Hosting a private room – what are your tips?

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

We’re looking for tips from hosts who list private-rooms. Many of you host guests in your home and hosting a shared space has its own set of challenges and things to think about, but there are also many rewards!

What are your top tips for hosting a private-room listing? Do provide certain items in your guest room? Perhaps you add extra information on what your guest can expect to your listing description?

We'd love to hear your input for an upcoming article. Thank you!

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Helen56]

I rent out my spare room to women only.  I treat all my guests as if they were a visiting daughter... from Hi XXX you made it here, great to see you! ...to when they go out,..... do you have your keys....

I ask about their day, if they are really young and hopeless I make them dinner....

One I drove to Best Buy as she was in tears over technology issues...   

So... if they want to talk and hang out, then I do that.  If they stay in their room I leave them alone. 

If they have a problem I try and help them out. 

If they don't know what there is to do here, I talk to them and recommend.... 

One couldn't get Uber to work on her mother's visa card, (she was from India)so I booked in on mine and she gave me cash.   

I taught one how to sew - she was here for a NASA conference, we were sewing gemstones onto spacesuit fabric.... the most difficult sewing I have ever done.

I just try and help them out, it's what I like to do.

[Sarah977]

@Helen56 I'm very much the same with my guests- I also host men, but the majority of my guests tend to be women. Last spring one of them got a stomach thing and was really sick in bed all day. I went out and got her some electrolite drinks, some plain crackers, some plain yogurt, stuff she could keep down that weren't hard to digest. And checked on her every few hours to make sure she was still alive. And even though she'd only been here for 3 nights and had another 4 on her booking, I gave her clean sheets as soon as she got better, as it's not nice to sleep on sheets you've been laying around sweating and feeling sick on all day. I tell the young ones, who go off to town for the evening in their skimpy outfits, to bring a sweater, as it will get cold later. One didn't, and told me the next day she should have taken the advice, as she was freezing. I raised 3 daughters, so it comes naturally (of course, they hated it- "Yeah yeah Mom, you don't have to tell me, I'm not a little kid anymore."). I've also started getting emergency contact info from my guests- They go into town on their own, what if I found they never came back all night and didn't answer their phone? Maybe they just met a cute guy and went home with him, but if they were AWOL for awhile, I'd be worried. 

[Rebecca160]

I often host single women travelling alone and find that I tend to be a bit nosier with them, as I want to be sure that they will have a great time here in the safest way. One young woman became instant friends with some folks she met hiking in the mountains here and decided to spend the night partying with them in Santa Fe (about 55 miles from here). She let me know where she would be (and texted me a picture of them,  yet I still worried a bit about her. She came back and said that she wished she had not done that, as there was a very pushy man who wanted to sleep with her.  Not sure what I would have done, if she had not returned, but at least I had the info she had, plus a picture. 

[Valerie192]

A little late to the thread here as I've been traveling in Spain and Italy (in mostly Airbnbs and picked up a few ideas while I was doing so including to get a usb charger put in the guest room!).

I also host in my home - I have a smaller 2 bedroom home and only take female guests.

I have found things that have worked well for me is checking in on bathroom schedule and always deferring to the guest first. If they need to get in to the bathroom at 7, even if I would have also liked to use it at 7, I get up at 6:30 instead. On the plus side I also have a gym membership near work with good shower, so having guests need to get ready in the morning is a good incentive for me to get myself to the gym in the morning before work! haha

I also tend to clean as I go...if I see hair on the bathroom floor I pick it up while I am in there, that kind of thing. I offer to wash their few dishes if I am doing mine anyway, etc.

In home hosting works well for me as I live a pretty busy life - I am usually only home some evenings and in and out on the weekend.

Their bedroom door has a privacy lock which means they can lock it when they are inside but I was concerned about doing a real lock because I want to be able to get into the room in an emergency. I figure that they have much more reason to trust me (100 reviews and counting) than I do of them frankly. I peronsally always lock my bedroom door when I leave.

I do have a lot of stuff out and about in the shared spaces such as the bathroom, kitchen and living room. But that is where trust comes in and I figure most people aren't going to be super inclined to try to smuggle a blender out the door. That said, I have had only one incident of theft where a guest who stayed while I was away took a few of my personal toiletry items. That was quite unfortunate but I have had no other incidents like that and I have been hosting for almost a year and a half.

Unlike many others, I don't prioritize greeting in person. My schedule does not permit greeting upon arrival most of the time, but I do always make sure to check in very close to arrival and greet them personally as soon as possible. 

The highest compliment I get in a review is when a guest says it felt like a "home away from home" so I figure I must be doing something OK! 🙂

[Lori11]

Hi Everybody,

I am Lori, and I have been sharing rooms in my single family home home for the past four years.

