First enquiry - what should I say?

[faheem]

Hi @dcmooney,

@dcmooney

But it doesn’t mean they won’t be great guests - they just have a different style than you and I.

To some extent I’m getting conflicting suggestions on how “loose” to be when selecting new guests to host. Some people say to be cautious and selective. Others are more relaxed. For now, at least, I think I’ll err on the cautious side. Till I get more experience, anyway.

@dcmooney

Does he have a local phone number and you can call him?

I thought Airbnb made it difficult, if not impossible, to contact people off-site. And no, I basically have/had no way of contacting him except via Airbnb. I don’t even have a full name. Though at this point, the issue is moot.

@dcmooney

Once you respond with questions you have done your part. They sometimes won’t write back. You’ll never know what happened. Possibly he sent a request to several hosts and grabbed the first one to write back - or something - who knows.

Ok, so I don’t have to take any other action such as refusing the query? Will it expire on its own?

@dcmooney

Just respond with a light sense of humor. I always start by saying “thank you so much for asking about our room! We’d love to have you and your family stay with us in October” (or whatever).

In your case “thanks so much…Love to have you…I just have a few questions so I can make sure we are a good fit as you will be sharing my home…”

I get the feeling that both you and @jaquo are politely trying to say (without saying), that I should try to write a friendlier reply. I’ll try to do better next time.

@dcmooney

Hang in there! Congratulations and let us know how it goes!!

I will, thanks. Thanks for the advice.