I have had this discussion with Airbnb customer service (definitely not the level of crew as in the past, many now with call centers OUS who are not as good or clear). I realized recently that Airbnb arbitrarily started adding the cleaning fee to the daily price i had set for many years. For example, if the cleaning fee is $75 and the guest stays 3 nights, that price has now gone to $125 from $100 per night, for example. This new policy (unbeknownst to me until this past week) immediately has significantly reduced my getting booked. I am in the high desert of California in Joshua Tree and the season is now, very high season, and I am not getting booked. I do not live in the area and must have cleaning people in and it does make the place so much nicer when it is done professionally, rather than not. Due to this new policy, I removed the cleaning fee from the fees and added notes in the intro to my place as to having to charge for professional cleaning. I find this new policy upsetting and unfair. As a matter of fact, I no longer can have guests pull the trigger and accept the reservation as they have to inquire first and have more hassle before getting the cleaning fee added in to the overall price. Most casual lookers would not take my place if their maximum price is $100 per night and now is $125 if the cleaning fee is added up front. No doubt about it.
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