Introducing Catherine Powell, our new Global Head of Hosting

[Airbnb]

At Airbnb, we started out with a close working relationship between our employees and hosts. Lots of our best ideas came directly from you, and we’re returning to that type of collaborative partnership that can help make each other better. 

Today, we’re excited to share a video featuring our new Global Head of Hosting Catherine Powell, who outlines her plan to rebuild our business around hosts like you. Her main focus: more transparency. 

Once you’ve watched the video, we’d really love to hear from you. Please let us know what you’d like us to cover in future Host Updates with Catherine. 

Thank you. 

[Carol-And-Victor0]

Looking forward to more messages Catherine!  Thank you. 

Yucaipa's Cottage on a Hill...

Carol and Victor

[Yocencia0]

?Consolidating teams may save money but there are different types of hosts.   Most support now is confused often about airbnb own policies, so it would be more effective if there were support teams based on the type of service.   

Also an effort to streamline support such that people can more easily contact support and get results more quickly and accurately. 

[Peter607]

Airbnb’s Global Head of Hosting Catherine Powel failed to mention 2 problems that significantly affect the quality of hosting and protection of the ‘brand”. Airbnb listings in many areas are dominated by corporate hosts masquerading as individual home owners or apartment leaseholders. Often these are managers shield guests from contact with, and true hosting from the owner. This provides an inferior product and hosting experience. Additionally and more damaging, these corporate players have seriously threatened the trust hosts have developed with their local communities especially at the regulatory level. Hosting is becoming more regulated and more difficult because of these players. I realize much of Airbnb’s recent growth and profits come from these players but they stand in the way of Airbnb and its hosts returning to the origins and basics of Airbnb. Because of them Airbnb is a different company and it’s future becomes more uncertain. Added to this, many of these corporate “homes” become party houses and bad actors in our community. I believe hosting should be limited to 1, 2 or 3 homes with proof of ownership or lease holding. That way the Airbnb community can flourish, guest satisfaction grows and regulatory burdens lessen and we retain quality hosts that are “fed up”.  Catherine Powel - I wish you well in your new role and expect to hear from you in future talks how you will address these problems.

[Christine615]

@Peter607  You nailed it. As soon as Kansas City legalized Short Term Rentals out of state investors, some using stock photos for the "pretend" hosts, flooded our market. Worse, the word is getting out that they're charging rock bottom rates because they are using the depreciation losses to offset ordinary income. Most have not registered and yet Airbnb allows them to exist on the platform.

At the deadline to register KC estimated there were over 1,000 properties of which only 250 bothered to register. But Airbnb hasn't asked any of them for proof of registration after asking existing legitimate owners to help them lobby for the law.
 
It is killing the individual users who have been with Airbnb from the start.

[Peter607]

@Christine615 I couldn’t agree with you more. Airbnb is going in 2 directions at once and something is got to give. They are catering to “pretend” hosts - moneyed interests, large owners, corporate players and management companies, while attempting to hang on to individual hosts that built their reputation and “brand”. Something has got to give...and before the IPO public stock offering. IPO buyers need to be clued into the risks ahead and the growing divisions in the ranks of the hosts. And the regulatory risks with the Airbnb model breaking down. I hope Catherine Powel can save it. She’s got a tough job in these trying times.

[Austin30]

Excellent post!  I agree fully.  I think you (eloquently) explained one of the biggest new problems with airbnb.  I get the financial draw as you highlighted, but it feels like a Trojan Horse that is destroying the brand and experience.  I think your suggestion is very fair: limiting it to a few houses and/or perhaps requiring some sort of local connection/residence in the area when the properties are.  Unfortunately, the corporate mass-managed properties are really the heart of 90% of all airbnb bad will, experiences, and the main impetus behind all the legal challenges to airbnb popping up around the world.  PS: I grew up in Wisconsin, mainly in Appleton and Caledonia.  I have many fond memories of my time in Madison.  Beautiful place.  Best wishes. 

[Samantha-and-Bruce0]

Happy to hear from Catherine, and welcome to her! I do hope in 6 months time she has been able to get up to speed with experienced hosts and also has been a guest through Airbnb. I agree with many Superhosts here, going back and reviewing the comments people have already made would be a great place to start. I hope that Airbnb will reinstate the dedicated Superhost line. As a Superhost (since inception) from Madison, Wisconsin, I would be glad to be part of the process. 

