Property owners who start a short-term rental business may have illusions that it’s a very simple and DIY business. They think you only add an Airbnb listing, get your first guests, and make money.
Those who have been in rentals for a while know it’s about juggling many things. Often, too many to juggle on your own. What to do then? Consider hiring a property manager to delegate some tasks.
Here’s a typical rental story shared by Curt Sutherland, a real-estate investor:
“I got a call once because someone’s kid had put a fire truck in a toilet. The toilet was stopped up and they wanted me to fix it at 3am. I called a plumber for them. They didn’t have any money for the plumber so I got to pay for that too. The next day, I hired a management company. It’s been decades and I’ve never had another phone call about anything minor again.”
Read our article on average Airbnb property management fees. Learn how much does Airbnb management cost with a detailed breakdown and cost-saving tips.
What does the Airbnb management fee include?
Airbnb management fees are the charges collected by a property management provider to organize short-term rentals at your place. The package you get varies across companies and locations. It ranges between 10% to 35+% of your gross monthly rental revenue.
Below, we will talk about what affects the Airbnb management cost and causes considerable differences between the cheapest and most expensive options. For now, let’s clarify what the Airbnb management fee includes.
As a rule, most property managers take care of:
- Listing creation, optimization, and distribution
- Booking calendar management
- Dynamic pricing strategy
- Cleaning and restocking management
- 24/7 availability for communication with guests and host
- Guest review management and feedback collection
- Property maintenance and inspection
- Guest damage reports
- Marketing and promotions
- Property instructions and guestbook
Sounds like a lot, right? In addition to the listed services, some property managers also assist with furnishing, rental licenses, tax collection, and short-term rental insurance. Your task is to find the price-quality balance and scope of services that work for you. Also, take a look at the fees and cost of the STR license in the US.
Key things affecting the Airbnb management cost
Quite predictably, the main factor shaping the Airbnb property management fee is the type of services. Full-service property management companies charge more than half-service because, well, they do more.
Usually, Airbnb management fees are a fixed percentage companies charge from your monthly rental income before taxes. Yet sometimes, additional factors like rental location come into play. Here are the key aspects that may affect what do Airbnb management companies charge.
| Type of management | Full-service management covers more services and is more expensive than half-service management. While the full-service charges range between 20%-35%, the basic fee is around 15%. |
| Property management company | Even though the competition makes companies set similar prices, they still vary. Some agencies may charge more, especially if they claim to offer higher-quality services. |
| Location | In top tourist destinations, charges are typically higher than in less busy places. Location may also affect how much do Airbnb managers charge if your property is in a distant area a manager will need to drive to. |
| Type and size of property | Houses that have swimming pools and yards may be more expensive to manage than apartments and studios since they require more effort. The number of bedrooms also affects the cost with larger houses being more costly to manage. |
| Amenities | Places with lots of amenities and extra services get higher property managers fees. |
| Condition of property | Old properties or places that are in poor condition have an increased risk of guest damage and usually generate lower rental income, resulting in more considerable property management charges. |
| Occupancy rate | Occupancy rates are not the major factor affecting how much does an Airbnb manager cost, yet you may be charged more if your property remains unbooked most of the time. |
| Revenue | Properties that bring high revenue may have lower fees and vice versa. Some companies even refuse to work with properties that make less than $50,000 per year to be able to cover operational costs. |
| Contract duration | Long-term contracts may include a discount and lower the cost of property management. |
Half-service vs full-service vs independent managers: differences and charges
When considering Airbnb property management fees, the first thing you have to decide is the scope of services. If you want full coverage, charges may exceed 35%, whereas half coverage is much more affordable but limited. There is also an option to find an independent subcontractor or use Aribnb’s Co-host program. Learn the average fees, pros, and cons for each option below.
Half-service
Half-service rental management is about optimizing and automating the most repetitive short-term rental processes like communication with guests or scheduling. You will pay from 10% to 15% of your monthly charges for it.
This approach heavily depends on modern software tools and minimizes human interactions. Even though you might have a dedicated manager, they won’t rush to meet your guests at the door and will focus on online property management instead.
Half-service property management reduces the time you spend on running a rental business but won’t allow you to sit back and enjoy passive income.
What is included in the half-service property management?
- Property listing and distribution across main platforms
- Guest background checks and basic screening
- Staying in touch with hosts and guests 24/7
- Guest feedback collection
- Coordinating maintenance requests
- Reporting to hosts
Limitations
Half-service means you will still have to do a lot on your own. It allows you to scale your short-term rental business but makes you stay actively involved in property management.
How much do Airbnb management companies charge?
For half-service property managers, be ready to pay from 10% to 15% of your monthly income.
Full-service
Full-service property management means what it sounds like. The fees range from 20% to 35%, much higher than half-service, but cover everything you need to support a prospering STR business. You get a partner who manages rentals, taxes, legal issues, insurance, property repairs, etc.
What is included in full-service property management?
All options from the half-service property management plus:
- Custom property listing description, virtual tours, and high-quality photos
- Legal and tax support
- Cleaning, laundry, stocking supplies, and other activities required to prepare property for check-ins
- Support for short-term rental insurance
- Check-out property inspections
- Property repairs
- Damage claim management
- 24/7 emergency support for guests
- Cooperation with vendors
Limitations
High monthly charges and less control over your short-term rental business
How much does Airbnb management cost
The prices vary from 20% to 30% on average. Vacasa charges range between 25-35% of monthly revenue, Summer charges 15-25%, and AvantStay’s full-service costs 20% to 30% depending on the case.
