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With some regret, We’ve given up Air BnB, and not just because of Coronavirus
When we started there were very few other local hosts, now there are many and this introduces price competition. Plus Air BnB are always exerting downward price pressure. The price level in our area for similar offerings is just not acceptable to us.
Since lockdown and of course zero bookings, our energy costs have dropped enormously, this significantly alleviates the lack of income.
It’s been hard work, but often very enjoyable. Our space was a very well appointed room with own bathroom in our own house. We met some great people, but also some that brought some problems. No huge disasters I have to say.
However, the bottom line is that it is just not worth it. Yes I could put our price up, but that means fewer bookings and still needing to be ready for guests and the stress that that entails.
You might try as @RiverRock always suggests, that you go direct with those guests you consider great people and that you’d gladly welcome back at your price points. I’ve got a few prior guests that I feel comfortable enough bypassing AirBNB.
This way you can get some income on your terms with proven clientele.
So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night I hate to go and leave this pretty sight
So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu Adieu, adieu, to yieu and yieu and yieu
So long, farewell, au revoir, auf wiedersehen I’d like to stay and taste my first champagne
Why not leave it up at a higher price? Even few bookings is better than none if you can use the extra income.
Seems like the real reason may actually be that you’re burned out.
BTW, I think my biggest issue was being tied down where I had to be available for guests 24/7. It made me miss out on weekend getaways and any travel that I didn’t plan months in advance.
We made that decision short term and are teetering on making it forever. I do miss some great guests. A few have become good friends and may return just to visit. Enjoy your new found freedom!
I feel for you! Whenever I had “bad” guests (thank goodness those are few in between!), I pondered about quitting STR all together because of the stress. But when I look at my bank statement, it convinced to keep on doing it. Some hosts see the joy in the “experience” and meeting the guests, but it’s not realistic for me and not as great as airbnb marketed it. I’m renting out my whole house and managing it…it’s a lot of work dealing with maintenance, cost, guests sneaking more people, pet, and so on. I could have someone manages it, but they eat into my profit and would have no vested interest to take care of my property the way I would. A good thing for me is that I can stop hosting anytime I want. The $ is great but stress free may be better in my future.
Stressed? Well we play with the calendars - Only open/avail when it suits us - Arrival on Sundays? Oh no not this month - Min length of stay - fed up with 2 night stays -we’ll ramp it up to 3 4 or even a week. A really high price works well - There are people who go for it, not many but its worth it.
Hosting should be fun - “make it so”.
M
LifeinGalicia - Your points about making the calendar work for your schedule is well taken! It did cross my mind but I got greedy and not put restrictions on some days and length of stays. Same day turnovers are really stressful indeed! I may just start doing what you said.
I sympathize, they are always pushing to get your price down. We have a boat accommodation in the marina where we live (nearby) that we rented out for some years, but the Airbnb guests were so picky and such a pain we had to give it up. We had a HUGE issue with a guest the last time we rented our boat, Airbnb took the side of the lying cheating. b…d and that was it. They gave them all of their money back including the cleaning fee, and one of their "so called"arbitrators, actually criticized me on the phone and believed the lying guests. The second arbitrator could not even write English correctly and there were at least 5 pages of notes! That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I will most likely take our small apartment, that we use ourselves off and on, off of Airbnb very soon, it is not bringing in enough people to make it worth it these days and Airbnb wants us to jump through hoops for COVID in order to rent. no more.
Christy, if the AirBnB price tips bother you, and they are annoying, it is very simple to go into your settings/notifications and turn them off. They are automatically set to send you these computer generated tips. Leave all of the top ones on - they are how you get notified about bookings, but the bottom third are just automated marketing tools- in no way designed to your specific listing. They are sent to everyone who has not opted out. It makes it so much easier when a bot is not emailing and texting you with advice to lower your prices.
We live in an age when people seem to expect others to do things for them. Or an automated service. Airbnb can’t ‘exert pressure’ on any host. No-one but the host (and his/her accountant) knows what their business’ costs and profits are. Airbnb certainly don’t. And we don’t know the facts and figures of our ‘competition’.
