My Spare Bedroom on Airbnb: The Month that Changed My Life

Did you know that one month of hosting on Airbnb can change your life? It’s true! Just think about it: you could make some extra money, meet new people from all over the world, and achieve a level of financial independence beyond your expectation of what’s possible in your life.

What is Airbnb?

Airbnb is a web-based platform, where people can find rooms to rent when they are traveling. Airbnb also allows people to rent out their entire house, or just a room in their house, for short periods of time. It’s as simple or as complicated as you want to make it and if you look around Airbnb’s website you can find everything from a Chateau to a dirty futon in a packed college apartment.

Why I decided to become an Airbnb host

When my temporary roommates moved out of my house I was pretty sick of sharing my personal space. I’d gone through a painful breakup and was mostly living in an empty house. I knew I didn’t want full-time roommates anymore but needed the financial help that was provided in making my mortgage payment.

Five years later I’ve racked my brain trying to remember EXACTLY what was going through my mind when I decided to host a shared space on Airbnb, but that decision changed my life dramatically and provided a level of financial security I couldn’t have dreamed of as a working photographer.

The challenges I faced as a new Airbnb host

Despite working in the hospitality business my whole life as a waiter, valet driver, and 15 years as a wedding photographer I didn’t have a clue about Airbnb hospitality or what people wanted and expected when booking an Airbnb. I’ve always been a foodie, and loved great wine and coffee, but when it came to hotel amenities and what I thought of as general suburban comforts I always dismissed them as ridiculous and worthy of ignoring. In an embarrassingly superior way, I felt like I could point out where everyone was wasting money and effort and how my way was obviously the correct way. This point of view for just about everything I can think of is a recipe for disaster. At best, everyone but your mom and your very closest friends think you’re a jerk, at worst you’re broke, lonely, and too arrogant to understand why.

Luckily, I do adapt quickly to constructive feedback and with a tiny amount of spare money coming in I was able to make some dramatic changes to just about everything.

For example, I didn’t have a single blind or curtain in the house. When I bought the house there were ugly pink mini-blinds and I was in the woods so I just threw them away and embraced waking up with the sun in my face. My towels were at least a decade old and used interchangeably as dog paw cleaners. I didn’t have side tables, or furniture in most of the rooms.

The lessons I learned from hosting my spare bedroom on Airbnb

-My roommates at the time were paying $700 monthly and had a very destructive and annoying dog that constantly barked at me and was minorly aggressive when I made sudden movements.

-After a month of hosting guests on Airbnb I made $1,052.34 and I didn’t have to live with that dog, or listen to how someone wanted to hang shelves or make some structural changes to the house. In fact, most of my guests were gone 90% of the time.

-People want blinds on their windows and locks on their bedroom and bathroom doors. Turns out I am the weird person here and if I wanted to make any money hosting on Airbnb I was going to have to make some changes. I learned this when an executive for Lenovo was staying at my house and he asked for a stapler so he could hang an extra sheet over the window. I might not be Martha Stewart but allowing someone to staple a sheet over a window because they are uncomfortable is pretty terrible hospitality. The same thing goes for listening to someone barricade the bathroom door closed while they shower.

-I learned I needed an electronic door lock because I lose keys like crazy and managing them for a rotation of guests was an impossible task for my personality.

-People staying in my spare room didn’t necessarily want to chat with me for hours on end but did appreciate some well-timed recommendations.

My shared-space listing was NOT fancy.

I certainly cared about my guests and did the absolute best I could afford to make their visit comfortable, but it was the best I could offer. Check it out for yourself, these are the original Airbnb photos.

How hosting on Airbnb changed my life for the better financially and emotionally.

In a little over two years my spare bedroom made $34,093.32! My mind is still blown adding that up. I didn’t have roommates and the very few difficult Airbnb guests were only in my home for a handful of nights, not full-time roommates. Airbnb was still very much a side hustle so that income just went directly into a savings account and when I saw a tiny 700-square-foot house for sale near the university in my city I had enough money for the downpayment on that house.

Airbnb wasn’t a get-rich-quick plan for me. It’s cheesy but it was as they always advertise: a way for me to earn extra money renting a room… AND IT WORKED. Sure there were some funny, and awkward stories about sharing my personal space with travelers but globally it was quite fun.

Emotionally I was feeling pretty confident and optimistic about the future. One month as an Airbnb host proved I wasn’t about to be crushed under the weight of my mortgage if my photography career fell apart. Adults are no strangers to financial stresses and I didn’t feel like all of my problems were solved but I definitely felt like it was the beginning of a problem-solving mindset. A light at the end of the tunnel, or a “choose your own metaphor” situation.

What are some of the most common misconceptions about Airbnb?

• Airbnb is only for when you’re traveling.

Many locals stayed in my home bridging time between moves, parents visiting kids, and kids visiting parents. Someone getting away from home to get some work done.

• People who use Airbnb are looking to save money on their accommodations.

Some people use Airbnb because you can find deals cheaper than hotels, but you can also rent a cave or a palace.

• All of the homes listed on Airbnb are in perfect condition and ready for guests at any time.

I’ve personally stayed in some horrible Airbnbs. I learned you have to really look at a listing and communicate quickly with Airbnb support if there’s a problem. As a host I think of Airbnb support as my virtual problem solvers.

• You have to be a great host to be successful on Airbnb.

There are a lot of successful mediocre people in the world. You can decide where you would like to reside on that scale.

Would I recommend other people become hosts?

I would recommend being an Airbnb host to anyone with extra space and a personality that enjoys meeting new people or making extra money. You don’t have to be the life of the party but if you’re not interested in engaging with your guests then maybe it’s not for you, OR you can find a co-host that loves people and problem solved.

What advice would I give to new Airbnb hosts?

I have a million things I’ve learned the hard way hosting short-term rentals but in general, design and decorate your Airbnb listing in a way that you think is super cool, and treat people the way you like to be treated when traveling. If you do those two things you’re setting yourself up for success.

Are you considering becoming an Airbnb host?

Don’t get distracted by all the noise out there, what are your goals? Have a look around and ask some trusted friends if your goals are even vaguely in-line with reality. If so, you’re on the right track.

Is it too late to become an Airbnb host?

I sure wish I’d invested in Apple in 2002, or bought a commercial building Downtown (in any city) five years ago! Anyone who spends all of their time dwelling on the opportunities they missed can’t see what’s right in front of them now. I’m hoping to live a long life so I’m guessing Apple stock is still a good idea (for me) and so is a commercial building. Whether I buy any or not is up to me.

A favorite chinese proverb I think about regularly when I feel like “I’ve already missed my opportunity” goes something like this:

When is the best time to plant a tree? 15 years ago. When is the second best time to plant a tree? Right now.

In conclusion

I would encourage anyone who has extra space and is considering becoming an Airbnb host to just go for it. You might have the best month of your life, as I did. It’s not easy money but it’s not necessarily hard money either. You have to take a chance when an opportunity presents itself or jump straight into a project to see what happens. I’ve hosted thousands of guests so far and don’t have any intention of changing directions.

Thanks friends and best of luck planting trees!