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I wonder how hosts manage expectations in their listings. My little apartment is great – but it’s not perfect. Some people LOVE it. Others who may be expecting a 5 star hotel or something can have problems.
I think the main issue is that my apartment is not brand new – and neither is all of the furniture in it. I get low marks for cleanliness – but it is very clean. I think that they are rating it on the fact that some things are old (not unclean). The floors have scratches. That sort of thing.
I don’t want to deceive people – I just don’t know how to accurately reflect that in the listing.
Do I just say something like –
‘This is a charming ‘old world’ apartment. Not everything is brand new.’.
Is something like this OK? Or should I spell it out more.
What do others say in their listing that helps manage expectations?? The apartment is also quite dark – however, I think this is reflected in the photos so I’m not a concerned with that.
Some how “old world apartment” and “Australia” just don’t seem to go together. Here in the States we might say “shabby chic” or “comfortable, older space”.
If it were me, I would, a little at a time, address the “cleanliness issues”.
There are ways you can clean furniture – even old furniture – and make it look good. There are spray on-and-vacuum-off products for that sort of thing. Or the covers can possibly be removed, washed, and replaced (we do that in our main house, the listing has nothing like that)
Wood floors can be re-finished pretty inexpensively, even in OZ. Or maybe they just need a good scrubbing with a wooden floor cleaner and then a new coat of “varnish” or polyurethane, or whatever. Maybe, just maybe, you could bring in a cleaning team,let them do their job, and see what difference that makes.
I agree with Ken. Our two rentals are in a building dating from 1949 and it’s shabby. The furniture in one is newish but in the other everything is second hand or pretty old. Plenty of other hosts have the same and we don’t get marked down for cleanliness.
The main issues are likely to be the bedding, the kitchen and the bathroom. (Our floors are scratched and marked - they are seventy years old so they’re going to be.) Were you inspected for your STR licence? They usually point out any issues.
If you’re getting low marks for cleanliness then I’m going to suggest (don’t get mad) that guests’ expectations aren’t the problem here. If guests spend several days in the apartment and still find cleanliness problems then it might be something you have to address.
I call my place a “modest, little house built in 1950, which is a family home as opposed to a hotel.”
I also let the pictures tell the story, for example we have window AC units which are kind of eyesores. Some people hate window ACs, but that’s the reality of my house. I have a photo which shows one.
Fresh paint can make a huge difference. We had some little chips in our walls which looked like brown dirt in photographs.
I hate painting and am not very good at. It, but even my efforts made the place look fresher.
Check your base boards (skirting,) door frames and window frames and sills with a critical eye. When they are dingy and old it can give the whole room a less clean appearance.
Painting them was actually easier than I expected. Just be sure to use painter’s tape if the frames are a different color than the walls.
Another perspective: perhaps they are judging the building & entrance?
My elderly neighbour lived in a small 20 unit townhouse complex, things were looking a little shabby around the edges, she wanted to sell, nothing was happening. We chatted & concluded that although this was a lovely area of town, the maintenance of the parking lot, & garden areas were lacking. We were able to get the strata to cover fresh mulch around the gardens and a professional to trim up the shrubbery, fresh lines and numbers painted on the parking stalls & units and some powerwashing to sidewalks etc. I found some old paint and cleaned up painted around the dumpster enclosure, mail box area and common spaces, weeded down the back lane along the fenceline and painted the swingset & teeter totter in the wee play ground area, we put in 2 solid days of our own sweat equity. Next open house she sold for much more than she was asking! The initial presentation was everything.
My home is very old by North American standards & has many flaws, but the introduction to the house and sidewalk is spotless and organized, no cig butts or garbage, all is swept and touched up with paint as needed… the windows are squeaky clean & clear.
It doesn’t have to be new to feel clean & look polished. At each new guest I use Lestoil to all wooden surfaces, a spray bottle with diluted eucalyptus oil for most other surfaces. Every 4 months, the suite listing is blocked off for 2 days to give a terminal clean to walls, ceiling, floors & curtains; the mattress, area rugs are shampooed… fans, light fixtures EVERYTHING is pulled out and wiped down.
This business is hard work…I hope this helps
When I first started I had the same issues. My listed now says, Walk upstairs to the entire second floor of a 100 year old house.
In regards to cleanliness I honestly thought I was doing a great job cleaning the suite but now I get a professional cleaner to do a deep cleaning once a month. Dusting ceiling fans, wiping down doors and moldings, washing windows, etc.
I also use peppermint oil in the trash barrels and spray a little bleach in the toilet when it’s done.
Since then, I no longer get complaints about cleanliness (squeaky clean) and in fact it’s one of the things my guests often comment on in their reviews.
my two beach area condos were considered “fixer upper” & in need of serious updating. I’ve been using my rental proceeds to make the changes.
I posted a letter in each condo to guests explaining I purchased the condo as a project, thanking them for their patience as I did the changes as I had the money & telling them I hoped they could return next year and see the improvements. I have a few annual or bi-annual guests that always comment on the changes
To build on a comment about paint—-paInting the baseboard made a huge different in the perception of dirt in the corners
On my to do list is refinishing the tubs because they are 30 years old & years of scrubbing has removed the white fiberglass—they look gray. They are clean but worn. To replace the with tile shower = $3500 replace shower/tub fiberglass unit = $2000. To refinish = $600 and only takes one day.
U might be able to pull off “vintage”. But one simple hack for a tired decor or a shabby place could be to declutter and introduce some green plants. Remove unnecessary furniture and add a few potted plants to cheer up the place and give it that worn vintage feel.
