Got a party house? A home with classic architecture or that speaks to a genre? You may be able to rent your house by the hour — for hundreds of dollars an hour — to film makers, photographers and event planners.
Several websites list homes as movie and event locations. Although rentals are sporadic, they pay extraordinarily well when they happen. Typically, in fact, you’ll earn five to 10 times more than you would if you rented your house out overnight to tourists.
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Which are the best sites to rent your house by the hour and how do they work?
Giggster
Our favorite of the half-dozen sites that can rent your house by the hour is Giggster, a site that specializes in renting homes to film makers and photographers.
You take copious photographs of your house and describe it in a listing. You also set your hourly rates and say when the house is available. The site encourages you to also vary your rates based on the number of people who will be in the house. A film with a 15-man crew, for instance, might pay $100 an hour. But, you might charge $150 for crews of 30 or more.
Why the staggered rates? The more people who come to your house, the greater the wear and tear on your residence. There’s also a bigger risk that someone gets hurt or things get damaged. The site also urges you to check the production company’s insurance and permits.
When your house books, you pay a commission to the site. Giggster will pay you the rental fees immediately following a rental.
But, what sets Giggster apart is they answer the phone and email, when you need help. And since renting houses for movies is unfamiliar territory for most homeowners, that’s important. Learn more about Giggster here.
PeerSpace
PeerSpace is another well-established site to rent your home by the hour. It appears to be popular with party planners and movie makers alike. Like Giggster, when you register your home here, you post copious photos and descriptions and set hourly rates based on the size of the gathering and what your house will be used for.
You might have separate rates for corporate events versus photo shoots, for instance. When we tested this site, we got frequent requests for parties. Unfortunately, many of these involve alcohol and another level of risk. But booking requests were frequent and you can command very good pay.
Our advice: Require that party-goers buy and show you their “event insurance” policy. If you rent to a movie producer, require production insurance. Learn more about PeerSpace here.