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I am a new host . We have a beautiful home overlooking the Gulf Islands . Our first guests were excellent. Since then it’s been a nightmare . The next two guests had great reviews . They both ended up being young and obviously setting up a party . The first group arrived on foot . It is a 20 minute walk up hill from the nearest public transportation. Anyway not knowing any better I left after meeting with them .
The next day on returning to the house I was faced with a coverup of sorts . I discovered broken glass in that was wrapped in towels that ended up in our washing machine . Glass went on everywhere when I picked up the towels . We literally find glass everyday despite our extreme cleaning . Our wood floors seem to have had something poured in them that has taken the coating right off . They are permanently damaged . A bed was broken … I could go on .
Moving forward , the next group arrives . I meet with two of the four that have apparently rented it . They seem very nice . I leave after giving them a run through. As I drive away I see 6 young men sitting on a lawn up the street . Very out of place fir our neighbourhood. I circle around and watch as three at a time they head up my driveway with arm loads of booze and ice . I contact the guest that booked with me . She denies it at first . Then says “ oh we are just having supper then they are leaving “ Knowing my gut was right I go to the door . They have been there only 1 hour and 15 mins . They have music blasting , cigarettes all over the patio and ground surrounding . Our telescopes that look over the islands were shoved in a back closet. Floor already with spills .The house stinks like vape . I told them to leave . They did . I had to reclean the entire house ( they had used the toilets, showers , and amenities) . This in less than 2 hours !!
I am nervous for the next rentals because of these experiences. We live in a quiet, beautiful neighbourhood.
Where did I go wrong ? Am I doing something wrong? I would love some advice.
You might also consider your price point. I have heard from other hosts that this behavior lessened when they raised their prices. Sorry you have had such a bad time. Hosting has been 99% great for me.
Bad guests seem to prey on new hosts. There must be a website out there that tells people how to scam Airbnb hosts.
Definitely change your house rules. Hopefully, you already have “No parties or events” checked, but add no smoking or vaping on the property and no unregistered guests. Add a security deposit, too. Since you seem to be meeting the guests in person, you should go over the rules with them, again. Cameras are another good idea.
@Helsi Just Google search for “Airbnb party”. Two of the first 5 results are “Find homes for party on AirBNB” and “Find homes for birthday party on AirBNB”, both of which link directly to the AirBNB website. As long as AirBNB themselves are promoting parties via search engine optimisation to drive people to the site hosts are on the backfoot from the start.
I’m rather confused @Brian_R170 was talking about a website out there that tells people about how to scam hosts and you are telling me to do a google search for parties that links me back to Airbnb @Snowdon.
Of course Airbnb will advertise their site as containing listings for parties as some hosts have large properties suitable for parties and indeed promote themselves as a space for groups wanting to celebrate a special occasion or have a large group family reunion.
The site @Brian_R170 was alluding to has nothing to do with how Airbnb advertises itself.
@Brian_R170 was not alluding to any specific site, just that it was likely that such a site existed, you seem to have mis-interpreted what he wrote.
Out of curiosity, to see if I could find such a site I googled “Airbnb party” and was pretty surprised to see AirBNB promoting the renting of hosts’ houses specifically for parties. That was the point I was trying to make which you also seem to have mis-interpreted - language barrier perhaps?
I just had the same issue. My rental property accommodates 8 and my neighbors told me my latest guests had a party and there were 16 + staying at the home. They damaged my new dinning table and floors.
I’m planning on taking out two twin beds so only 6 can stay and plan on joining the family connection.
All the youngters just want to party. Not sure if this plan will work, but I’m giving it a try.
I understood the point you were making @Snowdon , it’s just I didn’t agree it is surprising that Airbnb would advertise to the party market as it has hosts that target large groups.
Just because I am not English doesn’t automatically mean that I don’t have a good command of the language.
How were 16 guests able to stay at your place and party without you being aware of it @Ritz3 ?
I know this subject has been covered by many times on here already, but if you host remotely, you really need some sort of camera system both for the security of your listing and to ensure guests aren’t partying and sneaking in extra guests.
The best way to avoid this happening in the future is to have CCTV or similar and strict house rules around bookings being cancelled if guests who haven’t booked and paid come onto your property.
Yes, it’s just so common for guests to try the same sneaky things like parties, extra guests, faking issues to get refund, review extortion, etc. that it seems like there must be people out there writing guidebooks on it or something.
I am one of those that believe that stories make the rounds through the internet of how to scam hosts. I don’t think finding those sites is as easy as googling “website that teaches you how to scam an Airbnb host.” These tips are out there though. One such site is the blog run by some folks who actually had the audacity to post here with their complaint about a host.
John Stossel in the US in 2006 had a segment on Freeloaders including an interview with some guys who wrote a book on how to get stuff for free. Many of the same techniques they used could be applied to Airbnb. I’m not going to repeat specifics here because then it would just be another place on the internet for people to get tips on how to scam Airbnb hosts.
I think the real issue is that if you search for “how to get a refund for Airbnb stay” you’ll find dozens of blogs and articles that show you all of the legitimate ways to get a refund for real issues. But a guest that is dishonest doesn’t have to extrapolate much to realize that a faking an issue will yield the same results.
Oh no Leslie, it sounds like you have been super unlucky with your recent guests. I’m sorry you’ve had such a tough time.
There are a few things you could consider going forward:
Revisit your listing: Appeal you your target market e.g. our home is the perfect place for family reunions and a relaxing weekend with friends, but it’s not a party pad - so if late nights and loud music is your thing you might want to look elsewhere!"
Revisit your house rules: Clarify what is and what is not allowed. You don’t have to be the fun police, but be clear. e.g.
Please don’t smoke or vape in our property, we have a nice little designated area outside for smokers and vapers.
Please don’t invite house guests - we want you to have fun, but can’t accommodate * visitors, so please don’t invite anyone else over!
Consider an Airbnb rental agreement.
Consider an Airbnb security deposit.
Screen guests wherever possible.
I hope things look up and you get some lovely guests next!
