I have been a Host on Airbnb for almost 3 years now, but during this past year, I was not able to Host due to COVID and selling my home. I knew that I was going to buy another home to start Hosting again, and I just booked my second guest this week. So here is my dilemma. My daughter’s maternity leave is up, and I really want to help her a few days a week taking care of my granddaughter. Out of all the Guests that have ever stayed in my home, i can say that only about 4 have ever been in the home during the day. I know that because of COVID and my rental being near the beach, that so many travelers now want to book a stay where they can vacation while they work, so I am concerned that I may get a bad review if my granddaughter should act up (best baby ever but occasionally is fussy which is normal). To the many Hosts that I so respect here on this forum with a wealth of advice on this possible subject, I so want your input on how I can word this on my listing without turning off potential travelers. I know that if I were the Guest and a Host had a baby, and it was a day I was relaxing, I would put in my airpods or earplugs, and nod away. But, if it’s someone that is just chillin’ in their room trying to get work done, I am concerned. I know that most zoom calls are for the most part also done over a headset or airpods.
You don’t say, but I’m presuming that it’s a home share and you’re renting a room or rooms? If you’re advertising it as a shared space, you need to promote it as a shared home and that you and your family live here, including your infant grandchild.
Under your description of the common areas
You will be sharing a family home that often includes my infant granddaughter.
In your host description you could include
[…] and a proud grandma that provides loving family care for my infant granddaughter, as my grandmother did for me.
And a year from now, you change it to “toddler”…
I’ve always been of the mind set that hosts shouldn’t try to cater to anyone and everyone. Decide what type of folks will be a good fit for your place, and market towards those people.
If a crying baby would be disturbing to digital nomads, discourage those sorts of bookings by your write up. Be really upfront about a baby in the house, who might cry from time to time, and say it isn’t suitable for guests who need total quiet or wouldn’t be okay with using earplugs if the sound disturbed them.
This is tough. You will need to confirm with every guest that books that they comprehend and are comfortable with there being a baby at the listing. You do need to especially avoid the WFH (work from home) crowd. They are finicky at best anyway and aren’t ideal guests to begin with.
It sounds like your granddaughter will only be there during the day. That is really relevant so you should note that it’s daytime. Folks coming for the beach should have no concerns about that. Digital nomads will care but you’re better off without them. I think it’s fair to make it obvious that there won’t be a crying baby in the evenings. I’m sorry because I know it’s your granddaughter, and I don’t mean to be insensitive, but it is the evening and nighttime that would be a potential for a guest to be disturbed.
Better hope for clear weather on all hosting days …
Thank you, and no apologies. Makes total sense and I am so glad that I reached out here because I so agree as to the kind of people that I want in my home and for the most part, I have had some amazing guests. Before I sold my home, I had a dog that I thought would be a nuisance and it turns out some of my best reviews are about the dog 
You just don’t know but I totally believe in being upfront completely and since this is something I just started doing this week, I need to update my listing ASAP. Thank you again.
Thank you so much. This is perfect. Since I just started taking care of her this week, I need to update my listing. Since I recently opened up my bookings to “Instant Book” to get some quick bookings and reviews on my new listing, I have always made sure to ask Guests if they have reviewed my listing and House Rules so I will be sure to ask again after they have booked. I may just turn off Instant Booking too to give me a better opportunity to communicate this up front. Thank you again
I have IB on right now for the same reason but your idea sounds like a good one. I would even consider specifically asking them to acknowledge the baby may be there (via Air messaging so it’s in writing), in addition to agreeing they’ve read your listing and HRs.
Someone dinged me nastily on location once (although they were fully apprised) so at the bottom of my “thanks for booking” message, there is a PS to confirm they are 5-star satisfied w/ my location now that they have the exact address or they may cancel immediately for a full refund. Nothing less than a 5 in that category ever since 
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I love this! I am going to make sure to update my listing to include this in my profile as well as in my listing description. And you are so right about updating it later on as she gets older And yes, my listing is a “home share,” but believe it or not, some Guests seems to forget that 
I had a few reviews that dinged me on location, like seriously? The location is literally given to you down to the exact cross streets before you book. This is one area where I’ve heard Hosts in the past state that this shouldn’t even be a category. A Host can’t help where they are located, so it shouldn’t be something a Guest can rate you on. Just doesn’t make sense.
Agreed. I believe the issue is there is no explanation given to the guests when reviewing. I always read it as “what is the surrounding area/neighborhood like? did you feel safe? was the listing indicative of the surroundings?” I mean, I’ve seen some really nice houses in some super sketchy neighborhoods and I’d be a little put out not to know that was what I was renting, for example.
So, I decided to define location for my guest with my PS. Problem solved.
I agree that location shouldn’t be included, but it’s not counted in computing points for your visibility during searches. The low scores I’ve had for location are because I’m in a quiet neighborhood a mile away from our bar zone on the other side of a hill, and they had to walk 15 minutes each way, or because I’m not next door to our hospital, or …
That makes so much sense and that’s a great idea to deal with it
As @muddy sez, decide who your target audience is for your house and lifestyle, and write your listing accordingly. I try to write my listing as if I was trying to get one of my somewhat distant cousins to visit — l’m friendly, and I try to give a sense of my grandpa’s house, the neighborhood, and the town.
Because COVID, I’ve been a 2 or 3 br apt this year, but when I rented 3 separate rooms with shared bath and kitchen one guest in his mid 50s reviewed “It reminds me of the shared house I lived in my last 2 years of college, except that everyone does their dishes.”
So feel free to draft and redraft what you’d like to say and fly it by us. Do you have friends that are the type you’d like to attract? Ask them to tell you how it could be improved to move them to book.
That’s so awesome and speaks very highly of your private rooms! I think private rooms are the best part of Airbnb.
Thank you so much. I just changed my profile and I also added this section to my House Rules. Let me know what you think. I appreciate all the feedback
Profile: As a proud & loving Yaya," (grandma), I love providing care and spending time with my infant granddaughter a few days a week here at the Cozy Oasis by the Sea. I love to travel and spend time with family and friends, and I especially enjoy the outdoors, dining and visiting local beaches in unique little towns. As a Host, I want to be able to offer my Guests a unique experience that makes them feel as if this is their vacation home too. Welcome to your “Cozy Oasis by the Sea.”
Under House Rules:
SHARED HOME: Guests who book a stay at the Cozy Oasis by the Sea acknowledge that this is a “shared home” space and as such, the Host and family are often home during the day. My granddaughter is a big part of my life, and she visits the Cozy Oasis by the Sea a few days during the week. If you need absolute quiet during the day, please look for alternate accommodations.
It’s a really sweet profile!
You might consider also adding a note under the " About this space" (pops up when people click “show more” when reading your description). That’s where I have info I feel is essential for them to decide if I’m the right stay for them. If it’s important, I don’t think you can say it enough. I hate it when people act surprised about something you’ve told, showed, written, messaged them 1000 times about. And yet, it still happens. My own kids quickly come to mind. 
“You do need to especially avoid the WFH (work from home) crowd. They are finicky at best anyway and aren’t ideal guests to begin with.”
Thank you for being the person that finally said this.
I was in Nashville Tues night for a concert and stayed in my first “private room” listing since I resumed travel after staying home in the pre vax pandemic. Traveling solo it’s one of my favorite things and so budget friendly.
GREAT suggestion Thank you.