The head of our housekeeping services, Jing and her team are responsible for over 25 luxury holiday properties in Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast – they prepare every single rooms to our exacting standards, which includes stocking them with fresh sheets (from commercial laundry in Southport) and toiletries ready for guests.

Jing would be the best person to ask for some tips on making your home spick and span!

1One thing at a time:: It’s often more efficient to complete all the tasks of one type throughout a property, rather than cleaning room-by-room.

2Top to bottom: Start high up, if you vacuum first. You might have to do it again once you’ve wiped the surfaces down.

3Don’t mop yourself into a corner: Begin on the area furthest from the door. It is a common sense that no use making a kitchen floor sparkle if you’ve got to walk over it to get out.

Renting out your holiday property on Surfers Paradise Gold Coast is not an easy task. There are more than 1000 private rentals available in additional to the brand hotel chain such as Mantra and Breakfree. So the renting process can only be a rewarding if you get everything right. After all only the top 1% of rental hosts significantly outperform the bottom 99% by earning 20% of the overall rental revenue.

Followings are the first part of our Rental Advice in Surfers Paradise Gold Coast, for 'How to Become a Top Hosts - Facts and Tricks'.

1Pricing Problems:Facts:: 38% of hosts in Gold Coast struggle with setting up rental pricing.

• Test With Pricing:According to Learn Airbnb, a good rule of thumb is to set higher prices until you have between 75-90% occupancy for the next 2-4 weeks, but only 50% occupancy for 8-10 weeks out. And increase last-minute bookings for current week as well as decrease the prices for only Sunday nights.
• Do Charge For Extras:Charge for extra beds and extra guests (70% of hosts charge for extra guests). Also, it is very reasonable to charge a refundable security bond (80% of hosts charges bond).
• Setup Seasonal Rates:Look out for local events, seasonality and competitors in Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast. Most hosts change prices depending on the month and 60% with respect to local events.

2Listing Techniques

• Plan and Open Calendar Earlier:Open your calendar as far in advance as possible. Advanced bookings generate higher revenue due to the myth that early bookings are cheaper. Early bookings also allow you more availability to book higher-revenue packages in Gold Coast.
• Use Rules and Filters:Use rules and filters not only to filter your guests, but also to increase your revenue. For example set filters to require a three-night minimum stay for bookings three or more weeks away, and a four-night minimum stay for bookings a month or more away. But don’t forget to reset your filters closer to the dates.
• Set Up Strict Cancellation Policies:Don’t be afraid to have strict cancellation penalties. Nearly 15%of bookings made five or more months in advance get cancelled. You can double your earnings in certain months if you apply strict policies for your properties in Gold Coast.
• List On Multiple platforms:Yes, list on multiple platforms (Airbnb, VRBO, Booking.com)! We found that nearly 50% of hosts use several platforms, while some of the hosts in Surfers Paradise use Airbnb primarily.

3Cleaning:Facts:: 50% of hosts in Surfers Paradise find cleaning a significant headache, and 20% believe it is the biggest problem.

• Cleaning Tools:Forget about Excel spreadsheets! Don’t schedule cleanings manually. Use task/project management tools to automate cleaners, tasks, materials, bedding, laundry, etc. This will for sure save time and reduce human error.
• Use Commercial Laundry:Use commercial laundry in Gold Coast instead of on-site laundry. This saves time and will provide a high-quality service for your guests. Commercial laundry cleans much better and will iron and fold your sheets for you.
• Apply A Cleaning Fee:Cleaning fees are standard now a days and about 90% of hosts charge them. Set cleaning fees higher while dropping your nightly rate to make your listing more attractive and profitable.

Renting out your holiday property on Surfers Paradise Gold Coast is not an easy task. There are more than 1000 private rentals available in additional to the brand hotel chain such as Mantra and Breakfree. So the renting process can only be a rewarding if you get everything right. After all only the top 1% of rental hosts significantly outperform the bottom 99% by earning 20% of the overall rental revenue.

Followings are the second part of our Rental Advice in Surfers Paradise Gold Coast, for 'How to Become a Top Hosts - Facts and Tricks'.

4Do Your Homework:Facts:: Make sure you spend at least 3 hours a week. actively managing and improving your listings (e.g. 5 edits or more every week).

• Select a Good Title:Play with your title. Make it eye catching to your potential guests around Australia and the world. Change your title every month or two may be a good idea too. Use keywords in your title that will come up in a Google search. Search engines can drive customers to your listings easily.
• Take Good Quality Photos:Always take good photo sets for your listings. Your listing’s views will increase by 50% if your photos have great ocean views etc in Surfers Paradise Gold Coast. You will easily earn back the $150 you spent with your first booking.
• Turn On Instant Booking:Enable the instant-booking button if you can on your listing. This would help you to reach the 90% response rate needed to become a Superhost in AirBnB. And in return, it will also give you more bookings.
• Improve Your Listing Ranking:Play with prices and update them at least once a week to improve your listing performance.

