Do you rent out your boat when you are not using it? We already briefly covered the basics of renting out a boat and why it is great. This article covers how to get more renters and earn more with boat rentals. We will share tips on making your advertisements more attractive, getting good reviews, and earning more money.

Things to consider before you post your rental boat advertisement

If you are planning to rent out your boat, make a plan and research first. How much competition is there in your town? How much do other owners ask for similar boats, and how booked are they? Such research will allow you to adjust the price. Also, think about the seasons. During the high season, the prices are usually higher, so you can raise them a bit. But during the low season, there are way fewer people, so you might not get any bookings. Regularly adjusting the price can help you make much more money than sticking with the same price all the time.

Make sure that your insurance covers your boat in the hands of renters. Whether it’s damage to your own boat or another, medical bills, or legal assistance, better be safe and insured than sorry. Of course, you will have to pay to upgrade the insurance. Some boat rental sites also offer to insure your boat throughout renting periods, but it costs too.

Finally, be prepared to meet your renters. Many book last-minute, so be sure that you can meet them or find someone who can. For this reason, most owners prefer long rental periods, from a day to a week, because it would be hard to manage more. During the meetings, provide instructions and tips for the renters. You can also take them for a quick ride to let them get familiar with the controls. 

How to make your boat rentals ad appealing

Have nice pictures. The better the images, the more likely people will become interested. If the photos look bad, renters are likely to skip the ad. Smartphones today take good pictures, but it is still better to take them with a professional camera or hire a photographer. 

Write a good description. Just like people seeking to rent an apartment, people looking for boats want to know as much as possible to make the best choice. Help them! 

Respond quickly. If you were looking to rent a boat yourself, found the one you like, and contacted the owner, you would like a quick response, no? If you take too long, your prospective renters might lose interest in your boat. Replying soon lets the people know you are excited about renting your boat and makes them like you more, thus increasing the likelihood of a good review. Some sites even rank quick responders better.

Have a captain available. In peer-to-peer boat sharing, bareback rentals are the most common: it means that you rent the vessel alone. Larger boats and yachts are usually chartered with a captain. But some people might not have a captain, and might still want to rent your boat. You can be the captain yourself (have a license then) or connect with captains to hire if there is a need. By providing this option, you can get more renters. 

How to get good reviews for your boat rentals

Good reviews are crucial. People are social creatures, and they want social proof, knowing that other people enjoyed products, services, or experiences. A good review is just that: someone says they liked your boat, and people are more willing to believe they will enjoy time on your boat too. And the more reviews there are, the more willing they will be! So make sure to provide good customer service to have good reviews. 

Add extra features. Just like when you offer vacation rentals, think what you would like to have when you rent a boat for your vacations or a party and include it. For example, add water toys or fishing gear. Also, it’s a good idea to leave a welcome basket, wishing the guests to enjoy the boat. It would be a lovely surprise for them to find! You could also leave a cooler with bottled water and snacks, beach towels, etc.

Clean and maintain your boat. Make sure that everything works so that there is a minimal chance of trouble. Also, have all the safety equipment in good condition, such as life vests. Finally, leave the boat clean. You can scrub it yourself or hire cleaning services. 

Meet them nicely and leave instructions. We already mentioned meeting the clients: try to cover as much as possible during the meeting, from controls to routes. They will also likely appreciate you leaving notes and suggested routes. You can even include menus from nearby restaurants! 

Ask for a review. Sometimes people would gladly post a good review, but they forget or need a little incentive. When the rental period is over, write to them asking whether they enjoyed the experience and politely asking to leave a review if they did.

Boat

Conclusions

Some of the most important things when renting out boats are a plan, research, and insurance. Make sure your schedule allows checking-in renters and that your boat is clean and well-maintained when they come. Post an informative ad with high-quality pictures and be responsive to get guests, and provide good services to get good reviews. Then, enjoy earning money with boat rentals!

Is your parking spot on your property sitting idly? Would you like to earn some extra money? Rent out your parking space. In this article, we will tell you about the sparking situation in the US, the advantages of renting out your parking space, how much you can earn with this, and how to do it.

Parking situation in the US

study by INRIX found that US drivers spend 17 hours per year looking for parking on average. In some congested places a third of the traffic might be drivers cruising for parking, another study finds. And the costs can be immense, reaching $27 per hour in New York, while purchasing a parking spot can cost $600,000.

With such a situation, no wonder that rental spots are in demand or that many people rent out their parking space. Some people that rent a parking spot are traveling for vacations or business with their own or rental cars. Others might live in the city but not have a parking space. To be sure, few people want to lose time roaming around looking for a space to park. Having one reserved saves both time and peace of mind. 

On the other hand, there are some people who have a parking space but do not have a car or hardly use it. So, even if it’s just a few days a week that your parking space is unoccupied, you can benefit from it!

How much can you earn with your parking space?

