Are you a full time or a part time host?

[Stephanie]

Hello everyone, 

When you start hosting one of the main things you have to consider is where are you going to find the time from, because as we know from conversation here in the CC, there is often a lot to do!

Some hosts host full-time, some part-time and some even juggling it around existing work commitments. Plus, perhaps your time changes depending on the seasons. 

How do you host? How do you manage your time with other life commitments?

Looking forward to hearing from you. 

Thanks,

[Yadira22]

Hi @Stephanie 

hope you are well and nice topic.

I host as much as I can with the aid of my father and I also have a full time job.

How do I host 

-Administration, check in and cleaning take the most time 

-Administration (communication) is mostly done via pre written emails etc which are personalised slightly per guest/group.
-check in has been handled mainly by a third party, upon cleaning we leave the keys in a local company and then arrange for collection by guest. Information is sent out accordingly

-Cleaning is done by a combination of myself, my father and our lovely cleaning lady (but she helps once every 2 weeks only).

-House manual explains the main points which people get confused on and they are noted on a whiteboard in a communal area. The guest is made aware of this several times prior and during their stay- less back and forth.

2. Time Management 

-Organisation is key for me

-I need to be very strict with check in/out time and lack of luggage drop as to be able to work around my schedule and this has been very specifically mentioned in our listings and most guests accept this. I do wish I could offer an earlier check in around 2pm but when we did this our stress levels were insane and I had no time for myself...

-Extend boundaries early and I try to be realistic with expectations.

3. Work-life balance

-I usually have none or a very limited one at the moment but this works for me as I wanted this for myself for this moment in my life.

-When I need a break I take one, short or long and I keep to it- Limited phone access/WiFi and a lot of beach time (I live for the beach) etc
-I have an amazing support group and we work as a team but honestly if it were only myself I would probably stick to one or the other (job or Airbnb and not both unless Airbnb was long term rental only).
-Every month we go for dinner as to celebrate a good month regardless of revenue outcome, to the team- I always try to remember to say thank you!

Gratitude and appreciation goes a long way in every element of your life I think. At the end of the day all these amazing people are helping to build my dream and with/without considering whatever money they get paid for it, I am grateful for it all! 

Future: if I grow this further would look to completely outsource the cleaning as this is my main time consumer but we’ll see. 

Have a beautiful day everyone.

Yadira 🙂

[Stephanie]

What a fantastic and detailed response @Yadira22 ! There's a lot of learnings here for new and experienced hosts alike. I didn't know you had your Dad in tow when hosting! How lovely a father daughter team. 

[Trevor243]

@Yadira22

Gratitude and appreciation goes a long way in every element of your life I think.

Absolutely! I say thank you to my cleaners every day. They know I appreciate the work they've done and they're happy!

[Rita662]

Great topic.

I work, so I have to juggling it around.

I do the cleaning, the check in and administration.

The check in is within a restrite timetable, so I can leave my work and do it.

After check out, I imediatilly do all the cleanings, so the house may be prepared for a new guest no matter what.

I have pre recorded messages to save some time.

I have an Airbnb rule to block one day before. and one day after each guest, so I can handle the cleanings.

The cleanings and waiting in the laundry are the tasks that consume most of the my time. While in the laundry I try to do something with the waste of time, like taking care of the finances or reading the Community Center.

[Andrea-and-Francis0]

My husband & I both work as well. I work from home so that allows my schedule to be more flexible to be more readily available for check-ins, communication & cleaning. By far cleaning & laundry take up the most amount of time so when guests are clean & respectful of our home, we smile 🙂

[Barry-and-Lera0]

My wife and I are both self-employed and work out of our home. Our guesthouse is available year round (as long as at least one of us is on property) so I would say we are full time. We clean and changeover the space ourselves so we adjust our works schedules to be able to do that without issue.

