Take a walk down the yellow brick road of Airbnb news this week for stories of brains, courage and heart, and learn about the brilliant idea behind a new startup in the ecosystem, the resolve behind the mandatory host registration in Paris, and the love story of a host in Philadelphia—who fell for one of her Airbnb guests!
Jasper is discussing these stories and your questions with Nicole Prentice Williams, VP of Strategic Partnerships at Hostfully. They get into the details of Loftium, the new Seattle startup that provides aspiring home buyers with up to $50K for a down payment, pending they agree to list a spare room on Airbnb and share the profits. Jasper and Nicole also cover the latest developments in the affordable housing crisis as Paris attempts to enforce its 120-day rule, and an Airbnb romance resulting from a mutual attraction between an American host and her European guest.
Last but not least, Jasper and Nicole answer listener questions around Airbnb deductions and the pros and cons of back-to-back bookings. Listen in for their advice about who to contact with tax questions and why it is more lucrative to hire a cleaning service and fill your Airbnb calendar.
Topics Covered
Article #1: A Down Payment with a Catch: You Must Be an Airbnb Host
•Startup founded by 29-year-old Harvard grad, Yifan Zhang
•Bought Seattle townhouse, rented spare bedroom on Airbnb
•Realized income covered mortgage
•Founded Loftium to help home buyers with down payment (up to $50K)
•Must be willing to list spare bedroom on Airbnb for 12-36 months
•Loftium collects portion of Airbnb profits
•Strict guidelines (only eight ‘freebie’ days/year)
•Partnership with mortgage lender Fannie Mae
•Pilot program in Seattle with intention to expand
•ClearBank provides similar service for seasoned hosts with proven success
Article #2: You’ll Soon Need to Register Before Renting Out Your Paris Home on Airbnb, Le Figaro Reports
•Mandatory registration opens October 2nd
•Aimed at curbing city housing shortage
•Rules limit homeowners to rentals of 120 days/year
•Hosts have two months to comply
•Similar policies in San Francisco
•May be reaction to UN global housing study
•Enforcement difficult with limited resources
Article #3: Experience: I Fell in Love Through Airbnb
•Reluctant host accepted same-day booking
•Drawn to guest right away
•Spent time together, mutual attraction
•Pursuing long-distance relationship
•Brings up issues of professionalism, awkwardness
Q1: Can I only list my home on Airbnb, or do I need to actually have rentals before the end of the year to claim deductions for this year? Can I claim deductions next year for improvements and spending that occurred this year?
•Contact your CPA for accurate info
•Shared Economy CPA specializes in Airbnb
Q2: Does having a day before and after each booking really hurt me? I like to be able to clean the space myself.
•Will miss out on bookings
•Consider hiring cleaning service
•Cost 10-20% of potential revenue
Resources Mentioned
Article #1: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/18/your-money/mortgages/loftium-airbnb-down-payment.html
Loftium
Fannie Mae
ClearBank
Article #2: bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-16/airbnb-paris-rental-agents-to-register-from-oct-2-figaro-says
UN Study: Global Housing Crisis
Article #3: theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/sep/15/experience-i-fell-in-love-through-airbnb
Shared Economy CPA
Airbnb News Facebook Group
Connect with Jasper
Email: jasper@getpaidforyourpad.com
Twitter: @GetPaidForUrPad
Instagram: @GetPaidForYourPad
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
