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As housing prices continue to climb across Australia, many aspiring investors are finding it
increasingly difficult to enter the traditional property market. That dynamic has helped fuel
interest in alternative real estate strategies—including the short-term rental model
popularized by platforms like Airbnb.
Entrepreneur Jordan Pham, founder of short-term rental operator Live Luxe and education
platform BNB Success, is among a growing group of operators promoting a model known as
rental arbitrage. Rather than purchasing property outright, operators lease homes or
apartments and run them as short-term rentals, aiming to generate income through nightly
bookings.
Jordan Pham, who began experimenting with the model in his early twenties, has since built a portfolio of more than 40 short-term rental properties while also launching an education
community designed to help others replicate the approach.
“The idea that you must own property to participate in real estate is starting to shift,” Pham
said in a recent interview. “Operating properties through short-term rentals allows people to
focus on cash flow and business systems rather than waiting years for capital growth.”
Building a Business Without Property Ownership
Pham’s entry into the industry came after exploring several online business models,
including social media marketing and e-commerce. While those ventures provided early
entrepreneurial experience, he said they lacked the tangible nature he was looking for.
Real estate, however, traditionally requires significant capital—a barrier that prevents many
younger investors from entering the market.
“Like a lot of people, I was interested in property but didn’t have the deposit needed to buy,”
Pham said. “When I discovered rental arbitrage, it completely changed how I thought about
getting involved in the industry.”
Under the model, operators lease properties from owners with permission to sublet them on
short-term rental platforms. The operator manages the listing, guest experience, and pricing
strategy, while generating profit from the difference between rental costs and booking
revenue.
Pham began scaling rapidly after launching his first listings. Within a year, he had expanded
to roughly 15 properties, eventually growing the portfolio to around 45 units in just over two
years.
That growth laid the foundation for Live Luxe, his operating company, and later BNB
Success, a mentorship and education platform aimed at aspiring short-term rental
entrepreneurs.
Turning Operational Experience Into Education
BNB Success focuses on guiding students through the process of launching and scaling
short-term rental businesses, particularly using the rental arbitrage approach.
The program includes coaching sessions, community discussions, and training that covers
everything from market research and property acquisition to listing optimization and revenue
management.
According to Pham, the platform has helped more than 400 Australians launch or scale
short-term rental operations.
“In an industry where there’s a lot of information online, we try to focus on outcomes,” he
said. “Our goal is to help people actually launch properties, generate bookings, and build
something that produces real income.”
A key element of the program is community support, which allows members to share deals,
discuss challenges, and learn from each other’s experiences in the rapidly evolving
short-term rental sector.
Lessons From Early Operational Challenges
Despite the rapid growth of his portfolio, Pham says the early years of the business came
with significant operational hurdles—from difficult guests to property damage and
maintenance issues.
Those challenges, he says, forced him to build more structured systems for managing
properties and guests.
“Every problem forced us to improve,” he said. “A bad guest meant we had to tighten our
screening process. Operational issues pushed us to build stronger systems.”
Another early lesson came from pricing strategy. Initially, Pham relied on static nightly rates,
which limited revenue potential.
Once he began implementing dynamic pricing—adjusting nightly rates based on demand,
seasonality, and local events—the difference became clear.
“We realized we had been leaving a lot of potential revenue on the table,” he said.
Today, revenue management, listing optimization, and property design are central
components of both his own operations and the curriculum taught through BNB Success.
A Changing Landscape for Real Estate Participation
Pham argues that the broader real estate industry is evolving, particularly as rising property
prices make ownership more difficult for younger Australians.
Traditional property investing often requires large upfront deposits and may produce
relatively modest rental yields, meaning investors rely heavily on long-term capital
appreciation.
Short-term rental operations, by contrast, prioritize immediate cash flow.
“The traditional model focuses on owning the asset and waiting for appreciation,” Pham said.
“Operating short-term rentals approaches real estate more like a business.”
Still, he emphasizes that the model is not one-size-fits-all. Some operators aim to build large
portfolios, while others prefer a small number of properties that generate supplemental
income.
“We encourage people to start with the outcome they want,” Pham said. “For some, that
might be a large company. For others, it’s just a few properties that give them more freedom
and flexibility.”
Scaling Operations and Community
Looking ahead, Pham plans to expand both sides of the business over the next year.
On the operational side, he aims to grow the Live Luxe portfolio while strengthening systems
that support larger property volumes. Meanwhile, BNB Success will continue expanding its
mentorship programs and community resources.
Longer term, Pham says his goal is to build one of Australia’s largest short-term rental
operating companies while establishing BNB Success as a leading education platform for
alternative real estate strategies.
“The vision is to show people there are multiple ways to participate in the property industry,”
he said. “Ownership is just one of them.”
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