If you're a homeowner who's thinking about making a move, have you considered renting out your current house on a short-term basis instead of selling it? Short-term rentals, which are often used as an alternative to hotels, have become quite popular as an investment option lately.

Renting out your house instead of selling it might seem like a great idea at first, but let me tell you, it can come with its fair share of challenges. Taking on the responsibility of managing a short-term rental might prove to be more difficult than you anticipated. Let me outline some of the potential obstacles you could encounter along the way.

A Short-Term Rental Comes with Responsibilities

Managing your house as a short-term rental is no easy feat. It requires plenty of time and effort on your part. You'll find yourself dealing with reservations, organizing check-ins, and taking care of cleaning, landscaping, and maintenance tasks. Each of these responsibilities can be quite demanding on their own, but when you add them all up, it becomes quite a lot to handle.

In short, when you rent out your place for short periods, you can expect a lot of people coming and going. This constant flow of guests can cause more damage to your property, so you might find yourself needing to fix things or buy new furniture, fixtures, and appliances more frequently.

Have you thought about how committed you are to doing all that work, especially if you want to use a platform to advertise your rental? A lot of these platforms have certain criteria that hosts need to fulfill.

““Managing a rental property can be time-consuming and challenging. Are you handy and able to make some repairs yourself? If not, do you have a network of affordable contractors you can reach out to in a pinch? Consider whether you want to take on the added responsibility of being a landlord, which means screening tenants and fielding issues, among other responsibilities, or paying for a third party to take care of things instead.””

— Bankrate

Before you decide to turn your house into a short-term rental, there are a few things you should definitely think about. It can be a lot of work, so if you're not quite prepared for that, it might actually make more sense to just sell your house instead.

Short-Term Rental Regulations

As more and more people are getting into the short-term rental business, there are more rules and regulations in place. One common restriction is the limit on the number of vacation rentals allowed in a specific area. This is particularly common in big cities and popular tourist spots, to prevent overcrowding and ensure there's enough housing for the locals. There are also rules about the types of properties that can be used for short-term rentals.

Many cities require homeowners to get a rental license or permit.

““Renting short-term rentals is considered a business by most local governments, and owners must comply with specific workplace regulations and business licensing rules established in their local communities.””

— Nick Del Pego, CEO at Deckard Technologies

Before you even think about renting out your home, it's super important to double-check if your local government and homeowners association (HOA) are cool with short-term rentals or if they straight-up ban them.

Bottom Line

Before you jump into turning your home into a short-term rental, it's important to do your homework. It's a big decision, and we should chat to see if selling your house might be a better option. Let's connect soon to discuss it further.