maybe a stupid question but if i buy an airbnb property, can you take over the hosts account? they have 133 great reviews…or do u start from zero…they have an account with 2 properties…am i missing something…thoughts? tks…
The reviews are for the host not the property. They will take their reviews with them if they ost at a new property. As you said you start from zero.
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They won’t transfer the reviews or account if you buy a place.
If you were selling though you can advertise what a good rental it was. But Airbnb won’t transfer them. I think other platforms will though.
Homeaway/VRBO won’t transfer to a new owner, either.
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I started advertising on Air several years after I’d been hosting on another platform. I realized the reviews couldn’t be shared with Air, yet I wanted prospective guests to know that my property was an established and successful rental.
So in the text of my description, I made reference to the many reviews I received on the other site by stating: This popular condo has (number) 5-star reviews on [another platform].
(I intentionally put brackets around “another platform” so the reader would think Air had deleted the name of its competitor…which it would have anyway.) – 
I don’t know whether it helped or it was the initial new-listing boost by Air but the bookings started immediately.
@SandyToes -
That’s a great idea! We have a lot of reviews (over 55) on VRBO - I think we have the fourth or fifth-highest numbers of reviews on the entire island on that platform. But less than 10 on AirBnB so far.
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Not a stupid question at all but coveted on many past threads. All bookings of the old host gets cancelled too, it would be great if Airbnb helped design a smooth transition. I get that it’s reviews for the hosts but based on my experience of some whole house rentals, hosts did very little and contributed very little to my review, it was often the unique property I was reviewing.
Maybe you could work with them as a co-host and take care of your new property only?
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But what if they bought and have the same Co-host? Afterall it’s the cohost who is making the place a 5 star rental
That is a ridiculously too-sweeping statement. Some co-hosts only do the cleaning, or meet the guests at the house… To assume that a co-host does anything more than assist is too broad a brush. I bet there as many arrangements between hosts and co-hosts as there are hosts and co-host relationships.
Never thought of it that way- in my area all the co-hosts do it all, from analytics / updating daily pricing, booking to scheduling cleaners to dealing with all renters problems. I wish AirBnB could differentiate
I understand your desire to port the positive reviews to your purchase. Like another poster mentioned, the reviews follow the host not the property.
Perhaps in the property description summary you can say something like “property listed for xx yrs with a different owner. Location, cleanliness, & overall reviews were consistently 5 star. We intend to maintain or surpass their high standards.”
Then in the larger description area, include a few meanful quotes from prior reviews with the explaination along the lines of “New Owners intend to continue providing the best rental experience.”