@BenkaandKeith0
You sound similar to us.
After years of a successful relationship with Airbnb, only to be shafted by them in the past few years, we went back and listed on VRBO again last year.
Aside from the higher fees and hidden costs VRBO imposes, we've so far had a grand total of ONE booking from them. And we heavily discounted our VRBO listing to attract bookings, to establish a few reviews in the interest of future bookings. Then we found out about the hidden fees..., so we adjusted prices back up to compensate.
I attribute the lack of VRBO bookings largely to the fact that Airbnb, despite all its faults, will consistently book up our Villa long before VRBO has any chance. Airbnb simply has a commanding lead over all the others.
Having said that, we're no longer under any illusions that Airbnb, or VRBO or anyone else can or is willing to offer much useful host support. Such programs are expensive to operate, and generate zero revenue for the platform. And besides, what are hosts going to do about it? Leave the platform for another equally self-serving one?
The fact remains that no matter what platform, as a host, you bear the majority of the burden of the business. You do all the work, and are required to maintain high standards, and the costs of achieving that are all yours.
You bear the lion's share of risk, and mitigating that risk rests almost entirely with the host.
Guests have a pretty low bar to meet: basically, it's "don't do anything criminal", and that's pretty much all that's required of guests. The platform won't enforce much of anything against guests, but hosts can be punished for even minor offences, and sometimes even punished for guest offences. The risks to hosts are far higher.
So, you have to be your own police. And by far the best cure for that is prevention. Vet your guests before they book. Scare them away if they exhibit risky profiles or behaviours.
And don't expect them to agree to compensation for any damages they cause, or receive any compensation under the faux "host guarantee". If you fail to scare them away, then demand a real, hefty security deposit. That usually either scares them away, or gives them a good reason to acutely avoid trashing your offering. In fact, they usually go overboard cleaning it up. They want that deposit back.
We've accepted some very high risk groups, who were required to pay a security deposit, and they have consistently left the house in clean, orderly, and undamaged condition. All have received their deposit back, in full.
That never would have happened without a security deposit, because otherwise, there's no penalty.
