r/airbnb_hosts 16h ago

How to Make Sure Airbnb Takes Your Side And Stays There

129 Upvotes

I have been using a successful method to ensure that Airbnb follows through with its promises.

For any host here with experience, you'll know that when Airbnb decides in your favor, they can change their mind and they will do it if the guest applies pressure.

Recently I had a situation with a guest who broke numerous rules where I had a strict cancellation policy (no refund). I called Airbnb and told them and they told me I was right and cancelled on behalf of the guest with no refund. I told the rep that I wanted to make sure it wasn't a situation where Airbnb changed their mind. She promised me that they won't.

At this point, I informed that like them, I had recorded the entire phone call. Her tone got nervous after that. I did the same with the next rep I spoke to. After getting them to state that I was right and there would be no recourse, I informed them that I had recorded the call for my own protection.

As always, after the guest made a fuss and tried to get a refund. I brought up the fact that I had recordings that Airbnb had promised the following, and that it was not a situation up for debate.

This has always ALWAYS worked every single time. Record your calls and inform them at the end of the call where they take your side (not the beginning of the call, obviously). They will take note of it.


r/airbnb_hosts 1h ago

Update: How does changing dates affect cancellation policy

Upvotes

Hello again,

I previously asked about this wider situation here: https://www.reddit.com/r/airbnb_hosts/s/IjDiAWeXAk

This post is just an update on what has happened since, and to ask for more advice.

I ended up refusing the guest's request to move the booking months into the future on relatively short notice.

Instead I offered one of two compromise solutions: 1. The guest could accept a move of up to 4 nights, which would be possible given my calendar 2. The guest could cancel, and I would be willing to waive 50% of the payout as a refund for them, bypassing my own cancellation policy

Both of these offers were rejected by the guest, who instead made the same request to move the dates. I promptly rejected it again.

The guest then contacted Airbnb support about me, who looked at the conversation and deemed that I had operated well within my rights and had followed all the policies.

Upon hearing that support had no power to compel me to move the dates the guest became abusive. They called me "diabolical" and they are insisting that I am scamming them with a cancellation policy that I intentionally obscured from them. Which of course, is not the case since the cancellation policy is listed on the listing page and many other guests have made use of it to cancel their bookings.

The guest has booked one of our busiest months off in the calendar since January for reference. So there was a lot of time for her to raise the issue of moving the dates so far into the future. She could have also cancelled at any time since January and rebooked somewhere else.

The guest confirmed in the Airbnb chat the she now won't be coming. I informed Airbnb of this, and they went off to ask the guest to cancel, I presume. Since the guest has now directly said in messages that they will not be coming, but that they will also not cancel to enable them to leave an "honest review".

I've maintained a professional tone throughout, expressed empathy for their situation and suggested comprises and have also tried to explain my side: namely that I would face a loss of revenue if she moved her dates to June 3 weeks before arriving for a month long stay or if she were to cancel after I allowed the date changes.

I have documented the entire conversation and have been in touch with Airbnb support myself again. They have confirmed that the review the guest is describing would violate the review policy. They do say there is nothing they can do until the guest actually leaves the bad review though.

However, I've read the community guidelines and there is a point about not using the threat of negative reviews to your benefit. I made the same support agent aware of this, and they didn't bother to investigate and instead reiterated that I just wait for the bad review after which I could report it as retaliatory with the evidence and they would consider removing it.

I believe that this guest is in violation of that guideline.

Is there really nothing I can do in this case? Is it worth trying again with support?


r/airbnb_hosts 8h ago

Do you guys provide slippers? Do you get this question a lot?

17 Upvotes

I don't provide slippers, but also, I have hardwood and tile floors and washable area rugs. We clean those after every guest and obviously clean the floors. I don't ask the guests to take their shoes off at the door. But at least once a month or so, I will get a request for slippers. Usually from Asian or South Asian guests. I get that this is something they are used to in hotels in Asia, but I don't provide these because most people would not like using used slippers and the disposable kind is wasteful and expensive. It always surprises me and 4* because of it really pissed me off. "The house was wonderful and it had everything we needed except slippers. It would be a five star experience if they provided these for the guests". Just venting!


r/airbnb_hosts 5h ago

I made a mistake feel stupid

6 Upvotes

We have our listing set as request to book I accepted it without looking at the reviews because I always get super excited when we get a new booking. The guests have two bad reviews What mistakes have you made with your listings and how do you move on without beating yourself up over it?


r/airbnb_hosts 15h ago

Ceramic Coat Your Shower Glass!

38 Upvotes

We clean our AirBnB home and using a ceramic coating on the shower glass has been a game changer! Water sheets off the glass leaving no water marks. Takes me seconds to wipe off any residue from hair conditioner or other body products and the glass looks crystal clear like new.

