Tips for screening against all night noisemaking guests

Dylan1
Level 2
Santa Monica, CA

Tips for screening against all night noisemaking guests

I've had a few bad experiences recently where 20-something guests book my house and then stay up until 4 AM playing music, talking, and partying. This has become more frequent in this COVID-19 era, I think, because instead of going to Las Vegas, groups of kids are renting houses for a vacation closer to home. The worst case was a group who lied about their ages and intentions, saying they were looking for a family-friendly home and were coming to quietly celebrate their mom's 92nd birthday. They had no reviews, I believed them and then regretted it. Even those who don't upset the neighbors bother me because I live on site and the wall in between the main house and my apartment doesn't shield me from their music and noise. 

 

What tips do you have for screening guests? I've got the usual disclaimers about no parties and bothering the neighbors. How do I screen for guests who won't stay up all night?

14 Replies 14

@Dylan1  I don't think the solution to this lies completely in your screening process. Even an honest guest might have great reviews from 2019, when they could travel wherever they want and have the normal range of nightlife options outside of the home available to them - but that doesn't necessary predict how they'll behave when all of these venues are shut down and the only place they can have fun with their friends at night is inside their accommodation.

 

Clearly, "usual disclaimers" aren't adequate for your listing. Your rules appear to tiptoe around specificity, which makes them relatively toothless - I'd suggest marking a firm cutoff time for music and conversation in outdoor space. Many host call it "quiet hours," but you need to go a step further and say exactly what that entails. Obviously you leave off Instant Book, so that when you get a request you can discuss your concerns with prospective guests and make sure you're on the same page before you confirm. If some party animals still slip through your filters, an unambiguous set of rules puts you in a much better position to intervene and enforce them before your neighbors have cause to complain.

 

You might also reconsider the parameters of your listing. Just because the house can accommodate 7 people doesn't mean that a group of this size is optimal for you. Your listing makes no mention of the fact that you're living on the other side of an apparently non-soundproof wall - it looks from the outside like a large self-contained home - so it's not surprising that your guests book with the expectation that they have the privacy to enjoy each other's company at the hours they please.

Dylan1
Level 2
Santa Monica, CA

Thanks for the thoughtful feedback, @Anonymous. 

 

There is actually a notice that I'm living on the property, as we're required to do in Santa Monica when renting less than 30 days, but it's in the second section "The space." Maybe I should make it more prominent.

 

There are definitely two considerations regarding noise. I absolutely can't have the neighbors bothered after 10 PM, so no outside noise. And lately I've been starting to realize that if my guests aren't asleep by 1 AM, then it's a real bother for me inside the house. 

 

Such a tricky balance here. I don't want to frighten the majority away with all these rules and constraints. I want them to feel welcome. But I do want to avoid getting the kids who want rent a house and stay up all night...

@Dylan1 I agree with Andrew that it’s going to be hard to fix this issue by simply screening these guests out. Since having guests be quiet indoors and out is important to you, you might remove all the references to audio/visual equipment. Having a great indoor and outdoor sound system is no doubt very enticing to the groups you’re trying to avoid. 

Guests are not good at ‘actually’ reading house rules. To that end, you might take the rule you have about being quiet and include it in a pre booking message (if you do request to book, send a message before accepting). Add to it to say if the rule is disregarded, booking will be terminated, without refund. Tell the guest you want to avoid any potential for misunderstanding, and to clarify they are good with this rule. If not, they can withdraw their request. 


If, despite your best efforts, you get an undesirable or noisy group in, you can refer them back to your booking conversation, and have the leverage you need to get them out (or get them to quiet down for good).

Thanks, @Colleen253. I've been using variations on the same pre-booking messages for years. So far it's served me very well, but COVID seems to have kept the kids locally who'd otherwise travel to Mexico or Las Vegas to party. I'll beef it up so everybody's expectations are the same. Cheers.

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Dylan1  I would remove the "so most likely you won't see me" wording. Just saying you live in the other side of the duplex is plenty and you want guests to be a bit cautious about their behavior because the host is right next door, not give the impression that you're almost an absentee host.

 

Better wording would be "I live in the other side of the duplex, so I'm always available to answer any questions or help if needed."

 

And maybe play around with the description to make it more personal. Just listing all the great things about the house and the location can make it come across as an anonymous party house, rather than someone's home.

Dylan1
Level 2
Santa Monica, CA

Great advice, @Sarah977 . I'll work on an edit now.

