Sandy, I don’t want to start something, but aren’t New Yorkers in general more pushy? I’m talkin about–you know–them big city folk. 
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Cabin, there were other bigger issues with the BF, good riddance! (He was 19 years younger than me)… and just the fact that I had to give him a job in the first place… well. 'NUF SAID!
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Sandy,
I will respond to you privately about the discount thing…it is so long to type on this forum and will take away from your original post. But yes, my discount is a last minute thing. It has to be a win -win for both the guest and I. I will not give a discount if I feel bad about. And no way in hell a family with more than two kids is getting a discount. I know others (the majority) have had bad experiences with discount seekers. I believe my discount seekers specifically watch the dates and the homes they want. They are just frugal people…not the typical - I will trash your place after you lower your price - just so I can take advantage. Keep in mind I price my place high! People can easily book properties in my area that sleep twice as many for the same price.
You are not being naive about people taking advantage of others. I have had so many jobs in the customer service/hospitality business my entire life. I have had such a variety of jobs in so many states- it is incredible. I have never encountered so many trying to take advantage, except for in this job. Even those expecting free food in restaurants after they ate half the plate! It is because they do not consider us real business people. They are like sharks sniffing for blood and the minute they feel there is an opening they go for it!
I have had such a short learning curve compared to those who have never worked in the restaurant/hospitality business. I have been doing this two years now and I am so good at spotting deceitful people.
Bwahahhaha! Nineteen years younger can definitely be convenient at times. My younger guests seem very receptive to listen to instruction and do what they are told. They haven’t been corrupted yet…lol. I kicked my 19 year old boy toy to the curb when I found out he was a thief. He sure didn’t like those calls at 2 a.m. explaining to his parents why I was calling. Yeah…too bad your dad busted on you when you pawned the generator you were storing for me after Y2K had passed. Ok…I have said enough…lol!
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There ARE advantages to the boy toys at my age, but they do seem come with their own unique set of problems that we – as older women-- have solved a long time ago.
Very good about the win-win, and me too, I am priced high, so perhaps it might work for me also. I’m glad to hear not everyone is the kind of discount seeker I have come across. One late Saturday night, a guy (with wife and kid in tow) kept me waiting for his decision on my room for well over an hour while he decided if they wanted to stay - well actually while he was sitting in a local restaurant waiting to hear back from a cheaper joint. Apparently this is the way he does it all the time he told me. They weren’t from around here, and he just kept people up till ten (including his kid) so he could get people desperate enough to rent their un-booked room out to him. I was so unimpressed by the idea of being made to rush around so last minute by someone, the last thing I was going to do was give a discount 
I thought he was a dick.
Yes, it does help having a good eye for someone trying to pull one over. I feel I’m pretty good at reading between the lines with what people are trying to say too, but it always annoys me. That’s the part I hope to get over. Hopefully soon I’ll just be so cynical that I won’t even bat an eye when someone tries it on. That’s a sad prospect, but it’s the only way to do this peaceably. Either that or let people walk all over you, and get away with all sorts, which I am not prepared to do, because it only gets worse from there.
Well, I just got back. Mid message, I checked the window and noticed an extra car. No people in it. I went downstairs. Our early guests had been here all afternoon thumping around, but I just saw them leave. As I got down the stairs, a woman appeared around the corner, and I almost screamed. I was expecting them to be on the porch like normal people. She had been wandering around the house. But where was the husband? He had wandered off through the kitchen, and found a bathroom to use. I mean, these guests were two hours earlier than they told me they would be, I said twice in messages that I would appreciate an ETA and an update if anything changed. And then they don’t bother letting me know they are earlier, and then walk into my home, wander around, and pretend to be apologetic about it after I get scared out of my wits.
I swear to god. These people act as if my home is a hotel. It doesn’t look like a hotel. It is in a quiet residential area. Would you just walk into someone’s home?
I feel angry. The door is usually locked, but the other guests left it open.
Then to top it off. I offered them an upgrade to a room on the other side of the home to keep my guests separate in a message, I thought this time, save any surprises as that doesn’t always work. Well, the woman never wrote back. Nada. Nothing. So I thought well, that didn’t go down. Until I told her she had to tell me when they were arriving. Still nothing about my offer. But suddenly, here they are with this worried look on their faces, and they said, well, did you upgrade us, because we messaged you about it. I’m thinking, why are they looking worried if they messaged me? And if I didn’t respond after offering and they said yes, surely you’d double check, especially when you wrote back about the time right? Well, I could tell they were lying, especially when I repeatedly said I didn’t get the message, which is incredibly strange because this has never happened. They kept insisting until I told them that the room I offered them was booked soon after, seeing as I didn’t hear from them. They looked surprised. Whatever they were playing at, they were both in on it, and it was a creepy vibe. You know when people are lying to you, and you know it, they know you know it, and you know they know you know it? Awful people. I’m so depressed having people that play games with me in my home. I’ll make over $1200 this weekend, but I feel pissed off, depressed, and just sad that people are like this. Oh, and the photo of the woman was from a long time ago so she looked nothing like the picture. I have to say, it gave me a fright. Not because she looks bad, she doesn’t (I find women of all ages equally beautiful). It was just a complete shock seeing someone that looked absolutely nothing like the person I booked the room to in my home.
Once they were taken to the room they were very happy, saying it looked much better than the pics (all my guests say this, and I think that’s better than the opposite) but then they acted surprised that the room they booked shared a bathroom. Ugh. I could tell they knew, but it was lame anyway. Some people!
