How to find your first Airbnb management client when you have no track record
Where first owners actually come from in Belgium and the Netherlands, what to say when you have nothing to show yet, and the outreach rules that keep you out of trouble.
Sources listed, last checked
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules differ by country and city and change often, so check the official source and ask a qualified adviser before you act.
Your first owner is most likely to come from a direct, specific approach: someone in your own network, an owner whose listing you can show is underperforming, or a professional who meets owners every week. Airbnb’s Co-Host Network, where hosts search for local co-hosts, does not operate in Belgium or the Netherlands, so owners there cannot find you through Airbnb, and a generic “I can manage your property” message gets deleted.1 European consent rules and Airbnb’s own terms also rule out the shortcuts that look cheapest: bulk cold email and pitching hosts through Airbnb messages.358
Key takeaways
- Airbnb lists its Co-Host Network in 12 countries, and neither Belgium nor the Netherlands is one of them.1
- Specific beats generic: name the owner’s listing, their rate and their empty dates, then offer a simulation instead of a portfolio.
- In Belgium, marketing emails and text messages to private individuals need prior consent; in the Netherlands the consent rule covers most business addresses too.58
- Airbnb’s terms for European users forbid using its messaging tools to send commercial messages without express consent.3
- Take the risk off the owner’s side in the first agreement: a short first term, an easy way out and a monthly report.
In this guide
Why the first owner is the hard part
Cleaning, guest messages and pricing follow a system. Getting a stranger to hand you their property when you have nothing to show is where people stall, for three reasons.
- Owners ignore generic messages. The one that gets an answer names their listing, their rate and their empty dates.
- The owner can tell you have no track record. Their real question is “what happens if you are bad at this”, and your first agreement has to answer it.
- A weak first month loses the unit. If month one is worse than their last month without you, there is no referral and no second unit.
Who your first owner is likely to be
Owners likely to say yes to a beginner have a problem you can see, or one they already feel.
- The owner of an underperforming listing. They already know the model works; flat pricing, empty weekends or tired photos show where to start.
- The second-home owner. A flat in the city or at the coast, used a few weeks a year and empty the rest. Check the local rules before you pitch, because some places only allow short-term letting of a principal residence.
- The owner moving abroad for a while. They want to keep their home and need someone local by a fixed date.
- The tired small host. One or two units and messages at midnight; they know the work is real.
- The heirs of a property. They are still choosing between selling and letting. In an apartment building, the co-owners’ statutes can restrict short stays, so read them first (VME or VvE).
- The landlord between tenants. This is where the rules bite hardest, so check Airbnb rules in Belgium and the Netherlands before you promise anything.
Seven places to find owners, compared
The table compares seven channels for a beginner. Effort, speed and cost are our assessment, not measured data.
Seven channels for a first owner, our assessment for a beginner in Belgium or the Netherlands
| Channel | Effort | Speed | Cost | Rules to watch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Your own network | Low | Fast | Time only | A bulk promotional email to your contacts is still marketing |
| Listings that underperform | High | Medium | Time only | Airbnb’s terms, consent rules for email and phone |
| Estate agents, syndics and property managers | Medium | Slow | Time only | Do Not Call Me list if you phone in Belgium |
| Local owner groups and associations | Medium | Slow | Low | Each group’s own rules on promotion |
| Letterbox and local print | Medium | Slow | Printing | Sticker rules in Dutch municipalities |
| Relocation agencies and employers | Medium | Slow | Time only | Consent rules for business email |
| Being findable locally | High at the start | Slow | Low | Only claim what you can show |
Your own network
Start here, because trust is already in place. Say plainly what you do and which property you are looking for: “I manage short-stay flats for owners in Leuven, and I am taking on my first two.” Keep messages personal: a promotional email sent in bulk to your address book can count as electronic marketing, which needs consent in Belgium.5
Listings that underperform
Compare listings in your target neighbourhood the way a guest would: Tuesday against Saturday rates, open dates next month, the first photo and the last reviews. Treat occupancy guesses as rough, because a blocked date can be a booking or the owner’s own block.
Do this by hand: Airbnb’s terms for European users forbid bots and scrapers, and forbid using members’ personal information to send commercial messages without express consent.3 For business hosts in the EU, Airbnb verifies and shows a business name, address, phone number and email address on the listing, because the Digital Services Act requires it. That is not permission to market to them.4 Reach the owner through their own website, their company’s published details or someone who knows them, and use the listing to prepare what you say.
