It is said that real estate is now a very good investment. From year to year, the prices of apartments, plots and houses are rising significantly. So let's invest and buy an apartment in an interesting neighborhood. Even if it is necessary to take a loan for an apartment, you can easily pay the monthly installments. If we already have an apartment in a large city or tourist town, short-term rental can bring quite good profits. However, you have to take into account the dedication of your time and constant supervision of the business.

Of course, in a small town or in an unattractive tourist location, long-term rental will be more profitable, because the short-term owner may not find the right number of renters per month. But living by the sea, in the mountains or in larger tourist cities such as Wrocław, Warsaw or Łódź, short-term rental is a great business idea.

Pros and cons of short-term rental

Renting apartments for days means both more time and money, but also a chance for higher monthly earnings.

Why is short-term rental of an apartment profitable?

• an indication of the maximum number of children allowed in the apartment and, possibly, the preferred age of the children, if it is important for the owner;
• Currently, there is a demand for apartments, which are an interesting alternative to expensive hotels. In addition, conscious customers prefer to organize trips, accommodation and attractions on their own, rather than use the services of travel agencies.
• Possibility of good earnings. Assuming the rental of a two-room apartment for PLN 200 per night, you can get PLN 2,800 per month only with 14 days of rental. If the apartment was rented for 25 days a month, the owner of the apartment earns PLN 5,000. After deduction of costs, you can count on higher earnings than with long-term rental.
• The greatest income can be obtained by having apartments in cities and places attractive for tourists.
• You can secure your business with a deposit or an additional payment for cleaning the apartment until the departure of the Guests.

What are the downsides to renting a short-term apartment?

• Having to commit your time. Accepting reservations, answering phone calls, organizing cleaning. It is a business where you have to keep your hand on the pulsee.
• There is always a risk that outside the tourist season we will find few people willing to rent a flat, and therefore the earnings may not always be satisfactory.
• The standard of the apartment should be very good, which is why it is necessary to invest in refreshing the apartment or changing the decoration from time to time.

What, apart from the accommodation itself, can you offer your clients?

If we want to go to the mountains, the seaside or a larger city for a few days, we are looking for an atmospheric apartment in a good location, where we will be able to spend time pleasantly. So it must be interestingly decorated, delight with accessories and be neat. Currently, thanks to the Internet and platforms such as Booking, AirBnb or OLX, when looking for an apartment for rent, we are overwhelmed with offers. Therefore, the owner of the apartment must distinguish his apartment with something and ensure the highest quality of service, so that customers choose this offer.

Many people coming to a given city for the first time do not know where to look for specific services. So you can prepare a small information bulletin (paper or on the website) about the most important tourist attractions, interesting places, good restaurants or service companies that may be useful.

For people with children, an additional advantage will be a children's corner in the apartment (with a few toys or games), the possibility of inserting a travel bed or a chair for a child. When going on a weekend or vacation, not everyone has a person to take care of their dog, cat or guinea pig. So people with pets are looking for a place where they will be able to come with a pet. Of course, the landlord can stipulate in the rental conditions that it is not possible to bring pets or children below 10 years of age, but this will narrow down the audience.

Apartment guests can come to the city for tourism, family or business purposes. It is also worth preparing an offer for bad weather or a lazy evening in the apartment after a busy day. In such situations, access to the Internet, a TV with Netflix or HBO Go and board games will be an additional advantage.

Marketing of the short-term rental apartment

In order to rent an apartment and earn profits from it, you need to undertake marketing activities that will allow customers to become familiar with the offer. So let's:

• open Funpage on social networks, e.g. on Facebook;
• invest in a website with the option of booking an apartment;
• register your property on Booking.com and AirBnb.com;
• create a showcase of the apartment on the Google My Business website.

Loyalty programs work well not only in gastronomy but also in the real estate rental industry. You can offer customers a 10% discount for 3 visits to the apartment or a night for free for the next arrival when renting for a minimum of 5 days. Loyalty programs help build a constant relationship with the Guest. Every single visit is welcome, but a satisfied regular customer will choose the offer again and recommend it to friends.

It should be remembered that when choosing an apartment for rent, customers are guided by the opinions about this place. Unfortunately, the tendency of the test is that dissatisfied people more often post their opinion on the Internet than people who are fully satisfied with the services. So let's encourage your guests to post on Facebook or googlach positive feedback if they were satisfied with the service. Even a small discount can be offered for adding such an opinion. The more of them, the greater the chances that the apartment will be highly competitive on the market.

Author

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  Izabela Praska

  Editor of Bookable.pl, HoReCa marketing specialist. Specialist in FooDeliver, OrderEngine and Bookable products.