Guest Fee waived but HOSTS now automatically charged 15% commission by Airbnb

Melanie818
Level 2
Strathdickie, Australia

Guest Fee waived but HOSTS now automatically charged 15% commission by Airbnb

Email received from Airbnb September 2nd 2020

 

Starting 11/1/2020, we’ll be switching your listings to simplified pricing—a new service fee structure that gives you more control of your final price.

What’s changing Today, there are 2 service fee structures: split-fee pricing with the service fee shared between hosts and guests, and simplified pricing with the entire service fee covered by the host.

 

After 11/1/2020, split-fee pricing will no longer be available.

 

That means a 15% service fee will be deducted from your payouts, and no fee will be charged to your guests—what you set is what guests will pay. Why we’re making this change We introduced simplified pricing last year, and hosts who tried it out and priced competitively across websites got an average of 17%* more bookings. We heard that removing the guest fee made it easier for hosts to price competitively, and we saw that guests preferred to book places that didn’t have a guest fee.

 

 

This is especially important for your listings, since guests usually don’t pay fees on other booking platforms in your region. What will happen next?

 

This change will happen automatically on 11/01/2020 and will be applied to any bookings that you get after that date.

We’ll send you a reminder 7 days before this change, along with a guide to walk you through changes you may want to make to your prices. Here’s a summary of what will change:

  • Your service fee settings will automatically change on 11/1/2020 for all your listings
  • We’ll deduct a flat 15% host service fee from each payout and won’t charge a guest service fee
  • This won’t affect any existing bookings you have and will only apply to any bookings you get after 11/1/2020
  • Using Airbnb after 11/01/2020 means that you’ve accepted this new service fee structure
93 Replies 93

@Kelly149  I suspected the subscription might be key! Will look into it.  Thanks so much!

@Ann72  I have some listings there on subscription and some not. Little difference in performance based on that. Their algorithm is heavily tied to past bookings. You start off with a boost, like here. You get a reservation , they stay, you immediately get another one. Basically you need to have an open calendar to get into the cycle. Once you do, of course it makes more sense to get a subscription. They also put huge weight on cancellations. If you cancel one guest, you are more or less out of search for a year. 

and so sorry about your loss!

@Kelly149  I wouldn't mind paying a higher percentage of service fee than the measly 3% Airbnb charges hosts if they had good, knowledgeable and consistent customer service who came up with fair decisions, didn't have ongoing software glitches, stopped giving lame, unbelievable excuses, and didn't withhold host's payouts.

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Lizzie @Katie @Nick 

 

Can you please definitely clarify if this new pricing structure will affect all hosts and listings, or is this just something for some hosts?

Because I have received no email about this, nor is it mentioned in the Airbnb Updates.

@Sarah977

I spoke with a friend here in London last night whose channel management company is one of Airbnb's official software provider partners, and he said that as far as he's aware, the host-only fee is solely for software-connected hosts... buuut, not all messaging they're receiving is clear, though. 

Penelope

@Super47 What is a software connect host?  What does that mean?

Fred13
Level 10
Placencia, Belize

@Debra300 "As I said before, there is no perfect platform, not even your own website." Actually, that is as close as you can get. My direct guests pay via PayPal, and I get to control all aspects of it. They must cancel 90 days before arrival to get a full refund; few have. 

 

@Ann72 My English Setters (3 generations spanning 42 years), were the core of my life. I know the feeling, too well. 

@Fred13 - "My English Setters (3 generations spanning 42 years" - Wow.  What an incredible journey you had with them.  💙

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Ann72 

Ann, at the risk of being a bit crass, I was hoping your furry person was an 'Irish' Setter!

You know what the Irish do, don't you? 

The put the departed in the ground, and then go and have a good p*ss up!!!

 

Every time a hound of ours leaves us, I swear I will never get another one....it just breaks your heart when they go. I am on my 7th now!

You know what comes after that rainbow bridge they make their way across....... the sunshine!

Every tomorrow is a shiny new day.

 

Thinking of you.

 

Cheers......Rob 

@Robin4 Awwwwwww🤗

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Debra300
Level 10
Gros Islet, Saint Lucia

@Fred13,

Yes, having your own website does provide hosts a good deal of control to hosts.  It's also been my experience that reservations booked directly with me rarely are canceled.

Same experience. And the few times they needed to cancel, was for financial reasons, and then they re-book at a later date anyway.

Kelly149
Level 10
Austin, TX

@Ann72 ❤️❤️

Rajan2
Level 8
Los Angeles, CA

Is this only in Australia or is it happening worldwide? I I see posts from Germany and Belize. 🤔