Once my guests had their passports stolen from the flat. It was a long time ago and there is CCTV etc. now, but I think they could have made a lot of problems for me if they had wanted to. I had stupidly left spare keys in the mailbox, which got stolen (I only realised that several days later). In the end I just let them stay for free for a few days while they got new ones done, but in 14 years I guess that’s the worst thing that’s happened.
@konacoconutz, you guys should do a house swap - you can get your snow and @brook2adks can get her sunshine!!
Noise. My guests are in the ‘lower level of my home’ which is a euphemism for basement - albeit, a nice one. I have three kids and all hardwood floors. I want my guests to be able to rest and enjoy their vacation. It makes me very anxious - because, personally, I hate noise. But I’ve had times when my house was very loud and my guests seem unfazed. Still, it worries me somewhat constantly. We change our schedule around it - for example, making additional effort to get the kitchen cleaned before they come home from touring, not running the washing machine while they are home, etc.
Odd, maybe, but that’s me.
Oh, and, YIIIIIIKES!!! Guests who barely speak English calling me - on a cell phone - for directions. I HATE THAT!!! At that point I haven’t had time to tune my ear to their heavy heavy accent and don’t have any visual cues to help me understand what they are saying.
Me? A big hurricane.
We have not had a hurricane in 10 years so yes that is a worry of mine.
Ooooo be careful saying that out loud!
Last year with El Niño we had 17 named storms and hurricanes approach Hawaii!
I am paranoid of that too…but with your price point, DC you should relax a little. We also tip toe and not run things up here, low tv etc… Only to have guests mention they heard my hair dryer at 6am (this thing called work)… Can’t win for losing!
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I have had guest light my LED candles - thinking they were real
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Seriously? What is wrong with people! Chuckling BC it’s funny!
This is our situation as well - living above the guests - plus we have dogs and hardwood floors. I make them wear baby socks (heheh) and the humans wear fleece slippers. Most of the guests staying here are tourists so they’re up relatively early and out most of the day, which is our only saving grace. I don’t think I could handle tiptoeing around all day and night! And my dogs (in their socks) would no longer be my best friends ;).
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My Maltese has sweet little feet with tiny nails…but you can still hear her walking downstairs! I am not going to put sox on this little dog so guests don’t have to hear a small dog walking. Some boundaries I will not cross. 
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I equally shared your concern about theft. When you go through so much work in creating a beautifully decorated space for guests, it is hard to know if they walk away with some of the little detail items I didn’t always check up on. This paranoia actually got the better of me a little bit ago and I took to the web to try and find a practical solution. In a roundabout way, I discovered that a property manager may be the best option and I haven’t regretted the decision yet. They really do have a more professional way of dealing with possible theft and recommended certain things I could do to avoid potential theft issues. In a way, they take the responsibility off of you as the owner to check out the place after every guest stays because they handle it for you and send you updates. I haven’t worried or even been to my rental property in months now because they constantly update me with pictures and reports. There are many property management companies that can help you with this I believe. I went with Pillow because they seemed the most tech-savvy and had better perks (like an awesome cleaning service system) than others in my area. Just do your research if you do decide to use a property manager. I have loved living stress free about my properties and wouldn’t dream of going back to self-managing.
It’s nice knowing someone else can relate to my situation!!
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This sounds like a pitch trying to infiltrate the general forum in the guise of a homeowner comment. please take it to the vendor section where it belongs.
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Don’t host if you find it stressful. Life’s too short.
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Costco sell the flameless warm light candles in a pack of 6 candles for $12. They are beautiful, I use as low light decoration in a console in the living room and in one of the air bedrooms. A steal!
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Fire is by far my #1 concern. Not only burning down the house but also that of someone starting a wildfire with their irresponsibly discarded cigarette.
We live in wildfire country and it would take about 2 seconds for a tiny fire to get out of control. People visiting from the city just don’t get it as it’s not something they normally have to think about.
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Yes, put me down for fire too. My personal hosting nightmare is of a guest who comes home drunk, and decides it would be a good idea to cook something, and sets fire to the place. That’s part of the reason I don’t allow kitchen usage.
Incidentally, the question in the title and the body are different. The title says “What’s your #1 Concern”, but the body says “What are your main concerns”.
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Fire is a definite concern.
We had a visitor last week who was unfamiliar with our particular type of grill, and made flames that went at least 6 feet into the sky. Unfortunately, he did not move the grill away from the deck before lighting it. Fortunately, that giant flame was short-lived and did not set the deck ablaze.
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Felix,
Was it a gas grill that he lit with a flame?