1. Formulas
How do I set up my financial formulas?
Go to Settings → Financial Settings → Setup formulas. The wizard asks a few questions about how your business works and builds a suggested formula set, which you can then edit.
Which business model should I choose?
Pick the model that matches how money moves in your business — for example, whether you keep payouts yourself (self-operator) or collect and pay owners (property manager). The wizard explains each option, and you can refine details afterward.
Can commission be different per property or per owner?
Yes. Start with your most common commission in the wizard, then edit formulas per listing to reflect different agreements.
What does the commission apply to — does it include cleaning fees and taxes?
That's defined by each formula. Defaults follow the most common setup, but you can include or exclude items like cleaning fees and taxes to match your owner agreements.
How do I edit or replicate formulas across listings?
Edit formulas under Financial Settings; changes apply to future calculations. Note: existing statement drafts are snapshots — refresh a draft to pull updated formula results.
My formula isn't calculating correctly — what should I do?
Check the formula's inclusions/exclusions (and whether a fee is counted twice). If it still looks wrong, contact support with the statement link and formula name so the financial team can review the configuration.
2. Taxes
Which taxes do I need to add, and where do I configure them?
Configure taxes per listing in the listing's financial settings. Add each tax that applies in your jurisdiction (occupancy, city/tourism, county, VAT/GST), so it flows into formulas and reports.
Who remits the taxes — Airbnb or me?
It depends on the channel and the tax: some platforms (e.g., Airbnb) remit certain taxes automatically, while others remain your responsibility. Verify per listing and channel — for example, a channel may handle city tax while you handle county tax.
Why don't I see VAT or city tax in my financial formula?
Check that the tax is enabled on the listing and mapped in the formula. If it's enabled but still missing, contact support to review the tax mapping.
I collect different lodging taxes in different cities — how do I handle that?
Set up separate tax entries/formulas per city as needed, then map each to the right listings.
3. Expenses & extras
How do I add expenses and receipts?
Add expenses under Expenses & Extras — categorize them, link them to a property, and upload receipts/photos for your records.
Are expenses deducted from the owner payout?
Expenses linked to a property/owner appear on the owner statement and are deducted in the payout calculation, subject to your formula setup.
Can I set up recurring expenses (e.g., mortgage, HOA dues)?
Recurring expenses aren't automated today — add recurring items manually each period so they appear on statements.
Can expenses be created automatically from tasks?
Yes — you can configure an expense to be generated automatically when a task (e.g., cleaning) is marked complete.
4. Pulling reports
How do I pull a financial report for a specific month or period?
Go to Analytics & Reporting, choose the report, and set the date range plus filters (listing, channel, etc.). Export or save as needed.
Which dates does a report use — check-in or calendar dates?
Reports use the date basis you select in the filters; when comparing against channel statements, check which date field is applied.
Can I export reports as PDF?
Reports export to CSV/Excel; PDF output isn't available for all reports today — share your use case with support if you need it.
What do the metrics mean (nights booked, occupancy, ADR)?
Nights booked counts stay nights (vs. number of bookings); occupancy is booked nights ÷ available nights; ADR is average daily rate. A glossary of terms is available in the help center.
Why doesn't the Grand Total match the Rental Activity figures?
The Grand Total is calculated after expenses and adjustments, so it won't equal the rental activity subtotal — it reflects the final payout figure.
In Analytics, how can I see a different interval?
For the main graph in Analytics, we use these intervals:
- From 1 to 29 days, we show 1-day intervals
- From 30 to 60 days, we should show 2-day intervals
- From 61 to 90 days, 3 days intervals
- Then it will show monthly
5. Reconciliation
Why don't my Hostaway numbers match Airbnb/VRBO or my bank deposits?
Common causes are timing (payouts post later than reservations), channel fees/taxes handled differently, and adjustments. Compare using per-reservation financial fields; for unresolved mismatches, contact support with examples.
VRBO payment data isn't syncing — what should I do?
Raise a ticket with the affected reservations — payment sync issues are investigated by the technical team.
How can I see when money was actually deposited?
Check the reservation's financial fields and your payout records for deposit details per reservation.
6. Payout definitions
What's the difference between "total payout" and "owner payout"?
Total payout is what the channel pays you for a reservation. Owner payout is what the owner receives after your commission, fees, and expenses (per your formulas).
What does "Rental Revenue" include?
Rental revenue reflects the accommodation revenue for the period; whether items like guest fees are included depends on your formula settings.
Are cleaning fees and guest fees deducted from the owner, or kept by me?
That's configured in your formulas — fees can be retained by the manager (excluded from owner payout) or passed through, depending on your agreements.
Why does it look like a fee is being deducted twice?
If a fee is already netted in the channel payout (e.g., co-host payouts) and also added as a formula deduction, it can double-count. Review the formula, or ask support to verify.
7. QuickBooks
What does the QuickBooks integration do — why should I use it?
It syncs your Hostaway financial data to QuickBooks so accounting stays aligned (invoices, reconciliation) without manual re-entry.
Does QuickBooks cost extra?
QuickBooks is a separate subscription; ask your CSM about any integration pricing for your account.
Can I generate invoices for owners?
Formal invoicing is done via QuickBooks (or your accounting tool); Hostaway owner statements are reports, not legal invoices.
8. Multi-currency
Can reports and statements be shown in a different currency?
Currency display is configurable in financial settings; note that Hostaway shows amounts in the set currency — it doesn't apply exchange-rate conversion.
My statement shows the wrong currency — how do I fix it?
Check the currency setting on the listing/account; if it doesn't update, contact support.
Is it possible to change the Financial Reporting currency?
Currency is always displayed in the same currency as your Hostaway listings. Financial Reporting currently does not support multi-currency or currency conversions.
9. Financial Reporting and Channels
How to calculate Vrbo commission?
For Vrbo, Hostaway calculates the HostChannelFee.
Please follow the next steps:
- Go to your Hostaway Dashboard > Listings > Edit > Financial Settings
- Scroll down > Other > Vrbo Host Channel Fee
- Fill in the percentage you would like to apply
- It will calculate the Vrbo commission on the Base Rate and other fees
- Please note that it will only calculate for newly received reservations
- Save
How does Airbnb Cancellation Payout work?
- When a reservation is canceled, Airbnb sends us an AirbnbCancellationPayout
- Until July 2024, we only updated a limited set of financial fields when an Airbnb cancellation occurred, often keeping the original values if they weren’t reported
- However, Airbnb has improved its cancellation reporting, and now we will update all financial fields based on the latest received values for any relevant financial field
- Depending on the applicable cancellation policy, some values may remain the same, some may decrease, and some may disappear entirely.
Notes
- The cancellationPayout financial field will likely be the most useful one for understanding how much a canceled reservation will bring
- If you wish to add canceled reservations in your reports, remember to select the status Cancelled
- Also, it may be a good idea to use the AirbnbCancellationPayout in your formula(s).
Does the Financial Reporting feature work for iCal reservations?
iCals come without financial data, but it is possible to manually add financial fields in Reservations Edit -> Financial fields and formulas section. Formulas are compatible with iCals
The Financial Reporting is incorrect for Hostaway reservations; why?
For Direct Reservations made before the activation of this feature, the field data might be incorrect, especially if you have changed the total manually. For reservations made after, you can edit the breakdown. To learn more, please read this article.
What type of taxes does Airbnb report?
Airbnb reports taxes in 2 levels: Generic (Airbnb transient occupancy tax or Airbnb pass-through tax, which can contain other specific taxes) and Specific (ie Tourism Tax (Can - Quebec Hotel)).