Welcome to the Frontline stays board. Introduce yourself here.

[Katrina143]

Hi, I'm Kat on the Frontline stays team. We created this group so that you and other hosts offering stays for COVID-19 first responders have a dedicated space to meet and support each other, and connect with our team. We hope you can use this group to connect with other hosts in your area, share tips and advice for hosting first responders in these unique circumstances, and ask questions. If you haven’t already, please check out our Frontline stays FAQs. 

To start, let’s get to know each other! If you’d like, please introduce yourself - you can include where you’re from, how long you’ve been hosting, and why you decided to open your listing up to first responders. 

Thank you for being here, the frontline stays program would not exist without you. 

Kat

As always, please remember to keep the Community Center Guidelines in mind when you interact in this group.

[Gillian166]

this is a weird one to have pushed over, instead of archiving. 

[Chrissy74]

Hi everyone, my name is Chrissy. I have a downtown San Jose Victorian B&B (center of the Silicon Valley), and I am a super host. I have been open since 2017. I really enjoyed the run, even thought it was a ton of work and constant (sometimes around the clock) communication with guests and upcoming guests. My business is reliant on the San Jose Convention Center hosting large events so I get 90% of my customers from the tech community overflow as events such as the Apple Developer's Conference create the hotels to not only sell out (in our and neighboring cities), but raise their prices to as high as $900/night, so my inexpensive Airbnb rooms were a great alternative - even with a shared bathroom with other guests. 

Alas, when I was in the middle of investing more money and remodeling, I get the bad news that my $7,000 month of March was basically getting completely canceled with no warning. It was a devastating blow and left me with no way to pay my bills. I also have no way to pay future bills as I don't think 2020 or 2021 for that matter, will see the normal travel to San Jose any longer. (My guests were a large percentage international.) I dread my $10,000 annual bills for property tax, insurance etc. to arrive in the Fall because now I will not be able to pay that fee.

I put my entire home for rent to the first responders with 30% discounts in fact. I have not had one inquiry. I think there is a death in our industry locally. I have been reading about the term "PIVOT" in reference to business models such as mine and maybe many of you out there. 

It is a kind way of suggesting to start a new business. lol  It talks about changing or altering your business model to meet the new guidelines of COVID19, but let's face it. The customer is gone. With no demand, you can have all the supply in the world but it will do you no good. 

Perhaps if Airbnb wants to survive, our fearless leader needs to come up with one "hell of a PIVOT" model! 

TTFN, Chrissy

[Katrina143]

Hi @Chrissy74 , welcome to the group. I'm genuinely sorry to learn about how this crisis has impacted you, and I hope that this group can be a supportive space.  

[Pat271]

Hello, I’m Pat, and I have opted in to the Frontline Stays option on the Airbnb site.

Unfortunately, a potential First Responder guest is unable to see my listing on the COVID site!  I called Airbnb and they are also unable to see it, and they’ve escalated my ticket.  

That was a couple of days ago - who knows when they will respond.

Has anyone else experienced this issue?  Also, do you know if Airbnb is still waiving their service fee for First Responders?  I read that they were offering that to the first 100,000 first responders, but then heard that there are already 200,000 applicants.  @Lizzie , do you know?

[Katrina143]

Hi @Pat271 , thanks for your questions, I can confirm that Airbnb is still waiving all fees for Frontline stays and will follow up with you about your listing status via DM. 

[Mike952]

Hi I am Mike, 

I have a question.  I originally thought there would be some flexibility in setting prices.  I wouldn't mind some one staying for free but I am a teacher and I can't afford too much.  I working overseas and this is my home that I would be letting out.  I reached out to my friends who are doctors and nurses and they said that there haven't been that many cases where I live. All of the sudden I get a two month request for rent free from someone working for FEMA. I am pretty sure they get reimbursed for travel and expenses. Why is free the default?  I was going to offer them a month free as a trial but there was no way to make an offer with the frontline stay hosts program.  I could see renewing on a monthly or weekly basis, but I got no reply from AirBnB. What are the thoughts on this?  What is the criteria for Frontline stays?  The whole experience was a little iffy.  

[Katrina143]

Hi @Mike952 , thanks for your question. You can visit your listing's settings to choose whether you'd like to host for free, or for a discount, and specify your discount amount. 

As far as your question regarding criteria for frontline stays, healthcare staff and first responders must be either affiliated with partner organizations or reviewed by Airbnb prior to check-in. This process, which may include confirmation of licensure status or employment checks, helps confirm a responder’s role is one that contributes to the COVID-19 medical or community response efforts. If Airbnb is unable to confirm a guest's type of employment prior to check-in, the reservation will be canceled.

That said, do encourage you to use the message threads to communicate with a potential guest around their needs and details of the stay. Denying a Frontline stay request will not impact Superhost status. 

Take care. 

[ElenaandNick0]

Hello, I'm Elena, myself and my husband Nick have been hosts in London since 2013. We have opened our calendars to first responders from early March when received 20+  cancellations in less then a week, however haven't had a single stay or enquiry. Sad to see empty properties for the third months in a row.