Independent property managers
Independent subcontractors may be a good alternative to large property management companies and their rigid full- or half-service models. You find someone local and work with them directly, agreeing on the kind of help you need and fees.
Airbnb also supports the co-host program, allowing hosts to engage their friends, family members, or other hosts living nearby in property management. The average charges are 10% to 20% of the nightly rate without cleaning.
What is included
You can agree on any kind of help and negotiate charges. Usually, cleaning help is not included, but it’s negotiable.
Limitations
Working with an independent subcontractor or co-hosting may be more risky since you will need to rely on one person. Good luck with choosing someone reliable and honest.
How much do property managers charge for Airbnb?
Expect to pay up from 10% of nightly rates. The more help you need, the higher the rates are.
Location matters: Airbnb management fee differences
The place where you rent out property will always affect the income and charges, including Airbnb management company fees. We have analyzed the top locations to give you a hint on what to prepare for:
| Location | Full-service monthly charges | Half-service monthly charges |
| United States | 20% – 35% | 10% – 15% |
| United Kingdom | 15% – 25% | 10% – 15% |
| European Union | 18% – 30% | 10% – 18% |
| Canada | 20% – 25% | 10% – 15% |
| Latin America | 15% – 20% | 8% – 15% |
| Asia | 15% – 25% | 10% – 15% |
So how much do Airbnb property managers charge depending on the location? – More in tourist destinations like Paris or Barcelona where nightly rental charges are high and less in unpopular locations. The part of the world also affects the charges, with the US being one of the most costly destinations in terms of Airbnb property management cost. Learn more about short-term rental expenses and whether short-term rentals are profitable.
Still, you should research the prices for a specific location and talk directly to a property management company. They may offer a discount or tell you they don’t operate in your location. The options are limitless, so getting a quote is definitely better than guesswork.
How is the cost of Airbnb management calculated
Let’s do some math.
As a rule, property management companies charge a specific percentage of the gross monthly rental income (number of booked nights X nightly rate). They also additionally take cleaning fees, property insurance, repair costs, and other expenses they cover out of their pocket while managing your property.
You can use the following average Airbnb management fee formula:
Suppose your property bookings have brought you $1200 this month, with 15% Airbnb management company fees and $200 cleaning charges. Then the cost of property management services is 1200/100 X 15 + 200 = $380.
How Airbnb management fees are charged
Most full-service property management companies charge guests on your behalf to minimize your involvement in the process. At the end of the month, they take their part from the monthly income and transfer the rest to your credit card or bank account. It’s super convenient since you don’t deal with guests at all. The only thing you need is to regularly check reports with property management expenses to make sure no one is cheating.
Ways to cut Airbnb management cost
It might seem like you cannot do much cost-saving with fixed property management charges, but you can. There are many property management companies to shop around. You can also have a say regarding insurance and other nuances affecting expenses.
Here are some strategies to reduce Airbnb management costs.
Negotiate and stay involved
You may want to hire a rental management provider and forget about rental chores forever, but don’t rush. Talk to 3-4 companies at first and get a quote.
Research and compare their offerings to pick the most suitable one. We also recommend staying actively involved at the start to make sure the vendor does their duties properly and guests are satisfied. You can ask guests directly about their experience to learn first-hand.
Hire a small company or agent
Large companies with hundreds of clients may pay less attention to what is actually happening at your place. That’s why you may want to hire a smaller local vendor or an independent agent to get lower costs and better quality.
A property management company owner nicknamed GuidedJourneyCoach shares their opinion:
“The worst thing you can do is hire any large-scale company because they don’t care about your home, period! I built my business based on this exact issue. I owned a cleaning business first and would subcontract through large management companies who had no idea what condition these properties were in and I was the go to for all the information.”
Pick a reliable insurance provider
First of all, you should get insurance. Second, you need to make sure the selected provider covers different types of damage. You should also consider collecting a damage deposit or damage waiver from guests.
It will help you better protect your property from vandalism and wear-and-tear damage that seems minor until you calculate the costs. A good insurer will help you minimize expenses on both guest accidental damage and substantial issues.
Superhog reduces the average cost of Airbnb property management
Superhog is a short-term rental software provider that offers tools for streamlined guest damage management. Use its Know Your Guest product to get a single platform for:
- Automated guest ID verification
- Thorough guest screening
- Collecting damage waivers to build an emergency fund
- Security deposit collection
- Short-term rental protection with up to $5 million coverage
Know Your Guest allows you to reduce the average cost of Airbnb property management by minimizing property damage expenses. It also prevents fraud, protecting hosts from related financial losses.
Book a demo now to learn more about Know Your Guest.
Self-manage or not: Final word on whether property management charges are worth it
The decision on whether to pay Airbnb property management fees or not depends on how much you want (and are ready) to be involved in rentals. Not everyone has the necessary skills to be a landlord and manage guest communications, marketing, screening applicants, insurance, repairs, and tons of other routine tasks. It’s a full-time job that takes a lot of time, especially if you have several properties and want to scale.
That’s why we recommend evaluating your resources and ambitions. If you have only one property to run, renting a property management company may be too much. Yet, if you want to do a rental business with multiple places, 15-20% of monthly charges may be a fair price to focus on doing business instead of entertaining guests.