[Catherine-Powell]

Hi @Samantha-and-Bruce0 , thank you for your welcome - and yes, I am wading through the comments, and the anger, to ensure I  have a full understanding of all the topical issues. 

Best wishes, Catherine

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Catherine-Powell If you tag @Samantha-and-Bruce0 there is more chance they will see your positive reply.

[Catherine-Powell]

@Mike-And-Jane0 

thank you - I had missed i hadn't!

[Samantha-and-Bruce0]

Thank you Catherine. If I can help, I'd be glad to. 

[Samantha-and-Bruce0]

Just reading through the comments here, it seems like there are lots of pretty loyal hosts. And boy, are they angry! Once Airbnb wades through all of these comments, I hope they will be able to distill them down to actionable steps to attend to hosts, Superhosts, especially. In my opinion the Airbnb platform is amazing and we'd not be able to host as easily without Airbnb. But Airbnb can listen to the fundamental issues of these hosts and Superhosts and address them first without doing anything else new or fancy. Thanks all! 

[Rosa210]

I am glad that Airbnb finally realizes how important hosts are. A couple of months ago, I had a guest who turned out to have hacked an Airbnb account and was impersonating as that person to check into my listing. Airbnb found out, I suppose because the real account owner reported this, and managed to cancel the booking. However, Airbnb forgot one very important thing: NOTIFY THE HOST. I had this person stay in my listing for over two weeks. I reached out to the customer service representative to convey my huge disappointment with their lack of care for my security. They were very casual as if the fact that they have covered their problem is enough. I mentioned several times that this is a huge security breach that threatened, not just my property, but also my neighbors and my house cleaner. None of these were of their concern.

To make matters worst, they were nitpicking on how much they would pay for damages caused by their lack of attention. There is no price for safety and security, so Airbnb should be grateful of the fact that I did not even care to quantify those.

I hope with Catherine's supervision in this new department, Airbnb can treat their hosts as business partners and not just a means to make a profit from guests. 

[Donna997]

@Catherinepowell
There is with these videos always all talk and no real action to help hosts. Who are, as someone reminded us, the bread and butter of this business. The reason it exists. We are their hotel. Offered up from our labour and expense. Now after any call I make for help with an Issue... Nothing gets resolved. Here's a Big one. And check your booking settings. Airbnb is taking 2% of any length of stay booking. I have tried to talk to them and no help. So if you offer 10% for one week. The guest gets 8% off. And up to one month 40% off. My guests get 38% off. Again where's the 2% going. I think this may be happening and no one is aware... so many issues to deal with. So close to not using Airbnb. It used to be great.

[Johnathan20]

As a host that's earning for Airbnb over $12,000 per year in booking fees, I would expect to be listened to and treated with respect.  So far the opposite has happened.  The host experience on Airbnb is miserable and risky. About the only thing I'm happy with is leads and bookings generated. If it weren't for that, I'd quickly ditch the platform.    Issues I have:  

1. Waiting 45-60 minutes on the phone for host customer service. 
2. Next to impossible to find phone number for host customer service. 
3. The $250 Million Covid payment was a nice gesture, but one of the fine-print terms said cancellations needed to be 'guest initiated'.  Many of my guests reached out and asked me to cancel their booking for them, which I did, expecting to be compensated by Airbnb, but that didn't count as guest-initiated, so I lost thousands of dollars I otherwise would have been eligible for. No recourse to reclaim this - I already called and asked.  I'm convinced that the fine print obscurity of this was a deliberate and intentional act by Airbnb to try to avoid a large percent of these claims. 
4. Have a real money damage deposit system that is easier for hosts to tap into. It's an arduous and lengthy process first asking for money directly from the guest (how often do you think that works?), and then having to escalate the issue, and all the while there is no damage deposit actually being held!  If the guest changes their card number, even if the 'dispute' is ruled in host's favor, there's no recourse to the host!  

From listening to this video, it's more meaningless corporate talk and buzzwords and promises.