So You’re Thinking Of Renting Through Airbnb?

In case you aren’t familiar with Airbnb, it’s sort of like an eBay for short-term rentals, only without the bidding. Homeowners, or in many cases leaseholders, rent out either a room or the entire place for a nightly, weekly or monthly rate – presumably while they’re on jaunts of their own.

Since it’s relatively new to the market, there have been few regulations. Many landlords prohibit subletting and I assume that some leases are specifically mentioning that that applies to short-term rentals as well. But in cities like San Francisco, where the housing market is very tight for people who live here long-term, until recently, people have been hoarding properties and renting them out at higher short-term rates, rather than settle for lease prices.

In October of last year, San Francisco passed some regulations for the short-term rental market, including setting a maximum of 90 days a year for any given property and paying hotel taxes. Here is more information on the law.

If you still want to try it out, Airbnb might be a great way to help pay for your own vacation or a way to help finance your own living space without the commitment of a roommate.

Like eBay, Airbnb offers star ratings for both renters rentals. The more quality reviews, the better. That can be a bit of a sticky wicket at times. Even while you are on vacation, being disruptive or making too much noise can result in bad reviews. If you plan on really partying, you might want to stick with a hotel. Unfortunately, complaints can also ring up bad reviews, so if you clog the toilet while renting, it’s a good idea to fix it yourself.

On the other side, most is pretty obvious. Keep your place immaculate. Invest in coordinating linens. Paint the walls. Make sure everything works perfectly. Your goal in the beginning is to rack up good reviews, which might mean cutting your price and adding extra touches like gift cards to local restaurants, a box of chocolates or a bottle of California wine.

Give your guests a binder full of restaurant menus, public transportation information, local sights and activities. You also want to list any peculiarities your home may have, such as a door that needs to be lifted before opening.

Neighbors may not like the idea of strangers staying next door. You can do one of two things; you can either pretend they’re your friends or you can talk to your neighbors, telling them that you only rent to top-rated renters. I recommend the second.

While location is everything, there are many renters who want the San Francisco experience without paying San Francisco prices. If you are on the BART line or within easy commuting distance to the city, you can still generate good prices. Wine country is another huge draw, as is Silicon Valley, especially for business travelers.

There are no guarantees, though. I just plugged in my address and the monthly net was less than we pay every month. Regardless, check them out. It could be worth it for you.

Ensure moving day goes smoothly with this checklist that will help to minimize the stress.

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Spring and summer are high season for moving in Canada. Even if you’re moving into your dream home, the actual process of moving itself can be highly stressful. But if you stay organized and pace your preparations over a few weeks, you’ll do a lot to make the big day go more smoothly. Just follow our guidelines below, and good luck in your new home!

Four to six weeks before the move

1 Create a master list of everything you need to do, and keep it handy to jot down things that occur to you in the coming days. Make note of special tasks like booking piano movers, sending change of address forms out, cancelling newspapers and utilities, special packing and storage needs.

2 Clean out closets, drawers, cupboards, chests, shelves, garage, attic, basement. Divide everything into four groups: Throw Away; Recycling; Giveaway/Yard Sale; Keep.

3 Hold a yard sale to get rid of things that are too valuable to throw away or recycle, but that you don’t want to take to your new home. Check your municipal website for items that can be donated for recycling or reuse: electronics, leftover paint, appliances and reusable building materials are a few items that can be dropped off there. Charities like The Furniture Bank will pick up old furniture and mattresses at no charge and give you a tax receipt.

4 Send out change-of-address forms to magazines and other correspondents. (Many periodicals now allow you to do this online.) Arrange with Canada Post to have mail forwarded to your new address starting on moving day. Begin changing over driver’s license and registration, passport, health cards, and other official forms.

5 Notify utilities, cable company, alarm companies, lawn service companies and other service providers of your moving dates.

6 Plan to use up as much of your food as possible, especially frozen items.

7 Call your insurance company to set up insurance for your new home and cancel your old policy on moving day.

8 Research schools in your new neighbourhood and register your kids at the new school.

9 Have upholstery and rugs cleaned; book window and eavestrough cleaning services.

10 Begin researching moving companies and getting estimates. Once you have chosen the company you want, confirm and sign the contract. If you are doing the packing, obtain boxes and other packing materials from your mover, or a moving supply or discount store.

