A shortlet host is the person who looks after guests staying in a furnished home by the night, week or month. The job is part hotel manager, part housekeeper and part customer service. A host answers booking requests, gets the home clean and ready, welcomes guests, fixes problems during the stay, checks the home after check-out and returns the caution deposit.
It is more work than it looks, and more manageable than it sounds once you have help and a routine. Here is what a realistic week looks like.
Who a shortlet host is
Shortlet hosts in Nigeria usually come to it in one of three ways:
- Owners who let their own flat or house, often one they used to rent out yearly.
- Leaseholders who rent a flat on a yearly lease and let it by the night, with the landlord’s written permission. Our guide can I turn my flat into a shortlet? covers what to check.
- Managers who run shortlets for owners in return for a share of the income.
Whichever route, the host carries the same promise to the guest: a clean, safe, working home, and someone who answers when something goes wrong.
In practice, that promise breaks down into six duties:
- The listing. Honest photos, a clear description, fair prices and a calendar that is always up to date.
- The guests. Quick, polite answers before, during and after each stay.
- The home. Clean, stocked and working: power, water, Wi-Fi, air conditioning and locks.
- Safety. A fire extinguisher, a smoke alarm, a first aid kit and working locks on every outside door.
- The money. Taking payments, returning caution deposits fairly and keeping records.
- The neighbours. Following estate rules, so guests do not cause trouble for the people who live there.
Monday to Sunday: a realistic week
This is an example week for a host with one two-bedroom flat in Lagos. A guest checks out on Monday, and a new guest arrives on Friday for the weekend. Your week will differ, but the jobs are the same.
Monday: check-out and changeover
- Remind the guest of the check-out time in the morning.
- Walk through the home after they leave. Check for damage, missing items and anything left behind.
- Take dated photos of each room.
- Return the caution deposit, or raise a problem with evidence if something was damaged.
- Send the cleaner in. Strip the beds and send the laundry out.
Tuesday: repairs and supplies
- Fix what the last guest reported: a dripping tap, a remote with dead batteries, a slow Wi-Fi router.
- Book the generator service, or check the inverter batteries.
- Buy diesel, top up the prepaid meter and pay any estate dues.
- Restock toilet paper, soap, water, tea and coffee.
Wednesday: messages and bookings
- Answer questions from people thinking of booking. Speed matters: a guest who waits may book somewhere else.
- Accept or decline new booking requests.
- Check your prices for the next few weeks, especially holidays and paydays.
- Block any dates you have agreed elsewhere, so nobody else can book them.
Thursday: get ready for the weekend
- Inspect the home after cleaning. Sit on each bed and run each tap.
- Test the power, the water pump, the air conditioning and the Wi-Fi.
- Send the guest their check-in instructions, and tell estate security they are coming.
- Change any door or key-box code from the last guest.
Friday: arrival day
- Be reachable from the afternoon. Flights can land late, and traffic can be heavy.
- Meet the guest, or make sure your caretaker does. Hand over the keys.
- Show them the generator hours, the pump switch and how the hot water works.
Saturday: during the stay
- Answer requests: fresh towels, a fault, a question about the area.
- Deal with the unexpected. The power goes, a guest locks themselves out, a neighbour complains about noise.
- Stay calm and quick. How you handle a problem decides how the guest remembers the stay.
Sunday: wrap up the week
- Send a friendly check-out reminder for Monday.
- Record the week’s income and costs in one place.
- Plan next week’s cleaning and repairs.
Not every week is this full. A single guest staying a month means fewer changeovers and more quiet days. Use quiet weeks for a deep clean, new photos and bigger repairs.
On Cabans, the booking side of that week happens in one place. Our Host Academy lesson how a booking worksfollows one booking from the guest’s payment to the returned deposit.
The jobs you can share
Doing every job yourself is hard to keep up. These jobs are the easiest to hand to someone else:
| Job | Who can do it |
|---|---|
| Cleaning between guests | A trusted cleaner, paid per changeover, with a written checklist |
| Laundry | A laundry service, with spare sets of bed linen and towels |
| Key handover | A caretaker or a family member who lives nearby |
| Repairs | An electrician, a plumber and a generator technician on call |
| Messages and bookings | A co-host or assistant who answers quickly and knows your rules |
| Records and tax | An accountant, once or twice a year |
Agree what each person does in writing, and how they are paid. Share guest details only with people who need them.
