Tired of being held hostage by guests and their reviews

[Maia29]

I try my best to go above and beyond for my Airbnb guests. I live in my unit (upstairs). I allow dogs and children for my 2-bedroom full apartment with washer and dryer. All I get is grief from 60% of my Airbnb guests. 

I know we as hosts have all talked about reviews many, many times; however, I'm entirely BURNT OUT about the review system.

My place was never meant to be a 5-star place. It's an economical jump-off near the only airport in Alaska and a place to stay for Alaskans that have medical appointments (we are located near all major hospitals).

Many guest are under the impression that 4-star reviews are good (80%). No, a 4-star review is not good.

I now have a "warning" on my app, "review basic requirements-your listing could be at risk". I have called CS NUMEROUS TIMES, and no one can determine why.

I know exactly why I have this notice-because I have had (4) 4-star ratings in the last year. I have NO control over these 4-star ratings. Most guest erroneously believe 4-stars is 80%. The one thing in common with the 4 guests that left 4-star reviews, is that I allowed them to have their dog in the unit.

I have also found that Airbnb guests are the ones that have learned to play the system against hosts in order to stay for free. With other sites, I don't have those issues.

So over it.

[Helen744]

Helen@744 maybe you should move into that niche a little more by nixing the dogs and advertising nearby hospital stay or convenient airport stay . Private host or something that lets people know that you are Airbnb and private not a hotel to be trashed . I have the same prob with the four stars but honestly the stars really can get you down . If we did not have them everyone would be happier. Guests now expect so many more options . i think partly because there has not been so much travel . They no longer have to compete and so feel some un booked people are of lesser value. Prices should go up soon I hope as less accomodation becomes available with more people travelling then and only then when people are forced into hotel rooms will a little more respect come back for both homeshare and entire home stay hosts

[Gillian166]

well said Helen, although i'm not holding out much hope for the "little more respect".  I'm hoping the review system gets a tweak in the future because being dinged for a 4* review is incredibly unfair.

[Alexandra199]

I am really feeling your pain here. I totally understand how guest reviews have a real effect on you if you take your hosting seriously. I really do feel that recently guests have been far more problematic than before the pandemic. They seem to want the earth for nothing.

I personally would ditch your agreement to take dogs, I know lots will disagree but I feel its impossible to provide a spotlessly clean place that has had dogs in it. If i was going to stay with you for a hospital appointment cleanliness would be top of my list. Also, it might be worth looking at your pricing. I had a quick look at your place and you have the nightly rate, a cleaning fee, a booking fee and a local tax fee added together to make up the full cost. If the final amount is comparable to other properties nearby then great, if not then you might think about removing the cleaning fee and incorporating some of that in to your room rate? 

The reason for saying this, is i my experience price is the most important factor in a guests view of their stay. If they had a nice stay and they don't feel they paid over the odds they are far more likely to leave you 5 stars. I also noticed that your weekend rate is the same as your weekday rate, maybe your local market led you to do this but usually upping your weekend rate and reducing your weekday rate might help balance things a bit. 

Having said all of this you have over 250 reviews and and average 4.77 star rating. I really don't think that is too bad at all. Give yourself a pat on the back and remember the vast majority of your reviews have been excellent.

[Maia29]

@Alexandra199  Thank you for your detailed response. 

I do a lot of price comparisons for similar properties in my area and my place is priced very competitively.

I used to not have a cleaning fee when I first started, but after a year, I implemented one. Every single Airbnb in my hometown has a cleaning fee. Many of these hosts are dishonest; for instance, they will list their nightly rate as $29 (to bump their listing to the top) and then charge a $150 cleaning fee!

As for the booking and local tax fee, I have no control over that.

The constant threats of delisting from Airbnb are just really getting to me this month.

[Sarah977]

@Maia29  You are obviously an experienced host with hundreds of good reviews.

What I see, though, in your listing description is that you don't have any wording which speaks to the type of guests you would want. We can't and shouldn't try to be all things to all people. It's a good idea to identify your target market and mention that in the first part of your description. "This listing is perfect for those who..."