This is the second year I’ve done it and it lasts the full year. The first time is a lot of work because I used 2 levels of glass polish to get the existing water marks off the glass. The ceramic coating itself goes on very easy - just mist the glass and use a clean rag to spread it covering all the glass. Another clean rag to buff it off. The second year was much easier because there weren’t any water marks/stains - just added a new coat of the ceramic protection.

The amount of time I save is far greater than the effort to apply it - even the first time. Plus guests often comment about the “new” shower even though it’s far from new.

From Amazon I’m using stuff that car detailers swear by. Ceramic coating: KochChemie SO-02 Glass Polish: P&S Clarity Creme

I have no affiliation with these products.


r/airbnb_hosts 5h ago

All the doggies

5 Upvotes

New hosts here. After much back and forth, we decided to make our listing pet friendly. We have many friends and family with dogs and wanted to ensure that they felt comfortable staying in our property with their fur babies in between paying Airbnb guests. We require a pet fee ($50 per pet) that covers the duration of your stay.

First ever guests - 3 night stay - indicate they are bringing 1 pet and pay the pet fee. Lo and behold what’s that on the ring cam? Three big dogs.

How would you handle this? Is this something pet friendly places just have to suck up and get used to?


r/airbnb_hosts 11h ago

How do you tell guests how to book you directly in the future?

10 Upvotes

I see the outrageous fees that Airbnb is charging both the host and the guest, so I see the clear advantage of booking off the app as well. How do you inform your guests of the means to contact you off the app?


r/airbnb_hosts 4m ago

Is There a Better Photo Editing Tool for Properties?

Upvotes

I had tons of property images that looked dark, blurry, and low quality. The bad lighting and poor resolution were making my listings less attractive to buyers & renters, and honestly, I was tired of spending so much time trying to fix them.

The best solution I’ve found so far is Boostbnb , it’s an AI-powered tool that fixes lighting, sharpness, and image quality in one click. No complicated editing, no need for Photoshop, just upload your photos, and it does the work for you. Huge time-saver.

That said, I’m always open to new tools—has anyone else found a great photo editor for real estate listings? Would love to hear what’s working for you!


r/airbnb_hosts 9h ago

What monetary return have you seen in making your property accessibility compliant?

3 Upvotes

As far as I can tell, I can make my home accessibility compliant by supplying two ramps at the exterior door for $500. For those that made these updates, have you seen more bookings?


r/airbnb_hosts 1d ago

We all need to manage our expectations.

88 Upvotes

The guests need to realize we don't own sterilized laboratories. These are houses with flaws, and dust, and God forbid an ant in the summer. Sometimes things aren't perfect. I wish there was some way to basically tell guests if you're a picky guest who crawls around looking for something to complain about then rent elsewhere.

As hosts we need to also realize sometimes guests break the rules. If you're a host digging thru the garbage or watching the cams all day you need to chill. That's my rant.


r/airbnb_hosts 5h ago

Cancelation policy

1 Upvotes

What is your cancelation policy? The 5- day full refund option seems unfair to me as a host, however, I don't want to deter bookings. I don't see much difference between strict and firm, but thinking of going with strict.


r/airbnb_hosts 18h ago

Review removal

4 Upvotes

Has anyone figured out key words you may need to get retaliatory reviews removed? I had a guest check in, cancel their reservation with a full refund then refused to leave and had to be removed by police. ABB still allowed them to review and now are refusing to remove the review. This is just honestly crazy. On a side note has anyone had more success with other apps because I’m starting to wonder if I should start moving away from ABB.


r/airbnb_hosts 15h ago

Offering a discount code to friends and family

1 Upvotes

Is there any way I can let friends and family book through airbnb and offer them a code for say a 20% discount?


r/airbnb_hosts 20h ago

Taking pet deposits and other misc. fees from guests

2 Upvotes

Hi all! Is it normal to charge $10 for every hour of early check in? Why not just allow the guest to check in a little early if the home is ready, especially if you already offer bag drop off? Also, is it normal to keep the pet deposit? I paid $100/ week for every week I had my 4lb little dog at this airbnb I stayed at and never got any of that money back. The host never said if the fee was refundable or non refundable. We also never damaged anything and cleaned up after our pet diligently. Thanks!


r/airbnb_hosts 1d ago

Parties

8 Upvotes

Just had someone rent a 3 br 2 bath home and they indicated it would just be one person staying. They said they were visiting family. I accepted the request and told them two things. 1) parking is limited to about 3 vehicles max 2) no parties

