New to the Community Center? Introduce yourself here (Updated)

Lizzie
Former Community Manager
Former Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

New to the Community Center? Introduce yourself here (Updated)

Hello everyone,

 

A warm welcome to the Community Center. 

 

This discussion is for introducing yourself to your fellow Airbnb Community members, as well as welcoming and saying hello to newcomers in return. Thanks to all of you who have already introduced yourself and contributed in our previous thread, here.  

 

I'm Lizzie and I am the Community Manager here, along with my teammate @Quincy. I have been managing the Airbnb Community Center since it officially opened in November 2015. It is fantastic to speak with amazing community members here. 

 

To kickstart this topic, I would like to share a few things about myself:

 

  1. I love to travel, hot or cold it doesn't matter - I'm ready with my sun lotion or a raincoat! 
  2. I play several instruments, but my main one is the flute. I always enjoy a good conversation about music. 
  3. Lastly, over the past year I have become very interested in all things eco/sustainablilty related.

 

How about you? Any interesting facts or hobbies?

 

I'm looking forward to hearing from you. 

 

Lizzie


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Thank you for the last 7 years, find out more in my Personal Update.


Looking to contact our Support Team, for details...take a look at the Community Help Guides.

456 Replies 456
Michael5311
Level 2
Winnipeg, Canada

A big hello to the community and a special thanks to @Lizzie and @Quincy for managing it.

 

My diverse background is in tech and real state investment and management. I've rented and flipped high-quality properties over the last 15 years. Airbnb has created a platform that allows me to exhibit my love of creating spaces that people can experience through architecture and design.

 

Living in Canada and being born to black, immigrant parents, I have a very nuanced view of the world that I'm hoping I can bring to the community. I've travelled the world and have met so many people through Airbnb who have done the same. 

 

My hope is that these shared experiences inspire communities like this one to grow, with diverse voices and ideas that continue to make Airbnb the choice for a new generation of travellers.

 

_Michael

Michael Oduro
The Hinterlands Creative Suites Co.
Stephanie1751
Level 2
Bluewater, Canada

Hi, I am Stephanie and I am new to the community, although I have been a host since spring 2019. I enjoy hosting and meeting new people  as well as travelling ... which I am certainly missing now! I host a property  out  in the country near Bayfield Ontario Canada 

s

Hello. My partner and I are just getting set up again in Massachusetts just 7 miles from Boston. We started to host a few years ago but then things got in the way.

It would be very helpful to talk with other people in Massachusetts as there seems to be quite a bit of chaos going on about how to maneuver Airbnb, meaning how to register appropriately within the new short term rental tax laws and registration requirements in the state. 

We're fortunate to own a beautiful large Colonial House just 20 minutes from downtown Boston and it was very popular when we did a few rentals a couple years ago. We have an entire third floor where two of our rooms are located (with a large living room and kitchenette and marble bathroom) so we can rent this out with a separate entrance but it is still a part of the single family home. And then we have a beautiful Suite with a large coffee bar and bathroom on the second floor which also has a separate entrance while still a part of the single-family home.. when the pandemic gets under control we would like to find a co-host so we can travel again! 

Our rooms are set up privately so guests don't have to worry about the virus. 

I'm glad we took that 14dd cruise to Canada last year because that was the last time we got away before the pandemic except for day trips in New England

We speak Portuguese,  Polish,  Spanish and have also lived and traveled in Europe and South America. 

 

 

Annette694
Level 1
Switzerland

Hello everybody!

 

My name is Annette and I am the host of three beautiful properties in Bali / Indonesia.

 

My husband Marco and myself have 3 children, we are originally from Germany but have been living as Expats for the past 28 years. We love traveling and food. As my husband grew up in Indonesia, and both have hospitality backgrounds, we made a dream come true and brought property in Bali and started hosting several years ago.

 

For the past 22 years we have been living in Dubai / United Arab Emirates but currently we are in the process of moving to Switzerland to be closer with family during this very challenging times.

 

Bali is currently closed for Tourism and hopefully we are able to welcome guests very soon again!

 

I am very happy to be part of this community and looking forward for a fruitful exchange.

