Long-Term Rentals Penalize Superhosts

[Melisande0]

I just lost my over 2-year Superhost status because due to new local zoning,  I can now only host long-term.  And though my place has been booked solid ( 3 separate "trips") since January,  and my overall rating is 5.0 (see below), they revokes my Superhost status. This is because Airbnb requires 10 bookings to achieve or keep Superhost status.  This is no doubt affecting any Superhost who is no longer able to do short-term rentals.

This policy is completely unfair, and in no way reflects my hosting quality.  I want it changed now!!

Overall rating

5.0 󰀄
Response rate

100%

Cancellations

0/yr

Trips reviewed

66%

[Nikola15]

My situation is very much the same. Due to zoning laws in Mendocino County that would require me to get a Major Use Permit costing over $7,000 I agreed to do 30+ days only bookings. Yesterday I got the email saying I was no longer a Superhost. I called and the reason was I hadn’t met the minimum number of bookings and reviews. So no more Superhost badge, or travel credits as a thank you. Long term hosts bring Airbnb a steady stream of income and in my case for many months at a time plus I have 3 rooms that are often all rented. I just don’t get it!  Maybe Airbnb has grown so much so fast they aren’t able to track all of this. I still think this is a great platform but I hope they will do the right moving forward and reward all the hosts who are the foundation of the company. Any big business knows that if they don’t keep their employees happy eventually they will leave. 

[Melisande0]

When I spoke to the support person via chat, she suggested I give feedback about the 10-trip minimum.  I did, and urge other Superhosts who can only do long-term bookings and have lost their status to do the same.  There needs to be a separate catagory to cover long-term only hosts. 

I have been hosting via Airbnb since 2012, and have pulled in thousands of dollars for them.  This is no way to treat a loyal employee!   I am seriously considering moving over to VRBO or HomeAway.

[Heather-Jane0]

This happened to me in Las Vegas. I not only contacted every future guest, I also contacted airbnb. They helped me through the process and my status was not affected. 

It was a pain in the but what the city put me through but airbnb will help you. Just get ahold of them before canceling future bookings.

Hope this was helpfull. By the way I am fitting this all the way to the suppreme court. They are violating

our constitutional rights. Privacy, property and the right to work.

[Inna22]

Why did you have to cancel the bookings? How is this related to OP?

[Daniel1992]

How exactly are Constitutional rights being violated?

[Letti0]

@Daniel1992  The Texas supreme court come out against HOA's stating no STR's as a voilation of you private property rights.

Clip from article:

Separate from deed restrictions, there are also local ordinances on short-term rentals in place in more than a dozen Texas cities. While Friday’s ruling doesn’t directly concern those restrictions, the strong attention it gives to property rights and the court's unanimous support for it may well bolster the case of a group of short-term renters and guests who have sued the city of Austin, alleging that its short-term rental ordinance, one of the state’s oldest and strictest, unconstitutionally infringes on their rights.

https://www.texastribune.org/2018/05/25/airbnb-homeaway-texas-supreme-court-ken-paxton-austin-ordina...

[Fred13]

What other system would you suggest, considering that some hosts do switch from short > long < short > long term frequently. How would a computer know what 'fair' standard to individually apply to the 1,000,000 hosts Airbnb now has? 

[Melisande0]

Hi Fred.  It would be very easy to apply a rule to the booking software to route any rental over 30 days to a  for Hosts who can only provide long-term rentals.  I know this because I work with the same software platform they use. 

What I am suggesting is that Airbnb add a category for Hosts who, due to local ordinances, are no longer allowed host short-term.  This category would have its own requirements for maintaining Superhost status.  The only requirement that would actually need to change would be the limit for number of "trips" hosted per quarter or year.  

I have been an Airbnb host since 2012, and have maintained Superhost status continously for over 2 years.  I should not be penalized because my municipality changed its zoning laws.

[Emilia42]

@Melisande0, It should be changed to “nights per year” instead of “bookings per year.” You would have to host at least 30 nights a year to maintain Superhost status; or something like that.

[Melisande0]

I like that!  With that designation, I have had 298 nights this year since I have been booked non-stop since January 19.   I have a 5.0 rating for those. 

[Francisca16]

@ Emilia, I think 30 nights per quarter is better than 30 nights a year. Since Superhost are being rated every quarter.

[Inna22]

This is a short term rental platform, so most rules are geared towards a most common user. If you only have very few (but long term) rentals, you will get few reviews which are a feedback about you as a host. A superhost is someone who provides consistently good service. While I am sure you do, this is hard to verify because the sample size of your guests is so small.  Also, if your place deteriorated or your hosting style took a turn for the worst (lets say you hired a mgmt. company and they are terrible), it would take months for it to reflect in your feedback

[Melisande0]

As I just replied to Fred, It would be very easy to apply a rule to the booking software to route any rental over 30 days to a  for Hosts who can only provide long-term rentals.  I know this because I work with the same software platform they use. 

What I am suggesting is that Airbnb add a category for Hosts who, due to local ordinances, are no longer allowed host short-term.  This category would have its own requirements for maintaining Superhost status.  The only requirement that would actually need to change would be the limit for number of "trips" hosted per quarter or year.  

I have been an Airbnb host since 2012, and have maintained Superhost status continously for over 2 years.  I should not be penalized because my municipality changed its zoning laws.

[J-Renato0]

@Melisande0

You have a point!

From my point of view, 1 review for long stay (e.g. more than 1 month) is not fair in terms of statiscts.

My suggestion: If a guest book an aparatment/house/room  mid or long term, the renter (guest) should be allowed to write a review each month during its stay.