Long term solution for short term renting problem

The news that Airbnb, the most popular platform for short-term rentals, laid off 1,900 people, a quarter of the total number of employees, stunned the world.

The company is currently trying to recover from the global crisis created by the COVID-19 virus pandemic, which brought global tourism to a standstill. Since the beginning of the crisis, Airbnb lost around one billion dollars and the revenue this year is forecasted to be less than half of what they earned in 2019.

Airbnb's business policy is to take a shared host and guest service fee. Thanks to the decisions to allow guests to cancel bookings with a full refund due to the coronavirus outbreak, they managed to make both parties angry. The hosts feel cheated because of the income they are losing as a result of the company's generosity to guests, and many guests because they did not receive a refund.

The company's CEO, Brian Chesky, said two main factors would affect the future of the company. Nobody knows when travel will start to function normally and whether tourists' expectations will remain the same as they were.

The message from Airbnb is that everything related to short-term renting is uncertain. And after these dramatic moves, it will be difficult for Airbnb to restore the most important thing: the trust they enjoyed for more than ten years. In any case, we support Airbnb because we love good ideas, and the only thing we can do is wait and see what will happen.

But we know that waiting is not good for short-term rental business. So now it might be a good idea to offer your apartment for long-term rent - at least until tourism recovers. Therefore, we would like to introduce you to some of the advantages of switching from short-term to long-term renting:

The time is right

Long-term renting did not stop even during the state of emergency - it only adjusted to the circumstances. Demand is continually growing, so we expect the renting market will be the first to recover. Now that the state of emergency has ended, it is likely that a large number of people will return to work in Belgrade and Novi Sad - and that they will seek accommodation. Seize the moment!

Earn more than you spend

If you own a short-term rental property, you know how much time and organization it takes. With long-term rentals, it all comes down to showing the apartment to potential tenants and one monthly visit to collect rent. Or you can skip that step with ebanking and emailed bills. Since your rental apartment is not consuming so much of your time anymore, you can turn to another job or activity that you enjoy more.

Also, short-term rental costs rise with the number of guests; we mean utility bills and the usual household consumables (from coffee to cleaning products), as well as cleaning services. With long-term renting, it's your tenants' obligation.

To summarize, if you rent a property long term, it will work for you, it will pay for itself and earn money along the way.

Security

Short-term renting has always implied a certain amount of uncertainty and depended on many factors. In the post-COVID era, what we all need is security. Start a long-term rental business with long term tenants and secure your income.

And to have a steady income and security, you only need one thing: 

Good real estate agency

With City Expert, you can count on the best presentation of your property and a large number of potential tenants, because the rental service is without a commission for them. On the other hand, we charge you a commission, but the lowest on the market.

City Expert bonus: Social-distancing is included. All information related to your property will be available online, and renting will be done with an absolute minimum of contacts: just you and the tenant.

If you want to start a long-term renting business with our help, let us know!