It depends. The most important factor, of course, is the city. Are you renting out a parking space in Brooklyn or Atlanta? You might earn $300 in one place and $50 in another. The closer the spot to the city center, the more valuable it usually is. Parking spaces near airports and stations are also not too bad. 

On average, you can earn about $200 per month when you rent out a parking space. You can get even more if the parking spot is large, there are CCTV cameras and good lighting around. Spaces in indoor garages are also worth more, and you can expect even $300 per month. 

Perhaps you also have a car that you are not using much? You can rent it out too! Learn how to rent out your car.

How to rent out your spot

First, you should make sure that renting out your parking space is legal. The parking spot has to be exclusively yours: it cannot be a common element of the building where you live. If the spot is yours, but you are just a tenant in your living space, check with the owner that they allow renting it. You should also check your city bylaws and make sure it’s legal. Then you can think about how to rent out your parking space.

You can post an ad yourself or trust an app. The apps can simplify the procedure, and you can save time. They can also help to handle payments. Of course, there are some disadvantages, like possible membership fees, commissions, or caps on your earnings. Some of the popular ones include ParkingForMe, ParkOnMyDrive, and SpotHero. Check out other ads in your location to decide on the price you will ask.

Other people do not use apps and post ads themselves. Some places you can do this are Craiglist, Facebook groups, or just your neighborhood bulletin. While you hardly have to pay any fees, there is less security. There is no verification and no help with handling payments. If trouble arises, you will have to deal with it all by yourself.

If you are renting the parking space for quite some time yourself, it’s recommended to draw up a contract with your renter. You should also agree on the time to pay the rent, such as the beginning of the month. 

XRental is also planning to expand to renting parking spaces soon. You could join us and post an ad for your parking space! We will not rip you off: our motto is allow partners to make money. Posting an ad here is simple and easy. Contact us if you wish to rent out your parking space and earn money!

Renting property or equipment sounds super appealing. You don’t have to do much, just rent it out and the cash will keep on flowing in, right? Yes, a rental business can be an amazing source of income. But you have to do it right. In this article, we will give you tips on how to start a rental business.

Finding the right rental business idea

Okay, so you know that you want a rental business, but what do you really want to rent? Bikes, cars, boats, maybe even parking spaces? It is an important decision to make, and it should depend on several factors. For example, it is a good idea to rent things that you know about a lot. Such knowledge will not only motivate you but will also allow solving arising problems easier. 

Another way is to find a niche that you could fill. Perhaps you know areas where certain rental items is in demand, but there is a lack of supply? It might be your chance for a flourishing business! You might also discover a trend of which other companies are not yet aware. It is very much connected to another important step when setting up a business: market research.

Doing the homework

Doing your homework or conducting market research is essential to start a business successfully and helps avoid making mistakes. Try finding as much information as possible before launching your business. You can both find your business idea this way, but you can also fully develop the one you already have. Consider such questions as what are my clients? What do they want? What about the competition? How do I get funding? 

A good idea is to consult professionals. They can answer some of your questions and help with the planning process. You could also try getting some experience working with rental businesses because experience always comes in handy.

Check out the success story of Ronnie Danelian, owner of Legends Cars Rentals, who started with a $10,000 investment and now makes $175,000 a month.

Taking care of your stuff

Good inventory is essential. After all, you have to own items in order to rent them. Do not start too big: rent just a few items at first. If you have too many items right away, it may be difficult to properly stock or manage them. Also, it might turn out that the customers want something different than you are offering. It’s best to start small and buy more items as you move forward in your business.

It might come as a no-brainer but remember to take good care of the items. The longer the equipment or property serves, the more profitable it is. Also, try to make sure it does not break or malfunction in the hands of the customer. Such happenings can affect your image very negatively, so keep up good maintenance.

Start your rental business online

More and more businesses are online. People love being able to access items 24/7 from the comfort of their homes. However, if you want to have a successful online rental business, you must have a functional and good-looking website. Appearance matters a lot since it has to grab the eye of your visitor. One of the most important things in a rental website is the reservation system. If your reservation system works poorly, you can lose your customer forever. Fortunately, it’s quite easy to have such a system. If you use a WordPress site (which we recommend because WordPress is the most popular website builder for a reason), you can buy the plugin Car Rental System. It’s a plugin that can be easily edited and include basically any functions you want.

Another important thing when creating an online rental business is the domain name. Your domain name will distinguish it from many other websites: it must be attractive, unique and recognizable so that people remember it. Once you have a good name, register it on the Domain Name System. Then, choose a hosting provider and build your website.

A happy customer means a happy business

There is a reason why businesses like to say that the customer is always right: happy customers are likely to return, leave good reviews and so generate profits. Of course, you must also ensure your needs, so prepare a good contract that sets down all that is important: the dates, what to do if certain things go wrong and so on. The clearer everything is noted, the easier it will be to handle arguments. Finally, make sure to provide good services. Only then you can start and develop your rental business successfully!