Robuilt Host Camp is a 3-month, step-by-step Airbnb course and 1-year mentorship program by Airbnb Ambassador and Superhost Robert Abasolo. You’ll learn how to create and manage a short term vacation rental business that can make you $5000–$30,000/month on Airbnb.
Airbnb hosting is a high risk business that requires large amounts of capital. You can outsource most of the work to automate and turn it into passive income. Having an Airbnb business can create high returns on investment, but scaling and automation cost a lot of money, meaning even bigger risks.
In comparison, local lead generation is a low cost passive income business model. While the earning potential is higher with Airbnb, local lead generation is highly scalable. With high scaling potential and low maintenance costs, local lead generation is a low risk business that's worth checking out.
Robert Abasolo’s Robuilt Host Camp Review: Pros and Cons
Pros
You can also use what you learned on other short term rental platforms like Vrbo.
Robert Abasolo is an experienced Airbnb Superhost and Airbnb Ambassador.
Access to active Facebook group.
1 year of live group coaching calls.
Cons
Does not teach rental arbitrage.
No price transparency.
Price
Robuilt Host Camp's price is given after the interview call. It often changes and is currently around $7,000.
Refund Policy
Robuilt Host Camp has no known refund policy.
Origin
2020
Reputation
Very positive. Robert Abasolo is a certified Airbnb Ambassador.
I cannot recommend Rob enough. This Host Camp is great for anyone who wants to learn a very niche short term rental strategy.
What You Need to Know Before Doing Short Term Vacation Rentals
Whether you need permission to turn your house into an Airbnb or not will depend on the location. Regulations can differ per city and per state. Check zoning laws of your areas to see if there're any regulations on short term rentals.
You can Airbnb your house if you have a mortgage, considering the reason for your mortgage is property investment. You also still need to get permission from your lender. If you do not own your own property and plan to do Airbnb arbitrage, you also need to ask permission from your landlord.
Glamping Airbnb properties is Robert's specialty. The glamping type of Airbnb property may be harder to get permits for. Robert has a dedicated course called Robuilt Glamp Camp that teaches specifically how to start a glamping Airbnb business.
4 Things You Should Know Before Listing Your Airbnb
Before listing on Airbnb, you should know that customer experience is of utmost importance. Reviews will break or make your business, so it is important that they understand exactly what to expect from your listing, and you need to make sure that you can meet those expectations.
To ensure customer satisfaction, you need to make sure that you have all the amenities, that the appliances are all in working order, that the rooms are well furnished and decorated, and that the entire property is clean.
- Bulk buy your amenities to make sure you’ll always have extra.
- Have extra necessities ready, like towels and bed sheets, just in case.
- Make sure all appliances are in good condition and are working properly.
- If you hire a team, make sure they know their schedule and responsibilities.
The best way you can prepare for your first guest on Airbnb is to do a trial run. Have a friend or someone you know stay in your property for the trial run and ask them for a complete and honest review so you know what to change or improve before going live with your listing.
It is important to keep stock to make sure your guests get all the amenities. For example: Ideally, you need 1 towel per guest for your Airbnb, but it is better to have 2 per guest to be sure you will always have a backup. Check out Airbnb’s full list of recommended amenities and supplies.
The best way to ensure your Airbnb stays clean is to hire a professional cleaning team. There are a few important questions you need to ask when selecting a cleaning team.
- What is the number of cleaners in the crew?
- What is their availability, and how many hours notice is required?
- Are they available for last-minute calls, and if so, do they charge extra?
- What exactly is included in their services, and can they do more if requested?
An Airbnb cleaning checklist is important to streamline the cleaning process and ensure compliance. For bigger properties, this will also help the cleaning team distribute the workload and save time. Here’s an example cleaning list:
- Check for any left items and place them in safekeeping if found.
- Take out the trash.
- Sanitize things that are touched often like doorknobs, light switches, keys, etc. Sanitize toilets, bathtubs, and showers.
- Vacuum and sweep all carpets and floors. Dust commonly used furniture.
- Replace all sheets, pillowcases, towels, etc. to have them washed.
- Replenish supplies such as hand soap, toilet paper, paper towels, etc.
