HI @Chris-and-Rochelle0
I'm also in Australia, also with a fairly large house ( not as large as yours, nor as upmarket).
Here are a some strategies I employ which i find useful,
1. I charge a substantial security deposit. ( airbnb DON'T hold this, and all up it's pretty toothless, but in the case of houses I think airbnb do actually go to the trouble to ensure there are at least sufficient funds on the guests credit card to cover the security deposit) I don't know if it helps ALL that much, but it certainly doesn't hurt. At best I think it helps to discourage the wrong sort of guest
2. I have IB, so I have a pre welcome message. In that message I say, amongst others things - have you REALLY read my house rules? What's the code word? not foolproof but it means guests usually have at least a bit of a glance at my rules, and often genuninely read them through
3 I no longer charge a cleaning fee ( at least not in the cleaning fee section) I have a 2 night minimum so I halve what I would charge for cleaning and add it to the nightly rate. I offer a discount which equals the extra charge for stays 3 days or more so the extra amount added is negated for stays more than 2 nights. I then point out in my check out proceedures that I don' t charge a cleaning fee, therefore I expect guests to be neat and tidy and to....... and I list what I expect ( basic stuff, wipe counters, clean crockery and utensils, take out the garbage)
4.
we've recenlty bought a BBQ and so far not one guest has cleaned it despite being great guests in every other area. I have a large note on the grill of the BBQ telling guests they're welcome to use it, so long as they clean it. No joy. My husband keeps telling me people won't clean BBQ's because they dont' think they NEED to be cleaned. I'll give it one or two more goes, then if still not cleaned, I'll either remove it as an option OR I'll make it an optional extra and say I want $50 up front which I'll return if it's kept clean. ( haven't thought about it deeply, most likely I"ll just remove the option)
5 If I get a booking for a large group I inform the booker that I must have all the names of the group added to the "who's coming" section OR I need to sight their ID at check in ( this is actually a requirement of my insurer). At the same time I say it's the bookers responsibility to make sure ALL their party are aware of the house rules
6. I talk about the review process in the checkout procedures - I begin by saying i ALWAYS leave a truthful individualised reivew for my guests - almost always 5 stars unless there is a problem and I explain how critical this is for them to be able to easily book in the future ( a lot of guests don't "get" that bit - they think they have all the power, or they just don't think at all)
None of those things is foolproof, but collectively it all helps. I still get messes - the BBQ is always filthy with grease, but on the whole nothing too dire ( fingers crossed)
Hope this helps
Regards