I did that from the beginning and I have consistently gotten guests who are a good fit and leave great reviews.

And if it's the dog people who are the problematic ones, as others suggested, stop accepting pets.

[Gillian166]

haha, we've said this before, it's "small dog people" who are often more the problem. 😆 people who take a dog with them to an apartment, yikes!! I think @Maia29  is very brave to allow that. We have a farm listing so we get a lot of big dog people and it's really quite wonderful to watch them run around and enjoy the space, and the guests also love seeing their dog so happy. however, i only allow dogs in one of our listings, the other 2 spaces I have listed on the same property are a big NO to animals. 

[Amanda660]

@Maia29 @your guests seem super happy and your reviews are great.

Is there a particular type of guest/demographic that are marking you lower?   Shorter stays, longer stays, business guests, with pets, without pets, etc?

We opened up our listing to pooches a couple of years ago and it certainly increased our client base and they love being able to take their pup with them.  

[Maia29]

@Amanda660  Yes, I know exactly the demographic that keep marking me lower. It's ALWAYS fellow Alaskans and NEVER people from out-of-state.

It's to the point that I don't want to review guests anymore because they always feel the absolute need to say something/anything negative in a review.

One lady said, "you live in a crowded neighborhood." Ridiculous-I live in a single family home neighborhood and it is not crowded. Another guest complained in her review that the garbage service was too loud-how do I have control over that? Even if I don't sign up for trash service, they are still going to come on my street to service my neighbors. It's ridiculous.

I even gave one guest a complete refund, minus the Airbnb fees and she stated in her review that I didn't give her a refund at all. That review still stands to this day, even though it is a blatant lie.

[Sarah977]

@Maia29  "It's to the point that I don't want to review guests anymore because they always feel the absolute need to say something/anything negative in a review."

I don't understand. What does you leaving a review have to do with the review they leave? How would not reviewing them change that? You mean that you leave them a nice review, then find they leave aa complaining one, so wished you hadn't bothered to leave them a nice review? 

And I don't know where these complaining reviews are- I read through several pages of your reviews, and they all seem totally positive. Are you confusing what they say to you in private with the written reviews?

[Maia29]

@Sarah977  I suppose those negative comments are a couple years back, buried under other reviews. Maybe I shouldn't let it get to me as much as it does.

Had a really bad experience this last weekend. However, the guest after that one, was so sweet and kind, it almost made up for the negative experience. 

If I leave a guest a review, then that prompts them to leave me one as well. I used to review everyone right away, but now I don't unless I know for a fact they will be at least nice in their review.

[Sarah977]

@Maia29  You're right, you shouldn't let it get to you. Try to put it in perspective. You have 255 reviews, and you've probably had more guests than that, who didn't bother to leave a review.

That's a lot of strangers to have dealt with over the years for a hands-on host. The law of averages says there's going to be a few of them who are objectionable in some way or less than appreciative, or the types who just have to find something to complain about.

What it sounds like to me is that you are somewhat burnt out, so your patience for guest annoyances is wearing thin. It's important to know when you need a break. Unless you are desperate for the income, consider blocking a few months in a row and give yourself a break, doing nice things for yourself and relaxing a bit.

And while there are those who thrive on hosting and have been doing it for a long, long time, it's not necessarily an occupation that suits everyone ongoingly. Sometimes we have to decide that a chapter of our lives has run its course and it's time to move on to new pursuits and ways of earning money.

[Maia29]

@Sarah977  Thanks for your input. That's a good way to look at it. 

I don't want to quit; I enjoy doing this most of the time. Also, the extra income has helped me tremendously with home repairs. I would be so screwed if I didn't have this extra income.

[Sarah977]

@Maia29  Then maybe you just need to block off a week here and there- give yourself a little break every once in awhile, get your mojo back after a string of guests. 🙂

[Emilia42]

@Maia29 Just a thought: I no longer review guests unless they review me first. If the guest feels passionately enough to write me a review they will do so without being prompted by the mysterious review reveal. If not, then oh well. (I do review guests I need to warn other hosts about and usually do so at the last minute, but that doesn't happen often.)