Vacation Rentals
The short answer: For vacation rentals, the closest benchmark is employee pay: per the BLS, property, real estate and community association managers earned a median $69,990 a year in May 2025. The catch with vacation rentals is capital: Rob Abasolo of Robuilt says a competitive Airbnb in 2026 needs $100-200k liquid, including furnishing. (BLS OEWS; Robuilt) For people without that money, short-term rental operator Kyle Miklasz recommends co-hosting other owners' properties for 20-30% of gross revenue as the low-money way in. (Chris Koerner)
| Median pay of employed property, real estate, and community association managers | $33.65/hr ($69,990/yr) BLS OEWS, May 2025. Employee pay, not side-hustle income |
|---|---|
| Reported startup cost | $5,000–$10,000 2 reports by 2 creators, Jul 2026–Oct 2026 |
| Projected job growth, property, real estate, and community association managers | +3.7% BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35 |
| One creator's reported earnings | $400/hr Reported by The Side Hustle Show, Aug 2026 |
| One creator's reported part-time earnings | $10,000/month Reported by Robuilt (Rob Abasolo), Aug 2026 |
From 9 quotes by 5 creators and BLS data. A creator figure is one person's account.
Go deeper: every source on vacation rentals
How much do vacation rental hosts make?
Vacation rental earnings come from single creators: Rob made about $10,000 a month in his Joshua Tree Airbnb's first couple of months, and The Side Hustle Show described a host commanding $400 a night. BLS employee pay for property managers ran from $41,010 (10th percentile) to $139,680 (90th) a year in May 2025. (Robuilt; BLS OEWS)
| Related occupation | Median pay | Middle 80% |
|---|---|---|
| Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers | $33.65/hr ($69,990/yr), BLS OEWS, May 2025 | $41,010–$139,680/yr |
Median annual pay of employed property, real estate, and community association managers: $69,990 nationally; highest and lowest states below (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
| Highest-paying states | Median | Lowest-paying states | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | $119,320/yr | Louisiana | $49,990/yr |
| Massachusetts | $103,410/yr | South Dakota | $49,490/yr |
| Colorado | $100,080/yr | Arkansas | $47,760/yr |
What do people doing vacation rentals say?
“he was commanding 400 bucks a night on VRBO, on Airbnb and through his direct bookings”
“I think we had it on Airbnb for about 3 months, making about $10,000 a month those first couple of months”
“start a lease, a long-term lease, you know, and then spend 5,000 on furniture and then launch it on Airbnb”
“you're looking at a $10,000 uh venue, which is way cheaper than some of those venues out there”
How much does it cost to start a vacation rental?
Two creators put vacation rental startup costs at $5,000–$10,000: Kyle described furnishing a leased unit for about $5,000, and Chris Jeub of Glamping Developers cited a $10,000 glamping venue. Rob said his Joshua Tree rental cost about $1,500 per month to run. (Chris Koerner; Robuilt)
- Run revenue projections on a property with BNB Calc. (Chris Koerner)
- Cold-pitch owners to co-host their properties.
- Set up dynamic pricing and a property management system. (Robuilt)
- List on Airbnb and VRBO and push direct bookings. (The Side Hustle Show)
How many hours a week does a vacation rental take?
Vacation rental hours vary by host: Chris Jeub says he puts about 10 hours a week into his glamping property. Chris Jeub also says he left his teaching job to do this full-time. (Glamping Developers)
Rob advises staying hands-on rather than treating a rental as passive. (Robuilt)
Who should start a vacation rental business?
Vacation rentals suit people who can raise capital: Kyle financed a converted Wisconsin dairy barn with commercial loans and home equity and grew to 15 properties. Those without capital can start as vacation rental co-hosts, as Kyle recommends. (Chris Koerner)
Which platforms do people use for vacation rentals?
Platforms people doing vacation rentals use: AirBNB, Booking.com, Coolstays, FairBnb, Rentalia.
Are vacation rentals worth it?
Pros
- BLS projections show employment of property managers growing 3.7% over 2025-35. (BLS Employment Projections)
- Hosting coaches Thanks For Visiting say upsells such as fridge stocking, s'mores kits and paid early arrival add revenue. (Thanks For Visiting)
Cons
- Kyle says Airbnb arbitrage, leasing and furnishing a unit, is now hard. (Chris Koerner)
- Thanks For Visiting profiled a 10-year Airbnb host who nearly quit amid rising competition. (Thanks For Visiting)
What are the risks of running a vacation rental?
A common vacation rental mistake, per Thanks For Visiting, is panic-dropping prices when bookings slow, though the issue was likely earlier in the booking process. Sources conflict on vacation rental entry cost: one Chris Koerner video promises an Airbnb side hustle 'You Can Start With $0', while Rob calls $100k tight for a competitive Airbnb in 2026. (Thanks For Visiting; Chris Koerner)
What are the alternatives to vacation rentals?
- Car Rental: Also in renting out what you own.
- Clothing Rental as a side hustle: Also in renting out what you own.
- Personal Car Rental: Also in renting out what you own.
- Renting out your stuff: Also in renting out what you own.
- Website Rental: Also in renting out what you own.
Sources and method
Quotes are verbatim and linked to the moment they were said. A figure from one report is not confirmed by a second source. BLS figures describe employees in the closest related occupation. Every quote, the pay in each state and the full source list are on the every source on vacation rentals.
- Robuilt (Rob Abasolo), YouTube, 13 Oct 2026.
- Chris Koerner, YouTube, 6 Jul 2026.
- Robuilt (Rob Abasolo), YouTube, 25 Aug 2026.
- The Side Hustle Show, podcast, 6 Aug 2026.
- Glamping Developers (Chris Jeub), YouTube, 2 Oct 2026.
- Chris Koerner, YouTube, 5 Jul 2026.
- Glamping Developers (Chris Jeub), YouTube, 13 Sep 2026.
- Thanks For Visiting, YouTube, 21 Sep 2026.
- Thanks For Visiting, YouTube, 14 Sep 2026.
- Thanks For Visiting, YouTube, 12 Oct 2026.
- Chris Koerner, YouTube, 5 Jul 2026.
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35.
Other data behind this page (5)
| Fact | Value | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demand trend | growing | Accepted | BLS Employment Projections |
| Full-time or part-time | full time capable | Accepted | Chris Koerner; Glamping Developers |
| Typical hours per week | 10 hours/week | Accepted | Glamping Developers |
| Ongoing cost | $1,500/month | One report | Robuilt |
| Common pitfalls | Dropping the nightly price as soon as bookings slow instead of diagnosing the listing funnel | One report | Thanks For Visiting |