I just got an inquiry from a man who would like a monthly rental for either July and August or just July. I already have a few booking for times in there (5, to be exact) and he says he’ll just stay with family here. He says his “footprint” will be very light - not here much, will do laundry at family home, etc. I charge $99 for two rooms upstairs with a full bath. He sounds like a good guy, I just have no idea what to charge. Business has been brisk here since MD opened up a bit. So, I’d like to do it - any idea what the charge should be? I have a friend nearby who rents her small house for $1400/month if that’s any help. Thank you!
Normally, you’re giving a monthly discount because your work load is lower and your occupancy rate is higher. But, the current STR climate isn’t normal, and what you describe isn’t a monthly rental because you’ve got other shorter reservations wedged into the middle.
I find the split reservation a bit unusual. Why would this be acceptable? Are few listings available? Is your price already very low? Is your location exceptionally convenient for this guest? Is he just fishing for a really big discount? Is he trying to scam you in some way?
Here’s an example of a scam: Airbnb’s system doesn’t support this type of reservation directly, so it would have to be broken up into shorter reservations. The guest books 3 reservations: 5 days, 15 days, and 10 days, with gaps in between. The 3 reservations add up to 30 days and you offered a big discount. He shows up for the first reservation, but at some point (e.g. right after checkout, but it could be any time), he cancels the other two. If you have flexible or moderate cancellation policy, he can get a full refund including Airbnb’s fees for the two reservations he cancelled, and he got a 5-day reservation at a big discount, which is all he wanted in the first place.
Anyway, make sure you take the current cleaning recommendations, your health, your financial situation, the guest’s reviews, and the unusual reservation into consideration.
I personally would not discount more than is justified by the individual reservation length (e.g. a weekly discount if the reservation is 7+ days)
I assume the price of your friend’s rental is based in it being unfurnished and with a minimum 12-month lease, otherwise, I don’t know why anybody would bother inquiring about a place that’s over twice the price ($99/day is $2970/month) for a shared space.
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I think the location is perfect for him. But I’m thinking it sounds very complicated to weave through the other guests. I already have people in September also, but maybe if he wants October that would work. And I hadn’t thought of the possible scam problem, although I doubt if that’s what he’s doing. But I’m still a newbie at this, so maybe I haven’t “seen enough” to worry. But thanks for the reply. I think I may pass, as business is very good at the moment and probably will be through August. And what would he do with his stuff when the other guests come?
What is also complicated is the Squatter tenancy risks you may face for rentals that extend beyond 28 days. Search this forum for topics on this before you commit to any month+ guest.
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Anytime something unusual comes up, you should think about a possible scam. What I describe is a variation on a known guest scam where the guest only wants one or two nights, but books a longer reservation to get a good price, then conveniently finds an issue with the listing a day or two after check-in and uses it as an excuse to cancel the rest of the stay with a refund for unused days.
Here’s an interesting read.
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I don’t see how this request is unssual. Does he know about your other bookings? He probably just looking for a month stay. I host people who need longer stays for past 4 years.
I like it much better than in and out few times a week . In my case I get same daily price whether I do it by day or month. No difference
There are so many situations when a person needs a longer temporary accomodations and can’t have yearly lease like work project, looking for appartment, vacationer, in my case " snow birds", international student, frequently relocated for work…
Yes, he could see the other bookings. We worked it out - I just couldn’t figure out how to book him for a month when I already had people booked. So he just had to send me separate requests and then I offered him a special price each time so he wasn’t paying nightly price for a month stay. I think it will be a nice break for me from the short-termers. Thanks for the response.
Glad it worked out! One thing is to be cautious and protect ourselves, another be paranoic about every stay over 28 days.
An update on this and my guest who wanted to stay for a month. I already had two bookings on weekends, so I said it’s not available all month. He was willing to stay elsewhere on those weekends. He had to make three different requests and we negotiated a lower price. He’s been here a while and is without a doubt the best, neatest, most considerate guest I’ve ever had. He even asked me if there were any floorboards that he should avoid because he wouldn’t want to disturb me (he gets up to run very early)! It’s a nice break from all the cleaning and the stress of people in and out. And financially it works out a bit more than last month, which was good but lots and lots of work.
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