How to Hire Airbnb Property Managers In 2024

A Comprehensive Guide to Hiring the Best Airbnb Property Managers 

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What’s An Airbnb Property Manager?

An Airbnb property manager is someone who manages condos, homes, or other rental properties that are being rented out as vacation properties through the Airbnb platform. They usually oversee the marketing, while also handling the day-to-day operations, including maintenance, stocking, and key exchange responsibilities.

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Which Is Better: Airbnb Property Managers Vs. Airbnb Property Management Company?

When it comes to hiring Airbnb property managers, property owners can choose to work with an individual or with an agency. But depending on your needs, one could be better than the other. To help better gauge the pros and cons of hiring a property management company versus hiring an independent manager, below are questions you can ask yourself.

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What is your preferred management style?  

A. hands on  

B. indirect

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What are you looking for?

A. Professional

B. Service

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What kind of project or arrangement do you have in mind?

A. One-off project

B. Long-term project with option to scale

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How much does down-time matter to you?

A. Some down time (day-offs, sick leaves, tech difficulties, etc.)

B. No down time (contingency plan or back-up are needed)

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Which do you like more:

A. Flexibility

B. Structure

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If you answered mostly A’s, then you’re better off hiring freelance Airbnb property managers with short-term rental experience. Meanwhile, if you have more B’s, then you’re likely to enjoy working with an Airbnb property management agency better.

What To Expect With A Freelance Airbnb Property Manager?

Freelance Airbnb property managers are independent contractors with experience managing short-term rentals. They’re usually found on freelancing platforms, and because they’re individuals, there’s a lot of flexibility in their service packages, rates, and even work hours. It also means less structure and more direct communication with the person managing the property.
Such an arrangement is ideal for those who like to be hands-on and very much involved in the day-to-day management of the rental property. It also suits property owners who like interacting with a professional, have a one-off project or a small scale project, and who don't mind having flexibility, even if it comes with the occasional down times. Another thing to consider is cost as hiring a freelancer can be more affordable for the property owner.

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What To Expect With An Airbnb Property Management Agency?  

Unlike freelancers, Airbnb property management agencies are professional companies that offer full-service property management of short-term rental properties. This means having a comprehensive suite of services, professional systems and processes, quality control and guarantee, standardized communication, and back-up solutions to prevent down times.
Given these benefits, the cost of hiring an Airbnb property management agency is usually higher than those of freelancers. But at the same time, the one flat fee of getting their services means the property owner can be less hands-on and leave everything to the agency, while expecting high-quality services and regular communication and reporting.

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Should You Hire An Airbnb Property Manager?

Are you wondering whether to hire someone to manage your Airbnb property? Below are some considerations that most of HostKudo’s clients take into account before they enlist our services.

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Multiple Properties

Managing one property takes up more time than you can imagine. But taking care of several properties can be more than a handful! Rather than spend hours coordinating with potential renters and sometimes, landlords, it’s much easier to have someone with experience to stay on top of it all.

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Scalability

One Airbnb property is great. But having several Airbnb properties is even better!
If you think you can manage a couple of Airbnb properties, that may no longer be the case if you want to have more. The amount of work you can do is limited, but when you hire an agency, they have several people, so you can scale your operations by getting more of their property management services. This takes away your limitations when it comes to managing the properties yourself.

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Remote Operations

Remote work can do a lot of things but it can’t let you check on your property in person. At the end of the day, you will need to check the product, aka, the Airbnb property itself. And if you’re remote, you need someone who can drop by whenever needed, such as to check on the state of the property or to oversee repairs and renovations.

Side Hustle

Airbnb may be your primary source of income, but at the same time, it can be just a side hustle. If you’re doing something else that takes up most of your time and energy, then you’re better off leaving the Airbnb in the hands of someone else who can take care of it for you.

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How Do You Hire Airbnb Property Managers?

The process of hiring someone to do the important work of managing your Airbnb property can seem tedious at best and overwhelming at worst. But thankfully, we can simplify the process and break it down into three simple steps below.

