Touring my home

[Chris23121]

I keep having people book and then request I meet them at the house for a tour before their stay. Is anyone else facing this request? No one lives at our property so I’d have to leave work and meet over at the house to do this. What do you say?

[Lorina14]

@Chris23121 

I would say all pictures of the property are on the listing. I’ve only had two requests for a tour and one I did do (this was in the very beginning of hosting as I didn’t know any better) but it didn’t turn into a booking. The person wanted to talk about a deal if they would be renting on a regular basis and also asked if I would waive cleaning fees if they cleaned. I said I’m not sure about the standard that you clean a space to and you should book on the Airbnb platform for protection for both you as a guest and me as a host. I think they were trying to avoid the service fees. But it is those fees that allow customer service if an issue arises and the host is not available or reasonable. I’ve since not bothered with these requests and just stated that all the information is on the listing along with all the pictures as well.

[Lorina14]

Do you have any reviews? Perhaps they are competition in your area trying to do market research or they don’t know how Airbnb works. I would not give them tours, this is not like renting a space where you tour it before you decide to apply. They should book based on your write up, pictures, answering any questions they have, your reviews and the feel they get off your listing. And giving tours is time consuming. How many of those tours ended up in successful bookings and stays?

One more thing, they could be scoping your house out for something. Some people could use this as an excuse to get a layout of the house and see if there’s anything valuable present.

[Helen3]

Hello @Chris23121 

it's against Airbnb's T&Cs  to swap contact details with guests before a booking is made so I wonder how you are arranging this as Airbnb normally blocks contact details? 

'I would just explain this to guests making this request .

it is a safety risk for you to share access to your listing with people you know nothing about. 

have these visits resulted in bookings ? Have they tried to negotiate booking with you directly?

a guest should be able to give all the information they need to make a decision on booking by looking at your listing @Chris23121 

[Chris23121]

@Helen3 As I stated in the question, the guests have already BOOKED with me. Now….. they want a tour before they stay. I am asking if this is normal? And if hosts do property tours AFTER a guest has booked, but months before they are do to check in 

[Shelley159]

Hi @Chris23121 

It's certainly unusual for a confirmed guest to ask to see the place. I assume with the dates far in the future, they still qualify for a full refund if they cancel?

Looking at the risks: in a listing with self-checkin, if you gave them codes to go and look, they could theoretically clean out the place and then cancel the booking for a full refund. In theory, if you meet them there, there could be a threat to personal safety in the same way. 

The more likely scenario, especially if they have many good reviews, is that they're just unsure about the place. It would be better for you if they just shared their concerns so you could respond. Viewings are not part of how Airbnb is supposed to work and they're putting you in a difficult position. There are many hosts here who will say the request is a reg flag and they're likely to end up being demanding guests.

Here's a help article that one can usually send to the guests in this type of situation, to explain why you don't do viewings. The problem is, it deals with the more common situation where guests want to view before booking:

When a guest asks to visit before booking - Airbnb Help Center

I think I would send them the above help article and tell them the system unfortunately doesn't accommodate viewings, but you'd be happy to answer any questions. Perhaps also point out their options for cancellation.

[Helen3]

I've been a host for nine years as a host and cohost with hundreds of bookings I have never had a guest ask me to provide a video guide to the home on booking @Chris23121 

Have you asked the guest what information do they want through a video that's not already covered by the photos you provide ? 

[Lorna170]

Just say NO.  All the information that they need is on the App and the website.  In 20 years of hosting, no good has EVER come from allowing a guest to tour the home prior to their booking.

What do I say?  "I'm sorry, but I am unable to conduct a tour of the property as I do not wish to disturb the guest who is currently staying.  Their privacy and your privacy during your stay is important to me."

This usualy results in one of two things.  They cancel their booking or they accept my reasoning and go forward with their booking without the tour.

[Zheng49]

I would not allow a tour of the house before the check-in time. It's likely they just want to strike a cash deal with you, and skip the Airbnb service fees.

I don't even give out the address in advance, because first of all many of them turned into cancellations (with 100% refund), and second of all they're likely just using it to apply for a VISA which is something I don't want them to do with my address either. 

You can just say something like, "Sorry, a tour of the house prior to check-in will not be possible".

Anyways, it's weird that they booked and then asked for at our of the place, usually I get such requests before a confirmed booking. 

[Christopher1306]

Thanks for your response.  I felt kind of jerky saying no, like i have something to hide but i am also not comfortable spending my time for free showing the property in advance.

[Lorina14]

@Christopher1306 

You’re not being a jerk, they are being unreasonable. Just say that it is against my policy to show the property before the booking, all the pictures are on the listing and I am happy to answer any questions you may have. Set healthy boundaries and be firm with it. Don’t let them waste your precious time and trust your gut/sixth sense on inquiries (even post booking) like these.

I just reviewed your listing, I think people may be viewing it for a party or event which is usually not allowed on the Airbnb platform. Your space is large and beautiful so they want to see the layout for their event. You are not an event space… I did read an article a while back that talked about a family that rented out their large home/property and it was often rented out for video shoots or movie shoots. This may be a possibility.

[Chris23121]

Thanks. I just want to reiterate again. The guest has already booked and paid. Their scheduled arrival date is next year. They want to come see the house in advance.  
once again…. They have already booked. 

[Lorina14]

@Chris23121 

Yes I understood that they have already booked, I read it in detail the first time I read your post. They will want to make sure it is what they need for their purposes. If it isn’t they will probably cancel if it is a movie/shooting purpose (if you allow commercial photography on the property) or if it is a family gathering space that doesn’t suit their needs.  

It is an odd request. If they don’t take your word for it have the Airbnb customer service call them to explain their stance on not allowing tours of spaces.

[Chris23121]

hi. Sorry your message read that you would show before booking. Maybe you mean before staying. Anyway that is my concern for one, they’ll cancel or two , more importantly I have to pay the caretaker to go to the house and show it and how long will they be in there? And is it safe for the caretaker to be alone with who knows how many people show up.  Also- will there be things like “any chance you can make that double bed a queen?” With a years notice I feel like a lot could be asked of us

[Lorina14]

@Chris23121 

Yes my original message for my own circumstance was before booking (my only experience with requests for tours) but I understood your situation was before staying, after they booked.

I think you need to make sure people are not booking your space for a wedding or reception as then how many people are going to be there during the day (even if they don’t stay overnight) and your insurance would need to cover all these guests. Airbnb doesn’t allow parties as you cannot regulate who is registered as a guest and therefore any damages sustained during the event may not be covered with Aircover or your insurance. This is why you must sign so much paperwork when renting a venue. For Aircover to cover one should have all guest names listed on the reservation (I’ve seen too many bad stories about Aircover not covering even though it was the booker’s responsibility for any damage they or their guests did to the property) and damage should be documented and reported before the next guest checks in or within 14 days (I think, one should double check).

Maybe you should follow another person’s lead by sending over documents and house rules for the guests to sign before their stay to ensure they understand the rules of your listing. This also will legally cover you if something happens. People usually do this for larger homes/listings. I could look up the thread of the guy who does this. He sends the document to any hosts who asks and he has had no issues with any guests since implementing this change.