Air bnb

I'm thinking to rent out my flat in Air bnb.
Any agent / person who can take care house keeping?

what;s your Reaction to the issues pointed out here?

How I ‘Accidentally’ Started a Vacation Rental Business

(Brief background for new readers: My partner and I own six rental units, which produce a combined $35,000/year in net passive income (after all expenses, including management). You can read about them here, here, here and here.)

As soon as “I wonder if …” popped into my mind, my knee-jerk reaction was to focus on the drawbacks of managing a vacation rental business.

More turnover.
Higher vacancy.
Extra management.
Upfront costs of furnishing.
Higher guest expectations (full-service).

I observed those objections arising. And then I asked myself, “How can I battle these?”

#1: Separate “Investor Paula” from “Manager Paula.” I’ll track my hours and ‘pay myself’ the free-market rate for this position ($20/hr). Then I’ll see whether or not Investor Paula still makes a profit, even after paying Manager Paula for her time.

This is crucial. Many business owners think they own an investment, when they really just own a job. The only way to successfully invest in real estate is to make a profit after paying yourself (or paying someone else).

#2: Commit. I’ll commit to this experiment for at least 6 months, if not a year. That way, I can measure vacancy and turnover across the span of several seasons.

#3: Budget. I’ll furnish the apartment on a $2,000 budget – including paying myself for my labor. (I’m not giving my time away for free!)

Here’s what happened next:
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> MORE: http://affordanything.com/2014/03/20/airbnb-experiment-impulsively-started-vacation-rental-business/

Not sure about how this would work out in HK but I have a friend in Bali who is able to nett around USD200,000 per year letting out two holiday villas in the Seminyak area.... (he does not own the villas rather he takes a long term lease on run-down places then upgrades them)

He is a very clever operator who understands online marketing and provides outstanding customer service.... so he has very good repeat business and recommendations (very high ranking on Tripadvisor)

He does not use airbnb... they take a big cut of the rate....

If he were to put long term tenants into the properties he'd be doing well to get $3500 per month...