6 events in Passaic County with a date

Host of possibilities

How to transform your home into Airbnb for the 2026 FIFA World Cup

By: Maddie McGay
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey

..... In case you haven't heard - which at this point is hard to believe - MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford will be hosting eight games for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which is expected to create as much as $2 billion in economic impact and draw more than 1 million visitors to our region.
..... With many tourists expected to pack into already highly populated North Jersey, there are going to be plenty of people searching for places to stay when they attend the games. So if you've been considering turning your home into an Airbnb, doing so in time for the World Cup is the perfect opportunity.
..... The nation's short-term rental market was worth $64 billion in 2023, with more than 2.4 million vacation rental listings, according to data and analytics company AirDNA. Because this market continues to grow, it's important to set yourself apart form the rest to ensure your rental is successful.
..... I'd consider less than 25% of hosts to be successful," said Daniel Rusteen, former Airbnb employee and founder of OptimizeMyAirbnb.com . "It's not hard to be a successful host, but sop many hosts have been fed this idea that it's passive income, which it's not. It takes some management."
..... Alongside her sister, Ashlee Dawn had been the host of an Airbnb in Chester, Connecticut for nearly tow years. She said that while preparing their space to be an Airbnb was a big project, putting in the time to make repairs, clean the space and decorating it with unique, antique items was worth it.
..... "If you're going to get into it, you really need to commit to doing everything you can to make sure guests are happy and to ensure that they're going to come back or give a good review," she said. "That's going to lead other people to your listing and that's basically how you run your business."
..... Before you decide to try your hand at being an Airbnb host, there are plenty of things to consider, from startup costs and how to price your property to determining whether your town allows these types of short-term rentals.
..... Here's the breakdown on everything you need to know about the process

Finding out if your town allows short-term rentals like Airbnb

..... Before you determine if it's worth turning your home into an Airbnb, or how much you'd be able to make as a host, you have to figure out whether your town allows short-term rentals. In North Jersey, there are some towns that prohibit them, while others will permit them under strict regulations, such as when the unit is owner-occupied, or as long as the unit will be rented for about a moth or longer.
..... "The first thing people need to do is check if they can even have a short-term rental," Dawn said. "you really need to check with your town or your city and make sure that you're doing it properly. You don't want to set up a whole space and find out that you did it wrong or aren't even allowed to do it."
..... To check your town's guidelines on short-term rentals like Airbnb, do Google search of the name of your town, the term "short-term rentals" and eCode360, which is a platform that most municipalities use to house information on their ordinances. For example, those in East Rutherford can search "East Rutherford Short-term rentals eCode360."
..... for the World Cup games at MetLife Stadium, it is likely that those looking to make their home into an Airbnb would be renting the property out for a few days to a week - a much shorter period of time than a month. There are several towns in the surrounding area that prohibit short-term rentals under these guidelines, like East Ruthrford, Rutherford, Carlstadt, Wood-Ridge, Union City, West New York, Wallingotn, Palisade Park and Fort Lee.
..... "These are always tough decisions, because you certainly don't want to deprive taxpayers and homeowners of the ability to generate income. but you have to juggle that with quality-of-life issues," said Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich when his town first imposed 30-day minimum stays for Airbnbs.
..... Those caught operating a short-term rental, like an Airbnb, in towns that prohibit them could be subject to a fine of $750 to $2,000 per day - depending on how many times you've violated the ordinance - or anywhere from 10 to 30 days in jail. And in some cases, the penalty for this violation could be both.
..... Other towns like Jersey City and Belleville allow short-term rentals when the unit is owner-occupied, while towns like Lyndhurst, Hasbrouck Heights and Little Ferry allow short-term rentals without any major restrictions.
..... If it's unclear whether your town actually allows short-term rentals, or what the regulations may be, you can always call a member of your municipal office to ensure you have the correct information.

