A Property with No Rental Cap Still Cannot Be Used for Short-Term Rentals?

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Hello, and welcome to Snowball Rentals’ WeChat account, where you can read about recent developments in the US short-term rental market.

Recently, a homeowner excitedly contacted Snowball Rentals, saying they had just bought a condo with no Rental Cap and wanted us to operate it as an Airbnb short-term rental.

But we declined, replying: “No rental cap does not mean short-term rentals are allowed.”

Many homeowners mistakenly assume that a property without a rental cap can be used for short-term rentals. Let us explain briefly:

A Rental Cap generally restricts long-term rentals, usually specifying the maximum proportion or number of rentals allowed in a particular area, community or property management rules. For example, in a building with 30 condos, a rental cap of ten means only ten may be rented out; the remainder must be owner-occupied.

Without that restriction, all 30 could theoretically be rented out.

But that is not the whole issue. The building's rules may also restrict minimum lease terms, for example to one month, six months or even one year.

This means that even without a rental cap, a one-month minimum lease prevents daily short-term rentals, making Airbnb's nightly rental model impossible.

Fortunately, after checking the relevant terms, this homeowner decided to withdraw from the property purchase.

We therefore remind homeowners again: no rental cap does not mean short-term rentals are allowed. Carefully read the management rules and confirm whether short-term rentals are permitted.

This incident is a warning to all investors. Details determine success or failure, and understanding the rules prevents unnecessary losses.

If you have only now discovered a minimum lease restriction at your property, do not despair. Mid-term rentals remain an option and can even outperform short-term rentals, especially during the off-season, providing ongoing, reliable returns.

Even Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky announced last Wednesday, September 18, that because governments worldwide restrict short-term rentals to varying degrees, Airbnb would focus on expanding mid-term stays of 30–90 days!

For details, read our official WeChat article: “A Host's Comeback: From a Short-Term Rental Crisis to a Mid-Term Rental Miracle!”

Thank you for reading, homeowners. Please send us a private message whenever you have questions!

As a homeowner, you may now be wondering: my home is quite good, but how much could it earn on Airbnb? Would it earn more than a long-term rental? Would it involve a lot of trouble?

Contact us right away! We will evaluate it for you free of charge.

If you:

Hope to increase rental income through short-term rentals;

Cannot spare a great deal of time to handle the small details;

Occasionally need to use the home yourself, making it unsuitable to empty out the furniture for a long-term rental;

Then:

Snowball Rentals’ management team is your best choice.

From pre-launch vacation-rental styling, big-data analysis and online marketing to tenant screening, dynamic pricing, customer service and sales, cleaning and repairs, Snowball Rentals provides everything as one complete service for your home.

This Week’s Booking Results

Through long-standing relationships with insurers, assignment companies and technology companies, Snowball Rentals rents homes for medium- and long-term durations at short-term rates, then gives owners a rebate of 5% in management fees to maximize their income.

As the weather gets cooler, Seattle’s short-term rental low season is approaching again.

Short-term rentals in peak season and mid-term rentals in low season: this is the new strategy we have repeatedly emphasized and tried this year! Some recent large bookings have been like a ray of sunshine. Homeowners, let us support one another and face the approaching low season with confidence.

The detached house below, located in Sammamish, has an estimated long-term monthly rent of approximately $3889, which can be looked up on Zillow.

The owner placed great trust in the Snowball Rentals team. After renovating the house, they commissioned us to furnish it and then immediately begin short-term rental operations.

Fortunately, it received a large booking shortly after listing!

As shown in the booking screenshot below, a guest rented this house through Airbnb for a total of 75 nights. Without deliberately planning it, a short-term rental became a mid-term rental.

The rental income plus cleaning fee for this booking reached $17697!

Converted to a monthly figure, this short-term/mid-term booking generated approximately $7080 per month.

In summary, with Snowball Rentals operating this detached house, monthly rental revenue rose from $3889 for a long-term rental to $7080, an

increase of more than 80%.

Securing such a large booking in low season is no easy feat!

Look more closely: this booking's 75 days run from mid-October this year to January next year, covering nearly three months of the short-term rental off-season, September through the following March. As a newly renovated house with excellent condition and location, we believe it can achieve further strong results before peak season arrives.

For homeowners, combining short- and mid-term rentals in this way can earn more in peak season and help them get through low season smoothly. Even if the low-season rental figures look less dramatic, they still outperform long-term rentals and give homeowners a strong sense of financial security.

More importantly, the owner does not have to worry about maintenance or cleaning. When something needs to be discussed with guests, we also help with communication and oversight.

Here, we again thank the owner for placing trust in the Snowball Rentals team!

After nearly two years of Airbnb’s downturn, we at Snowball Rentals hope to help owners make steady progress in low season, navigate the challenges safely and lay a better foundation for next year’s peak season.

Once again, heartfelt thanks to our homeowners for their trust and support. Whether the market is strong or weak, Snowball Rentals will stand with you and look for ways to increase your income!

Some homeowners will surely ask the hard question: was a large booking like this just a stroke of luck? What if the home does not rent? A long-term rental is more stable—even earning less is better than earning nothing!

Our answer is: the outcome depends on what we do.

Vacation-Rental Styling

Competition on Airbnb is becoming increasingly intense. The days of piecing together secondhand furniture, taking phone photos and earning easy money on Airbnb are over. Airbnb hosts have moved toward professional operations.

Careful design and furnishing before launch, followed by professional short-term rental operations, will be the only choice for a rental that continues to generate high income.

Here is another of Snowball Rentals’ core services: vacation-rental styling!

Here is how the detached house mentioned above looked after furnishing:

When choosing a short-term rental on Airbnb, would this home’s appearance attract you?

If you would also like to make your home more attractive and earn more rent, please contact us at any time!

This Week’s Short Videos

We regularly update short videos every week.

The content you need is all here.

👇🏻 Homeowners are welcome to follow us 👇🏻

Snowball Rentals

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Snowball Rentals

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Snowball Rentals

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We also share practical vacation-rental styling plans and creative ideas to help you achieve more with less spending!

Keep rental income growing!

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Xiao An’s Vacation-Rental Styling

Referral Rewards

If you are already a Snowball Rentals homeowner, you receive a US$500 referral fee for each referral.

If you are not yet a Snowball Rentals homeowner, you receive a US$250 shopping voucher for each referral.

Snowball Rentals Management

1. Full service — We provide pre-launch rental design, furniture procurement, furnishing, professional photography, online marketing, copywriting, tenant service and sales, cleaning, supply purchasing and property repairs. You only need to be a hands-off owner; we handle the rest.

2. Multi-platform promotion — We promote the home on Airbnb, VRBO, HomeAway and other mainstream platforms for maximum exposure.

3. Dynamic pricing — Using big data, we adjust prices every day according to seasonal demand, holidays, last-minute vacancy offers, weekends and local activities, maximizing the owner’s income.

4. Income-improvement SOP — We follow 44 secrets for maximizing short-term rental income, optimizing each property’s online marketing, on-site operations and other aspects to work toward maximum income.

5. Flexible owner stays — Owners can flexibly choose when to stay themselves. This is especially suitable for owners with multiple residences around the world.

6. Terminate at any time — Management does not require an annual commitment. The owner can end the agreement with one month’s advance notice.

7. Corporate housing — In addition to nightly rentals, we work with insurers and assignment companies to provide executives with hotel-style managed accommodation for stays longer than 30 days.

8. Transparent fees — For rentals longer than 30 days, we charge 15% of accommodation revenue. For nightly rentals under 30 days, we charge 20% of accommodation revenue.

Author’s tip: Personal views, for reference only.