A pretty home can be a lucrative business opportunity.
Both long-term and short-term rental prices continue to spike in many cities across the country and lead a lot of people to try to get some supplemental income through the real estate market.
While Airbnb (ABNB)'s appearance on the scene in 2014 made it very easy to rent one's home for a few days or weeks, the latest trend is to rent it without even having to leave for the night.
Before you get too worried about the state of the current rental market, this kind of thing is more often done by companies than individuals. As Realtor.com first reported, brands like L’Oreal OR and Hallmark have been using sites like Home Studio List and Peerspace to rent out a property for a few hours.
The purpose? Everything from photo sessions to events and team meetings. Newcomers like Splacer, Giggster and Avvay have also been springing onto the scene as demand grows.
What Kind Of House Do I Need To Do This?
"Our hottest markets right now are Tampa, Minneapolis, Denver and New Jersey,” Home Studio List founder Hannah Pobar told Realtor.com. "Our average rental is slightly over $800, and our top hosts make about $60,000 per year."
As with anything real estate-related, some homes will get booked much faster than others — while proximity to a major city goes back to a very old adage about location, space and appearance are also particularly important for this type of rental.
Artsy décor that keeps up with the latest in interior design trends will catch the eyes of those looking for photo spaces while spacious patios, backyards and living rooms are well-suited for various company events.
As with companies like Airbnb and VRBO, owners put up listings of their home and, after getting approved as hosts, get displayed on a database of available rentals in a given date and time range for people to search for.
"Photos are a key component of a strong listing, and the first thing guests see when searching for a space," says Peerspace's Molly Burke. "Taking well-lit, high-resolution photos of your space is a great place to start, and don’t forget to place them in order with the most relevant shots first."
Can I Really Make $175 An Hour Doing This?
If you look on the Peerspace site, you'll find categories such as "video shoot," "party" and "workshop."
A search for locations in New York turned up everything from a Chelsea "private therapy space" for $30 an hour to an Upper East Side penthouse for $1,200 an hour and a 10-hour minimum.
For those renting an entire home, $150 an hour or so is currently the standard. Price will also go up when it's for a short period and be discounted for longer rentals.
"We recommend a rental price between $125 to $175 per hour and find that price point does best with our photographers and community," Pobar said.
As with short-term rentals, what seems like a high-price can later be offset with things like cleaning costs and the time spent arranging bookings.
But for those who own their homes, this is one more way to make some extra money off an investment.
There is at least one caveat, however. Renters in major cities will often find that their tenant agreement has a clause explicitly preventing them for using the property for business purposes.
