How to Make Money on Airbnb without Owning Property: 10 Smart Ways

Each year, many people around the world join the vacation rental industry. However, not all are property owners. Read on to find out how to get into the vacation rental industry and start making money on Airbnb without owning property.

If you ever searched for ideas on how to make money on Airbnb without owning property, you probably thought that subletting was the only option. That, however, is not the case. There are a number of other ways to earn on Airbnb without being a homeowner. 

According to online data, Airbnb business owners can make close to $100,000 per year, if not more, without owning any properties. From co-hosting to becoming a vacation rental consultant, we’ve compiled the top 10 ideas on how to make money on Airbnb without acquiring a property. 

Do You Have to Own a Property to Earn with Airbnb?

As mentioned earlier, to start making money on Airbnb, you do not have to be a homeowner. Moreover, in most cases, you do not need considerable funds to get started with your Airbnb venture. There are several other smart and creative ways to enter the vacation rental industry and build a profitable business. 

Top 10 Ways to Start Making Money on Airbnb without Owning a Property 

1. Take the Airbnb Rental Arbitrage Route

In short, Airbnb rental arbitrage is when you rent a property with the sole purpose of subletting it on vacation rental sites. For this business model to work, the money that you generate must be more than your rent and other business-related expenses. 

Before you start with this strategy, you will need to consider legal rules and regulations as some cities do not allow subletting. Moreover, you should obtain permission from the landlord before you attempt to rent out your rented accommodation. In many cases, long-term rental lease agreements do not allow tenants to rent out properties on listing sites. If a tenant violates the agreement, they run the risk of being evicted. However, if both parties have agreed, rental arbitrage can be a great option to enter the industry. 

What are the pros and cons of Airbnb arbitrage?

Pros:

• You do not need a lot of capital as you can start without owning a property.
• You can leave 100% of your income to yourself which is not the case with other strategies. For example, as a property manager, you can only count on a certain percentage of the income earned by the property owner. 

Cons:

• Many cities are introducing local laws and regulations against subletting, which can make it harder to find a location. 
• It could be challenging to find a landlord who will agree to subletting their property on Airbnb. 

How much can you earn with Airbnb arbitrage? 

At the end of the day, how much you will be able to earn using this strategy will depend on location and the size of your property portfolio. If you do this right, you can generate up to three times more than the sum of your expenses. 

According to AirDNA’s data, markets that can earn the highest rental arbitrage premium are Savannah, Charleston, New Orleans, Nashville, and Jacksonville. Their data has also revealed that bigger units offer more rental arbitrage opportunities.  

2. Become a Short-term Rental Property Manager

Becoming a property manager is one of the most straightforward ways to make money on Airbnb without investing in a vacation rental. As the vacation rental industry is growing at a rapid pace, it means that so too is the demand for short-term rental property managers. Not only is there an increased demand, but the career of a property manager also offers flexible working hours. Your key responsibilities will include:

• Managing the needs of property owners
• Confirming bookings
• Communicating with guests
• Supervising the check-in process
• Marketing
• Property inspections
• Organizing cleaning and maintenance tasks. 

To become a short-term rental manager, you will first need to understand the legal requirements of your state. For example, some states will require a real estate broker’s license and/or a property manager’s license, while other states might not require any qualification whatsoever. That being said, it is better to continue your education in property management even if it is not a requirement, as this will help you to set yourself apart from your competition. 

What are the pros and cons of becoming a short-term rental manager?

Pros:

• Your working hours will be more flexible. 
• You do not need a property to get started with property management.

Cons:

• You might need to further your education which can be expensive. 
• Managing multiple rentals for other hosts can be a challenging task.

To prevent yourself from getting overwhelmed, it is a smart idea to invest in vacation rental software, like iGMS, to automate tasks. iGMS will help you to reduce your workload by:

• Managing multiple accounts and listings on the major vacation rental platforms
• Using the unified inbox to organize your messages into a single feed and automated templates and triggered messaging to improve guest communication
• Automating the process of guest reviews creation and send-outs 
• Managing direct bookings using a direct booking management toolkit
• Creating essential reports on your business results and tracking metrics with the Dashboard feature
• Receiving payouts and creating invoices by connecting your Stripe account to iGMS
• Sharing daily schedules with your team and auto-assigning tasks.