[S14]

Yes, even here in NYC which is notoriously flooded with Covid responders, we have not gotten even one single inquiry or reservation from the Airbnb Frontline program. I have to wonder if this was merely a publicity stunt by Airbnb. It is not working. At all.

And now I see in the news that the City of NY is providing free housing to covid responders in hotels. I believe that Airbnb had some investment in the hotels; so I feel really let down (again) by Airbnb. If the city is paying for hotel rooms, it's disappointing that Airbnb didn't manage to get our home sharing spaces included in that program.

When I signed up -- quite some time ago -- for the Covid Frontline program, I put in for a 50% discount. So now I am hampered in simply lowering my regular price so that quarantined people who need some private space for a respite away from housemates can be attracted. I can't find any place to edit my Frontline settings or even to confirm that my listings are signed up. If I lower my summer prices to say 50%, and then if someone does miraculously contact me through the Frontline program, they will be expecting 50% of my already discounted 50% rate! That doesn't work for me. Airbnb should have enabled us to set a fixed price for covid-responders instead of making it a discount. This was not thought out well. Besides, it simply isn't working. There are no Frontline reservations as far as I can see.

[Katrina143]

@S14 and @ElenaandNick0 - thank you for signing up to host responders, and I'm sorry to hear you haven't seen any bookings come through the program yet.  If you haven't received a booking request, we encourage you to  remained signed up, as community needs due to COVID-19 are continually evolving, and supply and demand are shifting by market.

As far as discounts, any discount you offer for Frontline Stays will not be combined with existing discounts you offer.

[Angela270]

Hello to everyone.  I have been an Airbnb Host for around 4 years, the last few months have been disastrous for us as we have a unit which we rent full time for Airbnb and also a room in my house, they both have been empty since all this started.  I too were excited to hear about the possibility of hosting our hospital workers as our unit is walking distance to a big hospital, however we have had nothing. As much as Im disappointed about that I can only imagine its because our cases in Australia are reasonably low and I guess our accomodation is not needed for medical staff and that I am grateful for. 

[Katrina143]

Welcome @Angela270 - I hope that cases remain low in your area, and travel bounces back safely and quickly. Thank you for joining, this group is here for you if you need it!

[S14]

Will anyone from AIrbnb Support be reading and responding to the important questions posted here?

[Tory31]

Hi @S14  this group is monitored by members of Airbnb's Community team, and not the customer support team. Happy, however, to point you to resources and answer questions about the program where possible. Our Help Center and Resource Center may have what you are looking for. Take care.

[Ava34]

Hello all! I've been hosting for about 2 1/2 years now... I have a duplex in downtown Riverside (CA), which I rent out... I am also a nurse myself. I recently switched over to offer my place to Covid-19 workers as in Riverside County it is prohibited to rent out to anybody other than the homeless, health care workers or people in quarantine... 

Like everybody else, most of my bookings in March were cancelled... more recently I had one guy who arrived from London and was self-isolating for 14 days, a travel nurse working on a Covid unit, and now I have a doctor staying for a month... so all in all I can't complain!. I like the fact that we have to wait 3 days in between bookings... that, paired with the deep cleaning, will make sure the virus can't be spread between guests!

[Katrina143]

@Ava34 welcome to the group! As a healthcare provider yourself, I'd love to know if you have any advice for others in this group who are preparing to host those on the front lines of COVID-19. 

[Nancy1249]

Hi, I'm Nancy. I own and rent two cute historic vacation cottages 5 minutes from the Gulf of Mexico in Nokomis, a southwest Florida town near Venice and Sarasota. I have hosted vacation cottages for 22 years now. I have decided to rent this summer exclusively to healthcare workers, and just got a reservation for an occupational therapist for 2.5 months starting in late May. I am happy to open my doors to healthcare workers during this pandemic crisis that affects us all. I wish good health to all of my fellow hosts around the world. 

[Tory31]

Welcome @Nancy1249 -- thank you for joining the group and opening your doors! 

[Yvette84]

Hello fellow AirBnB hosts. I'm Yvette, and I've been hosting for 10 years, and I've been a superhost since the program first began. I work hard to make my guests' stay as good as it can be.

Up until the middle of last year I was renting a private room in my home, and on occasions when I travel I would rent out the house while I was away. Last year I spent a substantial amount of money converting a space under my house I'd been using as a studio into a fully self contained flat whihc has its own independent access. It was booked solid and I was getting great reviews. But that investment was rather ill timed, and the host relief fund has penalised people like me who have a moderate cancellation policy. To add insult to injury, AirBnB is now recommending to hosts that we adopt a moderate cancellation policy!!

I have a nurse staying in the flat now, who I am only charging $50 per week to assist with utilities costs. She will be there until at least mid June, when I still have a booking, though I expect that is likely to be cancelled too. I've actually had two enquiries for long term accommodation in the past weeks, so I've lost out there, but I feel it's important to do my bit.

When and if I start listing again for short term accommodation I will be very reluctant to continue with a moderate cancellation policy!

Take care all and let's hope better days are ahead soon.

Yvette

[Katrina143]

Welcome to the group @Yvette84.  I'm sorry about your difficult situation- thank you for your honest feedback. Would you be willing to share more about your experience hosting a first responder for others in the group?