@Acarm1 - I hope that you find another job that you’ll enjoy and I’m glad that you enjoyed your Airbnb experiences.
Compared to the at times frantic changeovers last July/August this summer has had a far more relaxed feeling for us also. Even though we’ve been pretty much full, it hasn’t felt like it.
One other factor is that folks have booked longer stays this year, we have two night minimum due to having a buffer day between bookings and our average stay this summer has been five nights. That’s high for domestic Spanish tourists down this neck of the woods.
hello DozerPug, thanks for your reply. I have done a few things as you have mentioned so as not to be constantly bothered by them. What disturbs me most however is how this company is run, from the top down. I get the feeling they are all under 40 if not younger, not very well versed in the jobs that they are supposed to be doing,they demonstrate to not have the life experience they should have to do the jobs that they are given, they seem quite full of themselves; they favor the guests while touting their “banner” as being host oriented. They went from being a good source of BnBs to just another accommodation site; their policies are not to my liking most of the time. Such things as the guests being able to view who their hosts are, but not vica versa, in the name of non discrimination. I could go on. I view Airbnb these days as a necessary evil, I wish someone would replace them but in today’s technological world, that is difficult, I know someone who seriously wanted to do so. I also highly dislike the push to answer within minutes (very stress creating) and creating ugly competition among area hosts with all of their suggestions. I am not on these sites to compete with anyone else, but that is their “push”. Maybe I just have to a different mentality and I am part of a different generation.
Christy, I get what you’re saying completely. I’m guessing we might be in about the same age group, mid 60’s. I just don’t let it worry me. I also do it for reasons probably different than most. Having lost a husband and a child, it is a great way for me to keep busy and not dwell too much on me. I do very short stays 1-4 days max and don’t share my kitchen or living room. I charge a cleaning fee and with smart pricing I have become the second most expensive private room on the island so I don’t see bargain hunters or have to adapt my habits to longer renters. Having a shared space, definitely limits my listing options and I do believe Air reaches more people. During season here, I am booked about 90% of the time between Air and direct books (all which came from previous Air stays). Once I turned the suggestions off and just adopted the mindset that Air is an advertising platform that handles the payments, and nothing more, it got easier. If more hosts would look at it that way and learn to manage the day to day aspects of their listing themselves, CS might improve because they wouldn’t be so inundated with petty requests and problems that hosts should be able to figure out themselves. Do they have children managing the company? Most definitely. I’m hoping the IPO, if successful, might fix some of that when stockholders figure out the multitude of problems. I hope you’re able to find a happy medium.
As Adam Smith said long ago, “The value of a thing is what it will bring.”
When I travel for business or a short visit for an event or some other specific local attraction, I just book the cheapest place I can find with the minimum amenities I require, convenient location, and at least 4.0 star average. When I am going on a longer leisure trip, I look for something special, and I know and don’t mind that I will be paying some premium for that. I still look for value, but don’t expect bargain basement.
My own listing is “special,” and I have been able to maintain a price about 2X other local places with superficially mostly similar characteristics and amenities. I’m not making any judgments about your place, but if nothing clearly sets it apart from cheaper listings, the market won’t let you keep the price higher.
I have been connected with sales of residential real estate for many years, and sellers with extremely well-maintained and upgraded homes often get it in their head that their home is “worth” more than others in the neighborhood. For most buyers, though, that “extra” value simply isn’t there. The sellers usually insist on listing too high, cutting the price too slowly, and can wait for a year or more to sell even in a balanced market. I think some ABnB Hosts may get to feeling the same way… Not saying that’s you, but I’ve seen a lot of it in my market and in other markets where I am a Guest.
Your post rang very true with me. My 210 year old VIctorian home is in our historic district which some feel should raise the value of the home and make it pricier. What this really means is that maintenance costs are high, restrictions exist on exterior changes, and the plumbing/electrical, etc. are far from ultra modern. Some guests appreciate the history and uniqueness, but it doesn’t demand a high price. I seriously wonder if we could sell it for any profit.
