more hours in your STR than you do?

Question

Had a conversation last month that I've now had some version of about a dozen times.

Couple with W-2 jobs buys a cabin, puts it on Airbnb, gets a cost seg study done. Big paper loss, and they're counting on it to wipe out a chunk of their wages. So I ask the boring question: how many hours did you two put into the place this year, and how many did your cleaner?

They had no idea. No calendar, no notes, nothing. We spent the better part of a week rebuilding it from texts, Airbnb messages and Home Depot receipts.

Here's why it matters. With average stays of 7 days or less, that loss can offset your other income, but only if you materially participate. For most people with day jobs that comes down to more than 100 hours and more than any other one person. Your cleaner counts. So does your handyman. Two turnovers a week adds up faster than you'd think.

They ended up fine, barely. I still wouldn't want to defend that rebuilt log in an audit.

It's October. If you bought this year, there's still time to start writing it down.

So, STR owners: do you log your hours? And has anyone here added up their cleaner's?

Andrew Steffens · Answer

I tell all of my tax buyers of the importance of having a solid plan going into this - having your team and plan set up before you even really start shopping. Solid CPA, Solid knowledgeable agent, plan for management/operations, cost seg company etc etc.

Aaron Zimmerman · Answer

For my clients, I require them to fill out a checklist which includes the log of hours for them and the people involved with the operation. I wish more people understood on the front end what it actually takes for sure.

Kamila Kowalska · Answer

Aaron, question,

If they have a cleaning need for 160 hours a year but they split it between 2 different cleaning companies, so none of the crosses 100 h, would that work?

Aicha Kacem · Answer

Logging hours for tax material participation is so critical, yet so many hosts forget until tax season hits! Beyond calendar invites and receipts, keeping a real-time digital log of guest messaging, dispatching cleaners, and managing price adjustments makes auditing vastly easier.

For hands-off investors who want the cash flow and tax benefits without burning 100+ hours managing daily guest operations themselves, partnering with a remote co-host helps streamline those systems and keep clean operational records.

Thanks for highlighting this—such an essential reminder for STR owners as year-end approaches!

Hossein Sharifi · Answer

Great point. The cleaner trap catches a lot of people. A turnover clean at 3 hrs x 40 stays is 120 hrs, so self-managing owners need to log guest messaging, maintenance, and restocking in real time, with timestamps, to clear that bar. Logs rebuilt at tax time rarely hold up.

more hours in your STR than you do?

more hours in your STR than you do?

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