Short Term vs Long Term

[Eileen462]

Hello Hosts!

Happy Holidays to you!  I am learning sofar with my experiences with AIRBNB that short term stays are much better to deal with than having someone re-book weekly and staying for long term.

It seems when people stay for more than a few weeks their bad habits begin to appear and they get comfortable staying with you.  Sofar, the one longer term stay I have had, I came home oneday to 13 people in my house thinking there would only be 2 or 3 maybe, they have tried to get me to take my rates down for them weekly and my fees, they did the ultimate by telling me they wanted to pay me cash for a week stay because they have no money until Dec. 22 but one of the guests left for a trip up north and they can can afford that.  After I confronted them, they magically came up with 4 days worth of rates and paid AIRBNB so no cash exchange because I will not breech my contract with AIRBNB, BUT i LOST 2 DAYS WORTH OF RATES BECAUSE THEY JUST DIDNT PAY AND STAYED ANYWAY.  SO, I asked them to not return after Friday when they have completed this weeks stay.  Sadly, Im gun shy now and dont want to take people for more than 2 weeks.

Any of you had this experience?

Eileen

[Kitty-and-Creek0 · Accepted solution]

@Eileen462

This is a learning experience! 

My personal limit is 7 days. I'm not looking for a housemate! 

"Fish and Visitors stink after 3 days" said someone, attributed to Benjamin Franklin. If I sincerely say to my departing guests "you're leaving already? It seems like you just got here" - and I say nothing if I cannot be sincere - then it has been an excellent stay. Wishing you more of the excellent ones!

[Eileen462]

Hello Kitty Oh my goodness you made me laugh!  I needed that... Thank you for letting me know your boundary... a friend of mine who is a property manager told me that this situation was headed for bad situation and she is correct.  She also said that lower income people are the ones who use AIRBNB as a source of keeping a room over their heads and there is a reason why at the root.  I know they have stayed at several.  I was hoping to give them a permanent spot but I wont do it now.

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Eileen462 

Boundaries are so important in every part of our lives. Self preservation! You have a lovely heart, which is absolutely precious. This is a business and rules must be there to protect you and your home. Rules must be spelled out, not implied, or they are not clear enough for many guests. We never stop learning, in life and in business!  -Kitty 

[Eileen462]

@Kitty-and-Creek0  Kitty this is one reason I ask so many questions.  I am new to the hospitality business.  Im trying to cover my bootie! and thats a big one to cover!  hahahaha!

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Eileen462 🤣 Asking questions is so excellent ! This business is all about people, and that's beyond tricky! 

[Eileen462]

@Kitty-and-Creek0  Kitty I genuinely love people and I love listening to their experiences and stories.  Most people will not volunteer their stories unless you ask to hear them.  It also keep interaction and conversation flowing in the forums which helps all of us learn and understand this business better.  Its a also a great way to make new friends who are in the same venture.  I tell my husband I am going to stop speaking in these forums because some people are very mean and he says no you wont stop talking... LOL!  I do think about new things to talk about in here and the Host forum that I think will help us all learn something.

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Eileen462 

Your love for people and for doing things well are obvious! 

Best, most fun holidays to you and a sensational new year. So glad we've connected here!

[Marisa182]

@Eileen462  Sad to hear how your were taken advantage of. Here's my rule practically from the time I started on Airbnb... only one guest, and only very short stays, although my listing may say up to five days. I make exceptions about the length of stay depending on why someone is coming to stay at my place. I have many professionals who come to do research or work at the university who basically only sleep in the apartment and therefore don't have the chance to wreck it. I have noticed that even the four or five day stays are harder to clean up after, and I have had maybe two or three, that I would positively not host again.

I wish you the best, and a very happy holiday season to you!

[Eileen462]

@Marisa182  Hello Marisa, I live near a University myself and get inquiries from professionals who are working in the area.  My red flag in this situation should have been "We live in AIRBNB houses".  When that was said to be I should have seen the train coming.  We all learn by our mistakes.  Hopefully, they will leave when their reservation is up on Friday.  I have others who want to book for New Years Eve.  Thank you for your input on how you handle stays.  Smiles,  Eileen

[Cathie19]

Hi @Eileen462.

Essentially, as @Kitty-and-Creek0 & @Marisa182 have stated, people  just get complacent. They generally, are more likely to not clean up as well, or take that extra bit of care. 