Estate agents, syndics and property managers
Estate agents meet owners who hesitate between selling and letting; syndics hear early when a co-owner struggles with a second flat. Visit them with one page on what you do and do not do, and send owners back to them for anything outside your role. If you phone agencies in Belgium, the Do Not Call Me list applies to business numbers too.6
Local owner groups and associations
Host groups for your city and second-home owners’ associations gather owners in one place. Read each group’s rules on promotion, and answer questions for a few weeks before you mention your services.
Letterbox and local print
A letter is slow but personal and reaches owners who are not online. Pick streets near what guests come for, such as the station or a university, and write a real letter rather than a flyer. Check the sticker on every letterbox, and check your municipality’s rules before a round, because Dutch cities differ (see letterboxes and letters below).
Relocation agencies and employers
Relocation agencies and international employers meet people who leave on a date, and some own a home. Offer something useful for their clients rather than asking for a commission. For a year away a mid-term tenant may suit the owner better, and saying so builds trust.
Being findable locally
Here owners come to you, but it takes months. Make one clear page that names your towns, your languages and how you are paid, add a business profile on map services, and ask your first owner for a review once you have earned it. An owner who contacts you first is not receiving unsolicited marketing.
Outreach rules in Belgium and the Netherlands
The rules below are general information about how you may approach owners, not legal advice. They change, and your own case may differ, so check with a lawyer before you run a campaign. Both countries build their email rules on the same EU directive, the ePrivacy Directive, but each wrote it into national law in its own way.58
Email and messages in Belgium
In Belgium, the opt-in rules for electronic marketing sit in Book XII of the Code of Economic Law. They cover emails and text messages, and depending on the context also instant messaging and chat. They apply to newsletters and to any message that promotes a business, not just to obvious adverts.5
- Consent first. As a general rule you need the recipient’s prior, free, specific and informed consent before you send a marketing message.5
- Two exceptions, with strict conditions. No prior consent is needed for messages to your existing customers, or for messages to legal persons, such as a company’s general email address.5 An owner who is a private individual is neither.
- An opt-out in every message. Every electronic message must clearly mention the right to opt out and offer an electronic way to do it.5
- Phone calls follow a different rule. Belgium works with an opt-out list for telemarketing. If you phone people for marketing, business or private, you have to remove numbers registered on the Do Not Call Me list, and using the list requires a paid licence.6 The federal coalition agreement mentions a possible move to an opt-in system for calls. In March 2026 the manager of DNCM, the association that licenses the list, said how it would work had not yet been decided, so check whether the rule has changed before you phone.7
In practice, a personal email to an estate agency’s general address about working together is a different thing from a mailing to a list of private owners you put together yourself. The first can fit an exception; the second needs consent.
Email, messages and calls in the Netherlands
In the Netherlands the rule is article 11.7 of the Telecommunicatiewet, supervised by the ACM.89
- Consent first, for private individuals and most businesses. Sending unsolicited electronic marketing messages is forbidden unless the recipient gave consent beforehand. A message to a company, or to someone acting in their business, is only exempt when it goes to contact details the recipient published for receiving such messages.8
- Consent has to be real. The ACM says it cannot come from pre-ticked boxes, pressure or your terms and conditions, and that you must be able to prove it for up to 5 years after sending.9
- Show who you are and make opting out easy. Use your business name, no alias, and give a quick, free way to unsubscribe in every message.9
- Calls to consumers and small businesses need explicit consent. Since 1 July 2026, businesses may only phone consumers and small businesses, such as sole traders and partnerships, for marketing if they gave explicit consent in advance, including existing and former customers.10
Letterboxes and letters
Paper is not covered by the email rules, but in the Netherlands it has its own. According to DDMA, the Dutch data-driven marketing association, the national “NEE NEE” and “NEE JA” stickers have existed under self-regulation since 1993, and by 1 March 2024, 62 of the 342 Dutch municipalities had switched to a “JA” sticker. In those places unaddressed advertising may only go into letterboxes that show a yes sticker.12 For addressed advertising post, DDMA describes a separate self-regulation code, Postfilter, which lets people opt out and asks senders of direct mail to refer to it.12
Rotterdam is an example. Its own page says advertising without a name and address may only go into letterboxes with a Ja/Ja sticker, that post “to the residents of” an address counts as unaddressed, and that only post with the owner’s name and address counts as addressed.11 DDMA reported in 2024 that a court had found part of Rotterdam’s wider definition non-binding towards PostNL, with an appeal pending, so check the current position before a round.12 Either way, a personal letter to a named owner is safer than a flyer. In Belgium, check your own municipality’s rules and respect any sticker on the letterbox.
