transferring an airbnb to a new owner

[Michelle1839]

Hi there, 

Does anyone know how I can transfer my 5* property to a new owner who wants to retain the reviews and status?

[Joan2709 · Accepted solution]

@Michelle1839 

Airbnb does not allow transfer of ownership under their Terms of Service (section 16). All reviews stay with the original owner's profile.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2908

16. Member Accounts

You may not transfer your account to someone else. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality and security of your account credentials and may not disclose your credentials to any third party. 

Additionally, Airbnb has been automatically suspending the New Owner's listing as a duplicate under their Circumvention Policy, even if the previous listing had good ratings and no issues:

Circumvention Policy

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/3566

Some buyers have eventually been able to get the new listing reactivated after a suspension, but it was very difficult and required providing multiple documents numerous times and an extended delay.

I suggest you make sure any potential buyer is aware of the above prior to closing if you are marketing the property as potential for short term rental income. This is to avoid any potential liability or suggestion of fraud the buyer could bring against you as the seller. I suggest you speak with a real estate attorney and your realtor about these issues before moving forward. The buyer could say you knew (or should have known) that your ownership of an Airbnb listing cannot be transferred and also that Airbnb doesn't allow duplicate listings and has been suspending the new listing, even if the new owner has no relationship with the previous owner (seller). Of course the buyer should be doing their own due diligence, but these days it's best to cover all your bases before closing instead of dealing with fallout after the fact.

[Helen3]

It would be highly unfair on guests to transfer your listing to a new owner as they might not host in the same way that you do and therefore there is likely to be a mismatch in expectation between the host and guest.

presumably you've paused your listing so you don't accept booking you can't honour .

the new owner should set up their own listing blocking out dates that you already have bookings for.

[Brandon1156]

Wouldn't this create a double listing?

[Joan2709]

@Brandon1156 

Exactly....see the above about recent issues with Airbnb suspending legit new listings if they were previously operated on Airbnb by a different owner.