[Susan1404]

@Stephanie- good question.  I consider myself a part-time host at present, but that fluctuates depending on how many bookings I get in a month's time.  I also run a separate business from my home, so between my Airbnb cabin and my other business, I stay pretty busy.  I would love the hosting factor to become more full-time and plan on tweaking my cabin amenities during this winter in hopes of attracting more guests this spring.  At present I do all the cleaning after guests check out, but if I can increase my bookings, I may supplement with a cleaning service in the future.  I do have a co-host who is my sister-in-law.  She is available to let guests in the cabin if there is an occasion that I can't be here. 

[Trevor243]

Managing holiday lettings is my full time job. Some of the properties are owned by my company, others are managed by me on behalf of other owners.

This year has been extremely busy - business boomed. I worked 16 hours a day, 7 days a week from January 1st to October 2nd - I was sleeping only a few hours a night. I suppose I wasn't expecting business to be this successful this year!

Through spring into summer, I had to do a lot of the cleaning myself simply because business took off so quickly that I didn't have time to hire cleaners - that was a large part of the ridiculous hours I was working. I now have my own team of cleaners and also use a contract cleaning company.

I also do the property maintenance - with a lot of properties, there have been various issues to deal with this year. I now also have a couple of guys on-call to help out where necessary.

I'm now working more sensible hours. I'll be working through winter to prepare for next year - mostly admin work, updating all listings and photos, etc etc, stocking up on supplies for the year etc. Oh, and resting and relaxing!

Next year I'll have a lot more time to relax, no matter how busy work gets - I have a good team now!

[Mike-And-Helen0]

Very part-time since we both work long hours.

Full time in August though!

[Pat347]

Part time it is! Having fun time working running around between full time and Airbnb 

😄

[Suzanne302]

@Stephanie 

A "full time" host once commented in a group that if STR is not your sole source of income or if you don't manage multiple properties full time you're not really a professional.

I think he was VERY wrong!

I have a full time job, a regular freelance gig, and I am also homeshare host. I take all three of my "jobs" very seriously and consider myself a professional for all three.

Airbnb is definitely a part time job for me, but at the same time, if I'm awake, I'm always on call for current or future Airbnb guests and whatever they might need. Sometimes that means a simple response to a message, sometimes...it means stepping away from a family dinner when you're 2 hours away from home, and coordinating with a friend to help your guests get back into your house after they lock themselves out!

Being a host while juggling other commitments and making sure you also have time for yourself requires time management skills for sure. Things that help me:

-While I'm always on call for emergencies for current guests, I do not answer messages after 9pm that don't need an immediate answer.

-I love it when I'm booked solid, but if I have a few weeks with a lot of turnovers, I block a day just to give myself a break.

-I do the cleaning myself and I use that time to take a mental break while I focus on cleaning the space and nothing else.

-My check-in and check-out times are set to give me plenty of wiggle room so I don't feel rushed.

-I've tried to prevent problems before they start which means guests don't NEED to contact me as often, which means more free time for me. ie, The wifi password is in multiple locations, tape placed over a lock so guests don't get locked out, instructions for the coffee maker, extra supplies, strategically placed signs with info, etc.

-If I find I really click with my guests, then work time becomes social time! I've enjoyed breakfast with guests (I don't offer breakfast in my listing!), a glass of wine and conversation, and plenty of doggy playtime as guests with dogs play with my dog in the backyard.

[Kevin1322]

Hi @Stephanie  Part time but seriously wishing we'd bought a bigger house after the last summer here in Cornwall.

Sue and I joined Airbnb to help make ends meet after we downsized.

Staring down both barrels of a UK poverty pension looming fast, and still running a small business, we both have parents who were in the hotel business, and thought "why not". 

I'd happily do this full time now. 

You just keep sending the guests, OK   👍

[Chastity3]

I work full time as a night shift nurse, working three days a week. I am also a full time traditional host, which means I Airbnb a room in my home. Last month, I bought a condo closer to the attractions that is located about an hour away from my current residence, which will also be rented full time as a short term. I’m currently in the reno phase of that project.

When all is said, starting Dec or Jan, I will have my full time night job, full time room hosting and full time second location home hosting on two separate accounts. Patience, time management, and delegations are some attributes I have to make this work. My family supports me as I’ve always had a desire to do this but was too afraid to dive in.