@Dylan1  This gives me some pause:

"if my guests aren't asleep by 1 AM, then it's a real bother for me inside the house."

 

Having quiet hours that don't disturb the neighbors is one thing, but if people of any age rent an Entire Home property they'll have the reasonable expectation that they can at least socialize with each other at a normal volume and use the home's facilities at any hours, rather than feeling hemmed in by the host's bedtime. Privacy is one of your big selling features, and that's definitely diminished if people feel the host can hear them as they go about their business. 

 

If maximizing occupancy is your goal, you might be better off making some changes in your own side of the home - better sound insulation, earplugs, etc - so that the non-excessive noise isn't such a bother for you. But if that's not viable, you might have to reconsider if short stays are even suitable for you. People on a short vacation, liberated from the constraints of their daily lives, have every reason to stay up late and enjoy the few precious moments of leisure time they have with their loved ones. But stays of 2 weeks or more tend to have a different pattern, with guests settling into a daily routine that with some luck might more closely align with yours.  

I appreciate your reply, @Anonymous. Guests wanting to enjoy their time together is of course reasonable. You're making an assumption however about the noise that prompted me to post this. I've been hosting in the same house, same living situation, for several years now. Only in the last couple of months have the guests been so crazy. No amount of sound-proofing -- which I already have -- can mute music turned up loud with a subwoofer going full bore.

 

These aren't people "enjoying precious moments of leisure time with their loved ones", these are kids partying loudly. Santa Monica requires hosts to stay on-site for short stays precisely to keep such partying from ruining neighborhoods. They don't allow this in hotels and the city didn't want our scant open housing to turn into unregulated hotels where anything goes.

 

As I mentioned, this is a new situation -- possibly triggered by COVID. These are kids pooling their money and instead of traveling, they're renting houses locally and behaving as if they're in Las Vegas at a club, not in a quiet residential neighborhood. It's a recent development, and I was looking for trips to screen them out. Having a bad fit does nobody any good.

 

If they can't be screened, then so be it. I'll communicate more up front to be on the same page before booking. Cheers.

Sandra126
Level 10
Daylesford, Australia

Consider removing the subwoofer, @Dylan1 

Anna9170
Level 10
Lloret de Mar, Spain

@Dylan1  Why put a subwoofer when everyone is just trying to minimize noise from guests? Considering the capacity of your home, it attracts ticktockers and partyers, not intelligent jazz fans. 😉 I have an extra Bluetooth jbl music speaker, which I would be happy to give to the guests. But, none of them will listen to music exactly until 23.00, why create unnecessary problems for neighbors and yourself. ))

Dylan1
Level 2
Santa Monica, CA

I urge folks to read the full context of my post. 

 

a) I have been a Superhost for years, with a variety of guests. 

b) This is my home. I'm not "putting" a subwoofer in there. It's been part of my stereo system, which I enjoy and have been happy for my guests to as well, just not at 4 AM. 

c) It's a recent development that I've had a few rude and prevaricating partiers recently, likely due to their abridged travel options due to COVID. 

d) I asked about screening tips.

 

Based on the feedback and my own thinking, I've updated my listing, procedures for screening and will set expectations in pre-booking emails. 

 

Thanks much for your responses. I have what I need now. 

Anna9170
Level 10
Lloret de Mar, Spain

@Dylan1  What has been "for many years" now almost does not matter. The world has changed over the last year, as it has in a hundred years.
"It's been part of my stereo system, which I enjoy and have been happy for my guests to as well, just not at 4 AM. "
So, but this is not your house, you rent a separate house. Yes, you live nearby, I read about the rules.
You can sit on your rules and prove yourself right, or you can make reasonable changes in the listing, given that everything in our lives has changed over the past year.
If the stereo system is so important, just spend time there and have fun, it will be great, I sincerely say it.
If you are renting out your house, then be reasonable when any noise or meetings from 6 people are already considered suspicious.

Thanks.

Pete69
Level 10
Los Angeles, CA

I agree with everyone that many people just do not read or they don't care about following anyone's rules. You have to scare these people off early -- like in the headline and in the first paragraph. If your house is in a quiet area then mention that in your HEADLINE for sure. 

Do neighbors tend to all go to bed by 9 or 10 O'clock? Mention that somewhere in your descriptions too. Make up a story about how the neighbors are known for calling the police if people are too loud after hours.