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Certainly you know your own area…but let’s face it…you are doing this to make money, not do guests favors. Sadly I think most of them would hardly appreciate all your efforts. At least very few of mine seem to appreciate extra efforts I make. I do invest in good quality snorkeling equipment because they seem to love having that available… But running around for them? Never!!,
By the way most of my furniture is old stuff—spillover from my house… The only thing I did buy new was a fold up dining room table which my Jennifer guest from hell promptly broke.
I think a good gauge is if you are booked solid a lot. Then you know you could raise your prices and still get plenty of guests!
When struggling with your battle of integrity and greed…always err on the side of greed. I do! I play with booking.com rates just to see what people are willing to pay. I did raise my rates really high just because I didn’t want anyone booking through that site. So I raised them to $299 a night with a $105 cleaning fee. (Keep in mind this a 2 bed/1672 sq. ft. log cabin). Well…what do you know - a young couple from NY city books it at that rate. Then I got another booking at that rate for two couples. After I pay Booking.com their 15% commission on the rental rate, I am still left over with a few dollars more than what my regular rate is. But it gives me a gauge of what some people are willing to pay.
Do you think hotels think twice about charging guests $2,000 a night to stay during Super Bowl? As long as you are clear in your listing then guests can decide if they think your price is too high. What do others in your area charge on Airbnb?
If they pay for it WHY do you care? If its driving you nuts that folks don’t live like you, set up systems to prevent use over and above what you would do. Put a lock box on a thermostat, get a NEST thermostat, buy a control for the a/c to limit it. Guest are NOT going to change because firstly THEY PAID FOR IT and secondly they won’t change their lifestyle to match yours. Get over it!
Two aggressive men with separate apartments that have no clue about sharing a space with guests, and have no ability to empathize with the difficulties. You two are such a charming pair.
I have 6 listings, very few of my guests read or follow rules and guidelines, it is rare. They see a pretty photo and book, and even after asking them to confirm they read everything it is abundantly clear they read nothing going by the questions they ask.
It’s for reasons outlined above that I no longer offer a kitchen, washing machine, or dishwasher for guest use they have damaged or been really inconsiderate in using all of them. I turn them off at the circuit breaker. If they want to eat I have many restaurant suggestions for varying budgets and if they need to clean their clothes I point them in the direction of a laundromat.
If guests break House Rules Airbnb doesn’t really do anything unless the resolution tool is involved and I ask for compensation, and then how do you set an amount for a guest being a a bad guest?
Example: I ask that guests don’t wear shoes in the apartment (I provide new or laundered slippers) do they follow these rules? No. For some reason some people think it is totally cool to walk on white floors and carpet with the same dirty shoes they have walked all over Europe in… I have just resigned myself to forking out money to get my carpets professionally cleaned every 2 months.
I’m right with you danielkdoran. Had all the same things. People are amazing. Once you get up there in hosting numbers (especially over a hundred, you will have had some doozies, especially if they are in your own home. It makes you want to cry sometimes. Is it so hard to be considerate and respectful? For many, the answer is yes.
I clear $10,000 or more per month profit from my Airbnb listings, when I get these frustrations I just go to my quiet place and meditate on that fact. It helps me deal with the stupid and rude.
It seems a bit like selling your soul at times, Daniel and Sandy. I feel that way. Most of my guests are good because I’m upstairs and have given them all the class rules… but as you know I have had my share of idiots. {Does anyone know how to get a drink glass ring off of a wooden table?) Mind you it was right next to a pile of coasters they were asked to use but didn’t. IDIOTS!
Oh no. I really haven’t had success with that, Kona. It’s my nightmare, as I love my wooden pieces, some being really old, and one hot cup of coffee, and it’ll be ruined. I cups and saucers rather than mugs, and coasters too. You could try murphys oil or some other furniture oil, but I have never had success
Hopefully someone else knows.
Deborah, do you know if there are thermostats that sense when guests have left? I have a vacation rental in Idaho that I am going to start renting out and it would be really helpful to my gas bills to not have to keep the house heated high when the guests are out skiing.
In just 2 months of being a host I have had my garbage disposal, gas heater, wooden cabinet, and oven broken by guests.One of them pulled hard to open the cabinet instead of looking for the latch so of course the latch broke in two. Only one guest was honest about their experience with breaking something. The rest just hid the evidence so then I don’t know for sure who it was , since I have back to back bookings all the time.
I don’t offer my nicest stuff because I know it will get ruined eventually.
I hear you. In six years, guests have clogged the disposal, put briquets into a GAS grille and lit it, broken dishes and glasses, broken furniture. Stole supplies. Stained bedding. Lit a toxic mosquito coil inside the room. Burned holes in tablecloths, left candles unattended. Lost snorkel gear so many times I have lost count. I guess that is actually not a bad track record compared to what some hosts have had to endure.