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My (not) favorite were a couple from Aspen (my place is in Boulder,CO) who sent me an email 30 minutes prior to check-out time saying, “We hope a late check-out is ok with you. We’re off to get breakfast.” It was a back-to-back day, plus I was leaving town. So I immediately wrote back – NO! (but nicely). No reply. So I called. No answer. More emails and calls – nothing. When I arrived at check-out time, their belongings were EVERYWHERE! I spent at least a half an hour corralling their stuff and then I had to clean around all of their bags, toiletries in the bathroom, food on the countertop, etc. When they came back a half an hour before the next guests were due to arrive, all I got was, “Sorry, we didn’t think it would be an issue.”. They got a bad review.
Sandy2! No way!!! What numskulls!
Oh my… Sandy you have the patience of a saint to put up with this. I don’t know how you do it! I think I would start drinking. Seriously.
That is truly awful sandy2. Thank goodness you left a bad review.
I know Kona. Thankfully the third and last couple of the day were delightful. At least that’s 1 out of 3. 
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I’m always flexible, but I live 6 feet away so it’s easy. I just had a midnight checkin. I’m fine with that at least if they check in late they aren’t using your air conditioner like if they checked in at three. I always meet the guest, do a walk-through even if it’s at midnight that’s how I get excellent reviews and they appreciate it
Many of us that don’t allow flexible check in get excellent reviews too Diamond (including me)! I consider 12am on the late side of an ok check in time. And I let them in at 3pm - but wish they’d stop pushing for it.
As I mentioned above, people have different set ups including different size spaces that take longer to clean between guests, and may be taking guests in their home meaning precious treasured privacy and peace, which is at a premium in an airbnb household - especially one with multiple rooms as I have.
Still, I’m surprised people will let people check in ‘whenever’. Personally I think you are doing the rest of us a disservice by producing a bunch of spoiled travelers that then expect everyone can just let them in whenever. How long have you been hosting? If you are still doing this in a couple of years I’ll be very surprised.
Excellent reviews should be based on great hospitality and a wonderful experience in a well set up and comfy space - not to creating a new brand of traveler that extend stays beyond normal hours and creates stress and impossible situations for many hosts. Personally I think hosts that offer a flexible check in do the rest of us that can’t a disservice, as we are left with the fall out - people that seem to think it is normal to rock up whenever thinking they can start their holiday and end it anytime during the arrival and departure days. .
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I just got the …we will be leaving NY early and arriving before noon note , my check in is 4pm I wrote back saying this so we will see … I am going to send a note this morning to make sure they got that message … we live in our place and rent out 4 rooms so I completely understand the pain of early check ins … but to be completely honest I hate late checkouts more luckily we have very few of those
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Oh cool Carol, it sounds like you have a similar set up to me! Yes, I’m not a fan of the late check out either, but thankfully, we get less requests for that zi guess because people are anxious about getting back to get ready for work the next day or want to squeeze another activity in, although quite a few people will just hang around until 12pm without saying anything and act as if it’s totally cool (checkout is 11am). I can handle that but find it a little irritating when people don’t read the rules - or do but pay them no mind.
How many rooms do you book at a time? I restrict ours to 3 rooms (we have five bedrooms), so that everyone feels like they have lots of space. We do this also to keep bathroom sharing to a minimum as not all of the rooms have ensuites.
Good for you sandy2 for leaving those selfish people a bad review. And that is the type of manipulative behavior that makes me lose it on someone! Of course they made themselves unavailable and tried to word the email as if they already received your permission. “We hope a late checkout is ok with you” - Not - “do you mind if we check out late?” - But No! - We hope it is ok because we are going to do it anyway.
And the whole “sorry, we didn’t think it would be an issue” - really means “we don’t care if it is an issue for you.”
BTW- Did they happen to leave you a review?
People really have some balls. I couldn’t even enjoy my breakfast knowing the owner may just throw all my belongings outside in trash bags in a pile. It is so amazing to me that guests assume you will just deal with it. Maybe I am the only one who would toss all of their stuff outside, and maybe that is why I would fear it would done to me
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Carol,
Please keep us updated if the guests acknowledged your email stating check in is 4. And let us know what time they actually do arrive. Wow - all the manipulative guests behave the same way. They all state what time they will be arriving instead of politely asking permission.
Sandy,
It just never ends does it! That guy sitting around till 10 p.m. waiting to book a room is a weirdo! I guess he tries to convince hosts they will just be going straight to bed and will shower in the morning and leave - therefore he should get a steep discount? He is an example of the discount seeker who is a jerk and I would have to decline.
Your couple who arrived two hours early…ugh! And of course they didn’t message you with an ETA because they didn’t want to give you the opportunity to tell them no. I wonder why they are acting so weird about the upgrade? Is it because they know the reason they didn’t accept the upgrade is because they would then be forced to disclose they were planning to arrive early?
Oh yes! Or like the ones I had yesterday, pretend that they are abandoned with luggage on foot in a foreign city and no ability to speak the language by saying ‘we’ll be here early, but I guess we’ll just hang around town’. Lol. The other option, if they didn’t want to enjoy the hikes, kayaking, cafes/ restaurants, historic attractions etc, would be to… Not get here early. It’s only a short drive after all.
Yes, Carol, I hope to hear it turns out ok.
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Cabinhost – they left me a stellar review! Almost gushing over how great my place is and what a wonderful host I am. Go figure!
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Sandy we rent out all 4 rooms 3 are in the house and one is a garden room (converted back garden shed )
we are almost only summer rentals so we need to make hay while the sun shines …only one of the room is ensuite and I clearly state in my listings that its a shared bathroom also the garden room has no bathroom so they have to come in to the house for a wee … there is an outdoor shower behind the garden room so that eases up the sharing just a bit …we have had guests using the outdoor shower even in the pouring rain … but I have to add im mostly in this for the money I know it sounds terrible but its the truth … im looking forward to the winter when I can hole up and leave everything out hahaha …