Airbnb guests aren’t supposed to clean but are expected to put their trash in the designated bins. Guests are also expected to not leave listings in a state that requires excessive or deep cleaning. Any issues that aren’t considered standard cleaning should be reported to the host in order to find a solution.
If you live far away from your Airbnb, you might want to hire a property manager. If your Airbnb is seasonal, you should do off season maintenance tasks:
- Replace furniture and amenities to be specific for the season, such as boot mats, off-season rugs, etc.
- Replace lightbulbs, and door lock batteries for digital locks.
- List down the most common guest requests and try to add that to your property.
- Check everything for wear and tear and schedule maintenance if needed.
It takes 7 steps to begin hosting on Airbnb:
- Signup for Airbnb and create a new listing. Enter the physical address, choose what kind of place (apartment, house, etc.), select if it’s dedicated to guests, confirm the pinned location.
- List the accommodation like number of guests (2 per room, 5 per bathroom), how many beds are available and type, and number of bathrooms.
- Enter the amenities (air conditioning, fireplace, Wi-Fi, etc.) and safety amenities (smoke alarm, first aid kid, fire extinguisher, etc.).
- List the spaces that guests can use (kitchen, pool, gym, etc.), and if there are accessible features. Tip: Having unique spaces (game room, bbq pit, etc.) can make your listing more attractive.
- Always get a professional photographer for the photos. Write an excellent description of the place, add details like distance to nearby landmarks. Make sure the title is captivating and makes them know everything they’ll get.
- Select additional guest requirements (government ID, has a recommendation from other hosts and no negative review). Set the house rules for your guests (pets, smoking, events, etc.), booking rules (check in time, booking deadline, minimum and maximum stay).
- Add details for the fees like nightly price, extra guest fees, cleaning fee, and discounts.
Who Is Robert Abasolo’s Robuilt Host Camp For?
- Robuilt Host Camp is for anyone who wants to learn how to create an Airbnb business from scratch. The course covers the fundamentals all the way to automation. The course does not cover glamping as it is covered in a separate program, Glam Camp.
- Current Airbnb hosts who are looking for mentorship or want to learn updated information or automation. The active Facebook community provides a great way to learn new things and build networks.
What Do You Get With Robert Abasolo’s Robuilt Host Camp?
With Rob Abasolo's Robuilt Host Camp, you get lifetime access to the 8 module training with over 80 videos. You also get 12 monthly group coaching calls, weekly coaching calls, access to the private Facebook, downloadable resources like shopping lists, and automated messaging templates.
Module 1 teaches you about the different platforms for short term rentals, housing types and what can you list on Airbnb, and different strategies. The module also covers buying properties or renting for arbitrage. The module also teaches the basics of creating a listing.
The 2nd module begins with a lesson on why Airbnb would be a good investment and how you can make money with it. Robert also talks about his story about how he got started with his Airbnb journey and how it does today.
You will also learn the differences between short term and long term rentals. Robert also discusses the effects of COVID on short term rentals.
This module teaches you how to do proper market research so you can identify good deals. You'll learn how to properly analyze and comp potential deals and estimate the returns you can make. The module also covers legal issues like how to look up short term rental regulations and required permits.
Module 4 gives you what to keep in mind when buying a home. Making your investment work as a long-term rental will lower your risks, as it provides an alternate option in case your short term rental doesn't work out.
The module also covers lending options and lessons on new construction and remodeling. Finally, the module also covers a point of view on multi family, condo, and townhome properties.
The module starts with Robert telling about his first apartment listing on Airbnb. You'll learn how to furnish the different spaces of your listing, how to budget for it (brand new or rented furniture), and how to set up your unit without even going to your property (useful if you live far away).
Module 5 also covers essentials, appliances and amenities, how to get professional photographs. The lessons also cover security issues.
Module 6 is all about ways you can improve your listings and how you can make it easier for you while ensuring you attract the "good" kind of renters. Adding check-in and check-out policies, sanitary rules, and house rules will make it easier for you to manage the listing. Including useful information, such as directions to the property, on your listings will also make your customer experience better.
The 7th module is all about the management of operations and automation. You will learn how to manage your Airbnb from long distances through the hiring of teams. Automation is another important lesson in this module which will make the management of your Airbnb easier, allowing you to scale.
