What is Airbnb?
Airbnb is an online marketplace that connects people who want to rent out their homes with people who are looking for accommodations in specific locales.
How To Register For Airbnb In South Africa?
The registration process is not complex.
Here is how to register for Airbnb in South Africa.
1 Visit the Airbnb host page and click on get started. You will be asked to enter basic information regarding yourself and your property and follow the easy on-screen prompts.
2 Once you have entered the details, you will choose between duplicating a listing, finishing one on progress, and creating a new listing.
3 Enter your property’s address.
4 Choose the type of property you will be renting out. The most common include treehouses, barns, rooms within an apartment, entire apartments, and entire houses. You will then be asked to input details about your property. These include bed configurations, number of baths and beds, number of guests, and other pertinent details.
5 Once your listing is up, spruce it up with beautiful photos. Hosts with nice-looking professional images have been shown to earn significantly more than those without pro images. Feel free to hire a professional photographer for this task.
6 Before beginning hosting, it is important to know your local city laws. For example, Cape Town and Johannesburg have different property rental laws.
7 The last step involves setting your prices and cancellation policies. First, determine the amount you want to charge your guests per night.
The Airbnb site has a handy tool known as ‘What’s my place worth?’ that helps hosts gauge the price they should charge. For cancellation policies, you can choose strict, moderate, or flexible.
How does Airbnb work in South Africa?
You have registered your property, created a listing and set your prices and cancellation policy. You are now ready to start hosting. Here is everything you need to know about hosting an Airbnb in SA.l
Host requirements
Airbnb aims to create safe and comfortable stays for guests. For this reason, all hosts are required to meet these four standards.
Airbnb aims to create safe and comfortable stays for guests. For this reason, all hosts are required to meet these four standards.
Be responsive:
As a host, ensure you respond to your clients’ queries within 24 hours. Accept trip requests: Ensure your guests feel welcome by accepting their requests whenever you are available.
Avoid cancellations:
You will want to avoid cancelling on your guests unless it is necessary. Cancellations can be very inconvenient and costly to your image as a host.
Aim for high ratings:
Your guests will expect high-quality standards. Strive to meet them.
Essential amenities
Essential amenities are the basic items that a guest expects for them to have a comfortable stay at your property.
Here is the current list.
Toilet paper
Soap (for body and hands)
One towel for each guest
One pillow for each guest
Linens for each guest bed
The recommended quantities of each item depend on the number of guests and the length of their stay. For longer stays, it is essential to provide extras for each amenity. Doing this will ensure guests have everything they need for a comfortable stay.
Follow the 5-step cleaning process
Here is a look at the process meant to ensure your property meets the highest cleanliness standards.
Preparation: Proper preparation will help you and your team clean more efficiently and safely.
Cleaning: It is important to start by removing dirt and dust from surfaces such as floors and countertops and then doing a thorough cleaning.
Sanitizing: Use safe chemical disinfectants to reduce the number of bacteria on high-touch surfaces, such as doorknobs and television remotes.
Checking: Have a checklist for each room to ensure nothing has been skipped.
Resetting: To prevent cross-contamination, it is important to wash your hands when you are done with one room.
What documents do I need for Airbnb?
You will have to provide basic identification and property-related documents to Airbnb along with your bank details to receive payments.
It does not charge you money directly—it takes a cut out of every booking (typically 3%). It also charges GST on your behalf, which can range from 0-28% depending on the price.
How much does Airbnb cost South Africa?
According to Wahi’s site, it charges a 17.5% service fee (15% payable by renters and 2.5% payable by hosts). So if the host is charging R100 for some space, it will charge the renter R115 and pay the host R97.
How do I register my property on Airbnb?
How to join Airbnb as business or company
- Step 1: Open your browser and visit the official website, Airbnb.com.
- Step 2: After that select Host.
- Step 3: Now select Add a new listing.
- Step 4: After that, you’ll be asked a series of questions about your place, one of which is “Do you host on Airbnb as part of a company?”.
Is Airbnb a good investment in South Africa?
In South Africa, Airbnb is quite well known and has become an exciting income stream for property owners.
How many Airbnb hosts are there in South Africa?
35,000
For example, Airbnb’s community of hosts in South Africa has grown to over 35,000, and the significant majority of them (65 percent) are women.