5Guests Reviews:Facts:: Only 38% of the listings have the rating of 4.5 or higher in Surfers Paradise. According to AirBnB blogs, listings can reach almost full occupancy when it getting 80 or more good reviews..

• Provide Good Amenities:Provide with good level of amenities to your guests in Surfers Paradise is vital. Parking is essential in big buildings. Ensure that you cover this problem for your guests, even if you need to rent a parking spot on a monthly basis. Wi-Fi is another must-have. Currently more than 92% of successful hosts in Gold Coast offer free Wi-Fi.
• Get More Guest Reviews:Studies show that 80% of online consumers read the reviews before making a purchase. In order to get more bookings in Surfers Paradise listings, review your guests first. It increases your chances of getting reviewed by 50%. Also verify your ID. Studies show that hosts with verified IDs have three times more reviews.

Based on the facts from Fair-tradings QLD, hosts in Gold Coast often become victims of the online scams. Followings are some of the most common red flags that would help you in identifying a scam inquiry before falling victim.

1Watch the Language:If the inquirer demonstrates a poor grasp of basic language ie spelling, punctuation, and grammar, then they could be scammers.

2Emails:Is the email coming from an email provider you’ve never heard of? Does the email address correspond with the name in your inbox? If the two don’t match, watch out! It could be a fake email.

3Too Much Information:Have they written above and beyond what normally be expected? Are they provided you with a life story? This is a big red flag when it comes to scams. The rule is: don’t believe everything you read.

4Occupations:Be a aware that, any potential guests that make a point in declaring their profession for one reason or another. Especially if they say they are a religious figure, sea captain, doctor or member of the armed forces etc.

5Surprises and Gift:If the traveler mentions that they are arranging a surprise trip for someone else - it can be an alarm bell. Surprise trips often can fall through at any time.

6Payments:Be careful if they offer to pay outside of AirBnB / HomeAway, e.g. by bank cheques or by Western Union transfer. These payments are not secured and won’t be guaranteed under the AirBnB or HomeAway policies.

Additionally, if they offer to pay more than your listed rate, this can be another warning sign. A classic 'overpay scam' involves guests sending more money than stated via cheque or money order, and likely enough, it turns out to be stolen. Before you can realize this, they’ll be sending you messages asking for the overpayment to be returned to them (many will use the excuse of travel departments making a mistake). Recently, this scam has come into play using credit cards, too: the scammer reserves a property, and (over)pays by card. They will then ask for the extra amount back via bank transfer, making up an excuse why it can’t go back on the card. Only once funds have been sent will it come to light that scammers had been using stolen credit card details.

Finally, if a guest provides you with unsolicited payment information in their initial inquiry, you should be immediately alarmed that this could be a potential scamer.

7Missing Profile:When it comes to inquiries, if something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Trust your gut feelings! If the traveler doesn’t send any inquiry questions or have any phone number listed on their profile, raise your suspicions!

8Incorrect Property Details:Receiving an inquiry from someone who refers to your penthouse apartment in Surfers Paradise as a “cute cottage” should raise a few red flags. This could likely be a 'blanket message' they’ve sent to multiple owners, waiting for one unsuspecting host to fall victim to this scam.

9Date Inconsistencies:If you have a potential inquire about specific dates, then tell you their dates to rent your property are flexible, this could also be a scam too.

10General Perception:A lot of scams could be avoided if hosts truly go with their instinct. If it sounds too good to be true (ie. paying you extra money for a low-season period), it probably is!

Offering great hospitality can come through in a lot of ways, but it most definitely starts with a clean space.

While cleaning might not be the most fun part of hosting, it should not have to be very difficult! Here are some tips and tricks which may be of help to in setting up an effective and easy cleaning routine.

Focus on the troubled spots

First things first: Give extra attention to the most important areas of your property, ie kitchen and bathrooms. If you offer your guests to use a refrigerator, always give it a thorough cleaning. And if you make a point to keep all of the kitchen condiments and other items nicely organized, your guest will be encouraged do the same.

Make room for your guests

In addition to keeping your space clean, it’s important to keep it tidy. Your guests may not want to live out of their suitcase for their whole stay, so you can offer them space to put out their toiletries and personal items on a shelf or a luggage stand. You can also offer your guests room for their clothes and larger items in a wardrobe or dressing table.

Pay attention to details:Once you’ve got your space clean and ready for your next guests, remember to check the details:

• Look for stray hairs on the lounge suite
• Clean off dust on the edges of shelves, picture frames, and doorways
• Wipe down all the surfaces of fixtures and appliances
• Check the kitchen counter for crumbs
• Sweep or vacuum under the furniture

Additional Readings

Host Blogs:: How Do You Distinguish Rental Scams?

Host Blogs:: Holiday Rental Advice in Surfers 1 of 2

Host Blogs:: Holiday Rental Advice in Surfers 2 of 2

Host Blogs:: Making More Appealing Properties

Host Blogs:: What Are Guests Thinking Of?