Shampoo & Booze 1: How We Started Hosting on Airbnb

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Welcome to the first episode of Shampoo and Booze, a podcast about making a living on Airbnb. You can see more about who we are on our About page. Basically we are two tech nerds that moved from the city (nyc and sf) to a beautiful rural area in the US. We could still make a living on the internet, but also decided to go out on our own and (open an ebay business first) start an Airbnb vacation rental. After 3 years of blood, sweat and tears, the house opened for business in Feb 2015 and we've been booked ever since.

Thinking of becoming an Airbnb host or guest? Use our referral code and get $20 off your next stay or $80 credit if you become a host!

32 comments:

  1. I liked the content. I can't wait to see the community grow.

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    1. Yeah, you know how this works. We're no experts and just sharing our experience. In fact, we're newbies on the block with only about six months of renting under our belt. We look forward to hearing what others have to say.

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    2. exactly. we've learned (and continue to learn) so much from others, that it's so valuable to have a place to share info.

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  2. Thanks for the new pod cast. We needed more of you to listen to while listing. Thank you for answering several of my questions in the past on Scavenger Life. Really appreciate the personal touch.

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  3. You are both truly inspirational. Thank you for all that you do!

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  4. Great new podcast! Thanks!

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  5. Hey you're not tech people you're scavengers. Who are you? Where do you come from? What do you want to do with your life? lol

    https://youtu.be/V9AbeALNVkk

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    1. Our local banker thinks we work in the tech industry, but yes, we're Scavengers. Sing it Dee.

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  6. Great podcast. Love listening to Scavenger Life and now this is fun, too! I couldn't get away with having an Airbnb in Burbank. I have a house near Toluca Lake and I hear that people in Toluca Lake were complaining when some Airbnb rentals started up there. They said that the renters were having noisy pool parties and their guests were parking in front of other homes in the neighborhood and taking up all the parking. Not sure how it's going now, but I just get the feeling that it wouldn't work well here. It's nice that you are in the country (the perfect place for an Airbnb). Congrats on the launch of your new page and podcast. Debbie in L.A.

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    1. Thanks Deb. It seems there are different fights about Airbnb all over the country. Who wants party people next door to them? But if you rent to quiet people, it shouldn't be a problem. Sounds like you have some nice pieces of property!

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    2. hey debbie
      we have found that renters can vary in our county just like you mentioned. i have seen many a river keg party happening at certain cabins because the owners were cool with it or didn't care. but more often, people screen for those types of people so their neighbors don't get mad and their place doesn't get trashed. we always have a conversation with the guests about who is coming and what they plan on doing. so it is possible to make your place more family or couple oriented and make sure that's who plans on coming. esp if you have a remote caretaker who can report back to you "hey 10 people showed up and i asked them to leave" type deal.

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    3. Thanks Jay & Ryanne. I live within a half a mile of the property, so it's easy for me to drive by to see what's going on. It would be great for tourists because it's right near all the major Burbank Studios and Hollywood, but just completely away from the riffraff of Hollywood Blvd and those surrounding areas. It's the house that I grew up in and filming was done routinely in the neighborhood. TV is still going strong in the area and filming is still all over the streets in the area especially right now. People always have fun in Burbank/Toluca Lake because it's so close to everything, yet still nice and peaceful. Airbnb is something for me and my sisters to think about "for sure" but always having to consider our neighbors. I will keep on listening to your Podcasts, both this one and OF COURSE "SCAVENGER LIFE"... Love everything you guys do! Have a great time in Amsterdam!

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    4. wow, you are so close to the property. that's a great advantage. we find that checking people in and letting them know this is our house, we clean it, etc etc, they treat it with much more respect than if they did self-check in or if it's run by a management company. trust me, if they know you're cleaning up after them, they want to make a good impression. you have a potential goldmine of a property there.

