I find myself struggling with a moral dilemma.
As a host, I take my job seriously. I look at it as a job, a statement to my character & believe in providing a safe/clean/relaxing/affordable place for visitors to stay. I also want to protect my income & the reputation of airbnb as a whole.
That being said, I know of another listing, just down the road from me that is lacking in every single aspect. I've assisted the owner myself with hours of suggestions, lists (cleaning/organizing/her photos/calender assistance/ the list really does go on & on), found her a cleaning person & even helped her clean the place myself one time.
Her listing is just awful. I do not recommend to others but I also do not speak ill of her & her establishment. I am concerned about the cleanliness, safety and guest experience. It just looks bad for her, for her business and for airbnb. I could easily see guests staying there and thinking that every airbnb listing is similar and not ever want to stay with an airbnb host ever again.
The guest reviews that are good on her listing have to be people that don't want to offend her or don't have high expectations... she is a very nice lady, just really not the sort of person that should be managing a airbnb listing. I've actually offered to manage her listings for a minimal wage but she has refused the idea. And yet, I usually get a call about every week or so from her saying she's over extended, doesn't have any money to fix the listing or wants me to come over and help her.
Some of the things that I see as serious issues with her listing:
Dirty: (not just dusty or dingy but actually filthy) Does not allow the cleaning person to fully clean the listings, cutting corners on cleaning products, allowing family pets to urinate on floors & furniture, allowing friends & family to stay and not clean the rooms thoughly before accepting paying guests. Used mattresses with urine and blood stains, purchasing worn/used linens, running out of cleaning supplies constantly, mixing personal laundry with listings laundry, dogs & cats being allowed in rooms and not terminally cleaned after pets were allowed to stay. Her son & grandson stay at the establishment and do not clean up after themselves, bring pets indoors and let them run loose, the cat urinates on just about everything, the grandson is known to walk around in his underwear while guests are staying, the bathrooms are dingy, dirty and smell most of the time. The cleaning person that I recommended is a friend, she's told me that she double checks the rooms before she leaves and tells me that she finds that someone has stayed and it has not been cleaned... after being told by the owner that the room has been cleaned. The cleaning person has just recently quit the job because she wasn't allowed to clean some of the rooms that had been used and she does not want to be associated with the establishment.
Safety issues inlude:
non working smoke alarms, not enough fire extinguishers, no proper evacuation plan, old wiring with lots of extension cords, missing or broken light fixtures, broken mirrors, loose banister, loose stairs, doors to the rooms that don't come down to the floor (huge smoke issue if there was a fire), broken windows. The grounds have garbage and old lawnmowers/ car parts/ glass/ etc littered around, There is fencing that is in dire need of repair, the lawn area is always overgrown and who knows whats hiding in the tall grass.
In short, the place is a disaster and I'm not even sure if she is even approved by our local county to have a listing available (or how many days in a week she's allowed) because of the old septic system being overloaded.
I struggle with what do to. Do I do anything? Do I tell anyone? Let her implode while giving our business a black eye? I really have tried to help her, she refuses to listen or take the advice. I know that I wouldn't want to stay there, nor would I want anyone I didn't know to stay there.
I would appreciate feedback on this dilemma.
Thank you!
Stephanie
