Automation vs Experience Which Do You Trust?

Today I came across a new feature Airbnb is offering to short-term rental owners. This automated service allows homeowners to plug in their address, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms and the system generates the projected revenue and occupancy.  The automation projects % occupancy, average nightly stay, and annual gross rent. Sounds cool, right?

Wrong, after performing several searches it was obvious that either the new Airbnb automated feature was either broken or the numbers it produced were exaggerated for the sole purpose to gain short-term rental properties.

If you are a homeowner or potential buyer and trying to decide if it is worth renting your property or buying a particular property this automated Airbnb feature is not for you. Why? Airbnb’s automated feature only accounts for # of bedrooms, # bathrooms and the address. There is so much more to the equation than address and property size.

Experience not only puts homeowners and renters together like Airbnb but also manages the units during the renters stay has on the ground experience with what renters want and don’t want and what drives rental rates.

If you are wondering what your rental property can generate annually speak to a property management company like OTA’s (online travel agency) such as Airbnb just are not equipped to evaluate and assess the necessary criteria needed to make a realistic rental projection. Why? Property Management companies work directly with owners and renters and are the boots on the ground in your specific location.

OTA’s put rental properties at your fingertips but they don’t know the property in a detailed and personal way that property managers do experience can assist you with a realistic and complete property analysis and provide you with a projected annual rental revenue based on all criteria. Criteria such as location, #bedrooms, #bathrooms, condition of furniture, bedding, countertops, bathroom cabinets,  window treatments, kitchen cabinets, flooring, lighting, views, HOA requirements, and restrictions, parking, actual comps on similar rental properties and lastly factoring in if your property is at the beach or the mountains (the low and high season rental rates). Free of charge.

Automation or Experience, which would you use if you wanted to find out the “real” rental potential of a vacation rental property?