3.5 Star Guest - Booked, But Thoughts?

Late last night after a birthday celebration for a friend :champagne: (ahem), I received a Request to Book from a young woman. I was in bed, using my phone, and didn’t really pay attention to her reviews as she was communicative and answered all my pre-booking questions.

This morning I notice that she has 5 reviews and her first is a 1 star. Since it was her first stay, and she canceled it from the street (very urban, non-gentrified setting, didn’t feel safe), I thought the host was being punitive since they didn’t even walk in the door. His review was nasty.

All other reviews have been 5 star, so I’m thinking the 3.5 is from the 1 stars? I can’t see the breakdown like I usually can (it’s been one of those days).

thoughts? I’ve booked her and communication has been good, so I’m thinking that it will be fine.

Current guests are already on my last nerve. They’ve already gone past the curtain to my private quarters (admitted they wanted the cat, which I said was not available if I’m not home) and tried the door.

Is it Thursday morning yet?

I am more concerned about how the guests review hosts… If I get someone who writes bad reviews I do not want them. It sounds like this guest is fine.

RR

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She’s been fine so far and I think it will all be OK. If it’s a good stay, I’ll make sure to give her a good review so she can recover from the review 3 years ago that was clearly punitive considering the host kept the money and she didn’t stay. Makes the host look bad. He wrote war and peace and made it a racist rant.


Upon arrive you said that you felt scared, when i asked why you said because the building had a for rent sign and you claimed it looked creepy because the light were dimly lit. First and foremost you came at a very at time it was almost 12am at night and people were sleeping. you claim it’t scary because of a sign but the sign is for the one vacant apartment upstairs for students. my area has a camera across the street, it is actually one of the safes neiborhoods in buffalo. we are right next the the campus and have campus police, buffalo police and amherst police Potrolying the area. the dim lighting in the building might be because i dont know maybe its night time and people are sleep. It sounds like you saw a black student walking and assumed that the place was unsafe and if had a Japanese student stay with me for a whole month and she would come to place sometimes at 1am or 2am and nothing happen to her. Guest love my place and i have 4 out of 5 stars so i must be doing something rite. It’s sounds like your still living in the 60’s and your scared when you don’t see a gentrify area. but we have hipsters that like her so i don’t know. i guess some people way of thinking will never change … SMH. This is disgusting how racism is deep and my area has security features, extremely quiet. Please look at my reviews because this women is trying to ruin my business. We do not own the building but it is a bit older but this women just wanted her money back because she changed her mind because she had showed up early and had to wait 5 minutes.

I had a request to book a month or so ago where the guest had only one review and it was bad. I just asked them to tell me about it, their answer sounded good enough for me so I accepted them. They were perfect guests and I left them a great review.

They have since tried to book elsewhere and that host also asked about their one bad review - they let me know they appreciated the good review I had left them.

Just to say, if you are happy with the communication you’ve had with them, it will probably be fine.

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LOL

Right? :laughing: That host stopped hosting back in 2016 after about 16 cancellations and a few nice reviews.

I’ll write her a great review if all goes well, which I think it will.

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If I’m doing my math right, if she only has five reviews and an average of 3.5, isn’t that two one star reviews?

1+1+5+5+5=17

17/5=3.4

Two bad reviews is a little more worrisome than one.

Your intuition is probably steering you right given your experience. If the guest can handle themselves well with me before they arrive, then it’s probably going to be okay. I get mostly first-timers so I rely on those interactions to get a feel of a guest. The one group I expected might be a problem was indeed a problem, but I’m onsite so I was able to address it right then and there.

I love the way that the host who wrote the review used very few capital letters until he came to:

Word of the day.

Anyway, I don’t mind guests with bad reviews because a) I’m onsite so can keep a close eye on them for any signs of trouble and b) I discuss their bad reviews with them during the house tour. (I use IB so don’t have the opportunity to decline or accept).

The chat I have with them is rather along the lines of the discussion you’d have with someone who is trying to repair their credit. “Okay so you defaulted on that awful medical bill but if we get things right for you it will open up so many opportunities for you”.

If a guest has two bad reviews then the chances are that it was the same problem each time. I’d ask her what it was (if it wasn’t in the review) and tell her that she’s not going to do that here if she wants to use Airbnb again. Which is the point - it seems that she does want to continue using Airbnb.

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I did this with her after booking. It’s her first review and only bad one. Seems like other hosts are trying to help her out with good/glowing reviews.

Yup, I’ll be her 6th review and I’d like to see her “repair her credit.”

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All other reviews show 5 stars, so I’m not sure how Air is doing the math. But we all know “air can’t math,” so we’ll see.

Sadly not, not yet. Not until the day after tomorrow :wink:I think this booking is going to be fine, particularly after reading the Host review you posted. If the host behaved like this towards her, after she asked him about her safety in the location, she was quite right to leave, prety damn quickly I hope.

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Yes to accepting this 3.5 star guest (I would), but just a minute, @casailinglady . Your current guests entered your private space because they “wanted” your cat?
For what? Advice? Extra towels?
Oh, for petting, but still.
Poor kitty. Poor you.

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But why? He was obviously very experienced! :slight_smile: 4 star average … wow.

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Probably. She’s a Bengal and very vocal. The very first thing I say to guests when they walk in, after I say hello, is “The area behind this curtain is my private quarters. Please do not go in there. The cat is locked in my suite when I’m not here and when I’m sleeping. Do not disturb her.”

Yeah, I was pretty annoyed. The door is locked but I’m unhappy that they checked both sets of doors and made her upset. They “…could hear her meowing.” Yeah f-k wits, I told you she’s a rescue and I’m still dealing with certain traumas.

I’m going to charge for the cat pets now. :cat:

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I had a guest who was wonderful. She stayed for 10 days and said she’d have loved to stay longer, but I was already booked for those days.
She’d had a review she talked to me about when she was here- it was a home share (like mine), and the host had advertised kitchen use. Yet the host had dinged her in the review for using the kitchen. I guess the host had expected that she’d only use the kitchen minimally, yet that wasn’t stated in the listing. This guest cooks a lot- she always cleaned up after herself, so it was no issue for me. But apparently it was for this other host. But instead of just telling this guest during her stay that the host would appreciate it if she only cooked during specific hours (which my guest said she’d have been happy to comply with), she said nothing, then slammed her in the review.
There are nasty hosts out there who give unreasonable reviews,just like the nasty guests who give undeserved bad reviews. My guiding light is how the guests communicate with me when they request to book (no IB here) and whether they answer my messages promptly and on point.

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I wouldn’t worry. This guest sound fine. The first host would worry me.

She’s been delightful during our messaging back and forth. I use IB but guests can’t have a thumbs down from hosts, so that may be why she sent an inquiry. I think it will be fine.

As others have mentioned, it’s the communication during booking that matters. Actually talking to people makes life so much easier!!

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Good on you. I have had guests who were unfairly rated that turned out to be brilliant. Thanks for helping them recover. You would have to be a barn animal to get a 1 star😁

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OMG, that’s a disturbing review - I would never stay with a host who published such a review. She may have been responding from HIS bad vibes emanating from the building​:weary::rofl:

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