@Linda108
Yes, exactly.
I only impose it on "no profile, no history" inquiries, who, after some dialogue, understand that they're in a high risk group who must explicitly agree to all house rules and penalties for violations, and agree to the deposit.
About half of these are scared away by this, or end up being advised to go elsewhere due to their odd or inconsistent responses. That's ok, I don't need that type of guest. And there's always another inquiry in the queue right behind them. It's airbnb's greatest strength.
But for those that pass, I'll preapprove their booking, and they book it. Then resolution center -> request money -> amount of deposit.
They pay it. If not, I'll ask them to cancel (this hasn't occurred yet, but could, so I'd have to cancel them if they refused, and suffer the consequences).
When they check in, they're reminded of the house rules, and what is expected in order to get their deposit back.
At checkout, we have the deposit on hand, in cash. And a printed receipt. If all is good, they get the cash, and they sign the receipt. And as an added bonus, they'll also receive a good review, which will help them the next time the want to book something on Airbnb.
Everybody wins. Everybody happy.
Naturally, we deal with "regular" guests in a simpler, more friendly, personal, and accommodating manner. Unfortunately, it seems they're the exception nowadays.