What is the percentage of the guest service fee? What is the percentage of the host service fee?

[Sandy33]

What is the percentage (or $ amount) of the guest service fee?  What is the percentage (or $ amount) of the host service fee? Are these service fees a percentage of the monthly rate set by the host?  

I charge $1650 per month plus a $120 cleaning fee for the entire stay.  I am renting a fully furnished 1200 s.f., 1-bedroom, 1-bath apartment with a dedicated laundry room for the apartment only, an office with a wireless inkjet printer/scanner/copier (paper and ink supplied) and office furniture and a furnished, covered brick terrace overlooking a ravine -- all of this in a close-in location in Atlanta, GA.  

A potential guest (referred by a previous guest which is why she has my contact information) just wrote me and told me that Airbnb is quoting her $1903 per month for a stay of May 14 -- July 30. That is way out of line!  Her friend (the one who referred her to me) was here last summer for the same amount of time and she paid $1737 per month. As I was looking up these transactions I noticed that a guest who was here last summer for a month and a day paid $1829.  Meanwhile, my current guest who arrived February 1 and will be here through March 31 is paying $1690 per month.  None of this makes any sense.

I do not allow my rates to float (as Airbnb wants me to do).  My rates are always the same.  I rent exclusively through Airbnb, to business travellers who will be here for 30 days or more.  Looking at this wide variance I may have to re-think my loyalty to Airbnb.  But what do a tell the potential guest who is being way overcharged, I think -- and as a result may not stay with me?

Sandy

[David1361]

Excellent analysis, @Marko17. One must include all values (as you have) in order to make a final meaningful judgment. Thank you for setting a high standard in this conversation. 🙂

[David126]

Thanks @Marko17 and agree @David1361

I would like AirBnb to have lower fees, who wouldn't.

But still looking for this mythical alternative that is much different.

I decide on how much I want net and then add on. Not that difficult.

[Marko17]

I would like to add as a closure to my writting.

Overall the guests on AirBnB are different kind comparing to guests on Booking.com, Expedia,etc... The priority for them are mostly competitive/low prices. So if you want to be competitve (competition is getting bigger and cheaper) and have more bookings you really got to minimize the rates. Specially in low seasons.

Last year I've tried with minimizing the rates also on booking.com, but didn't got much more bookings (comparing to AirBnB). It's more about the service and also if you are the "cheapest" accomodation there, can be quickly beleived that "I can get a better service for few euros more" etc.. This year I haven't reduced the rates drasticly and basicly received more bookings.

So if you see my calculation above, that is why I earn the least on AirBnB. But it is worth of it (in my case). Ofcourse there are a lot of factors, where you live, turist based or local, type of listing, quality etc... And basicly we as hosts are quite squeezed because of AirBnB's strategy. The guest can basicly book a real bad ass accomodation for a low (sometimes hilarious) price. And we must compete that. 🙂

[Sarah977]

Back in November 2017, airbnb made changes to its website, I stopped receiving text notifications, and a guest was seriously overcharged. Don't know what's going on there, but none of it good.

My guest made a request, we exchanged a couple of messages, and I accepted her booking. I then immediately saw that my pending transaction for this guest was TWICE what I charge. I immediately contacted airbnb to ask them WTF? and they said it was a glitch in the system and the guest would be refunded the difference. They thanked me for being such an honest host (as if my guest wouldn't notice that she was overcharged?). In fact, within a few hours I received a message from the guest saying she had been charged almost double the listed price, had she made an error in reading my listing, and that if it was really twice the price she thought it was, she'd have to cancel as she couldn't afford it. I right away told her it was an airbnb error, that I had already contacted them about it, and that she needed to, as well.

She contacted airbnb, they told her they had indeed made an error, that there had been a glitch in the system and that many guests had been overcharged. they told her she would receive a refund within 15 days. Now, I can understand airbnb taking 2 weeks to refund $ due to a host or guest cancellation, but I think it's outrageous for them not to post a re-imbursement to her credit card IMMEDIATELY, since it was their error. No, they'd prefer to collect interest on the $ they illegally collected for 2 weeks.