I think was a little of both. I washed my STR and linens in fragrance free products so I added a fragrance free fabric softener to make things softer. I sprinkle peppermint oil and spray bleach in the toilet. I think guests are are used to things having a scent.
For the cleaning, I honestly think I am just not the world’s best cleaner. I do private chef work on the side and make less per hour than my cleaner. My cleaner and I were joking about it the last time she was over and I was cooking.
I suppose it’s irrelevant now but as I’ve aged I realixed that my eyesight wasn’t the greatest, even with my glasses on. Bright light makes a difference so I have one of those headlamps that straps onto my head while cleaning. Now dust appears where it didn’t before, I notice the hair down in the drain of the shower so I take the cover plate off and clean it out, the corners with the slight orange (whatever it is in the shower, it also tends to appear on shower curtains). I also use it for a ton of other things so if you don’t have one you should get one or two. Once I did I didn’t understand how I did without it.
Over and over and over and over I use ‘mid-century modern’. I extol the virtues of the design during the house tour. I rave about the original features. If the guests seem to be remotely interested I give a very brief history of this remarkable building.
But I still got a review the other day that said that the stay was excellent despite the apartment and the property being ‘dated’. Ah well…
Having hosted in both my 1971 house and my 2016 addition it’s clear that people prefer new and modern if they can get it, especially in a bathroom. I think unlike most hosts I have the unique experience of hosting both with all other factors controlled (host, location, cleanliness, etc). It would be interesting if you the property you co-hosted completely modernized and you could compare the remodeled with the vintage listing.
Interestingly, our second rental, although it’s in the same building, is completely modernised. It has all new furniture too (but some of it keeping to the mid-century feel). The other apartment (plus the ones I look after for neighbours) is all-genuine. (Modern bed, mattress, fridge, microwave etc. but original bathroom etc.)
On balance, it seems that most guests prefer the unmodernised ones. That being said, the unmodernised ones have the best views. But the modernised one is larger. So you can see that even I sit on the fence about which is best!
I have to say though that the mid-century aspect does attract some guests - they mention it when they are here. Often they are people who appreciate the style because of their profession - architects etc. Although sometimes it’s because they live in older homes themselves.
Occasionally I get ‘Gee, my grand-mom used to have a bathroom like this!’
@SydneyHost Our listing is in a building built in 1959, and almost everything is original, i.e. old. That being said we always get 5 stars for cleanliness. Are the guests mentioning anything specific, or could you ask them? You did say the unit is quite dark; do you think maybe a fresh coat of bright paint might help and brighter lighting?
We get a lot of people attracted to the mid century decor, although some younger people have thought/mentioned the 70’s; wrong decade but that’s okay, LOL. A very recent review said “As an interior designer I absolutely loved the design of the space”. One difference with the OP though is our unit has a water view, and floor to ceiling windows that let in tons of natural light. I think people “feel” good in the space and they can see it’s clean even if there are nicks in the floor, etc.
Hi there
Thanks to everyone for their responses. I really appreciate it. There’s a lot of great suggestions there. I’m still trying to take it all in. The apartment is about 100 years old. I should really mention that in the description. It was probably once an old art deco building although I hesitate to mention that since all of the art deco features were ripped out long before I owned it.
It has original lime render which means the walls are not at all straight, and never will be - so it sort of looks slightly wonky in a way. I think after hearing your comments I do need to lift my game in terms of cleaning. I’ve penciled in a day in a few weeks to get stuck into it I’ve been quite focused on fixing up the place as I go. And we’ve recently spent a lot of time doing things such as repainting (Yes, it makes a huge difference), and many other things (regrouting, replacing decking etc). Even though I thoroughly clean the place - maybe some of the deep cleaning isn’t getting done as often that it should be. If I have any time I’m usually more focused on the next thing that needs fixing. The headlight is a good idea too for when doing my regular cleaning. As I mentioned - the place can be dark. I found myself yesterday having to walk into another room with some linen just to tripple check there wasn’t a mark on it.
As I mentioned - the floors are really bad. Not just a few scratches. Deep gouges. A number of years ago the apartment was rented out to long term tennants who turned it into a drug den. There was all sorts of industrial furniture in it (read - scratchy metal stuff made for garages). Not to mention what could be iron or burn marks. It took me months and a visit to the courts to get them out. And was one of the main reasons I’m now doing Airbnb. I have covered major areas with rugs, but there is still massive room for improvement.
Thanks again. I feel so much better having heard from you all. It’s good to know also that others have been there and come through it with fabulous ratings. Yay. Thanks so much!!
Kylie
Late to the party here but we suffer from similar issues… We own a 70’s built seaside chalet. Most of our reviews say ‘spotlessly clean’ A few say the opposite and a couple have left early! I conclude that some people actively look for problems and you can normally tell from how they approach the booking in the first place!
We used to take a bad review to heart but then we weigh up the good versus bad and it puts it into perspective!
Thanks to everyone again for the help. I ploughed ahead and ended up gwttung a Superhost status which I’ve had for the past 6 months.
The main things that seemed to make a difference was that I replaced all the blinds. I initially had them cleaned and the lady who cleaned them said they were just full of cigarette smoke and she couldn’t get it all out. So I replaced them, and the place smells a lot better since.
I put a floorplan of the apartment on the airbnb so guests have realistic expectations of what they were booking.
I also upgraded some of the furniture. By looking on websites that sell second hand I got a few great items cheap and tgis had really helped (although it was time consuming looking).
I also atarted leaving out a cheap bottle of champaigne and 2 glasses - most guests don’t drink it, but it definitely looks welcoming.
