Yes, I did worry that we couldn’t compare or compete with all the high end, entire home listings when we first started airbnb but, we have had very some lovely guests who appreciate what we offer for those on a tighter budget 
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I would never want to participate in that! People will be expecting and demanding a lot more and will be more critical in the reviews. Why risk getting a bad review.you have a listing with all the photos it’s plain for people to see what kind of place are offering.
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airbnb have an automated system so you get picked a bit like doing jury service - over the 6 years I have been a host I have had all sorts of questions- surveys etc put my way - most come to nothing - if they have sent you a survey request fill it out - and dont give it another thought - worry about being a fab host to your guests much more important
Tweaking the subject a little, I was quite astonished when I opened the Airbnb home page in my browser this morning - my own room was recommended as a “top choice for booking”. I never saw this before.
- perhaps it has to do with cookies being stored in my browser by Airbnb,
- perhaps because I have accumulated 118 reviews, which seems to be quite a lot,
- perhaps because I offer instant booking,
- perhaps because I accepted lots of bookings last week, and responded quickly.
Anyway, it felt good to see this. Might be an illusion, since other hosts might see their own listing, too.
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Krilla, I agree with you. We all want to do the best for our guests and a 2 tier system would be disastrous in my opinion. My home is an old cottage, I am not ‘boutique’ smart so would be shunted into the lower category. That would be my cue to leave air completely.
Me, too!
I would love a budget club topic. I like to underpromise, but between 3 kids and my active protest schedule, I can’t always over deliver. 
Plus I am preparing a second listing that is even more “streamlined” (cough cough) and I’m definitely appealing to the budget traveler there.
There already is a two-tiered system. This would, perhaps, move to a three-tiered one. Or, it could be more similar to business-ready. Hard to tell based on survey questions.
with a 2 tier system, shall we assume that airbnb will not allow ‘cleanliness’ (for example) as a star rating, since they would be the airbnb people doing it?
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What is the current 2 tiered system??
Super host versus regular host
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Oh, LOL, I forgot about that. Although we’ve managed to maintain Superhost our first two review periods, I kind if wonder if guests really care about that? I think most have no clue what that means and wouldn’t choose based on it.
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I have had several guests tell me that they only stay with Superhosts.
no, I mean the ‘top hosts’ program that is being discussed. Tier one is regular, tier 2 has cleaning, decor etc provided by airbnb. The first 72 comments.
I am asking what people think if for example your location was cleaned by the airbnb people but get low stars for cleanliness - will they accept the responsibility?
the top: “It sounds like they’re thinking of creating a separate, curated directory of “premium listings” that feature a higher standard of interior design, professional photography and cleanliness. One of the survey questions asked me if I’d be likely to participate if Airbnb provided an incentive like free design services or access to a professional cleaning service. Does anyone have more info about this?”
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Smtucker knows what you’re taking about. She was just saying that there’s already a two tiered system; this new possibility would make it three tiered. I asked what was two tiered currently, and she reminded me of Superhost vs non Superhost.
I think it’s more likely that Airbnb will introduce a special badge for those who use their cleaners, and allow guests to filter for it in the search.
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And soon they will be offering you AirBnB monogrammed linens, towels and throw rugs. At a discount of course!
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The next logical step would be hosts legally becoming Airbnb employees. In Europe, this means Airbnb would need to pay at least part of my social security expenses - a welcome development.
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Wow, this thread really took off! In hindsight I should have called it a “possible new Airbnb program for top listings” but of course none of us really understand what Airbnb would use for their selection criteria; probably a mix of host ratings and a qualitative assessment of listing quality but who knows.
For those who worry about being left out because their listing isn’t fancy, I wouldn’t worry! I think that Airbnb will always be mostly budget or mid-range listings, since I would guess that most guests are looking for reasonably priced accommodation rather than true luxury. However I can see why Airbnb would want to clearly differentiate listings that are deemed to have a higher standard; right now the only option is to filter by price and weed out all the places that are expensive but don’t offer good value. To see what I mean, trying search for listings that are materially above average in price and you’ll find a lot of overpriced listings with no reviews that aren’t really available for booking.
On the existing superhost badge: being a superhost doesn’t mean you have luxurious furnishings, it means you know what it takes to offer a pleasant travel experience for your guests. I’ve seen very basic accommodations managed by superhosts; obviously they offer good value and excellent service within the price point that they operate.
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An experienced host will be relieved that we aren’t all in competition with each other. There is room at both ends of the market.
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