I took the pictures, then phone goes on a memory lock, of all times.
1 Like
Uh-huhā¦how con-veeen-ient, sezā Church Lady.
1 Like
OMG too depressing to see the ravages of time!
From 2002-2006 I did bookings through my own website. Guests paid $12,000, costs about $100. My net income $11,900.
Then from 2007-2015 I used a combination of Homeaway and Tripadvisor, Guests paid $12,000 costs about $400 for each of HA and TA per year. My net income $11,200
Now I am using pretty much only Airbnb, guests pay $12,000, airbnb takes average 17.5% per booking. My net income $9,900.
Each time I moved was because the old method was just not bringing in enough bookings.
However the big trend (apart from flat revenues in my city) is that the facilitator (Airbnb) is now taking a much bigger chunk of the pie. HA is trying to do the same but their site and workflow is really messed up. Airbnb just works really well despite being expensive, so I guess itās the best option at this point.
3 Likes
Wow. I see 3% on my bookings. Why such a difference?
2 Likes
You are not counting the guestās contribution. Some consider it money left on the table, that Airbnb collects. Obviously, they have to make some money to run their rickety websiteā¦
I see. Yes it gives you a clue what people are indeed willing to pay, I just never looked at it as the fee they charge the guests is my money. Coincidentally, out of curiosity, I just did a little experiment, like some suggested here, I āactedā like a guest and tried to book my place in Airbnb, VRBO, Flip Key, etc. I was quite surprised how much guest do pay.
2 Likes
My favorite is when travelers ask for a discount through Airbnb and Flipkeyā¦yet they are so willing to cough up the booking feeā¦it aint cheap!
1 Like
If you search ālisting site independenceā you get a lot of info. You would actually be a prime candidate for this but it would be a bit more work. I take most of my repeats (6 to 10 per year) and a lot of my 1+ month out arrivals by personal check or square payment and skip the middleman (HA/VRBO to whom I pay a subscription). I have not taken any Airbnb originating inquiries off site as of yet since the listing is free.
Hey Australia. I see you have listed with a few others with no success. Can I suggest Stayz? Initially I thought not and would stick soley with AirBnB - however, I am currently getting bookings 50/50 with Stays and AirBnB. I must qualify this however. Over time and as I get more reviews and more bookings, hope to alter this ratio in favour of AirBnB. I asked the Stayz bookers why they booked with Stayz rather than AirBnB. Answers varied but many unaware of AirBnB or had heard poor publicity. Give it a shot. Even the calendars synchronize.
Thanks for thinking of me Clyde. 
I have looked into Stayz and havnāt gone with them yet because of the 10% comission, and the bad reviews from hosts Iāve been reading due to the change over that the company has gone through since Homeaway bought them out.
Anyway, your comment:[quote=āClyde, post:112, topic:6304ā]
I am currently getting bookings 50/50 with Stays and AirBnB
[/quote]
has certainly got my interested! Do you adjust your fees that you have listed on Airbnb so that you end up receiving the same amount? Iām happy with the way Airbnb pay me and I donāt want people to book me through Stayz because it is cheaper for them (and therefore more expensive for me).
And do the guests pay you directly? (donāt really want to do that) or does it go through Stayz and they pay you (which would be more secure I think)
Thank you
Hello again Australia
Okay. First, the commission is now 7%. Have put the link for their July newsletter below with further information:
It is a juggle trying to get similar fees so the guest ends up paying around the same as whether they book with Stayz, AirBnB or direct with me. It is just a matter of working out what you need and doing the math. We charge a one off cleaning fee with AirBnB so we ensure we put this in our other prices as well.
Donāt know about the bad reviews. Have been in the accommodation business for 14 years. Fisrt time Stayz and AirBnB user as a host. Overall quit happy with both. Declined using Booking.com. Would get us more bookings I am sure, but from past experience, I would rather not.
With Stayz the client pays directly to Stayz and the deposit and balance is paid straight to your account. Quite seamless.
I am currently building my own website with my own booking button. These payments will be via a business paypal account. Havenāt quite finished the website at the moment - probably a few more days. Initially my booking button on my own site was linked to my AirBnB page but following some research, found that many guests reluctant to use AirBnB due to various negatives they may hold. (Unfounded of course!) Some others traditionally have used Stayz and remain loyal. So bottom line, is that I am getting 3 bites at the cherry.
More importantly, never just rely on one source for your business. Rules change. By having 3 different source of clients, if you run into problems with one, you still have two other backups.
Some guests much prefer to deal direct and be able to call you etc.
Send us a message in a week and I can give you link to my site. A bit embarrassing to do so now due to the site being incomplete. Also more than happy to chat with you over the phone if you wish.
Must go now. Have two Stayz guests coming tomorrow and another on Wednesday. No AirBnB on the horizon just yet. Need I say more.
wow, thanks so much for all that info and offer of phone help.
Iām going to give Stayz a go!
Glad to hear they pay you, not the guest paying you as I really donāt want the hassle of that.
Iāve only been doing this since April and gradually Iām getting more bookings (especially for the Spring /Summer months coming up. But August Iāve only got 4 nights booked. Having said that, we are doing lots of improvements to the property and these breaks give us plenty of time to get in there and get on with it.
