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Hi all, I wanted to share an idea that came up while juggling my life as an Airbnb host on the side. You know how you get caught up with guests, bookings, cleaning, etc., and completely forget about the maintenance side of things? That’s happened to me one too many times – like realizing last minute that the HVAC filter hasn’t been changed in months or getting a call about a plumbing issue that could’ve easily been prevented. So, I started wondering… how can I automate all the routine upkeep that comes with managing a rental property?
That’s when I thought, what if there was an tool that actually helps you stay on top of all these things without any extra hassle? It would work like a personal assistant, but powered by AI, recommending when to schedule maintenance tasks like HVAC service, pest control, or plumbing inspections. Even better, it could find and suggest trusted service providers in the area or let you book with your preferred contractor. Imagine getting a prompt like, “You’re due for an HVAC filter replacement, would you like to schedule it for next Tuesday?” and with a simple yes, it’s all set up.
The coolest part? The assistant does all the heavy lifting. It learns from your past schedules, makes smart suggestions, and keeps everything running smoothly without overwhelming you with endless data entry. It’s simple, conversational, and super easy to use. You just answer a few questions, and it takes care of the rest – from scheduling to reminders.
I’m still brainstorming, but would love to know… does this sound useful to other Airbnb hosts out there? What’s the most annoying maintenance task you wish would just take care of itself? Let me know your thoughts, I’d love some feedback!
Not me. I’ve been in this line of business for more years than I want to mention and I have managed just great without AI - or computers and even the internet.
You may not realise this but it’s perfectly simple to keep track of maintenance issues using simple free (or cheap) tools such as a paper or online diary or calendar. Truly easy.
Not for me, either. I’m perfectly capable of figuring out when things need to be done without some AI bot “reminding” me. I have never “completely forgotten” about the maintainance side of things.
And if I needed to, I could easily put reminders on my phone calendar of when to replace or check things.
I really don’t understand the love affair with AI and chat bots.
This topic post by a new user sounds like trying to pick hosts’s brains in order to develop an AI paid service. Certainly not the first time we’ve seen that here.
And no maintenance tasks just take care of themselves. Someone has to actually do them.
Imagine getting a call from your HVAC service provider, “Hi XX, we see you are due for a filter replacement and duct cleaning, do you want to set upan appointment for sometime next week?”
Which is what regular maintenance providers do.
And how would an AI chatbot know what time next Tuesday would be convenient for you? Or what time slots the service provider would have open?
On the Airbnb Community forum, you can click on a poster to see their profile. When people post these “I’m a host and have a great new idea to help myself and other hosts’ business”, and you click to see their profile, you almost always see that they just set up their account that day and have no listings attached to their profiles. They aren’t hosts at all. (The OP here might be for all I know, just sayin’)
it’s not that hard to set up an alert in your calendar for an annual check up of (whatever). you don’t AI for this. This is feeling like a Black Mirror episode, where people replace marriage, with AI. At first, it works out great for the woman (who often does all this scheduling -and more - for both people) in the short term, until she too learns to focus on pleasure and become incapable of managing even the most mundane tasks… who wants to co-write the episode?
“HVAC manufacturers recommend that the filter be replaced every six months for optimal efficiency. Otherwise, airflow could be reduced, costing you money and unnecessary wear and tear on your HVAC equipment. Your filter was last installed five months, 26 days and 45 minutes ago, Your manufacturer is Lennox, and they have a suitable replacement filter in the correct size of 22” by 45" by 1.5" at Lowe’s that is currently on sale for $39.99, regular price of $45.99.
If you wish to replace it yourself, I can order one for you for delivery next week. In order to replace the filter, you will need to remove the old one and insert the new one.
If you wish to have a service provider do this for you, Billy Bob’s AC service gets 4.5 stars on Yelp, with a 90% five-star rating. Reviewers say Billy Bob is clean and efficient and usually shows up on time. I recommend you request an appointment for Wednesday. Wednesdays are good days for service, as the providers have had a chance to work through the weekend backlog of emergencies on Monday and Tuesday. I also recommend you request 1 pm as the appointment time, as it is right after lunch and Billy Bob’s was noted in the reviews as having 90% on-time performance on the early afternoon time slots. Shall I make an appointment for you for next Wednesday at 1 pm with Bill Bob’s AC service?"
AI is incredibly faulty and environmentally damaging. I recommend setting reminders on a cellphone or computer calendar if you feel like you’d benefit from reminders! To me, this feels akin to Google adding their AI to “summarize” search results… you never know when it’s going to be wrong.
