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My neighbor texted his daughter had hit 2 volleyballs into our STR backyard on Tuesday.
We had guests and it didn’t feel appropriate to ask them to go searching.
Plus, it’s a big yard and they had a 3 year old I already didn’t want out there.
I’m pretty strict about no bothering my guests outside of my scheduled communications unless it’s an emergency.
Would you have asked this favor if your guest?
I think it’s weird that the neighbor texted you at all. Most people I know, me included, would just have called over the fence the next time they saw the residents out in the yard, “Hey, sorry to bother you, but do you see a couple of volleyballs over there in the yard?”
Have people completely forgotten how to communicate face to face? Everything has to be texted? Is throwing a kid’s ball back over the fence now considered to be some major imposition?
But given that for some reason people don’t behave in what I consider to be normal ways, I don’t see anything wrong or annoying in messaging the guest,
“Sorry to bother you and you can ignore this if you want, but my neighbor told me his daughter accidentally threw 2 volleyballs over into the yard, so if you see them, maybe toss them back over the fence?”
Well, they’ve been very supportive of my ABB being next door so I think he didn’t feel it was ok to bother my guests, which I appreciate.
As long as the guest didn’t mind, I wouldn’t mind. After all, it is a neighborhood. I just wasn’t sure so I didn’t message the guest and returned the balls right when I arrived to clean. And it did take some searching.
When I’m there the girls just come to me. Shoot! I just realized I left the gate locked Friday. Oops.
If it was me? My guests are with me for under a week (usually). And although my aim is to make all guests into repeat business, my neighbours are likely to be with me for years.
I meet and greet 95% of my guests so I already have a nodding acquaintanceship with them. So, yes, I’d knock on the door and ask them if I could go and look for the volleyballs. I wouldn’t ask the guests to do do.
That’s a point. If we’d made any kind of connection I’d maybe have considered that.
But they were all business. Good guests after all but not warm.
That’s one reason why I always like to meet and greet. It can take quite a lot of careful scheduling but I remain convinced that it can save time and even trouble later on. 
It’s ironic to me that people consider surveillance devices all over the place to be normal and acceptable, but asking the neighbors to toss your kid’s ball back over the fence is seen as an invasion of privacy. 
Depends on the guests and why they are staying.
I meet and greet, so would already have an idea of the demeanour of those staying.
Workers, I would let them know the situation and ask if it was ok to duck in and find the balls, while they are out.
Holiday, possibly not as I wouldn’t want to disturb them
Send the guest this:
"I hope you guys are having a perfect stay so far!
I wanted to quickly let you know that our neighbors told me they accidentally let 2 volleyballs sneak into your yard. Those crazy kids. . . I’m so sorry about this!
If you happen to be enjoying the back yard and notice the volleyballs back there, feel free to toss them over the yard back at the neighbors and they’ll take care of it. If not, no big deal! Just wanted to make you aware!
And as always, let us know if you have any questions. We’re here to help"
I think there’s a 50/50 chance they get the ball back. And if not, you didn’t ask a favor (that they say no to) and you can still tell the neighbors that “you tried” with a clear conscience.
So sorry about what? A kid threw a ball over the fence, and would like it back, it’s not some major catastrophe.
And if a host sent me an over the top, grovelling message filled with exclamation points like that, I’d think they were nuts.
To sound like a broken record…I’ve had some of the most kind, loveliest guests.
Yes, I’ve asked guests for help several times but nothing massive.
Example 1. Guest told me they would be checking in after 8 pm.
At 2:30 Costco Instacart delivery of paper towels & toilet paper. My neighbor/friend was to bring those in the condo & quickly stow them at 4:00. It was before guest planned check in so ok.
Guest decides to check in at 3:00. I apologized because the delivery was in front of the door. I asked if guest would drag those out of the way & allow my friend in around 4:00.
Guest: “oh it’s not much. We will do it. Where does it go?” Me—Many thanks
Example 2:
Hurricane to land in 48 hours.
I called guest to talk about what to expect & refunds & maybe leaving early. Also talked about need to bring in patio furniture & I was trying to get someone arranged to do it. They graciously said they were happy to do it. Many many thanks.
I have been truly blessed with some kind guests.
I got a text from a new client wanting dog boarding. After some back and forth I agreed. All of the messages were over the top with !!!. So much so that I commented on it to a friend that was here as the messages were incoming. I speculated that they must be very young. I looked her up on the internet and she’s a therapist. LOL.
There’s a guy on a Mexico forum who uses an exclamation point for every sentence. Maybe his period key is broken 
This, mostly.
I advertise a peaceful, quiet stay. I didn’t know if I’d be interrupting a meal, family movie, etc. And most of all, I didn’t know how they’d feel about it.
So I erred on the side of caution. I did not ask. I told my neighbor if my guest didn’t toss it over that I would on Friday. No commits. We’re friends, and I’ve done them many solids, so I’m not worried about the relationship being damaged.
I suspect if the girls had heard someone back there they’d have yelled to them. Best I can tell, the guest didn’t hang out in back (no surveillance in rear yard so can’t be sure w/o obvious signs).
I was also concerned about it happening multiple times since it was a school holiday all week.
In the end, I had to hunt for the balls (not obviously present). They were in a place the guest would not normally wander and not a place I would want them to, so I’m extra glad I didn’t ask.
I’m cool with little things that are clearly finite, cannot wait & are easy/safe/predictable for the guest to do. I just felt I’d be opening a door/removing a boundary w/ my neighbor that I want to keep in place.
Maybe I’m wrong but there it is.
I think you need to re-read what was posted. Muddy isn’t the one urging the use of the word “sorry.”
I didn’t really get it, actually, but I don’t take offense that easily. I was just trying to say that apologizing like crazy, as if it’s some big privacy breach to mention the neighbor kids threw a ball over the wall, or ask the guests to throw it back if they get a chance, seems like blowing a normal, everyday, non-threatening event way out of proportion.
If I was so fretful about mentioning it to a guest, I wouldn’t message them about it at all- it’s not some emergency situation.
If I need to do something at / for the rental, I text the guest and find out if the timing is ok. Sometimes the umbrellas are wildly flapping and need to be tied for example. They might text me back and say they took care of it.
I think you were right to respect your guest’s privacy. If the children wanted their volley balls back, they could have rang the doorbell and asked to retrieve them.
They have a child so they should be understanding. I’d ask if they could throw them back or would like you to come retrieve them.
Exactly this !! Just let them know - and let them know they can toss it over if they want.