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Who We Are

Ron Miller lives in Colorado Springs with his wife, of 25 years, and three children, Caleb 18, Megan 16 and Anna 4. They enjoy taking walks in the mountains, reading, playing games and hosting celebrations.

What is Airbnb

Airbnb is a website that allows people (hosts) to rent out their private homes or rooms. Guests go to the same website and can book a whole house instead of a single hotel room. On a normal night, more than 1 million guests are staying in privately owned homes and apartments all over the world. The company itself is valued at $31 billion and has more than 150 million users.

To explore Airbnb, you can find them at www.airbnb.com

Some Details

 

• Q: How does the relationship work between the owner of a house and Ron & Mel Miller?

• Ron & Mel provide the service of renting an owner’s home. They provide the setup, the listings, the guests, guest communications, insurance and maintenance. The owner’s burden is very low. Once an owner’s home passes the initial inspection, some paperwork will be signed that provides expectations and permission to use the owner’s property.

• Q: How much can the owner expect to make?

  • Note: Nightly rates exclude cleaning charges. This is a separate charge paid by the guest and is not split with the owner.

 

Month 1
  • Properties valued between $250k-$350k earn 35% of the nightly rate charged
  • Properties valued between $350k+ earn 40% of the nightly rate charged
  • We will assume general lawn maintenance (no charge)
  • We will assume general maintenance issues under $25
Months 2-5
  • Properties valued between $250k-$350k earn 50% of the nightly rate charged
  • Properties valued between $350k+ earn 55% of the nightly rate charged
  • We will assume general lawn maintenance (no charge)
  • We will assume general maintenance issues under $100
Month 6+
  • Properties valued between $250k-$350k earn 53% of the nightly rate charged
  • Properties valued between $350k+ earn 58% of the nightly rate charged
  • We will assume general lawn maintenance (no charge)
  • We will assume general maintenance issues under $300

For more details, see the FAQ below.

What protections can an owner expect for their home with guests staying there?

• First and foremost, guests are registered with AirBNB and must provide a government ID. We do not allow anonymous guests.
• We provide a commercial insurance policy for each guest’s stay. This is in addition to a separate policy provided by Airbnb as well.
• A guest must accept house rules prior to staying. Our standard rules include: no smoking in the house, no pets and no parties.
• A doorbell camera is installed. This allows us to monitor excessive activity and observe if an unusual amount of people are entering the home.
• Noise level monitoring is placed in the home. It monitors of noise levels reach a certain level for more than 15 minutes, then notifies us.
• Each guest is provided a unique code for the front door keypad that expires after check-out.
• The home is visited by us after every guest to insure the property has been properly cared for during the guest’s stay. If not, we will make it right.

For more details, see the FAQ below.

What if we sell the home?

We work to accommodate the transaction.

For the initial possession, we require 5 or 6 weeks (based on time of year). This is to accommodate us getting into the property, setting it up and turning a dollar.

• 6 week minimum (winter months): OCT-FEB
• 5 week minimum (summer months) MCH-SPT

After the initial occupancy minimum is met, on notice of sale, we will vacate the property, in good condition, on day 35 after notice.

If the property is sold or the owner wishes to recover possession of the property, we require a strict 35 day notice:
• AirBNB rentals: To Day 30 (Our AirBNB setting allows reservation for ONLY 30 days in advance)
• Clean Out: Days 31-32
• Maintenance: Day 33
• Final Clean: Days 33, 34
• Vacant: Day 35 (by noon)

How much work is required of the owner?

Very little work is required of an owner. Once an owner expresses interest we perform an inspection to make sure the property fits our target users. We then ask the owner to sign an agreement. After that, no action is required from the owner unless there is a maintenance issue and we need to ask permission to repair something. The only other thing we’ll need from the owner is their word when the house is sold. We’ll do the rest!

How can I keep my house for sale and have guests?

The house can be shown in-between guests. We can coordinate with the agents. The average guest stays for (4) days. If a guest has a reservation for more than (6) days, we will provide advance notice that the house may be shown during their stay. An owner also has the option to have us add a spare open day between guests to allow more showing times, but with the understanding that “blocked” out days don’t have the potential to earn revenue from an overnight guest.

What are the benefits of using Fire Mountain Consulting to list my home with Airbnb?

• We become the property managers and will assume general maintenance of the home and lawn. Depending on how long the house has been listed with us, we will cover expenses from $25-300 per issue.

• We stage empty homes. That means we furnish it to make it attractive to our guests. “Staged” homes generally sell faster and for more money than empty homes with no furniture.

• Some owners are caught in a scenario where they end up with an empty house and two mortgages. The revenue from Airbnb should help cover the mortgage and utility expenses while the house remains unsold.

How does insurance work if there is damage?

We provide commercial insurance for each guest. This is in addition to a policy that Airbnb itself offers. Upon request, a copy of our policy can reviewed by the owner. We also have incident procedures that are followed when damage to person or property is discovered or reported. Our policies are in place to protect both the owner and Fire Mountain Consulting inc.. A guest has the ability to contact us directly 24/7.

For minor repairs, we may make them ourselves at no expense to the owner. For larger expenses, we will seek permission for the repair (if time permits) and coordinate all the details. We want a very low burden on the part of the owner.