Iād love to see your web page when itās past the āembarrassingā stage 
Iām not quite ready to go it alone with my own page, but maybe someday.
Thanks again
I had my first experience with the Airbnb helpline this week. There was an issue where smart pricing went a few euro below what my minimum fee is &I some guests instant booked on that price. I tried Airbnb Twitter account first as I have heard the help line was not much use. Within 12 hours I had a missed call from Airbnb in California & 2 follow up emails. I am in Ireland which they knew and yet still called at 1.30am Irish time! The following morning when I woke up I called Airbnb in Ireland and was pretty much told they couldnāt help me as I had a ticket open already with the lady in California! I explained that itās a little ridiculous that I have to deal with the Cali helpline as with the 8 hour time difference it would take days of back and forth emails to resolve the issue. Lady on the phone in Dublin pretty much shut down at that point and wasnāt willing to help yet a person halfway across the world was expected to help me. All in all everything was sorted but took 5 days due to the fact the the woman dealing with my case worked evenings/nights! I dread the thought of having issues with them again!
2 Likes
As you discovered, this billion dollar company is still run by mortals sitting at a desk somewhere in the world that may be thousands of miles from you. Itās all very impersonal and we are just a number in their system. And thatās unfortunate because Airbnb was intended to be a warm and fuzzy experience for travellers wanting to experience local color.
However, I have had a couple sorta major problems with guests andāwhen I finally got throughāthe person on the other end of the line was friendly and helpful. It can throw you into a bit of a panic when āpoopā happens and youāre fumbling around looking for a way to contact someone at Airbnb.
1 Like
Hi Clyde, youāre my official āgo toā person for all things Stayz!
So, Iām setting up my page there and Iāve come to the security deposit part. On Airbnb Iāve set it to $500 but thatās because I know people arenāt actually charged that much up from, itās just an amount they CAN be charged if there is a problem.
On the Stayz site it looks like they are charged the full amount and then it is refunded to themā¦is this the case?
If so do you think $500 is too much and would it put people off booking?
Thanks
Iām not Clyde but I can speak from a guest point of view that it wouldnāt put me off for the right house. Iām renting a house in Costa Rica next summer and the deposit is $1000.
1 Like
Hello Sue.
As a traveller, it always used to annoy me when I was asked for a deposit. Usually large hotels but in some cases smaller establishments. The message I get is āwe donāt trust you so we can hold this money as ransomā. Probably my paranoia but still, annoying. Even when running our holiday park, we never asked for a deposit over 13 years.
So in short, our policy is not to ask for one either with Stayz or AirBnB. In reality, if there is a problem, how then do you define how much of the deposit you keep? You also have to prove the damage or whatever. Just sounds all too hard to me. Your insurance policy would probably cover you anyway.
Let me also explain that our cottage only takes a maximum of two persons. No pets. No children. No visitors unless previously advised. So extremely little chance of any damage. If there is, I am sure the guest would admit to it and perhaps offer compensation. (P.S nothing against children or pets, but we are reducing potential problems. If we too pets, our bookings would definitely increase, but so would our hassles with cleaning, noise,neighbours etc etc)
If you take larger numbers of guests, children and pets, then the deposit may be worthwhile. So in this case, you may want to stipulate a deposit or bond up front.
The most important thing though is to make it extremely clear what the refund policy is on that bond.
Just had two Stayz guests check out. They mentioned they did stay at another AirBnB place once, but the house was dirty and not good value. It seems like they had then decided that AirBnB was maybe not as good as Stayz as they decided to use Stayz this time. Another reason to be on both platforms.
Would also like to hear from other hosts about the security deposits and how often they kept part or all of it. Particularly interested in the determination of the amount to be kept and whether or not disputes arose.
Thanks Clyde
Apologies everyone for turning this thread into a Stayz information gathering session, but best to keep it here now that Iāve turned it.
So, Iām a bit confused with the Security Bond. Does this mean that I do in fact take this money from the guest and then have to return it to them assuming all is well?
PITA if so! Iām happy the way Air ātakesā the bond, but doesnāt really take it, just suspend it in space until a dispute occurs through the resolution centre then they decide if and how much gets released to owner. Fine, I get that, no charge made out of anyones account until the damages are assessed and decided upon.
I donāt reaaally want to play God on this with the way I think Stayz wants me to, so if you could please clarify that this is so Iād appreciate it.
(your set up sounds less risky for damages than mine, so I do think I should have something, given that my home insurance excess is set pretty high)
OK, now that I have you, Iām up to setting fees for all my different dates for the next year. But how do I put a limit on how far into the future I want people to be able to book. I donāt want to have to set dates till the year āforeverā to avoid someone deciding theyāll get my December Hot time for bargain basement prices.
Youāre a gem with your free giving of advice and info. Iāll wait patiently to hear from you again.
Thanks K9, yours and anyone elses input on this is appreciated.
Did you rent Costa Rica through Airbnb or Stayz (Homeaway) or other ? and if not Airbnb, was that $1000 taken out of your account to be refunded should no damages occur?
This is what Iām worried about, $500/$1000 could make the booking impossible for many people if they donāt have that sort of $'s hanging around in their account.