What is unique about me, is that I have more than one private room to share. I have to think about how one guest might impact another guests' stay, so I incorporated this into my house rules. I also send my guest a quick note the morning after their first night in my house and ask, "How was your first night in my home?"

Did you sleep well, and was the temp ok? Please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything"

I also follow pretty much everything that Paul Mentioned above.

I try to read my guests, in terms of how much interaction they would like, I am pretty open and friendly, so I am comfortable sharing a coffee or a glass of wine if my guest is around.

I find the most challenging thing is that most travellers don't seem to read the details before they arrive, so i rewrote my welcome letter recently to say

"Hi, please tell me what brings you to Boston, who you will be travelling with , and about what time you plan to arrive. Please confirm that you have read the details and house rules about my listing, it really helps things to go more smoothly.

Thanks so much"

Since I made this part of my auto welcome letter, I get much better messages from potential guests.

It can be a bit discouraging when a potential guests write in their first messgae letter, "how far are you from the sunbway?" No hello or anything friendly!

My listing description literally says 5 minute walk to the subway in the first sentence.

Other than that I always say, that airbnb has made me more optimistic in general about people, 99% of the people in the world no matter where they come from are wonderful. Luckily the 1% of not so great guests are very infrequent.

The worst problem I ever have is with people who are entitled and are not respectful of me or my home.

I also offer alot of amenities as well. People seem to like that 🙂

Lori

[Catherine52]

I find that the best way to host is to manage expectations! “Hello! I’m sure you noticed that you will be sharing my home with me and my 2 dogs.” I have set aside space in my fridge for guests and a place for their food. If guests like to cook every night I mention that in my review, not as a negative thing but just to let other hosts know what to expect. I recently found a USB charger at IKEA that I keep in the guest room. I also have a little fan/heater to allow them to keep the room at their preferred temperature. This year I’m making my back garden into an outdoor living space to appeal to guests. I plan to increase my rates once it’s done (again, enough with the suggestions to decrease my prices!)

I added to my description that my place is not available for last minute stays. I find that every time I’ve allowed people to stay before I was ready they give me a lower rating for cleanliness. So I won’t jeopardize my Superhost status for a last minute stay. 

[Wendy724]

Hi

I agree that all guests have different needs. I usually speak to them when they first arrive to discuss how much interaction they would like. As the living  room is a communal space I ask them to join me if I'm there. I also suggest that if they leave their room door ajar they are happy to chat and if it's closed they want privacy. (And I do the same). That way the shy people don't have to start the conversation!

If I'm going out then I am clear as to my return so that they can use the whole space for themselves. I have a whiteboard for message too which makes it easy to communicate!

Another tip is to clearly label things for guest use. I have labels on kitchen doors/bathroom shelves/fridge areas etc stating 'anything here for guest use'. This makes the environment more relaxed as they know what they can use. 

I do find that not every one reads the manual and so leaving friendly signs and information around the house in smaller bites are easier to digest for those. 

[Bill349]

The devil is in the details. Yes the pertinent  things about me and my home are listed first,Then I have pages and pages and pages of details. I constantly tweek these pages cuz I don't want anyone misunderstanding. I can always say if there's an issue, it was in my listing. Yes it is very rare for someone to read everything but at least it's there. I also state first in the summary please read everything before booking. And after they book, I respond with thank you for reading everything & choosing my home etc. 

I also offer 15 complimentary amenities. Daily newspaper, bottled water, firewood and so on. Fresh flowers and a fruit basket are necessary are you guests are impressed. I prefer a social aspect for my guess and express that in my listing. Although I try to give " nesters"all  the privacy they want.

So many little things you can do. Everyone sells steak, you have to sell the sizzle. Brochures for local attractions, menus from local restaurants, hair dryer, makeup mirror, and don't forget European electrical conversion plugs if you get international guests like I do.

In my photos I use actual quotes from guest  reviews. IE, cover shot of my home comes with an actual quote from a guest that said "one of my top airbnb's in the country" then I list her first name, month and year she stayed, and number of stars given.

point out safety features like smoke alarms, CO2 detector, and fire extinguisher locations.

I have a free-standing chalkboard on my kitchen counter that I write their names, welcome, and Wi-Fi password.

Do not crowd their room with decorative useless items. Space is what they need if you have a smaller type bedroom.

Invest in the best mattress and bedding you can afford.

If you offer coffee take it up the a step to a premium brand , people notice. I use Peetes premium French roast.

I remind them after they settled in that I desire to give and get 5 Star reviews. I tell them while I cannot change my home or locations if there's anything I'm not doing properly, notify me before you leave negative feedback. I have 100% 5-star feedback.

Finally relax and be yourself.

[Linda108]

Good for you to try to inform your guests.  Have you ever heard the comment, "small print". ?  It refers to the contracts that have a lot of information that is beyond the average person to understand.