The cost of regional Airbnbs and how much you could make

..... In our region, [NJ] airbnbs are listed from $50 per night to as much as $700 per night, based on the size of the rental, the location and amenities. And when major events are taking place nearby, like Taylor Swift's Eras tour and the World Cup games, there is typically an increase in demand and prices per night can significantly increase, especially if your home is located near the venue.
..... To get started with determining a price for your Airbnb, you can use the short-term rental income estimates tool on Realtor.com 's My Home dashboard, which has Airbnb data integrated into the platform to provide an accurate prediction based on similar rentals in your area. Or you can use the estimate toll directly on Airbnb's website, where you can submit your location, the type of space you have and the number of bedrooms available for an idea of what your place is worth.
..... AirDNA is another great tool to gather short-term rental data for your area. Using its Market Research seas, you can find the area's average daily rate, the occupancy rate of Airbnbs in the area and the projected annual revenue you could make.
..... Airbnb also recommends keeping local demand in mind, whether it be due to events or seasonal shifts, and to consider what expenses you may incur as a host, such as maintenance costs and cleaning fees. You may choose to add extra fees for these things, as well as other things like pet fees if you choose to have a pet-friendly rental.
..... You should also remember that just because yo charge a certain amount for your rental per night doesn't mean you'll actually get paid all of that money. You will be responsible for paying services to Airbnb and occupancy taxes for your rental.
..... Airbnb has tow different service fee structures" a split fee and a host-only fee.
..... The most common type of fee Airbnb uses, a split fee, is exactly what it suggests - it is a service fee that is split between the host and the guest. For this, most hosts will pay a 3% fee to Airbnb based on the booking subtotal, which includes the nightly price of the rental and any additional fees charged by the host. then, most guests will pay anywhere form 13% to 20% of the booking subtotal to Airbnb as a gust service fee, which is their portion of the split fee.
..... For the host-only fee -which applies to traditional hospitality listings like hotels and serviced apartments, as well as hosts that use software to manage their listings - hosts must pay anywhere form 14% to 16% of booking subtotal to Airbnb.
..... When it comes to occupancy taxes, Airbnb will collect and pay them on behalf of hosts in certain jurisdictions, while hosts in other areas are responsible for collecting and paying these taxes themselves. And even if Airbnb takes care of certain occupancy taxes for you, you may be required to handle others on your own. For example, in some places Airbnb will collect regional occupancy taxes but not local ones, so you'd have to pay the local taxes yourself.
..... Airbnb's system will help you determine what taxes are applicable to you based on the address you enter for your listing. To determine how much these taxes are, and if Airbnb will take care of this tax for you, you can find those details on your listing once it is set up.

Preparing your space to be an Airbnb and how much it costs

..... To actually start your Airbnb, you'll want to make sure your space is prepared for guests. This includes putting away any personal belongings that you don't want guests to use and making sure your space is as clean as possible.
..... "If you're going into this now, then you need to fully clean and organize your home, which is a large task for most people because they have decades worth of stuff all over their home," Rusteen said. "Then, hiring cleaners will also be a key aspect to having a successful Airbnb."
..... It's also important to ensure that your space is furnished in a way that makes your Airbnb listing look enticing, as well as makes guests feel welcome as soon as they walk in. Heather Dibble, principal designer of Heather Dibble Interiors, said you can achieve these by blending comfort with personalized touches.
..... "Soft lighting, cozy furnishings and thoughtful decor make guests feel instantly at home," Dibble said. "Incorporating local art is a great way to add personality to a space. Placing a lush throw in each room adds special, comfortable touch that reflects your unique style."
..... Dawn said she also likes to consider what she looks for when staying places as a guest herself, opting for the softest bedding, pillows, sheets and towels she can find. She said also like to stock the Airbnb with water, snacks, tea and coffee, as well as things like sewing kits and extra toothpaste.
..... You'll also have to keep in mind that in addition to things like utilities and mortgage payments, you're going to face several additional expenses to get your rental ready. Projection Hub - a website that creates financial projections based on financial statements costs other data - estimates that the average startup cost for an Airbnb are about $6,000, assuming you already own the property, but says it can range from $3,900 to $30,000.
..... This all depends on expenses like insurance, new furniture, subscriptions, repairs, other supplies and services like getting photos to market your listing or installing a security system.

Keeping hospitality in mind as a host

..... Dawn said that hospitality and being as accommodating as possible to guests also helps the success of an Airbnb. She said that you'll likely run into times where guests want to check in early or check out late, and it's important to fulfill their requests as much as possible.
..... "We just try to find every way we possibly can to accommodate the guests' requests. We've hosted hundreds of people, and there;s maybe been a handful of times I've had to say no," she said. "Even when it's a little bit inconvenient or unmanageable, just trying to figure out a way to manage it is sometimes a challenge, but you do the best you can."

How to get set up on the Airbnb site

..... Once you're determined if your town allows short-term rentals, decided how you'd like to price your Airbnb and prepared your property, the next step is to set up your listing on the Airbnb website.
..... The first thing you need to do is create an account on Airbnb, if you don't already have one. Then, you can go to your profile settings and select "Airbnb your home," or go straight to airbnb.com/becone-a-host .
..... You'll be prompted to provide details about your property, such as how many guests it firs and whether guests can book the entire property or just a room. then you'll add photos, a title and a description before finally setting a starting price and publishing your listing. Airbnb said that your listing should be visible within 24 hours of it being published, but it may take up to 72 hours for some listings to show up in search results.
..... If you need help setting up your listing, though, Airbnb will match you with a super-host in your area for one-on-one guidance through the process. And new hosts also get access to a group of community support agents that are trained to help with any issues you might face as you get started.
..... "The Airbnb platform has an enormous amount of resources for getting started and they walk you through everything and every question you might have, Dawn said. "For someone looking to do this, just understand that it is a lot of work but you're giving your guests the best experience you can. The pest part is getting the compliments and people enjoying what you're doing for them."

..... Maddie McGay is the real estate reporter for NorthJersey.com and The Record, covering all things worth celebrating about living in North Jersey. Find her on Instagram @maddieemcgay, in X @madiencgayy, and sign up for her North Jersey Living newsletter. Do you have a tip, trend or terrific house she should know about? Email her at MMcGay@gannett.

HOME