Tune in for a message to our hosts from CEO Brian Chesky at 3 p.m. PT March 30.

[Airbnb]

The coronavirus (COVID-19) has posed unprecedented challenges for the world, including our community of hosts and guests. This is a once-in-a-generation crisis, and we know hosts like you are feeling the biggest impact—so many of you rely on income from your Airbnb properties, and you’re facing a lot of uncertainty right now. 

Over the past three weeks, we’ve hosted more than 50 online listening sessions with hosts from around the world to connect and hear your feedback. As a follow-up, CEO Brian Chesky will be talking to you from his home in San Francisco. He’ll be answering some of the questions you’ve asked about our extenuating circumstances policy, how to host during COVID-19, and more.

Bookmark this page to watch his talk live at 3:00 p.m PT Monday, March 30. Can’t make it at that time? We’ll share a recording with you after the event. 

For more answers to your questions about hosting during this challenging time, please visit Airbnb.com/COVID—we’ll keep updating it with trends, tips, and information on everything we're doing to support our community.

Thank you once again for being a host. We hope you and your loved ones are staying safe and healthy.

[Will198]

@Airbnb would I qualify for the grant program if we have 3 listings at the same address + a separate listing at a different address.  We rent our two separate rooms in the same house but they can either be booked separately or as a one combined listing (which is actually a plus listing). Its really just 2 places we use for Airbnb but one of which is our primary residence the other is our secondary residence but I'm worried we don't qualify despite the thousands of dollars we lost and our multi-year super- and plushost status. 

[Juan63]

I truly appreciated the message. It felt sincere. But for me, it was unsatisfactory. I wanted a glimpse of the roadmap to the future so I can plan accordingly. How long is COVID-19 an excuse for getting a full refund? My understanding maybe wrong, so please correct me if so. 25% of what I would have received due to a cancelation is chump change. So if I had a reservation for $100, it's canceled, I'd only get $12? I also wouldn't get grants because I do not live in the home that was most affected.

[Yiwei3]

@Juan63 I agree with you on using it as an excuse.  I can understand extending through April, but through end of May is too far out.  

[Sarah977]

@Juan63  I agree. Did seem sincere, but unsatisfactory. For instance, he apologized for not bringing hosts into the loop before they instituted the COVID policy, but they have never brought hosts into the loop on any of their decision-making. So, apologies are cheap, but is there going to be anything learned from this? Are they going to let hosts know in the future if they are considering  policy changes and solicit feedback that they actually heed? Are they going to notify us of changes to the platform, i.e we go to our hosting pages one day to find the format has all changed and we have to waste time trying to figure out where they've moved something to. Are they going to operate with consideration for hosts going forward, and stop being so guest-centric, or is this appreciation for hosts going to evaporate once they've dealt with the COVID mess?

If there isn't going to be anything learned from all this, and changes made in the general way the company deals with hosts, then this was all just another stop-gap PR stunt, from which individual hosts are going to see very little in the way of support. $250 million sounds like a lot, but there have been hosts here saying they lost tens of thousands in cancelled booking in one month alone.

[Mark116]

Its not bad, much better if they had done that from the outset.

It won't help us because our cancellation policy was flexible and also because airbnb had already seriously crashed our business by putting the listing so far down in the results, despite many quarters of being a superhost, so we already had about 70% fewer reservations than in any previous year.  Oh well, live and learn.  

[Yiwei3]

I looked into the Superhost Relief Fund, and it seems that it won't really apply for anyone with more than 2 listings:

The Superhost Relief Fund supports Superhosts and Airbnb Experience hosts struggling to make ends meet due to the decline in travel caused by COVID-19. This specific fund supports hosts from every country and region except mainland China, where hosts already have a dedicated assistance program.

To qualify, hosts who offer a place to stay must:

• Only share their primary or secondary residence—no more than 2 active listings
• Show a reliance on Airbnb as a vital source of income
• Have a verified identity
• Have been a Superhost for 1+ years
• Have lost a significant percentage of their earnings due to COVID-19

[Yiwei3]

Also, you can't apply to the Superhost Fund.  

"A specialized team at Airbnb will invite hosts most in need to apply. This same team will evaluate applications on a weekly basis and get in touch with hosts whose applications have been approved."

[Huma0]

@Yiwei3 

I would qualify under these conditions, EXCEPT, I have three private rooms listed in my primary residence. So, does that somehow make me some big shot property developer? No. Doesn't seem fair to me. They are just rooms in my own home. I don't own other properties.

[Morteza9]

We should get at least 50% of our normal average monthly earnings until the situation gets back to normal (which should not be more than 2 months). Airbnb is collecting 18% (15% charged to guests and 3% hosts) of our earnings. This means that last year, it collected 12 * 18% of our normal average monthly earnings which is 216% of our normal average monthly earnings. So, Airbnb sufficiently has the capacity to help us in this situation. If it pays us just 50% of our normal monthly income (which we are losing right now because of this situation), and if it pays for two months, it is still in profit for 116% of our average monthly income which is huge for taking no risk!!! Brian, you should be a true partner and take the loss, too! You have been a partner just in gain so far...

[Morteza9]

Shoutout to CEO Brian to start a charity for the hosts... What a shame! Please keep that charity money to yourself, Brian! Don't you have dignity, man?!!!

[Fred13]

I applaud Brian Chesky for ~trying~ to come up with some helpful solution towards hosts. It may be a lot more than all the other businesses in the land will ever get that will be totally wiped out because of this unexpected event.. Personally, I am rolling all my Airbnb reservations into the future in the believe this will be most helpful for all, the guest & Airbnb. I consider it a small price to pay for the excellent income Airbnb has provided me for the last 6 years, of which I am grateful. 

I wish the best for you all.

[Vacation-Rental-Connect0]

A $1729.32 payout has disappeared from my transaction history for a guest who has checked in 3 days ago. The reservation wasn’t canceled, it’s active. Is it part of the new policy change? Now guests get a full refund even if they stay at the property?

[Michael3494]

You need to contact airbnb support as that is not correct if they have checked in and not cancelled you should get the payout

[Huma0]

@Michael3494 

@Vacation-Rental-Connect0SHOULD get the payout. Doesn't mean he/she will.

I have been chasing two payouts for guests that checked in and were refunded for more than two weeks now. Airbnb CS are giving me the complete run around. They are trying to use the COVID-19 policy as an excuse for refunding the guests, even though they do not qualify either under the new policy or the previous versions. The guests did not apply for extenuating circumstances, nor ask for full refunds.

Still, for one of these cases, I am just being passed around from case manager to case manager and none of them actually deal with it. For the other case, they are simply ignoring any questions about it, as if it doesn't even exist...I have been tearing my hair out for 2.5 weeks.

[Michael3494]

Im so sorry about that and it is totally out of order hope you get sorted soon