11 Start packing less used items and storing the boxes in a convenient but less central room, such as den or family room. (Avoid storing them in the basement, which will just make headaches for the movers on moving day.)

12 If possible, visit your new home and make note of any special issues for the movers, such as narrow hallways or steep or winding staircases.

Two to three weeks before moving day

1 Keep records of all your moving expenses; in some cases, you can deduct them on your income taxes.

2 Continue packing boxes. Be sure to label all boxes clearly with the rooms they are going to.

3 If you live in (or are moving to) a condo, book the freight elevator for moving day.

4 Make sure appliances and house are in good working order and make any repairs agreed upon in your house sale.

One week before moving day

1 Defrost (if necessary) and clean out refrigerator, and clean oven. If you have a wood fireplace, have the chimney cleaned.

2 Start cleaning the house as much as possible, to minimize this task on moving day.

3 Finish packing all but the essentials you’ll need right before and right after the move.

4 Arrange to have pets and small children spend moving day with a sitter.

5 Start to plan for changes to the new house, such as booking painters or contractors.

6 Take down artwork and mirrors and pack them in special boxes or crates designed for this purpose.

7 Be sure arrangements have been made to ensure a smooth handover of keys to both the old house and the new house on moving day; usually these are given to the buyers’ and sellers’ lawyers.

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Buy Small-Cap Stocks to Avoid the “Rotating Blades of Death”

Fish yourself a Dow stock out of the earnings pond.

Go ahead—grab your rod and reel one in.

Now ask yourself this question: Will it blend?

The answer, of course, is yes. Forget scaling it, removing its tail, head and bones—that bass will blend into a perfectly grotesque liquid. Unfortunately, investors have to drink it…

Get the picture?

These fish are the Dow Jones components just before 4th quarter earnings came out…

Guess what happens next?

Thirsty yet?

It’s earnings season again. And fourth quarter earnings have flat-out sucked so far. Excuse my French, but there’s no other way to put it. The market is slicing the poor earners to bits…

Caterpillar and Procter & Gamble just released disappointing earnings forecasts for the year. P&G dropped more than 3% on the day. Caterpillar wasn’t so lucky. It cratered more than 7%.

But wait—there’s more!

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Microsoft plummeted more than 9% on the day thanks to a whoppingfour downgrades after its underwhelming earnings announcement. No – that’s not a typo. Even this one-time king of the tech stocks fell straight into the rotating blades of death.

Here’s another fun fact: Out of the 30 Dow stocks, just one—United Technologies—escaped the flying bits of gore. It gained a mouth-watering 41 cents on the day. When the blades stopped turning, the Dow lost nearly 300 points to begin the week.

But before you run off into the woods with your gold hoard and survival kit, there’s something you need to understand: While the Dow fell into the spinning blades, another group of stocks managed to stay in one piece.

As a trader, that’s what you need to be looking for on days like Monday. When the market starts falling apart, there’s usually onegroup of stocks, one sector, or one industry that avoids the carnage. That’s a huge tell. When the big money is buying on a bad day, you know you’re probably onto something…

And that’s exactly what’s happening with small-cap stocks right now.

The big boys have had their fun. Now, small stocks are in the early stages of jumping out in front. The Russell is simply crushing the S&P since October 13th – the week stocks bottomed out. And over the past couple of weeks, we’ve seen more of the same from these little engines that could…

“That’s a sign of a healthy bull market,” I told you earlier this year. “You want to see the small companies–considered much more speculative investments–outperforming the big kids. Investors who are willing to take more risk leads to rising prices. That’s what’s been building over the past three months.”

So start thinking small. And stay away from blenders.

Regards,

Greg Guenthner
for The Daily Reckoning

P.S. This trade rings two bells. It’s the perfect way to protect your trading portfolio right now–while booking solid gains at the same time.  If you want to cash in on the biggest profits this market has to offer, sign up for my Rude Awakening e-letter, for FREE, right here. Stop missing out. Click here now to sign up for FREE.