Tune in to Episode 1 on Apple Podcast or Spotify to hear the story of how Host Coach, Culin Tate, went from unemployed to grossing over $1 million from Airbnb investments!
Do you dream of finding a way to create cash flow and attain financial freedom? Have you considered Airbnb investing, but been too afraid of the risks to get started? Or, are you struggling with where to invest in a short-term rental?
If so, this episode is for you! We are sharing our journey from unemployed to making $1,000,000 while working less than any other jobs in our lives. After listening to this podcast, you’ll understand how Airbnb investing helped us (and will help you) create financial freedom. You’ll also learn our 4 pillars of Airbnb investing success: Finding your Airbnb where, making your listing pop, how to price for occupancy and how to optimize for rank.
Tune in to learn how you can use Airbnb investments to create financial freedom!
Topics discussed in this episode:
- How we went from unemployed to enjoying financial freedom
- The 4 Pillars of Successful Airbnb Investing
- How to find the best market near you for an Airbnb property
- How to make your listing pop
- How to price for occupancy
- How to optimize for rank
Host Coach Airbnb Investing Podcast Episode 1 Notes:
Hi, I'm Culin Tate. And I'm Danielle Tate. Together we're a husband and wife Airbnb investing team, but that wasn't always the case!
My entire life, I've chased financial freedom. From the time I was a teenage lifeguard and saw a dad bringing his kids to the pool in the middle of the day all summer long. That was the lifestyle I wanted!
Part of my struggle has been the mainstream convention that you have to work a 40, 50 hour a week job to be successful and wealthy. I've worked those hours and made great money, but that didn't leave much time and energy to spend with my family and friends. I have considered real estate investing, but was concerned that my peers would look down on me for becoming just a real estate investor.
I was afraid of failing. What if my investments didn't make enough money to pay the bills? My first forays into real estate so far didn't go as planned. My long-term rental condo, my family outgrew, never cash flowed, and dealing with tenants was a total pain. My commercial real estate attempt also didn't create wealth as it sold for the same amount.
I purchased it for 10 years later. I was so frustrated. Where was that wealth building opportunity for my generation?
Two things I knew for sure. Working long hours to build up startup companies was not the way to achieve financial freedom for me, and I needed to try a different kind of real estate investment.
Things came to a head when my job was eliminated after the company I worked for was sold. I was 48, unemployed, and at a career crossroads. I struggled with the false belief that it was too old to start something new like Airbnb investing.
How could I risk it when I had a family support and a young son, I wanted to be present for? Didn't I have to stick to what I knew and just trudge along through life? If I tried investing and failed, I'd burn through our savings, lose my professional reputation. Worst case scenario, lose our house. I try to fight fear with facts.
.So I started looking at the money our small cabin was making on Airbnb monthly. I realized that it wouldn't take too many more investments to cover my fixed monthly expenses, so I jumped in two more Airbnbs later. I was more than covering my bills.
I was making $13,000 a month and we added more Airbnb investments, and then I had an epiphany. My Airbnb investing success wasn't just luck. I had figured out the Airbnb algorithm and created a proven model that I could share with others. I realized that Airbnb was a search engine like Google, and therefore there was a method to ensure that the listings showed at the top of search results.
Friends and family saw my investing success and asked me to help them. From there, Danielle and I began coaching friends and family, and then just complete strangers. My friend Lou's first Airbnb investment covered its mortgage, plus his primary mortgage. He's now currently living mortgage free and I've never seen him happier and more relaxed.
I then begin speaking at Keller Williams Market Centers sharing my investment strategies with real estate agents for themselves and their clients. This eventually led to the writing of the host Coach book with Danielle.
From all these experiences, we created the four pillars of Airbnb investing success.
Pillar One is Find Your Where. This involves pinpointing the location that makes the most sense for your Airbnb investment. Look for areas one to three hours outside of your city where people like to go. These are getaway locations, areas with mountains, lakes, or wineries where people like to find a change of scenery.
Then use a software like AirDNA to determine the nightly rates and , occupancy levels of the Airbnb properties in that particular area. If your favored location and AirDNA results line up, you've found your where.
Pillar Two is Make Your Listing Pop. I love to turn crispy cabins into luxury Airbnbs. I specifically decorate with Airbnb listing optimization and guest experience in mind. This can be as simple as choosing the right paint colors, adding a few highly desirable amenities, like a hanging basket chair, and getting professional HDR photos taken. We'll do a deep dive on all four pillars on later episodes of the Host coach show.
Pillar number three is what we call Price For Occupancy. This is a key pillar for success and most new and seasoned investors miss this one. You're gonna want to implement a dynamic pricing tool like Price Labs with the goal of 90 plus percent occupancy. This will keep your calendar full of bookings and not only generates more cash flow, it also feeds into the air.
Airbnb algorithm helping your listing stay at the top of search results, so more potential guests can see and book it.
Pillar number four is Optimize For Rank. Once your Airbnb investment is listed in cash flowing, it's time to focus on tracking and optimizing your listings for rank placement on the platform.
What's that mean? It means using software to know where your listing is, ranking and tweaking your listing to ensure it aligns with the Airbnb platform and what the algorithm favors. Some things such as adjusting your cancellation policy, your pet policy, turning on instant booking or adding guest amenities. .
Many other things can be done to play to the Airbnb algorithm in your favor and place your listing above all others. . If you make the algorithm happy, your listing will stay at the top of Airbnb search results. You'll book more guests at a higher rate and fast track attaining Airbnb superhost status and make more money every month.
Understanding and implementing these four pillars has completely changed our lives, and it can change yours. We are now grossing over a million dollars annually on Airbnb and working less than any other job in our lives, and we love what we do. We get to work, invest, and coach together every day.
Our coaching clients and book readers have shared hundreds of success stories of creating immediate positive cashflow from Airbnb property investing, and using our four pillars in their markets around the world. Some of our favorite stories include a KW agent in his twenties who we worked with. Philip now gets paid via cashflow generated to live at the beach while renting out the other parts of his triplex.
We also have clients who were able to retire early by investing in an Airbnb property in a place they love to visit. It's a double win-win for them money to retire on and a place to vacation in. No matter what your age or financial situation, Airbnb investing is hands down the fastest way to build wealth and create financial freedom.
Through Airbnb investing, I finally have the financial freedom to spend time with my family. I'm the dad now that takes his son to the pool in midday and attends afterschool soccer matches. We even moved to Greece for a year for a family study abroad adventure. There's no way that would've been possible with a more traditional job!
I'm no longer chained my desk. I no longer feel anxious if I'm not working. I can rest comfortably in the knowledge that my Airbnb investments are generating income, and my systems and methods maximize occupancy and maximize revenue, with minimal stress on my part. Failure, I no longer feel it. After making 10 Airbnb investments, they're no longer scary. And we are confident in our process for success. Individually facing and overcoming each small challenge that was preventing me from becoming an Airbnb investor led to killing my fear and moving forward into success and living the life I always wanted.
If you're frustrated with your current situation and searching for the best way to generate additional cash flow and you're looking to build financial freedom, you are in the right place. The Host Coach show was created with a mission. Our mission is to guide you a Keller Williams agent through Airbnb investing for financial freedom.
Each weekly episode of the Host Coach show provides a lesson or strategy from us, the host, coaches, or interviews with other successful investors and industry icons to help you create financial freedom as an Airbnb investor.
If you've found value in this episode, please share it with two or three people you know should be on this Airbnb investing journey with you. The more listeners we can reach, the more people we can help achieve financial freedom and live a life that they love.