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I think I mentioned here that we were buying a new place to Airbnb in Cape Town, where our son lives and where we’d like to spend more time. Well, it’s been quite a challenge renovating and fitting it out at several thousand miles distance, but it’s finally done, dusted and listed!
It’s a nice, spacious one bedroom, fantastically situated for the city centre but next to a lovely park and we’re lucky that our son’s mother-in-law who’s very efficient is managing it for us. So where’s the problem?
Noise. It’s right in the neighbourhood that the top clubs are and people in Cape Town certainly know how to party in the wee, small hours! We have triple windows, have put aircon in and supply earplugs (might get a white noise machine as recommended on this forum) and we are quite clear about this in our description. But with all this there are bound to be some guests who will give it a lower rating, in fact we’ve already had a 4-star review. I wouldn’t care about this as I think it will still be great value, but I don’t want it to affect my Superhost status for my listings here in Malaga, as I feel it might.
Before we published the listing my husband and I discussed who should be the Host and we decided that I should be since I have the Superhost status; he and my co/in-law are co-hosts. I now think we should have made him the Host but there doesn’t seem any easy way that I can transfer it to him, as far as I can see.
It seems that the only think that might work is to de-list our Cape Town flat (we don’t have any future bookings currently as we and some friends are using it for the next two months) and then put it on again in a few weeks with my husband as host. Is this feasible? I can’t see anywhere that it broaches Airbnb’s TOS, but many of you here are much better informed about these than I am! We do share the work more or less equally so in a way either of us could be the Primary Host.
Yes you can just delete the listing. If you save the content from the existing listing before you do so, you can just copy and paste it into the new listing.
I think you are taking the right approach to list it under your husband’s name so the new listing won’t impact on your current status.
In terms of the noise you might want to do, what I do - because I have an inner city location. Include some photos that emphasise your location and lively nightlife (turn in into a positive).
And when I email guests to thank them for booking I remind them that I am in a multi-cultural inner city location that can be a little scruffy around the edges. (also include it in ‘other things to note’.
You could do something similar regarding the noise.
Yes definitely emphasise the noise also you can get cheap white noise machines from amazon and also bulk buy earplugs and include that you provide them in your description
Definitely delist and list under a different profile. Then become the co-host and choose the option of co-host being the ‘primary’ host.
With this your prospective guests see you, the Superhost as the host.
I am doing this with all new listings that I am co-hosting for friends.
Thanks, Helsi, for your, as ever, sound advice! Our area is actually fascinating and full of great contrasts, though somewhat sadly becoming gentrified a bit too rapidly for some tastes … our building was for years a notorious crack cocaine factory and the most famous brothel in Cape Town! Now probably the safest building in town with a sparkling new facelift and 24-hour security and concierge! I’ll definitely get some photos of the street life when we next go (tomorrow actually!)