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1. Identify Your Requirements

Every Airbnb property is different and the needs of property owners vary even more. It’s important to outline the things you need your Airbnb property manager to do so you can look for them when selecting who to hire.
Do you need someone to personally be present in your property? Where is your property located and are there any laws and regulations one should know about? Do you need someone who can coordinate your maintenance and supply deliveries? How about your customer service and key handling?
These are important considerations that need to be clarified before you start looking for a property manager.

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2. Choose An Agency Or Platform

As mentioned earlier, you can choose to hire a freelance Airbnb property manager or an agency to take care of your short-term rental. Whichever you choose, it’s important to do your research and identify the best platform to find a freelancer or the best agency to manage your property. Knowing your requirements well comes in handy during your search.

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3. Set Expectations And KPIs

With your requirements set and your agency or platform determined, you’ve likely found a freelancer through your chosen platform or you’ve started communicating with your property management agency. During this stage, you should set expectations for your work arrangement and discuss the terms and conditions to your contract.
Things to consider include the tasks to be performed, the frequency of such tasks, the number of working hours or work shift schedule, the mode of communication and payment, and other details such as how do you measure performance quality? How quickly should they respond to your customers? How well should they coordinate with your landlords and maintenance personnel to keep your property running smoothly?
These are just a few of the considerations you should discuss with your Airbnb property manager before entering into an agreement and signing a contract.

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What to Look for In An Airbnb Property Manager?

Not just anyone can manage a property well, much less a rental property that is marketed specifically through the Airbnb platform. When choosing a property manager for your Airbnb, there are certain skills and requirements to look for to ensure they have what it takes to not only support but empower your rental business.

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Past Experience

First and foremost, find someone who’s managed short-term rental properties in the past. Don’t just settle for anyone who’s overseen the care of a rental property because short-term rental property management requires immediate attention, fast turnarounds, and quick thinking to keep your guests happy and uphold your reputation.

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Local Knowledge

Airbnb’s are subject to the policies and regulations of their localities and even HOAs, and having someone familiar with them should be a minimum requirement to ensure compliance.
As a perk, local knowledge lends market insights, so your property manager can help you strategize pricing to maximize occupancy and revenue. They also serve as amazing guides to your guests, which can make five-star reviews and encourage repeat bookings.

Understanding of Airbnb Regulations

As mentioned above, legal compliance varies per location, and managing an Airbnb means complying with licensing and permit requirements of your city, state, and/or country. Your short-term rental may also be subject to tax roles, zoning restrictions, safety and health standards, as well as neighbor relations, insurance coverage, and platform compliance.  
By having someone who knows the ins and outs of these ensure legal compliance, financial protection, guest safety, and even maintaining a positive reputation within the community.

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Efficient Project Coordination

As a short-term rental, your Airbnb requires fast responses and good coordination. In order to do that, one must be efficient in their operations, whether they’re an individual or an agency.
They should request repairs or maintenance on time, handle all guest activities smoothly, ensure all regulatory requirements are met, communicate well with all parties involved, stay levelheaded in times of crises, allocate resources like time and money well, as well as offer consistent service across all areas of property management.
Only with these can you ensure smooth operations, cost effectiveness, legal and regulatory compliance, guest satisfaction, and good crisis management.

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Where to Find Airbnb Property Managers?

There are several places where you can find qualified Airbnb property managers. For those looking to hire a freelancer, platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, and Toptal are great places to start. Whereas if you’re looking for a short-term rental management company that does everything for you with seamless onboarding and little to no learning curve, then look no further than HostKudo’s full-service virtual concierge!  ‍

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At HostKudo, we provide Airbnb concierge service for hassle-free property management, specially tailored to short-term rental property owners who need someone to do all the heavy lifting for them. From managing guest communications and cleaning coordination to ensuring compliance with laws and regulations, we can do all of that for you and more. ‍

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‍Learn more about Airbnb property management services here!

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