Watch out: Airbnb’s off-platform rules
Airbnb’s terms for European users say you must not use the platform, its messaging tools or members’ personal information to send commercial messages without express consent, and must not use bots, crawlers or scrapers to collect data from the platform.3 The same terms say not to book a stay you or your guests will not use, so do not book or send an enquiry as a pretext to pitch a host.3 Build your list by hand and reach owners outside Airbnb, through channels where you are allowed to approach them.
What to say when you have no track record
You cannot point at happy owners yet, so show more care for one property than anyone else has.
Lead with their numbers
Before you contact an owner, note their weekday and weekend rates, the open dates in the next four to six weeks, and what a guest notices first. Turn that into one or two concrete observations: “Your Saturdays in October are still open at the same rate as your Tuesdays.” An owner can check that in a minute, and it shows you did the work.
If the owner does not let the property yet, start from their questions instead: what it could earn, what it would cost and what it would take from them. How to estimate what a property will earn on Airbnb shows how to build an estimate an owner can check, using the average daily rate and the occupancy rate of comparable listings.
Take the risk off their side
The owner fears being stuck with a beginner who damages their reviews. Put the answer in the offer.
- A short first term. Propose a trial period, for example three months, after which either side can stop.
- Easy notice. Keep the notice period short, so leaving is an easy decision.
- A monthly report. Promise an owner report every month with bookings, revenue, costs and reviews, and send it on the same day each month.
- Clear limits. Say in writing what you do, what the owner still decides, and who pays for what.
These points belong in a written management agreement. What to put in an Airbnb management agreement lists the clauses to discuss with your lawyer, including term, notice and reporting. How you charge, and what the owner keeps after fees, is covered in Airbnb co-host fees.
Show a simulation instead of a portfolio
Without past results, show your method. Put the owner’s own property through a simple projection: a realistic nightly rate, a cautious occupancy, platform fees, cleaning and your commission. Show the formula, not just the result, and give a low and a high case so the owner sees you are not selling a dream. The revenue calculator runs the commission maths with your own inputs; replace the example values with figures from comparable listings.
Worked example: A first message to an owner
This is the kind of short message you might send once a mutual contact has told an owner about you and the owner has agreed to hear more. Adapt it to your own situation and to the outreach rules above.
“Hello Sofie, Marc told me you might be open to help with your flat. I run short-stay flats for owners near Leuven station, and I looked at your two-bedroom listing. Your weekends in October are still open at the same price as your weekdays, and the first photo shows the hallway rather than the living room. I made a one-page estimate of what the flat could earn with weekend pricing and new photos, with a low and a high case. Would it help if I sent it? If you would rather leave it, just say so and I will not contact you again. Pieter, [business name, address and contact details]”
The name, city and details are an illustration, not a real case. Notice what the message does not contain: no promises of income, no list of services, no pressure to call.
The first conversation with an owner
Once an owner agrees to talk, they will ask the same few questions, in some order. Prepare a short, honest answer to each, and say “I will check and come back to you” when you do not know.
Six questions owners ask, and where to find the answer
| Owner’s question | A short, honest answer | Read more |
|---|---|---|
| Who controls the listing? | On Airbnb you can be added as a co-host with full access, calendar and messaging access, or calendar access only; the listing owner stays responsible for co-hosts and only the listing owner can set up co-host payouts.2 | Starting a co-hosting business |
| What if a guest damages something? | Explain how damage claims, deposits and insurance work on each platform, and who files the claim. | Damage claims and insurance |
| What will the neighbours say? | House rules, clear arrival instructions and a quick response to complaints; in apartment buildings, check the co-owners’ statutes first. | VME or VvE |
| Is it allowed, and what about taxes? | Registration, night caps and tourist tax depend on the city, so check the local rules before you sign. | Airbnb rules in Belgium and the Netherlands |
| Am I insured? | The owner should check their home insurance for short-term letting, and you should check what your own business insurance covers. | Damage claims and insurance |
| How long am I tied in? | A short first term and short notice, in writing. | Management agreement clauses |
Bring the one-page estimate on paper, and ask what a good first three months would look like for the owner. Their answer tells you what to report.
How much outreach it takes
We found no reliable published figure for how many approaches it takes to sign a first owner. What you control is a steady weekly rhythm and a record of where each owner stands.
Track each owner through five stages:
- Identified. You know who the owner is and why they might need help.
- Contacted. You reached them through a channel you are allowed to use.
- Talked. You had a real conversation, in person or on a call they agreed to.
- Estimate sent. The owner has your one-page projection and a draft of the first terms.
