All Forum Posts by: Trent Reeve

Airbnb started this program over 3 years ago. Airbnb pays vetted, established SuperHosts with years of successful experience to act as consultants to new Hosts. The Ambassador will work with the new Host from starting their page set-up, all the way to their first booking. When the new Host completes their first booking, the relationship ends and the Ambassador is paid by Airbnb (with no cost to the new Host)."

"I've worked with over 500+ new Hosts and I'm happy to help you. Click the Airbnb link and we're connected. No obligation, but lots of free advice and guidance. You will have up to one year to finish your Listing and get a booking before the connection expires. (copy and paste the link into a browser)

www.airbnb.com/r/mgrudzien1

Here's some information from Airbnb about this program: https://www.airbnb.com/ambassadors

my "Airbnb ambassador" did zero to help me when i first started. it sounds like a good idea, but in the end, its all the luck of who you get.

3 Votes

Quote from @James Carlson:

Quote from @Trent Reeve:

1. Isn't passing on CC processing fees to the guest in a direct booking scenario also an option on Airbnb? I could say, well, I could charge $100/night on Airbnb, but I'm going to charge $103 to have the guest pay my 3% charge. It seems like in both scenarios, someone's paying the fee.

2. I hadn't thought about personal websites showing up on Google Maps. That is a cool feature and another notch on your side of the argument.

Airbnb handles all payments, regardless of your solution. I use a PMS so i handle VRBO transactions and have to pay CC processing fees, but i pass that along to the guest. but with Airbnb, the host never sees that.

0 Votes

Denver, Colorado

Quote from @James Carlson:

Quote from @Kyle Wise:

@James Carlson totally agree with you but there is another major reason to stay on the OTAs ..... so every time you take a listing direct from Airbnb or VRBO it makes your property look less desirable which drops you down in the search rankings.

I think this is interesting ... but not sure I'm following. Do you mean that direct links to your Airbnb listed on outside websites dings you in the Airbnb algorithm?

I've never heard that. It would make sense that Airbnb and VRBO want to disincentivize outside bookings. I'd just never heard they had a mechanism for doing so.

its not the links that ding you, its then the calendar blocked for that booking. but the same could be said for blocking from a VRBO booking. they want all your bookings on their platform because that is how they make their money.

2 Votes

Denver, Colorado

Quote from @James Carlson:

Not difficult at all to set up a website and PMS.

But a website is of little good for generating new guests unless you spend money and time on SEO to show up online.

So it's really just about repeat guests at that point. And what's the percentage of guests that repeat? And of that small number, once you have them pay through a PMS (which charges you a processing fee like Airbnb), your savings are marginal, if any. So I'm back to wondering what the real benefit it.

I'd posit the the benefit is ... that people like to do the website. I get that. Their property is a baby of a kind. A lot of energy has gone into it. They want to make it special, and they want their guests to feel special as well. A personal website does that. I think that's great.

not completely. thats why a lot of people will name their rental, and then it can be searched online. does it have the exposure of ABB/VRBO? no. but then you dont have to spend any time or money marketing it either, you can let those platforms do it. and im not saying you close your accounts there, but giving another avenue helps. and my rental has the website name on the outside, anyone walking by can see it and inquire about rentals. and no, the PMS doesnt charge me a processing fee, that is done by the credit card processor and you can roll that small charge into the rental price so that you are not paying it, the guest is, like they do with the other platforms. and i can charge more on a direct booking than ABB/VRBO, the guest will stay pay less and i make more money. all for the 3-4 hours it took to set up a website. oh, and if someone is on google maps looking in my area, my location will show as a rental with a link to my website (yes, i have gotten some bookings that way also). I am also on Google Vacation Rentals (example, someone googles Vacation Rentals Miami, a property could show up). you dont get that with just an ABB/VRBO listing. How many possible guests do you think do that? a lot.

it sounds like you are giving an opinion on something you have no personal experience with (i could be wrong), so some of your "facts" are wrong or misplaced. it sounds like you just have an opinion that you dont like it. thats fine, but you pivoted your argument of "time investment for me" ,which is negligible at best, and how it isnt worth the time/effort spent, to now asking what the benefit is.