So if a guest contacts you re them being overcharged, do not neccesarily assume it is just the taxes and fees that airbnb charges. Make sure they didn't simply overcharge your guest, by checking the payout info you receive for the pending guest is correct.

[Shannon124]

If we didn't know better (which we don't), it sounds like airbnb are collecting interest off such "mistakes". ... better known in corporate circles as "black box income". 

[David126]

My guess is that they have a one size fits all policy, delay probably due to fraud issues and have not recognised the need to have exceptions.

[Catherine577]

Going back to the original conversation...what would help me as a host when I try to price my listing is a chart from Airbnb that shows the guest fee they'll add on. For example, if it's an entire home, rental price is between $10 to $100 & the stay is 3 nights then our fee will be "(whatever) %". Give us something more concrete so we can price accordingly. Even providing something like " % will be 8 or 9" would at least give me a working percentage. I could then add it to my rental price  to calculate the price the guest would pay. I am trying to make enough to cover my home's expenses while staying price competative. They could even make the information "classified" for hosts only..lol!

[David126]

@Catherine577

Here are your numbers:

$89 x 2 nights

$178

Cleaning fee

$45

Service fee

$30

Total

$253

So in round numbers they add on 13.5%

[David1827]

Thank you, Catherine, for bringing this conversation back to the original issue!

Anyone: Just HOW can the Airbnb host see what is actually being charged to the guest, and so be able to see what amount/% service fee Airbnb is adding to guest charges?

I have been hosting on Airbnb for 2 years and have maintained SuperHost status from the time of my first eligibility. Only last month did I become aware of the large Airbnb service fee being charged to my guests! (This awareness occurred during conversation with an inquiring, prospective guest, who wanted to negotiate the price total because of how much higher they were going to be charged due to an $85 Airbnb service charge! I was able to secure the booking only by waiving my cleaning fee. So Airbnb got more, and I took less.) And since late in 2017 I have noticed almost constant pressure from Airbnb messaging to get me to lower my nightly rates, offer 10% discounts, etc.

So I agree with most everyone in this thread on these facts:

1. With increasing frequency, Airbnb has been trying to coerce hosts to lower their rates. In my view that only serves to benefit Airbnb corporate in their quest to collect higher fees on the back of hosts' declining revenue.

2. Airbnb should be transparent with the host about the amount of service fees they are collecting on each guest! Airbnb should post the guest invoice for hosts to see on the host site.

3. Airbnb should provide hosts with information on exactly how the guest service fees are calculated.

Finally, I suspect that "David in Como, CO," is indeed a reputation manager for Airbnb! 🙂

[David126]

@David1827

Would that be a paid position?

Your numbers btw.

$89 x 2 nights

$178

Cleaning fee

$65

Service fee

$32

Occupancy Taxes

$14

Total

$289

So about the same, Booking.com for me is 15%, have not signed up, plus CC processing, I have not looked at VRBO etc but from what I have seen others mention seems the same sort of rate. I personally would prefer that ABB deduct the charges from the Gross, but it is what it is.

[David1827]

🙂
Thanks! 

[David1827]

The original question still stands for someone to answer:

Anyone: Just HOW can the Airbnb host see what is actually being charged to the guest, and so be able to see what amount/% service fee Airbnb is adding to guest charges?

[David126]

I just go to the listing and put in some dates and see what comes up, I believe there is an indirect way you can do the same though the Host board but forget where it is, downside of doing it my way is I know get emails from ABB due to my interest in going to St Louis.

[Catherine577]

@David126 lol! "Is that a paid position"...? Well, the take away here is that Airbnb will not disclose their formula for charging guest fees, and they will not change their processes, i.e., show us the guest invoice. Yes, we will only see one side of the coin. In the big picture the majority people are fine with paying the fee so that's that. Over & done 🙂

[Mark442]

They aren't paying the fee, they're paying the maximum their willing to pay for accommodation. The Hosts are the ones paying the fees, it's just warpped up in a way that looks like they, the guests, are happy to pay the extra fee. ABB takes 18% (here in Australia) of potential full earnings from the Hosts.