Corona Virus New Listing

[Chrissy73]

Hey fellow hosts, 

I was set to list my Airbnb at the end of the month here in Nashville,  which I now think may be a horrible idea given the current circumstances of declined travel. I believe new listings supposedly get two weeks of boosted visibility and you should capitalize on clicks and bookings during that time . Do y’all think I should hold off on opening it until things cool off, or are you experiencing enough business still to justify it? I also don’t want to wait forever because something is better than nothing! 

Thoughts? 

[Sarah977]

@Chrissy73  If it were me, yes, I would hold off. Read all the threads here if you haven't already about guests cancelling left and right and hosts' calendars ending up virtually empty for the next month or two. It wouldn't be a great start to your hosting career to have to be dealing with Airbnb cancellations, trying to reach them on the phone when they are totally swamped with calls, having guests book and then cancel, sending you barrages of messages as to whether they will get refunded in full, etc. 

And true, you don't want to waste that search ranking boost that is given to new listings. I'd wait awhile and see how this all shakes down- presently the virus is spreading, not abating.

[Juan63]

It depends on your longterm goals and your present economic situation. Is it a house rental or room rental? If it's a room rental, I don't understand why you would wait, I disagree with @Sarah977 .  If you have to make a big investment in furniture and you have a mortgage to pay, maybe a longterm tenant would be better for now if it's a whole house rental.

For me personally, March will be equal or better than ever. My cancelations have been filled by new guests because most are Americans and not international travelers. I suspect April may be worse.

[Linda108]

@Chrissy73  Good question.  Shows you are a savvy business person.  Actually both @Sarah977  and @Juan63  have good points.  If you are in the short term rental business, holding off might be good for awhile.  If you want a long term tennant and understand all that involves, timing might be right.  

[Dawn81]

@Linda108 @Juan63 @Sarah977 @Chrissy73 IMHO do not list yet. What could be more inauspicious then listing during a declared pandemic? Wait until this blows over I would say it's going to be at least through the end of April, if we're lucky mid April and I would wait and see what's going on Countrywide and worldwide have everything ready have all your scripting and everything saved all your photos saved and be ready to pull the trigger when this situation has died down and people are looking for bookings. Definitely don't list it yet this March 2020.