Airbnb did something right!

[Jennifer178]

So I was taking a peek at the airbnb scene here in Philly and stumbled upon some new info.  At least I think it is new.   I took a picture but cannot figure out how to post it because they need info like source and dimension. And I know neither.  If someone can explain how to post the pictures, I will.

When you look up Philly with no dates, the price + cleaning fee shows up under the listing picture. It will say for example,  From $125 + $45 cleaning fee.

If you put in specific dates, it will say for example $330 total. 

Then you can click on the ? and it will break it down as $125 x 2 nights   $250

                                                                                                                   Cleaning fee        $45

                                                                                                                   Service Fee           $35   

Guests see this before they even click on your listing.  I love it.  I rent out a private room (2 night minimum) but I am as expensive as many entire place listings but with no cleaning fee.  If people are looking at the page with no dates, they can see who charges a cleaning fee right away.  Makes me look good next to an entire place that charges the around the same nightly or less rate but with a cleaning fee. And of course private rooms with a low rate but outrageous cleaning fees.

I am seeing this while on the computer.  When I looked on my phone and tablet, it is not there.  I checked mutliple cities all over the world and it is there.

[Susan151]

@Jennifer178. I first started to see this two days ago. I like the transparancy that this provide. It is disappointing to hear that the change has not been pushed to the mobile versions. The room fee is still some random number if you haven't entered any dates, but that is to be expected. I was surprised, for example, when I viewed your listing, when I finally found an open night, the price was lower than the "banner" amount.

[Jennifer178]

@Susan151,  What you saw is probably some dates in May that I am doing some experimentation with on pricing as regards to views.  Just messing with the algorithm bots for fun.

[Ben551]

Wow, I'm still learning things about this platform.  I've always known it to work as @Jennifer178 describes, but I've only been hosting less than 2 months. I don't know what came before, so I got used to seeing it this way.  I guess it's not the same everywhere yet.

[Jennifer178]

Hi @Ben551,

What came before was the need to click on a specific listing with dates in order to see the real pricing.  It would be nice if Airbnb added in the occupancy/tourist tax as well on those first pages, at least for the cities where they collect it.  As it is now, you still do not see the Philly tax until you have dates and a specific listing. 

(Of course hosts whom have to collect it themselves should have a place in the pricing for it along with a pet fee option instead of trying to collect through the resolution center)

But onward and upward!  You lovely Kiwis must have been the guinea pigs.

[Ben551]

Makes sense @Jennifer178 - hey, we might be in the same boat about the bed tax thing soon.  It's already happened in some cities, like Auckland, where a new Airbnb bed tax and rates will apply.  Most people are leaving Airbnb because of it, according to FB (hard to tell how many people are actually leaving, but a lot of people are saying they are).

It's on the way to Wellington next, the council have announced... scary stuff.  It means an extra bill of $4,000 to $6,000 per year for the average host, unless you host less than 29 days.  Sad thing is, once you are on the "business rates" level, you stay there for the rest of the year, whether you quit Airbnb or not.  So even the hosts who are quitting are still getting stuck with a bill... it's all rather sad.

[Jennifer178]

@Ben551,

No matter where you stay you have to pay the tax so it is great that Airbnb collects it and remits it to the city. It is part of the deal Airbnb made with Philly and one of the reasons Philly has no problem with Airbnb.

I cannot imagine having to collect the tax separately from the guest and take the risk of having to pay it myself if I have a problem.

It is sad that so many are thinking of leaving the platform.      

[Ben551]

@Jennifer178yeah I prefer the Philly method of applying the tax, to be honest.  A lot of people in NZ are living 'hand to mouth' in terms of their existing Finances, so they can't afford to take a big risk with an extra tax they might not be able to pay.  The Philly way means you don't get taxed unless someone is actually "booked" with you, which is smart.  The lazy way they have applied a bed tax in NZ means you pay the rates no matter what, even if your bookings suddenly drop.  You'd think they would have taken the time to learn how other countries are doing this, particularly as places like Philly have been doing it a while and it's working.

[Jennifer178]

@Ben551,

That is completely messed up and one of the worst cases of bureaucratic laziness I have ever heard. 

Hopefully you guys can organize and try to get the implementation stopped and the application of the tax altered.

[Ben551]

@Jennifer178  yeah, it makes you wonder whether they are just trying to shut it down.  In my opinion if they intended for the market to remain so they could tax it, they'd have done something more along the lines of the Philly system.  It's too late to stop it in Auckland (taxes are already live and hosts are dropping like flies), but we're all holding our breaths in Wellington to see whether they do the same here or ... something... anything, smarter.

[Susan17]

@Ben551

Of course the market will remain - just not as it is now. The professional and commercial operators with deep pockets will have no problem whatsoever paying these taxes, and will continue to grow and thrive. Governments will still get their taxes. Airbnb will still get their bookings. It's just the small, independent hosts like you or I that get shut down by punitive moves like this. But hey, we're just collateral damage in the great scheme of things. 

[Ben551]

Well said @Susan17 - the professional and commercial operators aren’t bothered, and even hotel owners are saying how happy they are about the changes in Auckland. I expect hotels are hoping the change encourages a return of customers to traditional accommodation.

[Susan17]

The hotels have the best of both worlds though @Ben551,  because they're listing on the platform now too.

To make matters even worse, Airbnb is returning hotel rooms right alongside (and above) regular hosts'  private room listings in searches, even when one selects the "private rooms" filter, and even though there's a separate category especially for hotels. Lose, lose for the small hosts, as always. 

I hope the city of Wellington shows a little more mercy than Auckland. 

[Emilia42]

AND... if you search without dates it will not give you a price until you add some.

[Jennifer178]

@Emilia42,

I did search without dates like my original post states and got prices tgat said From $$$ + $$ cleaning fee.  I don’t know how to put up the pucture I took. My screen did not look like yours. Are you on a computer or a phone or tablet?.  It only works on the conputer.