Trips away can be expensive and, often, we are paying considerable amounts for accommodation when we are mostly out and about.
To try and tackle this frustration with travellers, Airbnb is encouraging people to reconsider solo rooms to rent – rather than entire properties – by launching a new range of features on the platform.
While the private bedroom option – which typically offers access to shared spaces such as kitchens, living rooms, or gardens – has been around for a while, fewer people were comfortable with the idea during the pandemic because of social distancing guidelines.
However, as the cost of living crisis continuing to impact all areas of life – including reducing budgets for holidays and trips – the Airbnb team say it’s the right time for Private Rooms so be ‘rediscovered and relaunched.’
With the newly-relaunched Rooms category, users can now search specifically for private rooms and see how much they will save compared to renting an entire flat or house.
For those who prefer a little more privacy, there will also be the option to filter by private en-suite. Airbnb will also flag the private rooms that don’t have internal or external locks, so people fully understand the levels of security and privacy before booking.
For those concerned about who they might be sharing a property with, Airbnb has come up with a new feature, too.
A Host Passport will be available alongside the room listing, which offers details about the hosts themselves – so you can get to know them a little bit beforehand.
The average price for an Airbnb room in the UK is £59 a night, according to Nate Blecharczyk, the co-founder of the company – and globally, more than 80% of stays in private rooms are less than $100 (£80) a night.
‘Airbnb has something for everyone: every price point, every location, every configuration,’ Nate said.
‘Now you can toggle between searching for rooms of homes, you can see how it changes the value proposition dramatically. It’s very clear.’
What to know about renting your spare room out on Airbnb:
According to Landlord Today, Airbnb has previously said ‘spare room’ landlords earn around £2,400 a year.
This was off the back of the platform previously calculating that the average one-night stay in such a room is £55.
Those who do intend to make money in this way should know about a few things…
Paying tax
It’s worth pointing out if you’re renting out a room or home on Airbnb you need to pay taxes on it correctly.
It’s a requirement to pay tax on rental income and so if you’re a Host on Airbnb, your tax responsibilities will change. And to declare all of your Host income to HMRC, you need to file a tax return.
According to Airbnb: ‘If you’re only renting out a room in your house that you’re also living in, the process is pretty straightforward. If you live in the property and earn less than £7,500 a year from hosting on Airbnb then, lucky you, you don’t have to do anything more.
‘This is called the Rent-a-Room scheme which is a tax-free allowance for landlords. If you earn more than this, you need to declare it to HMRC.’
Airbnb fees
Most Hosts pay a flat service fee of 3% of the booking subtotal – which is is the nightly price plus any optional fees you charge guests, such as a cleaning fee. But this doesn’t include Airbnb fees and taxes. Guests typically pay a service fee of around 14% of the booking subtotal.
Airbnb gives the example that if you’re charging £100 a night for a three-night stay, plus £60 for a cleaning fee, your booking subtotal is £360. The Host service fee, which is generally 3% of your booking subtotal (£10.80), is deducted from your earnings, and a service fee of 14% (£50.40) is charged to guests and included in the total price they pay. In this example:
- You’d earn £349.20
- Your guest would pay £410.40
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