Again @Erin433 I do agree with Sean433 - locals are a big red flag, but again for me, it would depend on their communication and why they said they were booking. one of my best guests ever was a local - she lived only 5 minutes away. Her parents were coming our form London for 3 weeks and her sister and family were driving down from regional QLD - they were 8 in total adn they wanted a house big enough to accomodate all of them in the one place. That made perfect sense to me. They were fabulous communicators - rang to ask if one of the children's little friends could stay for a few hours on a play date - offered to pay, rang me when they broke a glass - offered to pay. All i'm trying to say is there are always exceptions to the rule, you'll learn to ask the right questions and get a good feel pretty quickly.
covnersely however I had a local book - only for 1 guest, adn her message was, "Hi, Have your got a BBq? " I was very quick to point out extra guest fees, the substantial security deposit, I casually worked the security camera into the conversation and she cancelled within minutes.
Someone n these boards a a while ago who had IB had a great way of getting guests she didn't like the sound of, to cancel. She'd say something like,
also I do need to let you know that construction has just started in our street. You wont' be able to park in the garage for the moment but there's a spot about 800 metres away, its only steep in a few places, you shouldnt' have any real trouble with your luggage. Also the jack hammers are due to start 6 am most mornings, but that's a great way to ensure you're up adn ready to make the most of the day. I honestly don't think it will be a problem, but if it worries you, you can cancel without penalty within the next 48 hours" Everyone she tried it on cancelled - not sure what she'd say if they didn't adn arrived to find no construction...
