need suggestion on pricing and room configurations

[Florence-And-Michael0]

I recently canceled my first guest and know that my placement in search algorithm will now be lower. 

I also know that in the last 2 years, the area where I am at is flooded with other hosts with more competitive pricing.

I am 13 miles from NYC; within 10 miles of a 2 trauma hospitals, 2 colleges, a national park and several major highways.

I am struggling to find that sweet spot on pricing. 

I have searched hotels in my area and right now it's trending to be in the $80s-110s (closer to NYC is higher)

My rooms are private but I live in the same house with my family, so I know I cannot get those guests who want an entire place to themselves...

I get more long term guests than short-term guests (> 2 weeks, longest was 3 months!)

I have longs spells of vacancies....

I have tried the smart pricing before and got burned by attracting the wrong crowd... When I turned on the smart pricing, it went down so low (in the $30s) that I got literally robbed and had to open a case against the guest. 

I have a room with a double bed, another room with a single bed and a space in the living room that I put up and turn down when a guest wants to rent it. 

I was thinking of combining the two rooms in another listing and potentially capture a guest group looking for two rooms. I'm thinkning of pricing it about 75% of the two rooms combined. 

Thoughts? 

What's your formula for pricing?

[Linda108]

Beware of "formulas", @Florence-And-Michael0 .  Every listing is unique and only the host will be able to price that aspect, as you discovered with the Smart Pricing option.  I have two rooms in my listing and I have found being able to serve larger parties is very good marketing.  At first I had only singles or couples with a nice single room with an attached bathroom.  Now I can accommodate, two singles, parents with teenage children, 4 singles, a couple and 2 singles.  I have enjoyed the diversity.  Add another listing to accommodate those who want 2 rooms. 

[Florence-And-Michael0]

@Linda108 I looked at your listing... 

You only have one room listed. 

I have all 3 listed separately. 

hve you tried listing each rooms separately and then changed it to one listing only or have you always just had that option to add the second room? 

I am thinking of adding a two-room combination so I can capture that popultaion who would put in two rooms for two guests. Thoughts? 

[Linda108]

You are correct, @Florence-And-Michael0, that I added a secondary room, not a second listing.  I do not want to offer a shared bathroom so only a single party is in the house.  This single party can use one or both rooms for 1-4 guests.  In  your case, you can have 3 separate parties that share 1.5 bathrooms.  If you want to allow a single party, you might want to consider combining the two rooms that accommodate 2 guests each for a total of 4 guests.  In that listing rather than doubling the charge per night, consider a modest nightly rate with an extra guest fee over 2 guests.  Of course, I am in a very different market than you are.  We are event and seasonal weather driven.