 

Annette

Dave981
Level 2
Rosebud, Australia

Hi Team

 

We are from Melbourne Australia, and my wife and I have started a professional airbnb hosting company called HostHelper and managing about 50 homes on the Mornington Peninsula of Melbourne. Been using the platform for about 6 years and have been professional hosts for nearly 4 years and going well and thanks for the community support

 

Dave and Renee

Julia197
Level 2
Noord, Aruba

Hi everyone,

 

I'm Julia from the happy island of Aruba and together with my husband Stuart we own & operate Rentstar Aruba Villa Rentals & Property Management  As the daughter of one of the island's first GMs I grew up in the Holiday Inn Hotel here and hospitality is in my blood. Saw tourism kick off here, watched it grow and morph over the years. Been welcoming guests to Aruba since 1987 - first to the little vacation retreat which we built from the ground up. Possibly Aruba's first vacation rental property, although that term had not quite yet been invented yet. After selling that "boutique hotel property", we naturally progressed deeper into vacation rental properties and property management for owners. We've been on Airbnb since 2008 and we - my husband Stuart, myself & small team- manage 15 properties here on the island, mostly for owners. Stay safe everyone and talk soon. Hopefully get to see you in Aruba some day 🙂

Sunny regards,

 

Julia

JuliaAruba

JuliaAruba
David7311
Level 2
Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Hi folks,

 

I'm David and I live in Edinburgh, Scotland. I manage a few short-term holiday let properties in Edinburgh for myself and other owners through my company amazing apartments. I am also about to start managing long-term properties now that I am qualified and this will be amazing lettings.

 

Personally, I love anything to do with property and have renovated 3 myself. Old or modern, I love how each property is different and has its own unique features and character.

 

I love exchanging ideas with like-minded people and look forward to learning and growing together.

 

Warmest regards,

 

David 

Quincy
Community Manager
Community Manager
London, United Kingdom

Welcome to the community @David7311! Edinburgh is a lovely place (I've lived there for a while 😃). 

 

 

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Please follow the Community Guidelines // Volg de communityrichtlijnen

Margo288
Level 1
Cannon Beach, OR

Good morning from the North Coast of Oregon. My name is Margo. For pleasure and work, I have experienced many parts of the world, most recently Bangladesh for work, hiking around Mt. Blanc,  traveling across Ethiopia (pre-pandemic).  I was born in West Africa. 

 

I have been hosting guests to a niche population long before Airbnb was an idea. When I joined the platform it was seamless and provided the opportunity for increased exposure to the global community.  Guests have become friends, surrogate family, and colleagues. And a handful has returned more than once.  My favorite story is about a guest who visited for a month. She loved the connection to community and space so much she returned a couple of months later, stayed for 1 1/2 years, ended up taking care of my home while I was away on a contract, fell in love, and now is a "local." She moved to a larger place owned by my neighbor, serves on the design and review community for the city council, and is referred to as my neighbor-daughter. For me, as a guest and host, Airbnb has created community and enduring connection. 

 

I've been hosting monthly stays long before Airbnb created the option. It was more challenging then because I had to manipulate the nightly rate. It's easier and more complicated.  My hope is that an obvious and effortless function will be created for hosts who rent for a minimum of a monthly stay up to three months. I am not licensed for vacation or short-term rental and there are significant fines in my community for doing so. I have never violated this rule. 

 

For a long while, I shared with hosts that a % of the rent was donated to three non-profits who were dedicated to maintaining the beauty and environment of the area. Cannon Beach attracts people from all over the world for its beauty and charm.  During the early Airbnb days, it was also a way of demonstrating that hosts were paying it forward to the community supporting causes that also attracted visitors.  

 

An inconvenient evolution of the platform is that profiles have become so content-heavy including details, that potential guests are not reading all the information. I'm finding that even though I pre-approve, I need to confirm specifically to make sure they understand what is and is not allowed.  It's almost like at the top of the listing under the name there could be something equivalent to an "alert" that includes: # of guests, smoking or not, pets or not, accessible or not. There is a difference between being a non-smoking property and not hosting smokers. For my property, it's both. I now have to confirm the guest is a non-smoker because they leave the space smelling like an ashtray. 

 

Happy to be part of the community. 

 

 

 

 

Linda1615
Level 2
Peoria, AZ

INTRODUCTION

 

Hi everyone! I'm glad to join this community.

 

Here is my listing in Peoria, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix in the United States: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/15537281?s=67&unique_share_id=a77d115d-3aaa-471b-91bb-6d286b39ef9d

 

I've been hosting for four years now and have LOVED it. I've had a chance to meet people from all over the world and have made new friends that I continue to keep contact with and often get together with.