How much can you make as a short-term rental manager? 

In the United States, a short-term rental manager can make about $42,000 per year on average. However, it can be nearly $60,000 per year if you have more experience behind your name. 

3. Become a Co-host to an Airbnb host

Co-hosts perform similar duties to short-term rental managers. The major difference is that they will act more like an assistant to a host than a manager. If you are still new to this industry, co-hosting is a good place to start. With co-hosting, your main tasks will include:

• Confirming bookings
• Communicating with guests
• Supervising the check-in and checkout process
• Property inspections
• Organizing cleaning and maintenance tasks 
• Restocking necessary items
• Writing reviews for guests.

What are the pros and cons of becoming a co-host?

Pros:

• Your working hours will be more flexible. 
• You do not need a license to become a co-host.

Cons:

• It is less profitable than being an Airbnb host.
• The income will fluctuate. 

How much can you make as a co-host? 

Co-hosts earn about 10-20% per booking. If you take on extra duties and essentially take care of the entire process, you could earn as much as 25% per booking. 

4. Join a Vacation Rental Franchise 

If you do not want to start from scratch, another way to make money on Airbnb is to join a vacation rental franchise. In exchange for paying a fee, local property managers can get a special license from an existing franchise owner to use their resources and sell services under their brand name. 

What are the pros and cons of getting a vacation rental franchise? 

Pros:

• With this business model, you get access to processes that have been tried and tested.
• The territory in which you will be operating will be defined and protected.
• You will get training and ongoing support. 

Cons:

• You will not have total control over everything as you will have to follow branding guidelines established by the franchisor.
• You will need to pay an initial fee to join a franchise program.
• This business model calls for significant commitment as you will need to sign a contract for a set period of years. 

How much can you make by getting a franchise? 

The income will depend on the franchise program that you choose to join. There are various franchise companies and they require different fees. Depending on which vacation rental franchise program you decide to join, you can expect to pay anything from $55,000 to $100,000. So, when choosing a program, you should be confident in the brand and consider whether the affiliation will bring enough profit to cover the costs. 

5. Become an Airbnb Consultant 

If you already have some experience in managing Airbnb rentals and would like to help other entrepreneurs grow, you can consider becoming an Airbnb consultant. In addition to being experienced in running short-term rentals, you will need to have marketing skills to build your personal brand. 

As an Airbnb consultant, you will help hosts to maximize their bookings, improve their ranking, and possibly to buy and sell short-term rentals. You will also need to identify a specific niche – this is the secret of the most successful consultants. So, be sure to conduct research and keep your own skills in mind before deciding on which specific services you can advertise. 

What are the pros and cons of becoming an Airbnb consultant?

Pros:

• Your startup costs will be minimal.
• You can position yourself as an expert. 

Cons:

• You need to have prior experience as an Airbnb host.
• You need to be self-motivated.  

How much can you make as an Airbnb consultant? 

On average, an Airbnb consultant can make about $83,000 – $90,000 per year in the United States. 

6. Start an Airbnb Cleaning Service 

Starting an Airbnb cleaning service can be a profitable business as it is typically the first task that hosts will outsource. This means that you will have no shortage of work. 

To become an Airbnb cleaning service owner, you will first need to do your research. What do other cleaning services offer? What are the industry standards? 

It’s also important to find out if your state has any requirements, such as insurance and licensing, and what the standard cleaning costs are. Make sure to factor in expenses as well. Examples of expenses involved in this type of business are cleaning products, equipment, labor, and marketing. 

What are the pros and cons of starting an Airbnb cleaning service?

Pros:

• There is no shortage of work as many hosts usually hire external companies to help with cleaning.
• The startup costs are lower than for acquiring a vacation rental franchise. 

Cons:

• You will need to do your own marketing.
• You will need to find a reliable team to create a fully-fledged cleaning business. 

How much can you make as an owner of an Airbnb cleaning service? 

The average income of a cleaner is about $25 per hour. Per month, cleaners earn about $800 on average. The profit that an owner of a cleaning service can make will depend on the cleaning prices and the number of properties cleaned per month. It can be lucrative! For example, MaidThis grosses over $100,000 per month.  

