Critique my listing - Rosa from Portland, Oregon

[Rosa2892]

Critique my listing - Rosa in Portland, Oregon USA

Hello, my listing just went live and I haven’t had any bookings yet- I’d love peoples ideas about how to improve it and get more interest. It’s a long term (30+) day rental only. 

the link is: https://www.airbnb.com/h/taylorststudio

thanks for your critical eyes! 

[Sarah977]

@Rosa2892  Your place is so pretty. 

A few things that I noticed. Although you do mention that you "live next door", if this is a separate studio within the home where you live, you need to make that clear in the first part of the listing description. I can envision misunderstandings arising with guests thinking they get the entire house.

Also you have a check-out time of 12 noon and a check-in time of 2pm, so I assume that you are going to leave a day or two between bookings, because there is no way you can clean and prep the place after long term bookings in 2 hours. So make sure you have your prep day settings at 1-2 days, so no one can book to check in the same day you have a check-out. 

Also make sure to set advance notice for aat least 3 days- you don't want last minute bookings for a month long rental- you need time to communicate with guests and check out their prior reviews before you take on a monthly guest.

Make sure you have Instant Book turned off, for the same reasons.

Are you only accepting monthly rentals due to restrictions on strs in your area, or by choice? Because long term rentals are risky on Airbnb and a guest who stays for more than 28 days becomes a tenant in the eyes of the law and will then fall under landlord/tenant acts. 

[Rosa2892]

Thank you so much!  Super helpful advice- I will definitely adjust my settings to give more advance notice. I clean the place myself, and I have a full time job, so I have the in-between stays days set to 3. 

This apartment is in a 4-plex next door to my home, so a separate single family house- do you think i should be more explicit that this apartment is in a building with 4 other apartments?

Im experimenting with listing long-term furnished on this platform- the other units are long term renters, in unfurnished apartments. Our local ordinances only allow for long term rentals in this kind of property.  I wasn’t going to use air BnB, but a couple of people told me that some people looking for long term do use it, so I’m giving it a try! 

[Sarah977]

@Rosa2892  Yes, you should definitely describe the 4 plex situation. Guests need to be clear on whether there are other tenants in the building. Also, I didn't notice if you did, but if there is a shared hallway or yard with other guests or tenants, that needs to be mentioned as well. 

Yes, there are plenty of Airbnb guests looking for long term, so you will likely get plenty of interest, just be aware that you won't have the same protections you would with a standard lease situation.

I would also steer clear of accepting guests with no history of good reviews on Airbnb. There are tons of newbie guests these days who have no clue how to be a welcome guest. That's not such an issue if they are only staying for a night or a few, but you don't want to get stuck with an objectionable long-termer. 

Make sure when you communicate with guests when they request a booking, that they have thoroughly read through all the listing information, are aware of the house rules, and agree to them. Lots of Airbnb guests, especially new ones, do not read through hardly anything- they look at the pretty photos and the price and have the typical reading attention span of the texting generation. 

[Rosa2892]

Got it, thank you! Yes there’s a shared front door and foyer, that are pictured in the listing. I’ll add notes to the pictures and mention in the description that they will share that space.

I plan to ask people to sign my standard long term lease that I use with all tenants. I have that listed in the house rules, along with a security deposit that I plant to collect and refund through the resolution center. It seems like it’s a little unusual to do it like this on the AirBnB platform, but it also seems like the only way to safely welcome people who will be real long term tenants, both in the eyes of the local laws and practically speaking. I imagine there probably won’t be many people who will stay for years, but certainly after a few months there are lots of considerations that you wouldn’t have over a weekend!