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What You Should Know Before Listing a Mobile Home on Airbnb 

Airbnb created an entirely new industry for real estate owners to safely rent their property to complete strangers on a short term basis. But you can make extra money by listing your mobile home on Airbnb too.

We’re all for sharing mobile homes of any make and money with as many people as possible. It’s a win-win for owners and the renters.  Spending just one night in a mobile home could completely change someone’s opinion about them. Many people have never set foot in a mobile home so their knowledge or opinion about them is likely based on outdated stereotypes perpetrated by mainstream media and Hollywood.

Make Extra Money Hosting Your Mobile Home on Airbnb

Mobile homes are wildly popular on Airbnb!

Making Money with Mobile Homes

Flipping is a popular way to make money with mobile homes. You buy a home in a park or on private land cheap, renovate it with smart upgrades and materials, and then sell it at a profit. Flipping can generate high returns but it doesn’t create a regular income stream.

Renting a mobile home can create steady income. We’ve all heard the horror stories about renting a home to a terrible tenant. I’ve tried renting out our single wide in West Virginia while living in South Carolina four times over the years and it was a nightmare. Dealing with deadbeat tenants that won’t pay their rent or take care of the property can be difficult. It is expensive to repair damages or evict tenants and those costs can quickly eat away at any revenue you may make. 

Hosting your mobile home on nightly or weekly basis is another option. Hosting or listing a mobile home on Airbnb could eliminate most rental headaches and help you make more money.

Let’s keep it real though, renting a home to strangers, regardless of the company you use or the added protections you buy, is still a gamble.

That’s why information is so important – knowledge is power!

You can reduce your risks and make more money by taking advantage of the tools and data that Airbnb releases to help host.

Airbnb Your Mobile Home

Airbnb has an in depth help section and several handy tools to help new hosts get started. Simply click on their menu or scroll to the bottom of any page on Airbnb’s website or app and you’ll find a section dedicated to hosting:

Airbnb first helpful resource ulmtokl You can click on Airbnb your home and then enter your location to see the average nightly rate for your area.

Useful Airbnb Tools and Statistics (that may help you make more money)

In 2014, San Jose’s City Council became one of the first in the country to regulate Airbnb. It seems the city worked with Airbnb to find a happy medium between homeowners and traditional travel industries.

Since we found a lot of information about Airbnb listings in San Jose, CA, so we’ll use that area’s data for the rest of the article. 

Hosting Mobile Homes on Airbnb

Mobile homes, workspaces, and guesthouses are permitted in San Jose, as are single-family and multi-family residences.

However, the city prohibits the use of short-term rental platforms like Airbnb for secondary residences.

Airbnb Hosting Eligibility

Hosting is permitted in all legally occupied properties under municipal legislation.

  • Guests in this city can rent an Airbnb whenever the host is available. If the host is away, guests in New York can stay for up to 180 days.
  • The required number of parking spaces for the number of units must be provided by Airbnb rentals.
  • If the host is unavailable, visitors and neighbors should be alerted in writing and given a local phone number.
  • Airbnb short-term rentals must adhere to local housing regulations.

Capacity Limits

The local ordinance states that no more than three visitors may stay in a mobile home or single-family residence while the host is present.

The maximum number of visitors allowed in a private Airbnb rental while the owner is not there is 2 for a studio, 3 for a 1-bedroom, and 2 for each additional bedroom, up to a maximum of 10.

Airbnb hosts are responsible for preserving records for three years following the end of each rental term to demonstrate that they comply with local regulations. They must furnish duplicate records at the city manager’s or designee’s request.

Other Laws and Guidelines

Leases, community agreements, HOA standards, and other tenant association laws may also impose restrictions.

  • Regulating Short-Term Rental Websites in Santa Clara County: All Airbnbs in Santa Clara County are subject to a temporary occupancy tax of 8%.
  • Rules Governing Host Behavior on Airbnb in the State of California: As an Airbnb host in California, you won’t have to worry about paying any taxes or a registration fee.

There are a few ways to increase profits when listing a mobile home on Airbnb but the two best methods are updating the home to entice more renters and using every bit of information and data you can find to your advantage. 

Understanding Occupancy Rates

As an Airbnb owner, tracking your occupancy rate is crucial to increase your income and stay ahead of your competitors. 

The percentage of a property’s monthly reservations represented by the Airbnb occupancy rate is an important performance statistic for any vacation rental owner or manager.

You may expect a lot of money if your property has a high occupancy rate, but what is a nice benchmark for that percentage? 

What is an acceptable percentage of empty rooms that falls in line with the Airbnb occupancy rate San Jose California has in its legal books?

Some of the stats regarding the Airbnb occupancy rate San Jose California are listed below:

  • According to statistics compiled by AirDNA, the average nightly rate for a short-term rental in San Jose in July 2021 is $193.
  • The average occupancy is 81%.
  • Revenue each month averages $2,800

How much do vacation management companies charge? RentCafe believes the typical apartment in San Jose will cost you $2,741 as of October 2021, while AirDNA puts the effective rent at $2,545. 

Without accounting for extra costs, this equates to a monthly net revenue from short-term rentals of between $255 and a little over $50. The greatest San Jose neighborhoods, including West San Jose and North San Jose, only generate $350-$500 net per month, which scarcely covers the expenses of maintaining a short-term rental. Understanding statistics can help you

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Crystal Adkins

Crystal Adkins

Crystal Adkins created Mobile Home Living in 2011 after buying a 1978 single wide and searching online for mobile home remodeling ideas but finding very little. Today, it's the most popular resource in America for mobile home information and inspiration and has been visited over 40 million times.