There is no limit to how many Airbnb listings you can manage at once. Airbnb has its own tutorial on how you can manage multiple listings by using professional hosting tools. This module also covers tools you can use for the automation of almost every aspect of your Airbnb business. Automation is something also covered in the STR Shortcut course.
The final module discusses occupancy rates, cancellations, refunds, and other booking issues. Roberto also goes over long term stays and discounts, as well as over-hosting and under-hosting.
You'll also get further tips on hosting, such as how to leverage DoorDash to deliver lacking or replacement amenities. The lessons also include how to ask for and manage reviews and deal with negative reviews.
Are Students of Robert Abasolo’s Robuilt Host Camp Successful?
There are many positive testimonials from students of Robuilt Host Camp. Here are some of the success stories from the students:
Who Is Robert Abasolo?
Robert Abasolo is an entrepreneur, Airbnb Ambassador, and mentor from Los Angeles, California. He is the creator of Robuilt Host Camp and, as of 2022, the co-host of the BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast. Robert makes a $25,000 monthly profit from 14 Airbnb properties.
Originally from Austin, Texas, Robert graduated with an advertising degree from the University of Texas at Austin. He moved with his wife to Kansas City, Missouri, and worked as a copywriter for VML for 3 years. In 2015, they sold their house and moved to Los Angeles, California, where they rented an apartment.
After fixing their finances and buying a house, Robert decided to turn the rented apartment into an Airbnb for the remaining 6 months of the lease. After realizing he made $1K-$2K/month with the Airbnb apartment, he invested further into Airbnb.
Robert continued scaling his Airbnb business while working as a copywriter. He created the Robuilt YouTube channel in 2020, where he showcased his properties and posted educational videos on short term rentals. He retired as a senior copywriter for INNOCEAN USA in 2021 and did Airbnb and mentoring full time.
Is Airbnb Hosting Worth It in 2024?
Airbnb is a good investment in 2024 as demand for short term vacation rentals is ever increasing. As demand increases, so does the competition. Robert's key to keeping his occupancy rates high was to get into a niche with less competition, such as glamping and rural area vacation properties.
According to Robert, the best places for Airbnb investments are national parks, state parks, national forests, and destination towns (towns that have ski areas, mountains, beaches, lakes), or towns with a gimmick or niche (historical, cultural, or heritage). Robert is a client of The Short Term Shop, which is a real estate investment company that specializes in this kind of short term rental.
Rural areas, especially in the US Midwest, have less strict laws. A similar course that specializes in rural land sustainable Airbnb is the Live the Off Grid Dream course.
Entire homes are the type of Airbnbs that make the most money. Full houses have the highest price and the highest ROIs. These types of properties usually attract vacationers willing to pay a premium price for an intimate and quiet getaway.
If you choose to invest in growing markets, you can try real estate flipping. Course like Lincoln Edwards' Austin Flipsters specializing in one such market.
How Much Does It Cost and How Much Can You Make?
How much money you need to start investing in Airbnb will depend on the type of property, acquisition, and financing that you are planning to use. For example:
If you buy a $300,000 house with a 10% down payment, it can cost you over $50,000 to pay for the down payment, closing costs, furnishing, and other miscellaneous fees before you can get it ready to list on Airbnb. An average Airbnb host makes about $1,000 a month on profits.
If you don't have enough money to buy property for your own Airbnb business, you can try co-hosting or doing Airbnb arbitrage. Airbnb arbitrage has lower ROI. You should be looking for at least 10% returns with Airbnb rental arbitrage. BNB Method is an Airbnb course by Suzie Agelopoulos that specializes in Airbnb arbitrage. Robert Iacob's STR Accelerator is a standalone online course that teaches rental arbitrage.
My Top Online Business Recommendation in 2024?
Local lead generation is my top online business recommendation for 2024. It is a type of digital real estate investment. You create and rank your site on Google using free tactics like SEO, then rent it out to local businesses. You earn passive and predictable rental income.
There are hundreds of niches in thousands of locations, so market saturation and competition are not problems. It costs as much as $500 to initially start your local lead generation business and a fraction of that to maintain. A site can stay ranked on Google for years, so you don't have to spend a lot of time updating and maintaining it.
Local lead generation is easy to scale. All you need to do is repeat the process as much as you want. These qualities make local lead generation the best passive business model to create time and financial freedom.