[Akos4]

Hey everyone. We always make sure to put a welcome pack in the room, which contains a personalized welcome note, house manual, some chocolates, etc. We always make sure we provide extra amenities in the bathroom as well, so that the guests fell as much home as they can. They love it, this never proves me wrong. I can only recommend it. Not much effort but great return.

[Florence-And-Michael0]

I am late in this conversation but...

I have only hosted a private room...ever. I have three bedrooms in my house... 

the most booked room is actually occupied by my son.

My challenge is to clear everything in the room prior to a guest arrival. That means I have to remove all his clothes from the armoire and closets, inlcuding books and toys from the shelves and move him to our master bedroom. 

My challenges are these:

1. security- since I have a child at home he sleeps with us everytime we have a guest. even if the other two rooms are empty. We have installed a locks in all rooms where one can lock any room both inside and outside (expect for pop-up bedroom in the living room)

i also have old fashioned house keys in the house. I re-key the entire house everytime one guest leaves. 

I would like to see how other guests go about securing their house locks after a guest leaves. 

2. shared space-

kitchen. We have had guests who stayed with us for several weeks even months. we had to learn how to take turns in using one kitchen stove and sink

living room - i have a small couch and a large TV.  I feel awkward when I watch my TV and guests come home or come down and see fornication on Game of Thrones. 

bathroom - I have accidentally walked in on a guest dressing in the bathroom. My fault totally. I was in authomatic mode and never thought I had a guest. She was understanding and forgave the mistake. she still gave em a 5 star review. 

3. higher cost of electric bill - i hosted a guest over the winter for a month and was shocked to see my electric bill beyond doubled after she left. I guess she was using the electric heater every night or may have left it on during the day. i have a "closed door" policy in the house and have failed to spot check if she has left her heater on during the day.

4. noise - my house is squeaky. I hear anybody who is up and I am sure they do too.

5. privacy - i do not advertise to my friends or family or neighbors that I host in Airbnb. I feel that they are going to judge me negatively. So it's actually hard to say, "I really have to be home by 3 pm beause I have to open the door for my guest" and I don't want to lie... so I end up taking a vacation day just to be home or rearrange my personal life a bit to accommodate guests.

I host because it funds my vacation for my family. I get to go on nive vactions because of it. 

However, with the new NO PHOTO UNTIL GUEST IS BOOKED, I really am thinking if I should stop hosting. 

[Alina127]

I also homeshare with chidren.  If I were you I would not let people stay beyond 6-12 nights tops.   I used to host au pairs & hired live-in nannies before I became a host.  When people live in your home for a long time, they tend to be less respectful and take more liberties in your home. 

I set my max to 12 nights to be searchable but I do not offer weekly or monthly discounts.  Guests stay anywhere between 1-4 nights on average and 99% are tourists with plans to be out all day. Because tourists eat out, they hardly use kitchen.  Utilities bills are way lower because they are out the whole day and only sleep at night; when the lights are off! Tourists are willing to pay more per night. I tend to earn more with several short stays in a month over hosting one person for a month or with a leased renter.  Plus you get more reviews with shorter stays.    

We use an August smartlock, so we change the codes at each turnover.  We like it alot so we don't have to worry about staying up late or leaving work early to open the door. 

[Catherine52]

I use the Schlage digital deadbolt. No tech required and I create a code for each guest based on the last 4 digits of their phone number. I’ve only ever had one guest forget what that is!

[Stephanie1285]

Hi

I'm a host with a private room in my house. Usually I have overnight stays  of one nights but sometimes I have people stay for two. Most always, the guests are keen to get out and about touring the area but on two occasions, I have felt difficulty when guests have wanted to rest and stay in the house most of the morning. I have felt restricted and tied, not really wanting to leave the house with guests in. I have pets too.  I wasn't sure about leaving them with the guests.....am I being unreasonable?

[Linda108]

@Stephanie1285   I don't see any reviews so I am not able to assess how your guests feel about your listing and hosting.  Are you set up for guests to enjoy your whole place or are you only allowing guest access to the private room?  You can restrict guest access, but you cannot define the time they are in that private room.  If you are concerned about your pets when you are away from the listing, perhaps you should make arrrangements for the pets to be more restricted to your space.  Is there anything else that concerns you?  Of course you could make your maximum length of stay a single night and only have guests that are passing through.  

I have a private room as well and most guests are out and about or attending one of the many major events in my area.  My dog is well trained and used to the guests as I insist on an introduction during the check in.  Actually I think she gets more review credit than I do!

What is your expectation of interaction with your guests?  Do you enjoy spending some time with them?  I enjoy telling my guests about my area and helping them enjoy their time here.  

This is the time for you to zero in on the type of guest you want to host and make sure you provide what that guest would appreciate.  Good luck and welcome to hosting on this platform.