AirBnB provider queries

[didds]

A while bago we spent a few nights in a "shed and breakfast" - a shed in somebody's garden being our accomodation (it was very tastefully fitted out including a sink, fridge and two hob electric cooker. Loo & shower was in the adjacent letter's house via a back door.

If we had something similar, what typically (aside from advertising and getting clients!) would we need to consider?

I am presuming stuff like

* our own house insurances
* public indemnity insurance

anything else? Or is there a better board to post this on?

didds

[Lootman]

The issue is really what is needed to do short-term lets. Airbnb is just one of many vehicles for doing that, albeit the most popular.

Generally speaking there is no particular requirement for doing short-term lets, in much the same way as there is no particular requirement for letting out any property. Some localities may have restrictions on doing holiday lets. And if you rent your home, your lease may restrict your ability to sublet or assign your home. Likewise if you own a leasehold property, there may be restrictions. This current thread addresses some of those issues:

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=6993

Otherwise, you need adequate insurance and/or to tell your property insurer. If you have a mortgage, your lender would probably like to know you are doing this. You need to think about how you will report the rental income for tax purposes and what expenses you can claim as an offset.

No need for rental agreements as Airbnb provides an over-arching contract. You might need someone to handle turnover (laundry, cleaning, changing bed linen etc.) - I hired a neighbour to do that for twenty quid a time. In fact you might want to tell your neighbours you are doing this or they might be irked.

As you experienced, it doesn't have to be your entire home either. You can rent out just a part of it, maybe just one bedroom, a basement, an attic, a shed or even a tent in the garden. In that case, you may be home at the time. Airbnb covers all those possibilities.

Note that some towns are getting worried that expansive Airbnb activity is depriving locals of housing opportunities. Not a valid argument in my opinion, but Paris, Barcelona and New York all regulate Airbnb usage. Apparently some investors have bought properties solely to do permanent Airbnb lets and avoid laws that protect tenants but don't cover short-term lets. So it may become a political hot potato in the future, depending where you live.

[DiamondEcho]

What Loot says^ and also some boroughs have very strict bye-laws on what constitutes habitable space. I've seen the council with the police raiding properties near me that they have determined don't meet such criteria. I also understand there was a significant er, cottage-industry, in renting sheds to the low paid/migrants in the Heathrow area, Hillingdon, Hounslow etc, and the council/s acted definitively against those. Google on 'hillingdon sheds being rented' and some of the articles might outline some of the issues for you.