How to avoid unwillingly hosting a party-- tips, red flags, etc

[Laura2592]

I am posting this because there have been some truly mind boggling party threads with hosts left holding the bags while guests are free to re-book with others and impugn with bad reviews. Until Airbnb does something about this, maybe we can share knowledge about what to look for and things to do to avoid this happening in our listings. I know there is no way to really 100% guarantee that, but I wanted to reach out to the community and see what knowledge we can all impart to one another. 

So here are some things I have gleaned and/or implemented that seem to help:

1. 2 night minimum stay

2. On site cameras (Ring doorbell, outdoor cameras on the entrances to our house.)

3. Neighbors who will alert you to anything odd happening

4. When guests book, reiterating what we define as a "a party" as well as our extra guest fees and procedures as well as house rules

  ("Thank you for booking! Due to the tragic happenings during an unauthorized party at an Airbnb in California, we have implemented some additional safety procedures for guests. These include a zero tolerance party policy at our cottage. We define a "party" as a get together with guests who are not authorized on the reservation. Any violation of this will include the cancellation of the booking, extra charges for cleaning and damage repair and reporting to Airbnb." Etc etc.)

5. In person check in for any reservations which seem "off" or informing the guests that we will be stopping by after they check in to bring by some goodies and greet them.

Curious to hear what others have done or found helpful.  Please share your tips!

[Paul154]

All your suggestions are spot on.

I can add one more: Require and copy an ID at checkin.

It reminds guest that renting is serious business and there may be consequences.

[Mark116]

@Laura2592  I think you hit all the best strategies, I would add putting in the house rules that no one who isn't listed as a guest on the reservation is allowed on the property w/out prior permission of the host...this closes the loophole some people seem to use that they had a 'gathering' 'a few friends/family stopped by' and not a party and makes it very clear that only registered guests are allowed.  

Our listing isn't really prone to be a 'party house' place because we live on site and because it's not large or grand enough, but we found this rule is helpful.  We've also never said no to anyone who wanted their son/cousin/friend to stay over one night or have a dinner party, because the purpose is prevention of extra guests and rowdy behavior, not really to prevent small scale socializing.

[Laura2592]

@Mark116 we aren't  "party prime" either  as we are not a huge space with a pool in a major tourist area or anything close. But it can happen anywhere. Our listing is pretty secluded, so I could see people thinking no one would notice. Little do they realize our next door neighbors are good friends and one is a county police officer!

[Laura2592]

Here is another-- be leery of "party holiday" bookings. I keep getting inquiries about New Year's Eve for guests that want a single night. We have it blocked off on our calendar as we are using the first part of the year for maintenance and our own stay. Nonetheless, I have had at least three inquiries from guests new to Airbnb with zero feedback asking about these dates. Halloween and St Patrick's Day saw similar inquiries last year. 

[Kelly149]

@Laura2592  IMO #3 is the big problem. 
“this isn’t a party, we’ve been at a funeral”

”this isn’t a party, they just need to sleep off our night out”

”this isn’t a party, we work together”

and so on... 

so you need enough education to convince guests that the guest count matters and they can’t add to it. At all. This is a struggle. 

secondly, for the liars you need them to know that they are “seen” and that you will kick them out. And then you need a plan for how YOU (not abb, not police) will get them out. This is also not easy. 

a real security deposit would be helpful, abb having some gumption in this area would be helpful. 

[Laura2592]

@Kelly149  we let guests know we need accurate records of who stays in our place for insurance, and that we have a fire marshall who lives down the street and a county police officer next door who are "sensitive" to excessive numbers of people at our place. We are still relatively new to Airbnb and have run into a lot of people who think that bringing kids or extra family members to our place ("I was visiting my grandkids and they decided to stay over" is very common) is no cause for alarm. Though this is not a "party" we have gotten much stricter over time about overnight guests who are not on the reservation no matter if they are kids or adults. A lot of guests just don't get that. I do wish Airbnb would create some "great guest guidelines" and describe general etiquette. 

[Kelly149]

@Laura2592 Yep, this is very much an abb created problem. 

every host here probably has a story about some guest who said “well I rented the whole place”, “they’re just kids”, “it’s just one night”, “I didn’t know someone would agree to come home with me”.....

abb ToS specifically forbid bringing anyone extra to an Experience so clearly abb knows how to write that sentence. They’ve just chosen not to in regard to Homes. 