 

Airbnb is sort of a hobby - and, yes, a money maker (I'm having my best year yet) - and I also have lots of other "happenings" in my life:

  1. I have a full-time job as a Leadership Development Consultant, helping leaders to be more effective in their roles through training, coaching, and team effectiveness; the company I work with is in Indianapolis, Indiana. Normally I travel about 50% of the time....but not lately. 😞
  2. I run a wine group here in the Valley of the Sun, with nearly 600 members. We meet at wine bars, go to festivals, have in-home parties and winetasting....but not lately. 😞 We've been having virtual meetups for now.
  3. I am a volunteer for the Society for Human Resource Managemen (SHRM) and am currently the State Director-Elect for the state of Arizona, supporting the HR community through education, engagement, and advocacy.
  4. I'm a foster mom through the Arizona Humane Society. I recently raised 9 puppies and their mom from the time the pups were 4 weeks old until they were 9 weeks old. My Airbnb guests loved the built-in cuddles! By the way, all puppies AND the mom were adopted. Here are some of the pups:118404123_10219108878006340_1858515638154085673_o.jpg
  5. And I have family and friends close by, always great referrals for the Airbnb space.

I look forward to hearing of all your tips and hints on creating great experiences for our guests!

 

Linda

 

 

Camela1
Level 1
Santa Monica, CA

Hello, I am new the the community center

David7362
Level 2
Springwood, Australia

Hi everyone,

My name is David and I listed our rural property on airbnb just over a week ago.  I had some questions in relation to the first booking enquiry I received and was surprised to find that there was no 'official help' available other than standard FAQs.  Although I posted a query to the community and received some helpful replies, I was disappointed that there was not more support available for new hosts (or existing hosts for that matter).  Some community responses I received suggested that airbnb may have algorithms that were preventing my potential client from booking.  I don't even know for sure if this is the case, but if it is the case then even in a fully automated system it would have been nice to receive an email from airbnb advising that a booking had been blocked with at least an indication of the reason.

 

I've moved on from that and now have my first booking from another client.  Our property is at Oberon, about 2 1/2 hours drive from Sydney (NSW, Australia), and since my retirement I have been spending about half my time there and the other half at our main home.  Our Oberon property requires a fair amount of ongoing maintenance (mowing, gardening, sweeping the tennis court etc.) and in the first half of this year I needed to stay home much more than usual to care for my wife who was unwell and effectively bed-ridden for a period.  It has taken me several months to get the grounds and garden back into order after this time of neglect, and my hope in listing on airbnb is that we can earn some money so that we can afford to pay somebody to do at least basic grounds maintenance if my wife's condition recurs (which is likely at some stage).

 

I still intend to spend a fair amount of time at Oberon, and an ideal scenario for me would be if it was let out on airbnb jor just a handful of days each month (e.g. a couple of weekends a month would be ideal).

 

I have signed up to the 'enhanced cleaning' protocol etc and will follow it, but it seems to be a global requirement that is perhaps a bit of overkill in Australia?  One aspect of it is that I am required not to re-enter a  room after cleaning it.  This will be problematic for me as I hope to wait at the property to greet guests personally but according to this requirement I will have to wait outside (or else ask the guest to contact me when they are 15-20 minutes away so that I can finish cleaning the lounge room before vacating it).

 

Regards,
David

 

Hi David, from Wanaka New Zealand.

Ive signed up for, and completed, the enhanced cleaning protocol.  My take on it is that it’s not such a big deal for us (no community transmission here, and closed borders)  and no one seems to care here,  I provide hand sanitiser, and lots of alcohol wipes, no one has ever used them.  
I hope things improve for you  . . . . . . We miss you guys :-). 

 

Kristan13
Level 2
Kerikeri, New Zealand

Hello Lizzie and quince etc all.. I'm Kristan from

Whangamata New Zealand. Not my first time airbnbing but back after a couple of years break. With a new unique space as a yacht and full of gusto to reach super host status. I have 5 wild willful children. We love anything outdoors, especially on the water being pirates! Having fun and seeking adventures keeps it us fit healthy and young at heart.  Looking forward to a great 2021 on board with the team at Airbnb

Cheers kristan

Hello from Wanaka.   Hope you are having an ok summer,   I’ve been over 80% full, with drastically reduced pricing, but it’s been ok.  Apart from the weather of course .  :-).