I have a guest wanting to book a longer term booking but choose the payment date terms

[Brooke510]

I have a guest wanting to book for approximately 6 weeks however they want to pay for 2 weeks upfront then weekly from there on in. Is this possible?

[Joelle43]

Hello @Brooke510 

No that's not possible Brooke unless the guest puts in a reservation for just 2 weeks but I'm assuming that you have a monthly discount in place?  If so, then the price would not be the same for just 2 weeks.

If guests stay for 28+ days, this is termed as a long term stay and as such guests have to pay one month up front and also give you 30 days notice.  Here is the policy:

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2729?locale=en

Check out residency rights for stays over 30 days for your area too.

[Shelley159]

Hi @Brooke510 

The payment process is administered by Airbnb, not by the host. For me, this is one of the great advantages of taking bookings through Airbnb. I have no control over payments, and therefore I do not get involved. I simply refer guests to help articles and/or customer support when they have questions about anything to do with payment.

[Joan2709 · Accepted solution]

@Brooke510 

Great advice already from @Shelley159 & @Joelle43 .

Just be aware that scammers target new Hosts in a variety of ways. They can see the "New" callout on your listing and know that new Hosts don't always have a lot of experience and try to exploit that. I always caution new Hosts not to do long term stays right away, but that is of course up to you. Never make arrangements for payment off-platform (dangerous and against Airbnb TOS). It's always best to keep communication on platform if possible. Never reveal your phone number, location or address to someone who has not actually booked a stay. If your first booking is a long term stay, your payment may be delayed by 30days by Airbnb.

Long term stays can be an option for Hosts. However, I would thoroughly familiarize yourself with the long term stay policies on each platform before offering them. This will help you avoid some common (and costly) mistakes made by other hosts. Some hosts prefer not to offer long term stays, due to these issues. Airbnb policies below:

Long Term Stay Cautions:

Getting Started with Monthly Stays

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/2729

Things to Consider Before Hosting Monthly Stays

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/805

Tenant Rights

In most states, if a guest stay is more than 28 days, they are now legally considered a “tenant” and not a guest. If they refuse to leave after their stay, you will have to go through court proceedings to get them evicted.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/805

Cancellations

Cancellations for long term stays override your short term stay cancellation policy.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/475

Guest Reservation Alterations

Guests can alter a long-term stay reservation without Host approval in some circumstances.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1361

Payouts

Payouts for long term stays are different than short-term stays.

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/285

Price Calculation Errors

Price errors occur more often with long-term stays. This requires the host to verify each one for accuracy (sometimes weekly or other discounts you have set are incorrectly applied to a long term stay).

[Paula]

Hello @Brooke510 , welcome to our community 😊

There are many great suggestions from our Hosts in this thread ✌️. If you find any of their answers particularly useful, please don't hesitate to mark it as the best answer. You can do this by clicking the button below the comment as shown in the following image:

This will help future Hosts with similar questions easily find this conversation.

All the best.

[Frances3408]

@Brooke510. Hi Brooke, in addition to it not being possible under current Airbnb payment settings I would not do it because it doesnt provide enough security in light of potential damages, they can manipulate you into providing a discount for a longer stay and then they cancel, overstay without paying etc.

My last 5 week booking (which was a direct booking) I gave a deep discount but required the full 5 weeks upfront (non refundable) plus a one week security bond.

There is some excellent advice from other hosts below. Tread carefully on anything over 28 days. I know times are tough but if they dont have the cash then they can just start with 2 weeks.

Good luck.