[Brian1564]

@Laura2592 Excellent Idea!!: 'need accurate record for insurance'  I'm totally stealing that 😉 

I've been using: "we'll need to know the make up of your group, ages, etc. to better accommodate you during your stay"  I've had most guests respond with: 'Oh, it's my wife and 3 kids (10,8 and 6) and my Brother and his wife'  Or something like that.  (we host up to 8 in a 3 bedroom 2.5 bath house).  When I get "what do you mean" ? or someone books the house for ONE guest,, I'll elaborate.  I've weeded a few out this way but a guest that's got zero reviews (I host them a lot) and joined yesterday to book this weekend raises my warning flags. 

[Doris104]

I too had trouble with extra guests on the booking and a huge party that was planned for New Years in my air bnb. My cleaner went in to clean for next guests that afternoon December 30th when she informed me that the people are still there but not answering the door this was an hour after check out time so I called him and he thought he booked for two nights and was in another town I told him I’m on my way over.

When I got there I was shocked at the amount of alcohol (5 cases of hard booze, cases of beer) plus they had boxes of fireworks and this is to be for four adults?? There where two children and I don’t know how many adults but I just started hauling everything that was all over the place out the door so when they arrived they had to haul their stuff away. I did avoid a large party from damaging my place but what I don’t understand is that pervious reviews had no complaints and they followed all the rules but they broke most of mine so bottom line is that a previous good review does not always help.

[Brian1564]

Anyone notice Airbnb removed the 'under 23 flag' lately??  I had a large group of 17-19 year olds asking to book.  I was able to find this out by probing a bit but, how am I Really supposed to know if I'm messaging a 45 year old father of 4 wanting some time away with the family or a kid that turned 18 this morning looking to party with his friends?  The adult may be offended by the questions and the kid will usually answer anything to land the reservation for the party.   

[Huma0]

@Brian1564 

I'm interested in this 'under 23 flag' as I've noticed a few hosts mention it here on the CC (although they all refer to it as under 25) but have never seen it myself despite having hosted loads of guests in their early twenties and many in their late teens. Was this just for whole properties?

[Elaine701]

I am also interested in this. VRBO has a minimum booking age setting. I've set ours for 30. If the person booking the reservation is younger than that, they can't book it. 

Oh, and here's what I'm now writing to all inquiries that have no history or reviews, always some time the first welcome and thanks for your inquiry message, typically the final one before authorizing their booking:

Hello (name) ,

As you have no history with Airbnb, and we can't be sure if you fully understand the terms of your stay, I do need to explain them to you:

LOW SEASON PRICING

The base pricing in the low season is for two guests. Each additional guest above 2 persons has an extra charge. It is therefore required that your booking reflects the actual number of persons who will be occupying the villa. Any unbooked persons found staying at the villa will be charged double the usual rate. 

You will have access to one bedroom for every two persons booked. A third person will have a separate bedroom, as would a 5th person, or a 7th. If you require a separate bedroom beyond this limitation, we will be happy to prepare one at additional cost. Example: 2 persons booked, but needing separate bedrooms. 

Your will have the entire villa to yourself. It comfortably accommodates 8 persons and is quite spacious. That also means that keeping it heated and powered has an additional cost. As written in our house rules, and as a binding term of your booking, in the winter, we impose an additional 15€ per night energy charge, which you can choose to pay through Airbnb (+15% commission), via PayPal, or in cash on arrival. We will send you an official invoice for these costs. 

PARTIES

Parties are forbidden without our express consent. At this time, parties are also forbidden by government imposed covid19 restrictions, punishable by up to 40000€ in fines. If you have an unauthorized party in the villa, we will be forced to evict you immediately, and demand additional compensation, up to 2000€, in addition to any fines levied by the government.

SMOKING

Smoking inside the house is expressly forbidden. There are ashtrays on the terrace and at the pool bar. If you smoke, please use them. If we find that anyone has been smoking inside the house, including the existence if lingering tobacco or other smoke related odor, we will demand a minimum of 500€ compensation, depending on the severity of the violation. 

These terms are to ensure that you and future guests thoroughly enjoy your stay at Villa Son Gat.

If you understand and agree to these terms, I will be delighted to approve your booking. Please indicate your understanding and acceptance, or decline.

Having said that, I'm confident that you will enjoy the villa, and we look forward to hosting your stay.

Thanks again,

Elaine 
Proprietor
Villa Son Gat Mallorca

*****

We'll see how that works. I think it will. 

[Ute42]

.

@Elaine701 

Congratulations. These are no uncertain words, not much room for misunderstandings.

I also use a standard message which is different from Yours, it has a line saying: „This place is no good choice for picky people“. Does that deter guests from booking? Well, in 3 years only 2 potential guests out of 120 didn't book. We have to be clear in our communication with guests, that's the only way it works.

[Travis206]

Not allowing local bookings is a good one.  The two big issues we had were local bookings.  You might lose out on a couple reservations, but you will avoid big parties.  We've set a limit of about 40 miles.