Should I explain why I declined?

Last night a young woman inquired three times while I was sleeping, same inquiry each time. This suggests to me she will be high maintenance since she expects an immediate answer in the middle of the night. Also that she stays up late and doesn’t sleep much. I have an older day worker in the room next to her, who must rest. This girl will be here for a college summer session, but bringing another girl with her, she doesn’t say why, so they will be up half the night talking to each other.
Also, her time period would leave the room empty for three weeks between her and the person before her, since my minimum is a month.
I declined as “not a good fit.” Now she’s asking why.
Should I answer?
Should I explain?
She’s a different race than me, so I’m already feeling self-conscious about it due to Air’s fussing about it.

She can’t complain if you don’t give her a reason. The transaction is complete, no need to respond to her at all.

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Thank you.

And she just rendered the question moot by emailing again, saying, never mind.

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One thing I’ve found about young people is that they have the personal devices with them all the time and interrupt whatever they are doing to respond right away. So they expect that instant response from others.

It’s amusing that she couldn’t wait for your answer on why you thought she wasn’t a good fit. She proved your point. I think your instincts were right on and you dodged a bullet.

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We all have our doubts sometimes with various inquiries. And we all have some kind of instinct with those inquiries.
This may be stretching the facts a bit, but it may soften any perceived rejection.
The way I deal with this is to say something along the lines of:
Dear X (their name), thanks so much for your message and your interest. We are already working on a longer term booking which when its finalized and the calendar updated, means the dates you require will not be available. Sorry about that."
I have never had a negative reaction. Far from it, many message to thank me for responding in such a way. Sometimes, its best to avoid the bullet, and if the guest is not left offended, we both win.
If its ever reviewed by the powers that be, you cant be faulted. And if questioned by Airbnb, you can say that it was an inquiry from another platform. Again, it softens the reality that there are guests none of us wants, and a rejection can just encourage more dialogue. The messaging ends there and a further response is never required.

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