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    5. Awesome. I will keep listening to all the episodes and we will see where it all goes. One sister wants to sell, but I think that this would be the gift that keeps on giving. I can't stand the idea of letting go of property that has no mortgage on it that is located in a great area. - Debbie

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  7. Cool blog. Thanks for the info!
    You mention that you leave ketchup, mustard etc for guests to use. I know
    you guys are too frugal to keep buying new stuff for each guest. So, do you top
    them off for each new guest? Guests don't think it's gross that there's an open
    bottle of ketchup and oil for them? I don't think I would use a open bottle
    of mustard, etc that the last guest had access to. But, that's just me. I'm a little
    funny that way. Can you please elaborate on what you do.
    We are thinking of having a rental next year. Thanks!

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    1. as we mentioned in the episode, we do stock up on these things and just replace what is needed when it runs out. not too frugal to make sure each guest has some of this stuff. that's the beauty of the grocery outlet near us or costco. you can be frugal and still provide that stuff for people. all those things cost so little and give people a better experience. if you personally wouldn't, as a guest, use some mustard that someone else used (why? you do it at restaurants all the time), then it's your duty to go buy some at the grocery store. lots of our renters shop even before they arrive at the house and bring that stuff with them anyway.

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    2. p.s. i look forward to hearing about your rental too. don't let these types of details bog you down. you'll figure out what makes sense for your area and your house/style.

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    3. This is why I'm all squeeze-bottles all the time, for the b&b. I personally don't mind using open mustard jars (who licks a mustard jar? No one.) but I wanted to minimize waste, just in case. It breaks my heart that my Costco only has those McDonald's-style creamer cups in Vanilla. PLAIN! I need PLAIN creamer with a shelf life of ten years for my guests! Sadly, I leave them the powdered stuff. :(

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    4. yeah we get extreme about coffee amenities. we have powdered stuff (some people like it, which i think is nutty) and we have the little creamers and they're plain. they are called Land O Lakes Mini Moos http://amzn.to/1KIPG9I and we get them at walmart. they are real cream but don't have to be refrigerated, but we put them in the fridge anyway. that's weird that costco doesn't sell plain ones, would be a great buy.

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    5. Indeed my Costco only has Vanilla MiniMoos. Good to know Walmart has them but they're CHEEP at Costco and come in a massive box. Maybe more people would like vanilla creamer than I think. I'd use it, if it was all there was, no problem.

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    6. jay just freaked out at how cheap it was on amazon, so maybe we'll buy a box of it there instead of walsmart. it appears to be plain, not vanilla, so that's good.

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  8. YES! Shampoo and Booze! I have built my home bar around the hootch left behind by guests :) I also tag some of my Instagram pics "sh*tmytenantsleavebehind". Booze, underwear, iPads, pork chops. I had a guest leave a whole closetful of brand new mens' shirts with price tags attached...and also the anti-theft clips too. WHOOPS!

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    1. yep i love your sh*tmytenantsleavebehind tag. some wacky stuff left behind. i found a shattered ipod nano hidden in a drawer, have no idea who left that behind. i fixed the glass, now it's good as new! someone also left two drawers full of clothes, again, no one mentioned it and i think it was several renters later since it was in our 3rd bedroom (writers shed) so i have no idea who left them. now i have several pairs of men's H&M pants that fit me nicely. odd but true.

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  9. Sooooo stoked to have found your podcasts and blog!! My partner and I just closed last November and we're in the initial phases of getting our airbnb ready. Looking forward to learning and growing with you. Funnily, the manager of our car rental spot told me about your podcasts over the past weekend & prior to heading to the house. You're known in Poughkeepsie. =)

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    1. We'd love to hear more about your experience buying that house and getting it ready to rent. Did you buy it specifically to rent on Airbnb?

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  10. Absolutely!! Anytime. Happy to jump on a call with you too. The house is two fold. Airbnb first and then a weekend getaway when appropriate.

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  11. So excited that a member of our team referred me to your podcast! We are eBay sellers, turned Amazon sellers, turned owners of InventoryLab that helps sellers list on Amazon. We just bought a house, finished the basement for our software business, and now have the in-law apartment available to Airbnb. We live 15min from Saratoga Springs, NY which is a very tourist area. I am hoping we can get started hosting in the Spring!

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    1. Glad you found us. I think Airbnb and online selling is a great mix of business. Running a software from home is a big plus too. We'd love to hear more of your story as it evolves. Email us anytime.

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