Owner Guide
What an Airbnb manager really does, what they don't, how they charge and how to tell a good one before you hand over the keys.
Quick answer
An Airbnb manager in Málaga takes care of everything that happens between one booking and the next: listing and photos, pricing, guest messages, check-in and check-out, cleaning, linen, maintenance, reviews and the legal side (tourist licence, guest registration, invoicing). The owner receives a monthly statement and decides when to use the house. Managers normally charge a commission on income, with no fixed fee. What sets a good manager apart is not the list of services, which is much the same everywhere, but who answers the guest at eleven at night, how many minutes they live from your house and how they account to you.
Every company advertises all of this. The difference is in how it is done: whether cleaning is an in-house team or an app, whether a person reviews prices weekly or an algorithm sets them and nobody looks, and whether the guest talks to someone who knows the house or to a call centre.
The usual model in Málaga is a commission on the income of each booking, which in the market ranges from 12% to 25% depending on what is included. Some companies charge a fixed monthly fee and others offer guaranteed rent (they pay you a rent and run the house themselves). Each has its logic; what matters is knowing exactly what the commission covers and what is invoiced separately: cleaning (normally paid by the guest), laundry, restocking, maintenance.
For the market tiers in detail and the six costs that sometimes don't appear in the first offer, see how much does holiday rental management cost?.
| Question | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Who answers guests out of hours, and how far do they live from my house? | A problem at 11 pm on a Saturday is solved by someone who can drive over, not by a chat. |
| Is cleaning an in-house team or subcontracted? | Your reviews depend on cleaning more than on anything else. |
| Who reviews prices, and how often? | A rate nobody touched in September loses you October; one nobody touched in January gives Easter away. |
| How do you account to me? | A monthly statement with every booking, commission, costs and the transfer, plus calendar access. |
| What if I want to leave or use the house? | No lock-in, and date blocking for own use without penalties. |
And a sixth almost nobody asks: ask to see a real listing they manage, its reviews from the last six months and a sample statement with the figures blanked out.
Málaga city has the highest demand and the toughest rules: no new licences until 2028 and communities that can veto the activity. If your flat already has a licence, management is still possible and profitable; if not, it isn't. Outside the city, in the Axarquía (Rincón de la Victoria, Benajarafe, Torre del Mar, Torrox, Nerja) there is no moratorium, the licence is obtained with a responsible declaration and the community's certificate, and the season is longer than inland.
We manage along that stretch, from Rincón to Nerja, because it is where we live and where we can be at any house in twenty minutes. That is the test we recommend for any manager: they should work where they can drive to.
In the market, between 12% and 25% of income depending on what is included, plus cleaning, which the guest usually pays. Some companies charge a fixed fee or propose guaranteed rent. Always ask what the commission covers and what is invoiced separately.
Yes. In Andalusia a tourist-use home must be registered with the Tourism Registry (responsible declaration) and, since 2025, have the community's approval where the statutes require it. Málaga city is granting no new licences until 2028.
With commission-based management, yes: you block the dates you want in the calendar. With guaranteed rent, usually not, because the company runs the house all year.
The agent lets the house for months or years and disappears until the next contract. The holiday-rental manager deals every week with guests, cleaning, pricing and maintenance, and charges a percentage of what the house produces.
Only with an existing licence and in specific cases; our working area is the Axarquía, from Rincón de la Victoria to Nerja, where we can be at any house within twenty minutes.
Guidance as of September 2026. Tourist-rental rules change often; check the current rules in your municipality before deciding.
Free guide · PDF · 2026
VUT licence and guest registration step by step, tax for residents and non-residents, a checklist to prepare the house and how to choose a manager. 8 pages, no fluff.
Tell us what it is like and where it is and within 24 hours we email you a proposal with an income estimate, the services included and the conditions. No obligation.
