Asking for video?

[Michele1348]

The other day I had a potential guest (they had not booked the room) ask if they could send a friend to take video of my place so they could "get the vibe" of my place before they booked it.  

My response was No but, if you book the room then we speak and  I can do a FaceTime.  But really I was like WHAT??  How could a stranger who I know NOTHING ABOUT ask me to have another stranger come into my house and take video of my home?  I almost said yes, if I can have a friend of mine come to  take video of you.   🙂    Has anyone else had this request?   Is this normal?  

I have felt the landscape of Airbnb changing but, this is a new one.   I know many people are renting out their whole place so people seem to be open to what I deem improper request.  ESPECIALLY since as a HOST WE KNOW NOTHING about the guests before they book the place.    

I started using Airbnb when it was more about cultural exchange and international visitors coming to my home.  They had reviews, I knew the country they were from etc.  Now with the new landscape and people just coming to the community,  

How do I as a host get to know something about the person who will be visiting and living in my home?  

I feel like there should be more information shared upfront  - just like the reviews.     

[Till-and-Jutta0]

@Michele1348  Do you offer Private Rooms in a shared space?

I ask because XVideo producers usually book entire spaces.

We state in our house rules, that we definitely don’t want photos or videos from our private space for commercial purposes.

[Michele1348]

@Till-and-Jutta0 yes it is a private room in my apartment, the shared space.  

This was not a creative request.  This was a request before the person booked the room.  They wanted to video my space to decided if they would book the stay.  

[Till-and-Jutta0]

This sounds kind of weird.

A video before booking needs transmission of an address before booking – which is not possible and not allowed.

For a friend – sounds like a third party booking – which is not allowed.

I would listen to my stomach – and strictly deny the request. Just my personal opinion.

[Michele1348]

@Till-and-Jutta0  Yes I agree. I will probe more.   Its' just such a shame that there is this type of new energy out there.  Maybe they are just uninformed but, its still a problem.   

Thanks for your feedback.  

[Linda108]

@Michele1348   I certainly support your decision not to allow filming or another person to come to your home.  I also hope you feel you can engage a potential guest through the Air BNB system and seek whatever you need to ask to feel comfortable allowing an unknown person to come into your home.  Would nor suggest you use Face Time or any other communication system as should Air BNB need to be involved in a dispute, having the communication on the system allows them to look at the communication.  Over the years I have developed a few questions that allow me to ascertain if a guest is a good fit in my home.  While I use Instant Book because I have been doing this for a while, I suggest you wait until you have dealt with  few odd situations before you allow IB.  Don't count on Air BNB to do anything but manage the transaction financially and market your listing in their search system.  Everthing else is up to you, bottom line.  Good luck and go with your gut!

[Karen2913]

Hi @Linda108.   Would love to hear what questions you ask, please to judge whether the guest is a good fit?

[Linda108]

@Karen2913   The questions are related to what brings them to the area, what are their expections of the listing, and other "house keeping" type issues.  I am not as interested in what the guest replies but how they reply.  I am looking for a guest that understands the limits of the listing - private room, dog and cat in residence,  etc., and engages in a timely communication.  Delayed responses or incomplete responses may be a red flag.  Since I require a two day advance to the reservation, I am able to take time.  No same day reservations for me.  Hope this helps

[Michele1348]

@Linda108 @Karen2913  @Kitty-and-Creek0  @Till-and-Jutta0   

UPDATE on the video request.   The person booked the room and then we zoomed. At their request.  (GOOD SIGN)  As it turns out, we were both being extra cautious.  Their school had warned them of apartment scams and suggested they always see the place before sending any money.  This I totally understood.  I also shared with her the scams that hosts experience. It became a laughing point for us both recognizing the others viewpoint.  

I want to so THANK YOU for your input and being here as a sounding board and barometer for each other.  In the year that never was (2020) , all the events have caused me to be a bit more suspect and very cautious.   However I do not want to loose the genuine joy and human expansion I get when hosting someone in my home.  SO to Linda108's point it is important to ask questions to decide whether it is a right fit.  I always ask why they are looking for a place and what is the expectation of their stay.  I asks "where are they from" to see if it matches the profile and if they know things about the city they say they are from.   If a person will not engage in the conversation then I decline.  Just recently, I've started to experienced the "too perfect", I'm telling you everything upfront introduction, and when I ask the above questions they don't respond.  

I do think AirBnb needs to give hosts more information upfront about the guests and reinforce codes of conduct for this hosting environment.  It seem bit unfair that they can see our homes and all about us but, we can't see anything about them until they have booked.  

I do know this!  Since the landscape has changed it's important to be prudent for protection.

Thank you again.  

[Sarah977]

@Michele1348  Glad it turned out okay.

But you should let this guest know that their school is giving out bad advice on this point. Tell them the reasons hosts don't do previews, for security reasons, and that the school doesn't seem to understand that when guests book an Airbnb, they aren't sending money to the host- that Airbnb holds the money until at least 24 hours after a guest checks in, so if something should prove to be a scam, the guest would get their payment refunded by Airbnb.

The school should really be informed not to be giving out this faulty advice to their students.

Most hosts would simply decline a booking frim a guest who sent such a request, so they aren't doing their students any favors by telling them to do this.

[Michele1348]

@Sarah977   thank you for your input.  But actually there are lots of fake ads on places like Craigs list and other platforms.  I've had friends experience some very odd situations when apartment and room hunting and I've even had questionable ads on Airbnb when I've traveled to different places.  So I don't think it's wrong for schools to make students aware that there is the possibility.  

But I appreciate your thinking. 

Thanks 

[Sarah977]

@Michele1348  Oh yes, there are tons of fake ads. And a lot of poor souls get scammed by them.

But those fake ads have tons of red flags all over them. It's just that the people who end up falling for them haven't bothered to look on the Airbnb site and read anything about how  you book an Airbnb. So they don't pick up on all the wording that anyone who has booked Airbnbs before would instantly recognize as a scam. 

It has nothing to do with not being allowed to preview the place.

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Michele1348 

The only thing one can do in this situation is ask a lot of questions. This is an inquiry, so ask for whatever information you want to know, including why the video idea was introduced. What is it they are hoping to learn from proposed visit or video?  - which I would not agree to either, whether for a homeshare or a whole home. This is a shared space, so you are justified in being cautious and curious about prospective short term apartment mates.  Perhaps they are also nervous about that. Best of luck, and do let us know what happens!

[Michele1348]

@Linda108  & @Kitty-and-Creek0  Thank you both for your insight and support in my caution.  I am taking the advice of both and asking more questions via ABNB and having a dialogue.   

Thanks again.!! 

[Sarah977]

@Michele1348  Your second listing needs editing. It says 1 guest, 2 bedrooms, 1 bed. 

Change the 2 bedrooms to 1. Also, while you state in your description that you live there and guests share the home with you, if you rent out 2 bedrooms to unrelated guests, you should explain that- that guests will be sharing with you and possibly another guest in the other bedroom.

You could also create a third listing, if you wanted to, that was for both the bedrooms, in case 2 family members or friends wanted to rent both bedrooms. In that case, you have to link the calendars, so if both are rented together, the single room listings become unavailable, or if a single room is booked, the 2 bedroom option becomes unavailable. That may be more complicated than you're up for, but just thought I'd let you know it's a possibility.

Personally, I host one private room for one guest, and I love hosting solo travelers, so I'd totally get it if you wanted to stick with that.