New to hosting

Erin6034
Level 2
Raleigh, NC

New to hosting

I just started hosting yesterday. I have a four bedroom home and want to rent out a room that includes a private full bathroom. Do people who host tell people that want to rent the room to stay away from the rest of the house (kitchen, living room and other rooms)? Do you trust that they will or do you install cameras and locks on the doors? 

4 Replies 4
Annie1372
Level 10
Montreal, Canada

@Erin6034 

 

If you want your guest to stay away from the rest of the house while you are renting a bedroom, then maybe AirBNB is not for you.

 

reading many post on the CC for the past months, guest do not always read the house rules, and even when they do, they sometimes  don’t  follow it or even deliberately asked for exceptions or other special requirements, and even insist when host answered no the 1st time

 

 

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Annie
Mark116
Level 10
Jersey City, NJ

@Erin6034  You can do it however you want, a lot of hosts don't include kitchen access, some do.  I think most allow for some access of common areas, it would also depend on how the bedroom is accessed, is there a private hall or door or would the guest be walking through the rest of the house.  

 

If I were hosting someone in my home I would definitely make sure I can lock my/my family's bedroom doors and other areas that I would not walk guests to have access to, and you should have a lock/key for the guest bedroom as well so they can lock it when they are out.

 

I don't know about cameras inside the house, it is not outright banned by Airbnb, but could cause you a lot of grief if someone complains.

 

You also don't specify whether the yard is accessible to guests and its not clear how they would access it, walking through the rest of the house or have a different entrance.

 

 

@Erin6034  There is a sizable niche of guests who genuinely enjoy staying in a shared home rather than renting an entire property. But I'm not aware of a sub-niche within that group that likes to share a house with a family that strictly forbids them from entering the common areas of the house. Even for people who prefer to keep to themselves, this sounds pretty unwelcoming. If you were a guest visiting Raleigh for the first time, would a listing like this be your  first choice?

 

It's definitely unnecessary to offer kitchen use as an amenity, especially if you're only hosting stays of less than a week. But forbidding guests from even entering the kitchen means they can't even pour themselves a glass of water or make a coffee in the morning. And while your listing appears to offer access to a BBQ grill (even though it's not shown in the pictures), that's only useful if guests have a fridge to keep their food, plates to eat off, and a basin to wash up in. 

 

Even a basic hotel room would usually have some seating other than just the bed that two guests can sit and chat with each other, a place to stow away small luggage, a place to enjoy a cold drink, a device to make coffee/tea - the little things that make a room feel like a vacation space rather than a prison cell. But a carpeted bedroom like yours is not appropriate for any kind of food and drink preparation. So I really recommend that you rethink your concept a bit before you start taking any bookings.

 

The weekend is coming up. Perhaps this is a good time pause the listing, pack a small suitcase as you would for a normal trip, and spend the next 2 days living in the guestroom without visiting any other parts of the house. Every time something comes up that you feel would make your weekend more comfortable, go get that thing and add it to the room, until it feels like you're actually having a nice vacation. 

 

And if it still doesn't, perhaps hosting accommodation for travelers is not really your calling after all.

Gordon0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

I think a lot of it depends on your location, the demographic of your would-be guests and the set-up you've got. Here in London, I've rented a room (with no access to the rest of the house, kitchen incl.) for many years (since Airbnb landed here if memory serves). The typical guest (sole traveller or couple) stay three nights and are out pretty much all of the time.

While there is a Nespresso machine, kettle and cutlery etc., this is rarely used. What's key - I believe - in my case is that the guest room (and ensuite) is on the ground floor (we converted our garage) so it's very private. Works for us (and our 300+ guests), but it isn't for everyone, @Erin6034.

@Annie1372 might want to cast their mind back to when Airbnb was little more than couch-surfing. Yes, it's moved on, but not to the point where someone should be discouraged from trying. Horses for courses and all that jazz.