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AirBnB has reshaped the way our society thinks about travel and rental properties. But the lucrative process of side-hustling AirBnB has looong surpassed it’s opportunity, right??
Nope.
Our guest today is Zeona McIntyre (https://www.zeonamcintyre.com), an AirBnB expert who has years of experience managing her own (and other peoples!) AirBnB properties…all for the purpose of working towards FI.
In fact, she makes well over six-figures and owns five properties across multiple states…just for AirBnB. I’d call that expert-level.
We chat…
- How she got started in the first place, and why AirBnB?
- How she grew (great entry-level tips for first-timers, and great REI tips in there as well)
- Managing properties remotely
- Why you might need to try out a relationship shaman 🙂
She was an absolute delight to speak with. Enjoy!
Show notes and links from today’s episode
- Zeona’s blog: https://www.zeonamcintyre.com/
- Suzi Orman – personal finance author (Zeona first got into personal finance watching Suzi Orman tapes with her mom!)
- Mr. Money Mustache – yes, we mentioned MMM again 🙂
- AirBnB
- Headspace App – Fantastic meditation app
- TaskRabbit – cool place to find people online to do….well, random tasks!
Key takeaways from our chat with Zeona McIntyre
1 – There is a still a LOT of potential for AirBnB, despite everyone knowing about it
AirBnB is mainstream now, but that doesn’t mean opportunities are dwindling (see point 1.5 below).
One important note: An AirBnB rental is a different animal than long-term REI rentals.
One vital tip Zeona gave was this: make sure to look at the long-term math. If AirBnB fails 7 years from now (or your local government lays the crackdown on your property), you need to make sure alternative solutions are available (i.e. does long-term renting make sense for this property? Could you easily re-sell? etc).
Also, though more and more landlords are specifically including AirBnb limitations in their leases…the effects of subletting like this is becoming better and better understood.
You might honestly just talk to your landlords and make an exception. Most know what AirBnB is about these days.
1.5 – Abundance mindset vs. Scarcity mindset
Semi-related.
Don’t fear competition.
Sure. AirBnB listings are increasing, it’s true…but so are the people traveling.
In addition to AirBnB, the mindset switch to abundance-thinking can literally affect your entire life.
Start viewing potential competitors as teammates, and your jealousy and anxiety could very well plummet. There is plenty of life-pie for all of us at the table. 🙂 🙂
2 – 90% of the time, a house is not a good investment
This could very well turn into a 8,392 word count blog post…but we’ll just serve to reinforce the point here.
Our culture largely thinks of a house (or property) as an asset, where is probably isn’t for most people.
Yes, your mortgage payments might be building equity, but this only 1 of 20-50 other factors that should be considered.
- Repairs and maintenance can cost….a lot. Any new homeowner can relate.
- Interest expense.
- Taxes
- Insurance
- HOA fees?
Owning a home is sweet. Owning a rental or AirBnb property is sweet as well…but proper due diligence, research, and thought should be put into purchasing a piece of property.
It’s not an asset simply because “you’re building equity.”
3 – How Zeona furnishes her newly-bought AirBnB properties.
While not an “actionable tip” from the episode, Zeona’s creativity and resourcefulness are to be admired.
When Zeona closes on a property (even out of state), she will arrive 1-2 days before the closing date, and hit local garage sales, yard sales, thrift shops, etc…to furnish her AirBnb property.
It’s a tiny detail, but if you can think creatively and save a few hundred dollars (ok couches are expensive…a few thousand?), then kudos!
Sure beats buying new furniture. Ugh.
Questions? Like or dislike? Leave us a comment!
I’m sure many of you have tried, or thought about trying, some sort of AirBnB rental.
Have you tried it? How’d it go?
Related Post: How this Couple Turned their House into an Airbnb for Bachelor Parties and Made Bank
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