Tips for long-term hosting

[Lizzie]

Hello Everyone,

A few months ago our fellow community member Theresa (Florian and Theresa), who hosts in Germany, created a fantastic guide in the German Community Center sharing her 10 top tips for making long-term hosting successful.

Her tips range from platform settings to house rules and include advice around cleaning, plus her best scenario for long-term bookings. To quote Teresa’s words ‘You will get on so well with your guests, there won't be any closed doors in your accommodation’. 🙂

A blog article including all of Theresa's tips can be read here: Long-term stays

In the meantime, what about you? Do you offer long-term hosting? Do you prepare yourself any differently to when you host short-term guests and have you any other tips?

I can't wait to hear your tips and experiences.

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Jp8]

Yes so many times those inquiries are not serious, they don't know what they are going to do and are using you as a sounding board. At first I would try to pitch them a sales talk then i realized the conversion ratio was pretty low so try not to spend too much time on inquirers.

[Helga0]

@Martina143,

3 months is a long booking, probably interesting financially, but dangerous. 

In such a case, I'd call airbnb and ask if he really never travelled or if there was a trip with a dispute (no reviews permitted) or simply no review. 

Then you can get FB names or other info by creative spelling. 

That he offers that info, is a good sign. 

A longer pr sentation 

[Helga0]

Sorry, phone limits:

a longer presentation text will give you some insight into his/her personality. In France, "motivation letters" are quite common even for normal rentals. If someone can't write a formal letter, I'd hesitate to rent to him for 3 months. 

There is also an airbnb option to create a very short video profile - try to get him to make one. 

[Martina143]

@Helga0Thank you for the feedback. I have declined the request for now as there is just too little information and as I mentioned Airbnb blocks any links even with creative spelling. Is there any other way that we could exchange information? I would like to check out his social media accounts that he has sent me the links of. I have had the same issue with other potential guests as well! Thanks.

[Helga0]

Hi @Martina143, 

the automatic censor is a bit erratic: I get messages signed with the full name of a guest quite often, especially first time users, who do not  know the first name only culture yet.  

In the case you describe, you could also split the booking: either 2 weeks, with a check after 5 days and either you extend after that or you don't. With a refund of the difference after checkout (if your weekly price is higher than a week on monthly rate). That would mean an extra incentive for the guest to behave. Or else a special offer for the next 2 weeks (which can be tricky to calculate) 

another possibility would be: he books a day, you check him, either you let him book 3 months then ir he cancels and you refund. 

[Martina143]

@Helga0Thank you that's a great suggestion. He's pretty adamant about staying as shortly after I declined he requested again and emailed me again. I think I will try out splitting the time up as you suggest. Thank you!

[Matthew112]

 Here's a quote I follow; When people are not genuine you can feel it. Trust your instinct.

Having been in the lodging and hospitality business for over 40 years I can assure you all --- their are "players" out there who think nothing in being rude, self-centered, all about them, trouble makers, the taker's, and the wheeler-dealers. Gut instinct is the only way you can detect guests such as these and you probably will be right in making the smart decission to either reject the reservation or apply extra layers of caution to the booking. 

[Deborah213]

Hi,

I am shortly going to put our cottage on Air bnb, it is in Hastings Old Town in Sussex.  I would like to do two or three long term bookings during the year and would like to do it during the winter as well as the other seasons.

Do you think it is possible to do this in cold, damp England during Winter and are long term bookings requested very often?

Thank you

Best

Deborah and Brendan ***

[Judalon0]

I think it depends on what you are near that brings people to your community for 30-90 days. I do mostly 3+ week stays with majority being 4-5 weeks, then 90 day stays and what brings people here for those lengths of time:

1- relocating to area & looking for new home

2- internships; we have several industries that have 30-90 day internships from movie industry to law firms to hospitals

3- working on a film, tv show 

4- university - guest professor for semester or students doing a summer session (mostly from Germany & Austrailia)

5- retired parents from abroad who have a grandchild on the way and usually stay 4-6 weeks to help with new arrival

So, if you have a local college you may want to check if they bring in guest professors or have foreign students. Check into the local industries and if they have internships. And most places have some flow of new residents relocating, even locals who are between selling a home and moving into the new home. I'm sure you will have a successful Airbnb listing.