Your cleaner needs the check-out time, not the guest’s ID. If you would rather hand over everything, compare the options in management company or manage it yourself.
The tools that help
Good tools turn a stressful week into a routine. You do not need expensive software to start:
- One calendar that shows every booking, from every place you take them.
- Checklists for cleaning, arrival and check-out, printed and on your phone.
- Saved messages for the questions you answer every week: directions, check-in time, generator hours.
- A stock list of what the home should always have.
- A simple record of income and costs, so you know whether the home is making money.
When you take bookings on Cabans, many of these jobs are built in. Your Bookings pagesorts every guest into tabs: “Requests”, “Upcoming”, “Arriving”, “In house”, “Leaving”, “Past” and “Cancelled”. The calendar lets you set prices for busy dates, block dates you have agreed elsewhere, and leave “Notes for your team” that guests never see.
Guests pay online through Paystack when they book, and Paystack’s processing fee is paid by the guest. You write your house rules and arrival steps once, in “Stay information”, and guests see the door code only after you press “Approve check-in”. Guest requests arrive with a “Start” and “Mark as done” button, and you can add team members so bookings do not all rest on you.
Cabans charges hosts a 5% commission. You are paid within 7 days after each stay, or sooner when the guest taps “Approve payment” after their trip. See how to take shortlet bookings online.
Skills that make a good host
You do not need a hotel background. You do need a few habits:
- Fast, friendly replies. Guests judge you by how quickly and kindly you answer.
- An eye for detail. A hair in the sink or a dead torch battery is what guests remember.
- Calm under pressure. Power cuts and late flights happen. A calm plan beats a panicked phone call.
- Fairness. Treat every guest the same, and settle deposits on evidence, not feelings.
- Simple record-keeping. Write down every booking, payment and cost the day it happens. Ask an accountant or your state’s revenue service what you need to report; this guide is not tax advice.
Is hosting for you?
Hosting suits people who like looking after others and can stay calm when things break. Before you start, answer these honestly:
- Can you, or someone you trust, answer guests quickly, including evenings and weekends?
- Do you have a reliable cleaner, or can you find one?
- Can you cope with quiet months, when the home earns little but still costs money?
- Do you have money set aside for repairs, a new mattress or a generator part?
- Are you comfortable with strangers staying in a home you care about?
If most of your answers are yes, hosting can be a good business. Read how to start a shortlet business in Nigeria for the full picture, and is a shortlet profitable? to test the numbers for your own home.
Start hosting
Ready to try? List your short let and start with one home, a good cleaner and a simple routine. To see what guests are comparing you with, browse shortlets in Lagos, shortlets in Abuja or shortlets across Nigeria.
Frequently asked questions
Who is a shortlet host?
A shortlet host is the person responsible for a guest’s stay in a furnished home let by the night, week or month. The host may own the home, lease it with the owner’s permission, or manage it for an owner.
What are a shortlet host’s main duties?
Keeping the listing and calendar up to date, answering guests quickly, getting the home clean and ready, welcoming guests, fixing problems during the stay, checking the home after check-out, settling the caution deposit and keeping records.
How many hours a week does hosting take?
It depends on how many homes you run, how busy they are and how much help you have. A week with two changeovers is far busier than a week with one long stay. Cleaners, a caretaker and good checklists cut your own time a lot.
Can I host a shortlet with a full-time job?
Yes, if you have help on the ground. A reliable cleaner and a caretaker who can hand over keys cover most daytime jobs. You still need to answer guests quickly, so keep your phone close in the evenings and at weekends.
Do I need to own the property to be a shortlet host?
No. Some hosts lease a flat and let it as a shortlet, and others manage homes for owners. If you rent, you need your landlord’s written permission first, and your tenancy agreement must allow it.
What is the difference between a shortlet host and a shortlet agent?
A host runs the stay: the home, the guests and the money. An agent usually finds guests or properties for a fee or commission and does not look after the guest during the stay.
Related guides
How to start a shortlet business · Shortlet cleaning checklist · Management company or self-manage? · How to become a shortlet agent · Shortlet start-up costs
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