Airbnb Update – October 2021

Just a quick update on how our Airbnb renovations are going since our last post in September, how much progress we’ve made, and when we estimate we’ll be live on Airbnb for bookings. For all our Airbnb related posts click here.

Eventually, the aim is to turn these posts into more detailed monthly posts around the ups and downs of being an Airbnb host (if we ever get there).

So what’s happened since our last post in September?

Bathroom/Toilet

Since our last post, our bathroom grouting, and silicone have been completed by our bathroom contractors. We also had our LED mirror and frameless shower screen installed.

As always with renovations, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing and we had some issues with the LED mirror we received in October. The button to turn the mirror on ended up being misaligned so when it was hung it was off centre (and looked crooked). We returned it and were pleasantly surprised to receive an upgraded model at no extra cost. The new LED mirror has a built-in Bluetooth speaker (and is anti fog) so you can listen to music etc during your shower. It’s awesome.

My husband completed the plastering and painting of the bathroom ceiling and toilet along with the installation of the toilet roll holder. We still have the towel rack to install but are not 100% decided on the location.

The only items remaining for bathroom completion are the towel rack install (DIY) and the exhaust fan install (which has to be done by an electrician).

If you would like to see the inspiration behind our Bathroom renovations check out our Pinterest board here.

Kitchenette (Mini Kitchen)

The finished mini kitchen all ready for guests

The mini kitchen was finished in October !!!!! and we love it !!!!!!!

We even gave it a test run the other day when we had friends over playing in the pool. It was so awesome to do some food prep and keep the drinks cool without having to run up and down stairs all afternoon.

In October to finish it off my husband put in a shelf for the microwave and some other items. The shelf was a lot more work than it looked as the microwave is quite heavy and the stud work in the wall wasn’t really best to support my idea of a floating shelf. As a result to our guests, it appears to be a floating shelf but in reality, it’s not. I’m still really happy with it, and my husband managed to colour match the wood to the benchtop pretty well.

I also finished buying the plates, odds, and ends for the mini kitchen. The items came from KMART and IKEA, and shopping for these items was my favourite activity this month.

If you would like to see the inspiration behind our Mini Kitchen renovations check out our Pinterest board here.

The Laundry

In October we started working on the laundry side of the bathroom. Our bathroom is laid out with the shower and vanity on one side and the laundry cabinetry and appliances on the other.

Initially, we were going to get a custom-made laundry and we were going to outsource a lot of the work to contractors to save time. But as time went on we realised that this simply wasn’t financially feasible for us so we decided to look at IKEA as an option.

After playing with their kitchen/laundry designer online and coming up with a design (see image below) we decided to go ahead and order.

Our laundry design came to the cost of $1500 which was far better than the quotes we had received from contractors (6k-9k).

Fortunately for us, the majority of the laundry was in stock at IKEA and was delivered to our home the next day. The remaining items arrived at the end of October.

My husband and I are slowly chipped away at building the laundry, but we are still yet to have it all installed (ETA Nov at this stage). Our downstairs currently looks like a storeroom for IKEA.

Our living room nook aka an IKEA storeroom

In November we hope to have the laundry cabinets installed, and have a benchtop picked out. I’m super keen to be able to do my laundry indoors after over 6 months of doing my laundry outside (see photo below).

Other Renovation Activities

We completed the installation of the exterior door (the last door), and it’s been painted black on one side and has a clear coat on the wood grain on the other side. It sounds a bit odd, but honestly looks great and allows the door to stay in the colour scheme of both areas (see photos below).

Inside View of Door from Bathroom/Laundry

October’s weather was lovely so we also managed to get stuck into the outdoor areas which included oiling the deck and furniture, and pulling up the old lawn (ready for the new lawn in November).

What Airbnb related renovations are still to be done?

This list seems to get bigger and bigger:

Install Laundry
Install exhaust fan
Install towel rack
Get plumber to install laundry taps and sink
Measure up the laundry benchtop and install
Put in 2 plantation shutters
Put in a new curtain
Repaint the outdoor pavers
Replace the outdoor cushions
Replace lawn
Finish off outdoor veranda (painting, cornice and lights)
Buy a new outdoor umbrella

How much have we spent to date?

$20,828 (Spent up to the end of September 2021)

This amount includes everything from new flooring throughout, new bathroom/laundry/toilet, new doors, new furniture, curtains/plantation shutters, painting, and any outdoor updates required.

If you would like to see a bit more detail around our monthly expenses use the link here. We have a category called renovations.

When are we aiming to start listing our Airbnb?

Originally our plan was to start listing for guests by Spring 2021 (September 2021). However, as you can tell we are not ready for guests. We are tentatively aiming to list on Airbnb in early January.

What does it look like now?

Here are a few current photos of the space.