Guests Profile Says They Are from somewhere else

[Melissa304]

The guests I have now have Italy as where they are from in their profile, but they're from a totally different continent. Now, I don't care where people are from usually, but when they lie about it, it weirds me it a bit. When my husband asked about it the woman said I must not know how to use the app right. I've been doing this for months! Would it make anyone slightly suspicious?

[Marzena4]

@Melissa304 A legit discrepancy might result from a national of one country being a resident of another. That's pretty common. But the truth is that some people are ashamed of their origin/want to hide it and use different documents (ID/passport) depending which nationality looks better. 

[Melissa304]

I would get  but they're not Italian nor do they live in Italy, and it sounded unlikely that an air bnb profile would change from Colombia to Italy. So it felt a little sketchy. Funny, because I really don't care where anyone is from, but when I have to live with the guests, I can get sketched out pretty easily. 

[Kimberly54]

Hi @Melissa304,

I'd completely agree with @Marzena4 on her first point--sometimes people's origins aren't their current residences.  As for your suspicions (and the rest of @Marzena4's post), I would encourage appreciative/positive inquiry.  Assume the best and ASK QUESTIONS. 

It is your home, so you have every reason for concern... and when you're in doubt,

Ask.

:-))

[Marzena4]

@Kimberly54 Real life - citizens of a certain country in Europe obtain Polish citizenship to go to the UK, or others.

[Kimberly54]

@Marzena4@Melissa304  Hello to you both!

Marzena, I apologize if I didn't communicate well.

I absolutely understand that some people (except Belgians!) can have different/dual/multiple citizenship--for whatever reason; that wasn't my point at all.

Just because someone has more than one origin doesn't make them a 'liar.'  Right?  And if it makes Melissa concerned that there is more than one origin and it was not disclosed (there probably isn't a space to fill in all of this information?), then the simple thing is to ask, and not assume that this is a lie, or something wrong. 

Is this more clear?

[Melissa304]

I just feel uncomfortable. 

I feel like im reading too much into things. But who puts a different place on their profile and then claims the host read it wrong? The "couple" is never together even though this is supposedly an anniversary vacation. I looked at the profile photo again and it doesn't even look like them. I'm a little nervous to bring it up at all, Im just wondering if anyone else would find the photo thing a little weird along with the location. 

[Susie5]

@Melissa304, now that you mention that they don't look like their profile, I think there may be something to your concerns. I'd call Airbnb and ask their advice - especially since they aren't acting like what they said they would be doing, e.g. romantic interlude or whatever. If you feel uncomfortable, go with your gut - at least check it out. You have enough red flags to warrant further investigation. The last thing you want is something illegal taking place in your premises....

[Melissa304]

That's what I'm worried about!!! I have a baby so safety is my priority. But I'm scared to bring it up and have air bnb contact them and have it turn into a confrontation. 

[Farah1]

@Melissa304 I would simply ask them to clarify the discrepancy.

[Melissa304]

I did ask only because I was surprised and she said I must've looked at it wrong on the website. Which I didn't. That's really why I thought it was weird. 

[Kelly149]

@Melissa304 you can find many instances of folks having bad info on their profile. First everyone was from NJ, then it was OK, who knows where it will be next. So, the not right "where I'm from line" isn't maybe a big deal (but I ask for guest ID & address, so I can check all that myself) and I've had people say "oh, I used to be there, but now I'm here." So, the biggest red flag is the "you can't read" comment instead of something else reasonable. Can't hurt to ask ABB to confirm, surely they know in what currency they were paid, where the internet originated for the reservation, etc.

But people are strange. It's your home tho, so ask the questions you need to to feel comfortable.

FWIW, these are the things that can sometimes be figured out before guests arrive... "so, glad you're coming to stay with us, we haven't had Italian guests yet, what brings you to town....."

[Fred13]

For some time everyone that booked my place was from Kerrville, OK, including people that turned out to be from England, Australia, Argentina, Japan, etc. At first, I was wondering how these people from such far away places came from the same small town in Oklahoma, of all places.