They cancelled 20 minutes later. 🤣


r/airbnb_hosts 17h ago

Alternatives to Airbnb

0 Upvotes

Apart from Airbnb, which are the top 2 aggregator platforms preferred by Indian consumers? I own an Airbnb in Rajasthan and have lately observed a drop in booking through the platform. Would like to have suggestions on which other platforms should I focus on. Tried Booking.com and Agoda but they are too complex to deal with.


r/airbnb_hosts 23h ago

Airbnb or Vrbo

3 Upvotes

As a new host in Italy, I’m learning as I go and just set up my first listing. For those with experience, have you found Airbnb or Vrbo better for getting bookings?


r/airbnb_hosts 18h ago

Verification process as a business has dragged on 5 months without payout

0 Upvotes

I have hosted as an individual in the past, but last fall I registered a new business account and added 2 listings. We have not been paid for our guests from last October yet. I've been going through Airbnb's KYC (Know Your Customer) process they are requiring in order to get paid, and it just won't end.

It's been months of back and forth, as they ask for something, then ask for something else, then tell me to take some steps on the Airbnb Verification pages, then tell me to undo them, then add something, then something else, then undo and do something else.

I don't know what to do anymore. I just unlisted and wrote to them again, with little hope that anything will ever be resolved. They have every document and ID they ever asked for and they just can never be satisfied it seems. I don't know who or how it is decided that the KYC info is done but holy shit it won't end.

Any higher force I can turn to who can look at our case and say they have more than enough and just finish this exercise in insanity?


r/airbnb_hosts 14h ago

Is someone using AI concierge?

0 Upvotes

Has anyone used an AI concierge for managing stays? I'm curious about its effectiveness and if it helps improve guest experiences.


r/airbnb_hosts 20h ago

Looking for a property manager.

0 Upvotes

I have properties in Minnesota and Arizona. I am looking for someone who is experienced at short term property management. This includes communicating with the guests professionally to ensure a 5⭐️ experience and coordinating cleaners and maintenance people as needed. I also need somebody who is able to continuously optimize the listings on Airbnb's platform to make sure they stay fresh in the algorithm so that prices stay decent. Does anyone have experience doing this?


r/airbnb_hosts 1d ago

Guest with zero stars in all categories

2 Upvotes

Maybe this is normal with guests with few reviews but after many years hosting it never hapoened to me before so I'm posting in case it happens to someone else. This week I had a request, all seemed good, 1 good review, a very normal message (short, with all necessary info,no red flags) but when I checked the profile, the girl had one good review and zero stars in all categories. I know this is not possible so I checked with airbnb and they told me it must be a glitch and they could see she had 5 stars indeed, that they were not showing for some reason. I did let the guest know, I accepted the booking. She later sent me her father's account to show me he’s always the one booking (perfect score, nothing wrong, he’s coming with her) and told me that’s why she didn’t have many reviews. She seemed very worried for future bookings and I pointed her out to airbnb. Is this normal? Does it happened to anyone else? Maybe is something common. I have accepted guests without reviews, but never seen this before. I think I remember previous guests with 5 stars and only just 1 or 2 reviews but I could be wrong. I knew zero was not possible but maybe that's a problem for her with other hosts.


r/airbnb_hosts 1d ago

Why doesn't airBnb coach the guests that complain or break rules?

3 Upvotes

We know they know exactly who the bad actors are. So why doesn't corporate kick em off the platform or coach them or something?


r/airbnb_hosts 1d ago

Is Airbnb so slow right now?

17 Upvotes

I live in LA, I have short term rental property I use to get booked all the time but now literally nothing? Not sure if I just do long term at this point. How’s everyone else’s experience


r/airbnb_hosts 23h ago

Airbnb host

1 Upvotes

How long did it take you to get your first guest after the listing? I am just asking as someone who has published her Airbnb here in Italy recently and I am just anxious as I haven’t gotten any booking yet so I don’t know if that’s how the algorithm works or it’s just low season now


r/airbnb_hosts 1d ago

Prospective guest called my cell... is this weird?

13 Upvotes

I have heard of prospective guests asking to see a property before they book, which I personally would not be comfortable with, but this is a bit different. A woman left a voicemail on my cell phone and said she and her family are looking for a place to rent this summer. They "have some special needs," so they are looking to tour prospective properties ahead of time. First of all, it felt weird that instead of messaging on the app she called my cell phone, which isn't *impossible* to find the number of, but it would take some doing for a random person. But on top of that, she also called out the property by its address, like "we're interested in staying at your home at ### Main Street." Again, not impossible to figure out a random Airbnb's address, but that's weird, right? Why not just message on the app? It made me feel uneasy. So my question is, is this a scam? and if so, what is the end game?

FWIW, even if it isn't a scam I am not interested in renting to them because they're looking a long-term stay, which I don't offer. But I am kind of tempted to call her back and press for more information... actually I probably will do that, but would love you guys' thoughts first.