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Daniel Rusteen

Airbnb Entrepreneur

Daniel Rusteen is an Airbnb Entrepreneur and Author based in the United States. He got started in the short-term rental space in 2013, when he worked for Airbnb. Afterwards, he started Optimize My BNB, a website that helps Airbnb hosts around the world implement useful strategies to perform better on the platform and increase profits. He specializes in listing optimization to keep his clients’ occupancy and nightly rates high year-round, with 100% of optimized listings appearing on page 1 of associated Airbnb searches. He also authored "Optimize YOUR Airbnb: The Definitive Guide to Ranking #1 in Airbnb Search" in 2018, which sold more than 50,000 copies upon release via word-of-mouth sales only. His newest book is titled "Profitable Properties: Airbnb Insider Secrets to Find, Optimize, Price, & Book Direct any Short-Term Rental Investment for Year-Round Occupancy". In addition to educating Airbnb hosts, Daniel is an Airbnb Superhost himself.

Education

  • BA, Business–Economics and Accounting, UC Santa Barbara

Professional Achievements

  • Recognized authority in the short-term rental industry, with a career that spans hosting, property management, and consulting
  • Worked as a CPA in Airbnb’s finance department, where he gained firsthand insight into the platform’s operations
  • Founded OptimizeMyBnb.com in 2016, a company dedicated to helping Airbnb hosts maximize their success through listing optimization and strategic guidance
  • Authored two influential books: "Optimize YOUR Bnb" (2018), a best-seller for Airbnb hosts, and "Profitable Properties" (2023), which provides a comprehensive guide to identifying and managing lucrative short-term rental investments

Certifications & Organizations

  • Certified Public Accountant (California Department of Consumer Affairs)

Favorite Piece of Advice

Negative reviews are the result of mismanaged expectations.

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Forum Comments (3)

What are the most important things to do when starting an Airbnb?
When starting an Airbnb, find the best cleaning company you can. If you have a really great cleaner, then you don't need a property manager. Also, buy as many amenities as you can and the best amenities you can. Whatever category you're in, you want to be as luxurious as you can, because whether you have a one-bedroom that's really basic or you have a five-bedroom mansion, the amount of work is going to be the same.
How do you become a superhost and top-rated host on Airbnb?
To become an Airbnb superhost, you need 10 stays, reservations, or a certain number of booked days. You also need a 4.8 overall rating and a response rate of 90%, as well as 10 completed reservations or 100 nights booked over three months. The reason for that is if someone's renting a monthly, a lot of hosts have a monthly minimum, so you don't need 10 stays of 10 months, you just need 100 nights and a less-than-1.0% cancellation rate. Airbnb reviews these every quarter.

Get unfair reviews removed or deleted. There are a lot of guests who get you into a really unfair situation that results in a negative review. There is a process on Airbnb to do that. That's part of the reason why I have 4.99.
Tips for getting cheap AirBnBs or discounts?
Here's a good tip. When you ask for a discount, ask for a discount in the local currency. If the property you're looking at is priced at $2000.00 USD, but you're going to India, whatever discount you're hoping to get, convert it to their currency and say something like, “Hey, I'm on a budget. Can you give me these dates for X price Indian rupees?” And concretely stating the number you're looking for is also better than just saying, “Hey, can you give me a discount?” State a number. And then the host will come back and they might say no, or they might say "here's 20% off"!

However, I will say that I've stopped asking for discounts as a guest because the only times I've gotten a discount have been times I've also had negative experiences. In my experience, the hosts who are giving the discounts are the people who already know that they have a bad Airbnb.

Co-authored Articles (2)