What is a co-host?

What a co-host does

People often describe co-hosting as the cheaper, lighter option. Sometimes it is, but a co-host can also be a full operating team.

What makes an arrangement co-hosting is where the listing lives. You keep the listing, and the operator works inside it with the access you give.

A co-host runs the business of the house and the daily work, from the price to the monthly statement.

• A co-host sets the rate by the homes your guests are also considering, rather than the area average.
• A co-host keeps the listing and the photos in line with what the rate promises.
• A co-host answers guest messages, including the ones that arrive at night and on weekends.
• A co-host arranges cleaning and linen between stays.
• A co-host brings in the plumbers and other trades a large house needs.
• A co-host sends you a monthly statement.

Where the income comes from

Two numbers decide what the house earns in a year. One is the nightly rate it can command. The other is how many nights it books in the shoulder season, the weeks either side of the peak.

Good photos and a clear description raise the rate. Quick replies to guests lead to better reviews, and better reviews fill more nights.

Co-host or property manager

The fee matters, but look at the structure first. A fee can be negotiated, and it rises or falls with the work included.

The structure decides what you control, and it is fixed by how the arrangement is set up on the booking platform.

The table below compares the two models on four points. You can use the same four points to judge any offer, whatever it is called.

What access a co-host gets

On Airbnb, a co-host's access comes in three named levels. Airbnb asks you to choose one when you invite each co-host, so the choice is yours, and you can change it at any time.

An operator who runs the whole house will need full access. Airbnb's help pages set out what each level allows, and the payout limits that apply to all three. So the payout settings stay under your control, whatever level you choose.

• Full access lets a co-host message guests, edit the calendar, and manage the listing, including pricing and photos.
• Full access also covers accepting and declining reservations, damage claims in the Resolution Center and an earnings dashboard.
• Calendar and messaging access lets a co-host message guests and view the calendar, but not edit it.
• Calendar access alone is view only.
• At every level, only the listing owner can set up or change a co-host's payout.
• A co-host at any level cannot view or change the owner's payout method or taxpayer information.

Source: Airbnb, What co-hosts can do

How the money moves

In a co-host arrangement you hold the account, so the platform pays you. Where the platform supports it, you can also set up a co-host payout, which sends the operator's share straight to the operator.

Airbnb documents the co-host payout in its help pages. It says only the listing owner can set up or change that payout. You can also stop it.

With full-service management the money takes the other route. Guest money goes to the manager first. The manager takes its fee and the running costs, then pays you what is left with a statement.

The manager's route suits an owner who wants one payment a month and no involvement. The real difference is who holds the money in the meantime.

Source: Airbnb, How co-host payouts work

When the split differs

The platform's split does not always match the fee in your agreement. Airbnb works out a co-host's share from its own figure for your earnings, which may not be the figure your agreement uses.

A good co-host settles any gap between the platform's split and your agreement on the monthly statement. Ask any operator how they handle it before you sign. A good statement shows three things.

• What was collected.
• What the fee should have been.
• What is owed, in either direction.

Source: Airbnb, How co-host payouts work

The tax side

Taxes catch some owners out. Under a co-host model you usually stay the one who reports the full rental income, and the operator reports only its own fees.

Airbnb sends you a tax document for the full booking amount, and sends the operator one for its share. Three things follow from that.

• Record the operator's share as a cost in your own books.
• If you leave the operator's share out, you may pay tax on money that went to the operator.
• Ask an accountant how to record the operator's share before you sign.

Source: Airbnb, How co-host payouts work

The licensing question

Who holds the guest money has a legal side too. A manager who receives guest money first is holding funds for someone else. In a number of states, that brings real-estate licensing and trust-account rules.

An operator who never touches the money is in a different position. Neither model is automatically the safe one. Ask any operator which rules they think apply to them, and why.

What each model costs

Renjoy, a short-term rental management company, says co-hosting typically costs 10 to 20 percent of rental income and full-service management 20 to 30 percent. Those are one company's figures for its own market, so treat them as a rough guide.

Most of the price gap comes from what the fee covers. A low fee may buy a listing refresh and someone to answer messages. A higher fee may also cover pricing, cleaning, repairs, vendors and a full statement.

To compare offers, ask what you would keep at the end of a year under each one. Use the same house and the same assumptions for both, and ask to see them in writing.

Off Grid quotes management per property. The work for a three-bedroom beach house is not the same as for a waterfront estate.

We look at the property, its market and the calendar you want to run. Then we give you the number and what it covers, before anything is signed.

Source: Renjoy, Airbnb Management vs. Co-Hosting

Which one suits your house

Full-service management is often the better fit, and a co-host should say so when it is.

Full service works well for an owner who wants nothing to do with pricing or the platform. It also suits an owner with several houses who prefers one payment a month to the detail on each.

Co-hosting suits a different owner, one who wants these things.

• You want the listing and its reviews to stay in your own name.
• You want to see the full booking income.
• You want to use the house yourself without having to ask for your own weeks.

When neither model fits

Sometimes neither model is right. A home whose setting, access or condition will not support a luxury rate usually does better as a long-term rental. An honest operator will tell you that, even though it means no business for them.

Insurance before the first booking

Whichever model you choose, sort out insurance before the first booking. A standard second-home policy generally does not cover paying guests. Airbnb says its own host damage protection is not an insurance policy.

• Ask an operator what cover they carry.
• Ask the operator what you need to carry yourself.
• Ask the operator whether they can introduce you to a broker who insures short-term rentals.

Co-hosting in Florida

Florida's seasons make the choice of operator matter more here. Demand rises and falls through the year, so the same peak rate can lead to very different years.

Take two houses with the same peak rate. One fills the peak weeks and sits empty either side. The other stays two-thirds full in the shoulder season and earns more over the year.

Filling the shoulder weeks is most of what a good operator adds. It is also the figure owners most often overestimate when they plan alone.

There is also a practical reason. A co-host based outside Florida cannot meet a vendor at the house, check a repair, or walk the property before guests arrive. Software handles bookings and messages from anywhere, but the house itself needs someone nearby.

Florida also has registration, licensing and tax rules that change by county and city, and the owner is responsible for them. Before you sign, ask your operator which ones apply to your address.

We have a page for each market we work in today: Tampa Bay, St. Petersburg and Clearwater, Ponte Vedra Beach, Sarasota and St. Augustine. Each page sets out its local rules, and the Florida page covers all five. We will also talk about a home anywhere in the state.

Read next: Tampa Bay · St. Petersburg and Clearwater · Ponte Vedra Beach · Sarasota · St. Augustine · Florida short-term rental management