I use to do up to 21 days, but dropped it back to 14 days though that is a rarity in our tourist area. (Tourists are more inclined to want a few days, sight see out of town then want a return booking.  By not doing 1-2 night stays, I generally can’t get their returning business before they fly out of town; but I’m okay with that!)

* Though I have allowed the option for guests to make contact for longer stays…

Longer stays can be harder with wear and tear on your linen, scatter cushion covers etc. 

The big thing for me is I have a minimum of three (3) days stay. That makes cleaning and turnover so much easier.  

I actually like a five to six day stay the best, as I have a discount for a week. So I’m better off financially. It gives breathing space on me, the cleaning, and is kinder - more workable for linens. 

But also ensure you’ve got strong house rules regarding guests and visitors. 

[Eileen462]

@Cathie19   Hello Cathie and thank you for sharing.  I do have strong house rules now.  Before all of this happened I had just a few major rules and now I see I have to be detailed and specific.  I really am surprised at what people try and pull.  I can see how they slowly manipulated me each week to conform to what they wanted.  A huge lesson.  Thank you for your input it helped alot!  Eileen

[Helen3]

Hello @Eileen462 

When you checked in the guests did you make it clear that only the guests who booked could be at the property? If you come home and find 11 visitors at the property then you tell them to leave immediately and inform the guest if this happens again you will ask Airbnb to cancel the booking.

When you decided to accept the  longer term booking from these guests some of us did warn you that it would be a risky booking.  You mention the guests stayed for two days without paying. How were they able to do this. You should have packed up their belongings when they didn't pay and inform them of how they could be collected rather than letting them stay. I am surprised in this situation you agreed to them staying for a further four days. Hopefully they will leave on Friday and you can move on.

I have had lots of longer term bookings as a homeshare host which have worked really well, but I vet all my guests carefully and wouldn't have accepted guests who were local and told you they were homeless. 

[Eileen462]

@Helen3  Hello Helen,  Thank you for all of your lovely replies to the conversations I start on here.

The 2 ladies that have been longer term are my 2nd guests, and asked me specifically that day if they could have their daughters come by to bake cookies with them.  Of course I said yes thats fine. I was expecting 2 additional people. My husband and I went to dinner no visitors were there as of yet.  When we came home from dinner, we counted 13 people in the house, kids running everywhere and 6 women cooking in my kitchen.  Our jaws dropped.  That was around 8pm.  Believe it or not I think they saw our reaction we just went into our room to discuss what was happening there, and the house was quiet by 10pm.  Everyone just left at once.  I think we were surprised they would do something like that.  So I immediately got on with my rules and read them to them both.  It has not happened since.  They have continued to song and dance with me about paying their AIRBNB and skip days. I know they are in a life transition but I am running a business and they havent kept their end of it.

Here in California, people are not polite.  If they intend to stay, they will whether they pay you or not, and the city government backs them because of the homeless situation here.  If someone is in your home over 28 days they are considered a resident and are not required to pay rent if they dont want too.  Homeowners in California have very little rights and I believe its because of the homeless situation.  We are required by law to keep all utilities on for whoever is living or a resident in our homes.  They do not care if they are strangers or not.  This law puts homeowners at risk for losing their property which Im sure the government does not mind because they will end up somehow assuming it.  Its all about putting money in their pockets.  They are relentless.  There are different states that have banned AIRBNB because it interferes with the control the government has on homeowners.

I truely want to make my AIRBNB work regardless of the obstacles Im up against.  Im grateful to all who have interacted with me to help me understand this business so I can move forward effectively and provide a good hospitable experience for AIRBNB guests.

According to California law I cannot pack up peoples things and kick them out.  If they are in my house with their things, they have rights legally here.  Police will not even escort them out.  If they choose not to pay for a few days I have to eat it.  I could take cash from them but I will not because it violates the agreement between myself and AIRBNB.  So, the only option I see is reporting them to AIRBNB and not accepting future bookings from them.  I will be having guests sign and agree to the house rules.  I have already asked these ladies to leave on Friday the day their AIRBNB contract is up.  Thank you for listening.  Eileen

[Eileen462]

@Helen3  PS:  I vetted them but not good enough.  They were not honest with me about their situation until they had stayed a few weeks.  I began to wonder how they were paying their bill and began asking them questions.  From what I can see standing back looking at this situation, people who request to stay week after week are usually here to work with their companies or a project of some sort.  Those who stay week to week because they do not have a home base will be an eventual issue.  People do not seem to change their habits.  Blessings