7. Host an Airbnb Experience 

Hosting an Airbnb Experience is one of the most creative ways of making money without renting out any property. 

Airbnb Experiences is a platform launched by Airbnb in 2016, and in five years, it has helped hosts to generate a steady source of revenue. By joining the program, you can offer a wide range of activities that guests can book during their stays, such as a traditional guided tour, cooking class, or art class. If you have a specific hobby or a program, it can be an excellent alternative to hosting stays. 

What are the pros and cons of becoming an Airbnb Experiences host?

Pros:

• You can generate money while you share your hobby or passion.
• With the introduction of Online Experiences, you can offer it from the comfort of your own home.

Cons:

• Depending on the type of Experience you have on offer, you might need to apply for a business license. 
• You need to be an expert in the service that you offer. 

How much can you make as an Airbnb Experiences host? 

You can earn anything from $25 to $150 per guest that signs up for an Experience. In 2020, Airbnb also introduced Online Experiences, and according to Airbnb data, the top-earning Experiences hosts have generated more than $20,000 each after switching to the online platform. 

8. Become a professional Airbnb photographer 

Becoming an Airbnb photographer is another creative way to earn your bread and butter with Airbnb. 

To pursue this avenue, there are two options. You can become a freelance marketplace listing photographer and get listed by Airbnb or advertise your services using other platforms like Fiverr, Upwork, or Instagram. If you want to get listed by Airbnb, you can apply via this form. 

Whichever approach you take, you will need to know about interior photography. So, be sure to learn more about how to stage sets.

What are the pros and cons of becoming an Airbnb photographer?

Pros:

• It offers flexible working hours. 
• You might have more opportunities to travel and discover new places. 

Cons:

• The equipment can be expensive. 
• You will have to market your services. 

How much can you make as an Airbnb photographer? 

According to online data, an Airbnb photographer can earn about $50,000 per year on average. With regards to an hourly rate, it can range from $31 to $94.

9. Become an Airbnb Copywriter 

Offering copywriting services is another non-trivial way to generate profit without renting out an Airbnb property. Copywriting services are becoming more popular among Airbnb hosts. Similarly to becoming an Airbnb photographer, you can advertise your services on online platforms like Upwork and Fiverr. 

As an Airbnb copywriter, you will be responsible for writing catchy titles, engaging property descriptions, and possibly even house rules or reviews for guests. 

What are the pros and cons of becoming an Airbnb copywriter?

Pros:

• It offers flexible working hours.
• It requires little upfront investment.

Cons:

• You need to be self-motivated.
• You will need to market yourself.

How much can you make as an Airbnb copywriter? 

According to online data, an Airbnb copywriter earns about $90,000 per year on average. 

10. Learn the Craft of Vacation Rental Marketing

To be ahead of the competition, it’s necessary for hosts to market properties. It’s getting even more crucial if they generate direct bookings and need to attract potential travelers to their website.

As hosts have a lot on their plate, they usually look for external help to set up and implement a viable marketing strategy to promote their rentals. If you already have marketing skills and are eager to enter the industry, it’s an excellent avenue for you to apply them. However, if you are not proficient in marketing but enthusiastic to get your foot in the door, you can start with social media. Once you’ve mastered this, you can move on to other marketing areas too.

All in all, vacation rental marketers provide the following services:

• Social media marketing
• Email marketing
• Content creation
• Blog posting
• SEO
• SEM
• Lead generation
• Website design

What are the pros and cons of becoming a vacation rental marketer?

Pros:

• You will have minimal overhead costs.
• You can easily operate it from home. 

Cons:

• You need to have the necessary technical skills. 
• You will need a reliable team to help you.  

How much can you make as a vacation rental marketer? 

As a marketer, you can expect to earn about $75,000 per year. 

Conclusion

Earning with Airbnb is now easier than ever. In many cases, you don’t even need to rent out or manage a property to make money and achieve success as an Airbnb professional. Even if you don’t have any prior experience, there is a career opportunity for you that can be started as a side hustle or turned into a full-time gig. Some of these strategies are more challenging than others and require more financial investment, but with hard work and commitment, you can make a decent living.