[Jose-and-Nisha0]

In our posting we noted that it was great for those in transition/in the process of moving.  Our 2nd booking requested long term (2 months) due to a move from the east coast to the west coast.  I'm not too sure about London, but I've visited in the winter and would gladly stayed longer with a reasonable price.  

[Helga0]

A regular cleaning service is something I see rather problematic:

if the guest rents a full unit or a private room. You have no right to enter it, if you are not invited to do so. What they do inside till checkout is their affair - as a guest, I might not wish intrusions into my space under the guise of an extra service. If I want my bed made and the bathroom moped, I'd book a hotel. If I want to be in that bed at odd hours and maybe leave a transparent contact lens on the side of the sink, I'd not book a hotel. 

If you are not close to the place you rent (like your own place furing a longer absence), you can't clean for your guests yourself. That means staff, maybe not your employee but a friend, a cleaner paid on invoice or more probably in black. What happens, if the guest claims something is missing and the cleaner denies it? May not even be a theft claim, just the unseen contact lens swiped into the sink during normal cleaning. 

If you are in no official relationship with the cleaner, no insurance will cover it. 

On long stays, I guess I got only 5 stars anyway. People prepare long stays better, they compare and book a place to stay comfortably for a longer period, whilst they may look only at the price tag for one or two nights. It's more important if you have a socket for your phone charger beside the bed and maybe some more for the laptop to watch films whilst playing on the phone, and a fan or whatever. A place to sit and prop your feet up, a kitchen, big or small, where you can cook comfortably whatever your level of  competence, enough cups and glasses, to allow not to wash dishes every day if so inclined, a place and equipment to make yourself pretty / presentable and to check the effect, especially if it's a professional stay - all these things are noticed daily and will have more effect on the stars than a cleaning service. 

[Christine1]

@Helga0, 

The forum is a great place to exchange ideas and experiences.

I would like to clarify my comments about offering ongoing cleaning, by indicating that this service is offered; not imposed. If it is declined then the matter usually ends there. 

As for right of entry into any area of my property. As long as it does not infringe on the rights of my guests, then I retain the right to enter my property as required. Within limits; property owners retain certain legal rights regarding property access.

I have items in storage in some of my guest areas and at times I may need to access these areas when I have booked in guests. At those times I will negotiate access with guests, and request their permission to access storage items during their absence from the room, for example while they are sightseeing. 

I don't offer the same services to my guests, what I offer them varies according to the nature of the group and their travel needs and preferences. 

I enjoy the creative opportunities that I am presented with, and I am extremely happy with my reviews and the star ratings that I have been gifted with across the time I have been hosting.

Thankfully there are a multitude of venues and just as much variety in the hosting styles in our community as there is in the guest community. So there is somewhere and someone for everyone. That's the beauty of life with Airbnb. 

Best Regards to all. Christine.

[Helga0]

Hi @Christine1, I saw that you have very many reviews for several listings with similar names (can't open them on the phone). That and the superhost status made me think, that you live nearby and have a very service oriented business. 

Laws differ: in A few European countries, where I lived of live, You don't retain any rights as an owner, when you hand over the keys. Not even ic they do damage to your property. I had the case with guests flooding the apartment underneath, but refused entry to a plumber or the key person. Lucky me, the owner thought it a great occasion to have an insurance paid paint job done, even the occasional rain during 3 weeks was annoying. 

We put a clause into the contract then, for entry in such cases, but I had to remove it, when the contract was rewritten to be in accordance with local law and still fitting into airbnb general terms. 

There may be other problems associated with offering hotel like services. I offer breakfast to my shared room guests and checking the VAT situation on that, I realised if I added any other service, cleaning or 24h access by lockbox, I would have to pay 10% VAT on all my rental revenues, not only on the breakfast or the cleaning fee. That is a special case for France, but in the measure as governments/cities try to frain short term rentals, it may be a good idea to check, if hotel like service do not come with extra obligations for taxes or regulations. 

[Jp8]

Maybe you do have a right to enter the unit if you give 24 hours notice? that is how it is with ordinary longer term rentals in California

[Gabi27]

I made the mistake of cooking for my long term (two month)guest for the first couple of nights and now she asks at breakfast what are we having for dinner! she has cooked once which was a distaster. Never again.

She is very much at home and eating all my food in the fridge and pantry that she fancies. (I have cleared a shelf for her food which I dont touch!)

She tells me when we run out for bread/milk/laundry powder etc. etc

Any advice anyone..she is here for another month!