- Signed. There is a written agreement and a start date.
A spreadsheet with one row per owner, the date of each stage and the next action is enough. Look at it every week. If owners stop between contacted and talked, your first message is the problem. If they stop after the estimate, look again at your terms and at how you explained the risks.
Worked example: A beginner’s first eight weeks, as a pipeline
A beginner in a mid-sized Belgian city sets a rhythm of ten specific approaches a week, split between people in their network, two estate agencies and letters to named owners.
| Stage | Week 4 | Week 8 |
|---|---|---|
| Identified | 60 | 110 |
| Contacted | 40 | 80 |
| Talked | 6 | 14 |
| Estimate sent | 2 | 6 |
| Signed | 0 | 1 |
After four weeks nothing is signed, but the record shows that only 6 of 40 contacts led to a conversation. The beginner rewrites the first message to lead with one observation about each owner’s property and asks agencies for a meeting instead of sending a brochure. By week eight, 14 of 80 contacts have led to a conversation and one owner signs a three-month trial.
All numbers in this example are an illustration of how to read a pipeline, not a benchmark or a prediction.
The first signed owner changes the next conversation. From then on you have a real listing to show, a first month of reporting and, if you earn it, a reference. Treat that first unit as your portfolio: price it carefully with dynamic pricing, fix the listing with how to create an Airbnb listing that gets booked, and ask the owner for an introduction once the results are there.
Questions people ask
How do I find Airbnb owners who need a manager?
Start with owners who have a problem you can see or they can feel: someone in your network with a second flat, a host whose listing sits empty at weekends, or an estate agent or syndic who hears owners struggle. Airbnb’s Co-Host Network is not available in Belgium or the Netherlands, so you have to go to owners yourself.1 Lead with their listing and their numbers, not with a list of your services.
Can I message hosts on Airbnb to offer my services?
No. Airbnb’s terms for European users say you may not use its messaging tools or members’ personal information to send commercial messages without their express consent.3 Reach owners through channels outside the platform, and follow the consent rules for email and phone in your country.
Is cold emailing property owners legal in Belgium?
A marketing email or text message to a private individual in Belgium needs their prior consent. The exceptions are existing customers and messages to legal persons, such as a company’s general email address, both under strict conditions, and every message must offer a way to opt out.5 This is general information, so check your own case with a lawyer.
How long does it take to sign a first client?
We know of no reliable published figure, so treat any promised timeline as a guess. The time depends mostly on how many specific approaches you make each week and on your local market. Track your own numbers from the first week, as in the pipeline example in this guide, so you can see where you stall.
Can I start with no experience at all?
Yes, but expect owners to ask what happens if you get it wrong, and answer with a low-risk first agreement. Where Airbnb’s Co-Host Network does exist, joining takes, among other things, an average rating of 4.8 or more and at least 10 stays, or 3 stays totalling 100 nights, in the past 12 months, and a cancellation rate below 3%. Listings you co-host with full access or calendar and messaging access count.1 Co-hosting a listing for family or friends is a legitimate way to build that record.
Sources
All sources checked .
- Airbnb, “Co-Host Network”, Countries, eligibility and legal requirements
- Airbnb Help Centre, “What co-hosts can do”
- Airbnb, “Terms of Service for European Users”, Section 11.1, last updated 5 February 2026
- Airbnb Help Centre, “Verifying and displaying business information as an EU host”
- DLA Piper, “Electronic marketing in Belgium”, Data Protection Laws of the World, last modified 13 February 2026
- Do Not Call Me VZW, “FAQ”
- Customer Contact & CX Forum, “Einde opt-out voor telemarketing op komst in 2026?”, Interview with the manager of DNCM vzw, 19 March 2026, in Dutch
- Wetten.overheid.nl, “Telecommunicatiewet, artikel 11.7”, Version in force from 15 August 2026, in Dutch
- ACM, “Spam voorkomen in uw reclame”, In Dutch
- ACM, “Stricter telemarketing rules in effect starting July 1: only allowed if customers have given consent”, 25 June 2026
- Gemeente Rotterdam, “Ja ja”, In Dutch
- DDMA, “Veranderingen in de regelgeving voor brievenbusreclame door de jaren heen”, Trade association article, 27 February 2024, in Dutch
We check every figure against the sources above. Spotted something out of date? Email systemen@hostproacademy.com with the guide title.
About HostPro Academy
The team behind this guide
These guides are written by the team behind HostPro Academy, a training programme for building a short-term rental management business. The finding and signing owners part of that programme is covered in level 3 and lesson 4.3.