Airbnb refund

[Ruby144]

I recently stayed in Alhambra airbnb for 3 months while looking for a new home. When I advised my host that I was not sure how long I would be staying he advised to just go ahead and book ahead and if I found a place to just let him know. I advised him on Aug 20 that I would be leaving sometime during the first or 2nd week of September but I wasnt sure yet the exact date. He asked that I let him know as soon as I had specific date. I let him know on Aug 26 that I would be moving out Sept 1 and he was fine with that. They had already deducted Sept payment from my account but he said they would refund it.Later I sent an inquiry as to when the refund would be done and I was advised that my host had denied the refund and felt the monthly deductions that had been applied to my june, july, august stay was sufficient and that I would not be getting the refund. I paid about $2900 a month for 4 months even though I only stayed for 3 months. I paid almost $11000 for a $9000 stay

[Linda108]

@Ruby144   So you booked for 4 months and ended up staying 3 of those months.  You included the host in the changing picture of your leave date and it appears from your post the host was supportive of your change.  Just in case the customer service has not given you a correct response, I would suggest you contact the host, preferably directly by phone along, to confirm the host meant to deny your last month.  There are policies for long term stays that can be confusing to a host as well as the guest.  Try speaking with the host in a polite manner sharing that it was your understanding there would be a refund.  Did you misunderstand?  Worth a try, @Ruby144 

[Sarah977]

@Ruby144  Did you actually cancel the remainder of your stay? Because if you didn't, the host's calendar remains blocked, so it's impossible for him to rebook the dates. Giving notice on Aug 26 that you are leaving 6 days later isn't much lead time for a host whose calendar for Sept. has been blocked by your booking for at least 3 months.

Although if the host led you to believe something other than what he is actually doing, that's certainly unprofessional and unethical.

[Debra300]

@Ruby144,

@Linda108 has given you some very good advice.  Unfortunately, the long-term stay cancellation policy is not on your side, and you will need to get the host to agree to break the policy:  https://www.airbnb.com/home/cancellation_policies#long-term 

"If the guest cancels the reservation during their stay, the guest must use the online alteration tool in order to agree to a new checkout date. Regardless of the checkout date chosen, the guest is required to pay the host for the 30 days following the cancellation date, or up to the end date of the guest’s original reservation if the remaining portion is less than 30 days." 

Was your previous communication with the host about the early checkout and refund conducted via Airbnb's message system?  If you do speak with the host on the phone, and he agrees to the refund, do send him a recap via Airbnb, and ask him to confirm that what you've written is correct.