As a host in London, I’m hit with 45% tax bill on stays, £200+ cleaning per stay, high heating and energy bills and on top of that the uncertainty of having strangers in my home (most of which have been absolutely lovely so far, to add, but you don’t know that till the stay is over). And on top of that, the nightly rate others are charging in London is just getting lower and lower - way, way below the cost of a hotel stay - so now I get very few bookings anyway. I got someone today enquiring but asking for a 80% discount, given it was for a last minute stay (5 days notice - hardly that last minute)! Crazy request considering this was from someone who uses Airbnb a lot, so must have at least a vague idea of all the work that goes into getting a four storey family home converted into an Airbnb each time someone stays (storing personal belongings, getting the house covid-safe, cleaning etc, not to mention finding somewhere alternative to stay myself, often at a cost), plus the taxes homeowners get hit with. Just want to add, this is my only property (my primary and only home); I’m not a property business - I’m merely just using Airbnb for the original purpose it was created for, helping to pay my colossal London mortgage.
