How to get Airbnb Management Clients during COVID
By James Svetec · May 14, 2020 · 4 min read
Part of our Co-Hosting & Arbitrage guide →
Key Takeaways
- Long-term rental landlords facing vacancies are prime co-hosting prospects during economic downturns — they have a clear pain point you can solve.
- Furnished properties with backyards, home offices, and high-speed internet attract mid-to-long-term stays even when tourism is low.
- An 80% cut of something beats 100% of nothing — this reframe helps hesitant property owners see the value of short-term rental.
- The right client pitch starts with questions, not a sales deck — understand their financial situation before presenting any solution.
- Splitting furniture costs 50/50 with a motivated property owner can help you add properties to your portfolio with minimal upfront capital.
Finding Airbnb management clients during COVID — or during any major economic disruption — requires a complete rethink of who your ideal client actually is and what pain they're experiencing right now. The strategies that worked in a booming travel market don't translate directly to a crisis environment, but that doesn't mean opportunity disappears. It just moves.
Watch the full video above or keep reading for the complete breakdown.
How to Find Pain in Any Market
Every successful business is built around solving a real problem for a specific group of people. That principle doesn't change during a crisis — what changes is where the pain is concentrated.
When tourism collapses, the obvious assumption is that short-term rental is dead. But that's a surface-level read. Dig one layer deeper and a different picture emerges. Yes, vacation bookings dry up.
But simultaneously, a whole new category of property owner develops a very specific, very urgent pain point: a vacant property that used to fill itself now sitting empty for months.
The key discipline here is doing a fresh market analysis every time there's a major economic shift. Don't rely on the intel you gathered six months ago. Ask yourself: who is struggling right now, and what are they struggling with? That question will almost always surface opportunities that other people — the ones running and hiding — are missing entirely.
This pain-first approach is foundational to how BNB Mastery recommends building a co-hosting business. It's not about pitching Airbnb management to everyone with a property. It's about identifying the people whose situation genuinely benefits from what you offer. When those two things align, the sale is almost a formality.
For a broader look at how co-hosting fits into this model, understanding the difference between Airbnb hosting, co-hosting, and investing is a useful starting point.
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Why Landlords Are Your Best Prospect Right Now
In normal market conditions, long-term rental landlords in major cities have it easy. Properties get snapped up within hours. Applicants compete against each other. Landlords screen tenants, not the other way around.
A crisis flips that entirely. Suddenly there's more supply coming onto the long-term rental market — partly from former short-term rentals that can no longer book tourists — and less demand, as fewer people want to move during a pandemic or economic disruption. What was a landlord's market becomes a tenant's market almost overnight.
That shift creates a specific, measurable pain point: vacant properties generating zero income. The landlord who had a unit fill within 48 hours last year is now watching it sit empty for two, three, even four months. That's not theoretical frustration — that's thousands of dollars in lost income, possibly with a mortgage still running in the background.
These are your best prospects for Airbnb management clients during COVID and similar downturns. They have a problem. They need a solution. And critically, they're open to options they would have dismissed when things were going smoothly.
Hosts looking to build a systematic approach to landing these clients can find a step-by-step framework through BNB Mastery's Co-Hosting Program, which covers everything from identifying prospects to closing your first deal.
Why Airbnb Still Makes Sense for Property Owners
The most common objection you'll hear from property owners is the obvious one:
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you really find Airbnb management clients during COVID or an economic downturn?
Yes. Economic downturns create a new category of motivated property owner — landlords with vacant units and no income. These owners are often more open to Airbnb management than they would be in a strong rental market because the status quo is already failing them.
What types of properties work best for Airbnb during a crisis?
Properties with practical amenities for remote workers perform best during downturns: private backyards, dedicated home office space, high-speed internet, and extra bedrooms. Condos and urban studios are harder to book; houses with outdoor space attract mid-to-long-term stays.
How do you pitch Airbnb co-hosting to a landlord with a vacant property?
Start with questions, not a pitch. Ask how long the property has been vacant and what the financial impact has been. Once you understand their pain, walk them through how furnished short-term rental can generate partial income now and higher returns long-term — compared to zero income from a vacant unfurnished unit.
Is Airbnb co-hosting still a viable business model in 2026?
Yes. Co-hosting remains one of the lowest-barrier ways to build income in the short-term rental space. The core model — managing properties on behalf of owners for a percentage of revenue — works in all market conditions, though the prospecting strategy and ideal client profile shift depending on economic context.
What if a property owner can't afford furniture to list on Airbnb?
One practical solution is a 50/50 furniture cost-split between the co-host and the property owner. The co-host recoups their investment through future management earnings. This approach reduces the barrier for motivated owners who see the long-term potential but are cash-constrained in the short term.
Building a co-hosting business during a downturn is genuinely possible — but it requires a different playbook than the one that works in boom times. If you want a proven framework for landing your first client and scaling from there, BNB Mastery's Co-Hosting Program walks through the exact steps, including how to identify motivated owners, run the client conversation, and structure your management agreements for long-term success. For ongoing support and strategy from other active co-hosts, the BNB Tribe community is where those conversations happen every day.
Free Tool
Grab the Co-Hosting Deal Analyzer
Analyze any co-hosting deal in minutes with the same spreadsheet James uses — includes a setup cheatsheet.
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