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I’m just curious because of the settings? Why won’t Airbnb allow me to require a verified government ID unless I use instant book? BTW I did write to them waiting for an answer, it’s BS.
What are the advantages? Disadvantages?
Just curious 
I think I’ll continue screening people it doesn’t seem to scare them away I’m booked into December.
I did for the first 1.5 years Now the room is attached to my home but separate from me. I don’t see any difference. IB is less work for me.
A perfect reason to use IB! And it’s a lot less work. And, honestly, if you get someone you don’t want to host, it’s easier to get out of then if you accepted a request.
Another reason to use IB, that doesn’t seem to get mentioned much is that it’s a whole lot easier for guests. And most guests are great guests, so I think it behooves the whole community to make it easier to book on Airbnb.
I host a suite in my home and IB has worked fabulously for me.
Pretty sure they just wanted to dangle a carrot to have hosts use IB. Worked on me! That was the only reason I tried IB.
Advantages are that people just book. My personal view is that any host who thinks they’re really able to do a FBI-level psychological battery on someone based on a couple messages is fooling themselves. At least I’ve never been able to. Some of my worst guests had the best introduction messages. Maybe one sounded a bit scattered, but nothing I would have declined her over.
Disadvantage is that you need to be very on top of your calendar. Air CS may help you with a rare cancellation, but they won’t extend that courtesy very often.
But being “on top of your calendar” helps you in search. It’s also one of the most basic jobs of a host. No one wants to spend hours looking through listings and reading all the rules and stuff and then being told “sorry, not available.” Don’t ask me how I know. Airbnb takes a dim view of that as they should.
Or by seeing a photo
I agree wholeheartedly. I use IB and I really don’t have the time for all this approval/ decline business. We have two apartments and I look after another for a neighbour. I clean all three, meet and greet most guests and have a ‘proper’ job. I don’t have the time to mess about and, the most important thing, I don’t have time to message guests, ask for details of their trip, go and look them up on Facebook and all the other pointless exercises that some non IB hosts do.
These days I am not hosting in my home (but I’m right next door) but at one time I was. This was in the eighties when I had a traditional B & B. In those days, before Airbnb, before online reviews, even before cellphones, we didn’t know anything about the guests until they landed on the doorstep with their suitcases. Hosts today are incredibly fortunate to have a system like Airbnb.
I am an in home host who started with requests only 3-1/2 years ago which I found very time consuming but felt it was important for me as a new host. Two years later I switched to IB with requirements for government ID and positive reviews from previous hosts. This summer I dropped the requirement for previous reviews because I realized I was missing out on a lot of potential bookings. In the early days I don’t think I would have been equipped to handle IB requests because I feel there is definitely a different type of guest who shops for inexperienced hosts and pushes every boundary they can. My absolute worst guests were all in the first 10 groups (with one exception last summer). I feel that once you get over the magic mark of 100 reviews, people are less likely (but not guaranteed) to try and push the envelope because you’re not a rookie and know the ropes as well as they do - if not better. That all said, I love IB, I get phenomenal guests, and I would not go back to booking by inquiry only but I do not think it is advised for new hosts.
I agree. IB is good. We didn’t allow it for the first month or two when we started hosting in spring 2017, but we have since then, with no problems.
I’ve hosted well over 100 groups (5-16 per group) and have only had to give a bad review to 6 groups as of last week. Everyone of those groups did not IB (I just double checked), but asked question after question or raised a red flag with their initial booking inquiry or request to book. Two of those groups I told asap they were not a good fit for our house and they still went on to IB, I should have requested to cancel on them both. Got a 3* overall from 1 and a 4* overall from 2 of the 6 I would not recommend. So, I have 1 crap review on each of my 3 houses.
This, one hundred percent.
Just done double check in/out today on both of our apartments, and now sitting on the terrace with my OH discussing our throughput over the past few months. Bottom line, we’ve had a right good bunch over the summer.
I honestly don’t get all the horror stories we hear on here, on an almost daily basis.
Charmed life, lucky, picky about guests, no idea. We’re on BDC so a pulse and a valid CC is all that’s needed to book.
Ah… was going to ponticate further, but our two Dutchies have just returned and invited us downstairs for a nightcap.
To be continued 
JF
You’ve probably read enough here to have heard this but if not…
A strategy sometimes advised for those bookings that you don’t really want is to block one of more of the days in their requested time slot. It might be opened again later or just used for rest or maintenance. Ideally we could just tell a guest: " my place isn’t a good fit, please don’t book it." But the reality is that some guests are difficult and not “worth it.” Rather than getting into an argument it’s best to just miss out. Keep in mind that while they say there are unlimited cancellations, you can only cancel 3x a year automatically online. After that you have to call into CS with your song and dance. So if a host has a lot of turnover they might get over your 6% in just one year and wish they had used that strategy.
These 2 were the first two months of of our first new listing. I have grown and matured much since then as a host lol. One of these guests was the only one I have ever put a claim in on. As @kat1245 said on another thread, AirBnB did not ask her for a police report I had the same experience. We went down to the local station anyway and filed one then sent it with our request for money for stolen items. We have a great inventory check off, so it was immediately known what was missing. The loss was just under my $1,000 deductible so I was not filing a claim with my insurance, but I wanted to write it off since I truly did not believe AirBnB would cover it. The did.
I swear it seems like the scammers take advantage of new hosts.
We’ve been open (spare room in our house, bit of brekkie as well) nearly three years, just had our one hundredth guest - all IB - no problems whatsoever. More than happy.
They allow you but they just don’t require it unless you check the box which is only available with IB.
Can’t @Betty_A just tell her potential guests, when they request, that they must go and verify ID? Maybe put it in her house rules or listing so some people (some do read) will just do it ahead of time?
I have IB and require verified ID but still get requests from people who don’t have it (cause they can’t IB without it). I just tell them they need to verify their ID for me to complete the booking. I give them a link to the page about it to make it easier. I also tell them that if they’d prefer not to verify ID that they can withdraw their request without penalty and that I understand either way. It’s always worked out. I’ve never had anyone withdraw or refuse.
Yes it’s in there to be ID verified… but nobody reads 
I’d love to follow a template to make the listing shorter but at the same time I’ve been attracting the type of guest I was hoping for.
So, just ask for it!
I do, it’s just annoying I wish Airbnb would earn their keep and make it a requirement if that’s what a host wants. Obviously it’s just a setting but they want to force:
Instant book
Smart Pricing
Ughhhhhh