0 Votes

Denver, Colorado

Quote from @James Carlson:

Quote from @Travis Timmons:

Agreed. For a small operator like me, I don't see the point. My goal is to have 3-4 STRs and stop. At scale, it's a different conversation. My reasoning is...

1. Where is the highest paying customer? - hate saying always, but they're always on vrbo/airbnb

2. How they pay? - usually by card. My payment processing fees are pretty much going to equal the 3% airbnb fee. Could I do venmo? Sure, but that's weird. I would never venmo a host money.

3. Pigs get fed, hogs get slaughtered. - I'm making great money from these platforms, and while they are not perfect, they have been the complete and total reason for my success in this space.

All great points. I keep forgetting that taking payment outside of Airbnb isn't free either. So the reasons left for direct websites are ... freedom? Protection from the whims of the algorithm? Those aren't nothing, but again, they seem small compared to time investment for me.

what time investment? you can use a PMS system and have a website up in a few hours. your repeat guests will love it because they can book directly with you and save a lot of money. And renters are more aware of this now and will look up a property they find on ABB or VRBO and see if there is a direct site. how much time do you envision you are having to spend doing this? i think you are overestimating the time needed to spend on it.

3 Votes

Denver, Colorado

Quote from @Jon Martin:

Can you have it automatically set the code to the last 4 of their phone number, or does in generate a random code?

I don't want to deal with random codes that nobody can remember. Never had a lock out issue sticking with the last 4.

i use the Schlage lock and yes, i integrate it so that it is the last 4 of their cell. it activates 1 hour before their reservation and deactivates 1 hour after. i dont even worry about it anymore, 1 less thing i have to think about.

1 Vote

Quote from @Erica Calella:

I did something similar and my preference was to actually view properties so that I could get a feel for the community and area, which isn't really something you can gauge just from photos alone. I live in NYC and purchased in Western NC. My realtor did also do a few video showings with me as well just because I couldn't get down quickly enough and I wanted to see the properties before they were snatched up. The travel costs do add up, but its good to weigh the costs to benefits. To me it was worth it to make sure I was making the right decision.

Be careful with Florida condos. Apparently prices are diving because HOA fees are like $700 per month and I also read it's tough to get good insurance. Just a few things to flag during your search.

i would say you dont have to be scared, just do your number due diligence. HOA fees pay for a lot. You buy a house with a pool to compete for guests (because guests in Florida want a pool) how much are you paying monthly for landscaping, pool service/maintenance? also many HOA dues also pay for some utilities (water, internet, pest). you start adding up all those costs to pay on your own, you may end up paying more than the HOA costs. Not saying HOAs are perfect, but i also think they get a bad rap sometimes. and honestly, its cheaper to get insurance for a condo than for a house. (i speak this from experience, not just guessing)

0 Votes

thats all how you feel about karma. they didnt cancel when they could have gotten refund and sounds like they didnt get travel insurance. I never do a full refund, i always take a small amount for CC charges. i guess i would say it depends on how much. if it was over say $5-600, i would probably refund.

4 Votes

we are also in PCB. my guest breakdown has been about 70% VRBO, 20% Airbnb and 10% direct bookings. Havent had an issue with a guest from ABB, havent had anyone i personally know have an issue. i would say there isnt much issue with guest from either platform.

2 Votes

less work only dealing with 1 property and then more appreciation? sounds like a no brainer

3 Votes

All Forum Posts by: Trent Reeve

Trent Reeve has started 26 posts and replied 509 times.

Post: STR Mentorship Needed

Post: Hot take: Personal booking websites for your STR are overrated

Post: Hot take: Personal booking websites for your STR are overrated

Post: Hot take: Personal booking websites for your STR are overrated

Post: Hot take: Personal booking websites for your STR are overrated

Post: Airbnb direct support for Schlage encode locks

Post: Long term invest

Post: Refunds - How would you handle this?

Post: Is Airbnb as bad as they say

Post: Short-term 2 small houses or 1 larger home