Mom’s basement?
202020202020
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I vote that the troll be silenced.
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I am very tempted. But because we are so nice at this forum, 
, I prefer to give plenty of rope, hoping for the desired effect.
However, my patience only stretches so far…
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Fingers crossed that she’s reclaimed her computer. 
But it’s so much more entertaining to watch them hang themselves.
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I especially get a kick out of the ones who come here pretending to be hosts, trying to sell some product or pick hosts’ brains for their blog content (and their great idea for an indispensible new hosting resource is usually something that is already available or useless).
Then, when told that their advertising isn’t allowed here, and that falsely proclaiming to be a host isn’t okay, they claim that they are really just trying to “help” hosts. As if they expect hosts to respond, “Oh, well in that case, we truly appreciate your selfless dedication.”
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They are fun, that’s true. However, so are the ones who are trolls for trolling’s sake. They are often kids and their dreadful spelling and grammar gives the game away. 
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Gee, ya think?! Few AirBnB hosts compete w/ Glamping Hub or Hip Camp, they’re totally different entities. I could see a few Air hosts being able to host on Glamping Hub, but it’s been my experience w/ Hip Camp that there’s no competition.
My bookings have also been down since 2023, also due to our local market being over saturated. I have gotten one reservation since Jan 20, & the bad press just keeps coming. Yes, foreign tourists are scared to come to the states, rightfully so. Our usual Ntl Park visitors are not coming, because the parks are in shambles. Personally, I have cancelled a yearly trip to Ntl. Parks due to the disarray they’re in. It’s a shit show, pardon my French!
I just keep on keeping on, & hopefully things will even out. I’m glad I don’t count on my Air income to pay the bills…
Omg, I feel for you! What a conundrum. I must ask, what is “spalling”, as I’ve never heard the term?
The buildings are made of concrete and we’re just across the street from the ocean. Over the years the concrete starts to degrade. Because the buildings are 4 stories, a giant machine/lift has to be brought in that has a platform for the workers to stand on to tackle removing the degrading concrete and patching it up - cracks, pocks, and chunks.
The internet says: Concrete replacement is the best option for repairing spalled concrete and ensuring a long-lasting repair. This involves removing the damaged concrete and pouring fresh concrete in its place.
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Yes we have also, in addition our small town built two big hotels near the interstate. We are going into our 10 season and initially also used VRBO and Trip advisor. I dropped this latter two specifically as too many VRBO inquiries wanted me to plan their trips. I have around 1300 reviews and was at 4.93 until two recent guests trashed us. One spent twenty minutes at the location and left. We denied her a refund as she’d had the booking for months. She basically had never read the write up. She said there were clothes hanging and a pile of shoes ( they were robes and slippers lined up provided for hot tub use). There is little vegetation in winter so no leaf barrier to give her privacy she required and we are on a park and opposite a school, all of which is disclosed plus 300 reviews for that unit. Presently, I have a 40’ green live screen of bushes and trees in multiple layers blocking guests from my house but that comes with the season.
Anyway the second guest had one review and trip, she was equally revengeful. From a city in our state where we often have trouble with guests as they don’t travel much…But hey we take the good with the bad. And we have been extremely fortunate with guests who loved what we offer. So Airbnb sided with those guests and our bookings and suspensions are costing us hundreds.
So to further address your concern on bookings. I want to go back to adding VRBO, Booking.com, Home Away, Travelocity, etc. The Airbnb app can not block my other units if I get a certain booking, thus requiring me to personally block it manually. The oversight on our part happens about once a year. I was penalized for that also but could have kept the booking as it stood and the house would have been full but noisier and a shared hot tub.
If Airbnb AI determines that a guest with two trips and one review can take down a seasoned host with 1300 reviews averaging 4.93 then there are going to be a lot more concerned hosts branching out to the competition. Another son has an Airbnb all his negative reviews are gone, my former husbands wife has Airbnbs nothing bad showing and we know some specific stories even one with a broken arm so obviously we don’t have the clout or their property managers to run interference.
However, competition does bring attention to demographic studies and our business is hospitality so satisfying the majority of customers is more important then the rogue reviews meant to trash and destroy a business.
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I too have been Airbnbing for 9 years with a 4.92 rating. (Most of my bad ratings came from the first year because airbnb didn’t have ways to communicate that it was a 2nd floor unit in a house with host. Even though that info was in the description, I would get bad reviews. Wish they would let a few bad reviews drop.
Anyway I recently had guests that woke me up 4 times in the middle of the night. (I run sound machines (3) and this never happens. The last time I confronted them and the told me they were going for a walk at 3:30 am. Each time they left it was for about 10 minutes. Likely smoking.
Anyway their review said that they woke me up once and that if you plan on being up late this is not the place for you.
Given that the description of my suite says, cozy and quiet, had they read the listing and reviews they would have gotten a better sense of the STR.
Given the amount of reviews I have it doesn’t really take me down but it’s very frustrating.
well if you know why, you might want to encourage people to stop fueling that fear and try supporting efforts to try something different.
My bookings were down through out 2024 and through April 2025 but my summer is booked solid at great rates. The inflation I felt in 2023-2024 is still hurting but hopefully that will improve compared to my income soon
And how do I do that. Tell our president to stop what he is doing to our country.
Asking a question to find out if my experience is the same as others is not fueling fear.
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What a clueless thing to say. People who have done nothing wrong are being detained and interrogated at the border, as if they are criminals, every day. It isn’t some baseless fear or conspiracy theory, it’s real. Why would anyone voluntarily subject themselves to that unless they couldn’t avoid having to enter the US? There are plenty of lovely places in the world to go on vacation.
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There have lately been several shows on CBC radio asking Canadians to call or write in, talking about all the places they have visited and enjoyed in Canada. From canoeing trips in unfamous but beautiful areas, to signing up for a dog sledding adventure in the north, Canadians could spend the rest of their lives exploring their own vast country and not run out of new places to go and new things to experience.
The same could be said for many other countries. While there are certainly things to see and experience in the US, that don’t exist elsewhere, like the Grand Canyon, there are equally impressive places all over the world. There is nothing about crossing the US off one’s destination list until such time that sanity and democracy prevails, that is devastating to anyone, unless they rely on business there or have relatives and friends they want to see there who are physically unable to travel to wherever the non-American happens to be.
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This very thoughtful, balanced, well researched article ran across Canada this weekend in all the major PostMedia dailies. Before I retired I read the Vancouver Sun every day cover to cover, and this is the longest article I can remember ever.
In the printed version the headline was:
Falling out of [heart] with America
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Yes, many hosts in the U.S. are seeing fewer bookings lately due to more competition and slower travel demand.
@Spark, thanks for posting that. It’s an extremely interesting article.
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Surely all this political chat has little to do with booking on Airbnb?