probably won't be able to go back to my old carrier. 

So it doesn't seem prudent to just roll the dice without some data or reasonable projection of income.