What's the best way to inform renters about potential construction noise?

[Jennifer137]

Our Airbnb house is located in a very quiet, thickly settled seaside neighborhood and I have reservations from 8 different families for their vacations and family reunions this summer, beginning 3 months from now.

The house next door is now under construction: the new owner just gutted it and has heavy equipment operating in the yard on a sporadic schedule...it looks like this will be a very long, involved, and noisy project, literally 15 feet from our kitchen door. 

I am very concerned that my summer guests will not be happy with the situation.

What do I do?  If I write and offer the right to cancel, I will very likely be de-listed from Airbnb if several of the guests take me up on the offer. If I offer a discount, how much do you think will be enough?

I have worked very hard to maintain five-star ratings and now I fear I will be out of the Airbnb business because of this situation and Airbnb rules. Advice would be very appreciated!

[Fred13 · Accepted solution]

I would talk to the neighbors and get a more concrete idea what is the construction plan, meaning get the facts, before doing anything. What comes immediately to mind is:

1. Write to the guests and explain the situation and see what they think. Some yes ,may cancel but that beats a 'nightmare' stay.

2. IF it promises to be a true show stopper, I would be bold and offer a 50% discount, in that way the guests may be happy to put up with the noise and you will not have anything to apologize for.

3. Or go under Extenuating Circumtances with Airbnb (if this isn't I have no clue what would be) and cancel the affected reservations.

But something has to give.

[Linda108]

@Jennifer137  Absolutely agree with @Fred13 as your goals need to be maintain good reviews and try to get some income.  Perhaps you could run it by an Air BNB rep in terms of qualifying for extenuating circumstances.  You might want to send a letter to the owner of the renovating home to memorialize what is going on so you can have "proof" for Air BNB if you need to cancel under extenuating circumstances.  Additionally, it would be important for you to be knowledgeable about your City's regulation about construction and renovation.

If you go forward with the reservations, contact each guest and offer explanation and discount.  Some guests wouldn't be bothered by the noise as they are out all day and would welcome the savings.  Not all guests would accept, but give them the option.  

[Fred13]

Aye @Linda108, good points. When/if necessary get a letter from contractor stating the fact there will indeed be construction, and yes there are city ordinances to cover such extraordinary events, to lessen the 'cost' to adjacent neighbors (i.e. construction limited to certain hours, etc.).

[Jennifer137]

Thanks @Fred0 and @Linda0 for your quick and considered responses! Much appreciated.

Best,

Jennifer

[Michael1681]

Similarly I have a neighbouring block that was torn down and is being rebuilt. I reduced my prices by 20% and wrote in the general description AND in the Noise Potential space they have to acknowledge, that building work might start as early as 6am.

Originally it was never before 7am and not as bad as it is now - the noise is now too much to sleep through unless the windows and blinds are closed fully and you wear earplugs - and even then it's fairly audible. I'm hoping it's only this bad for a few weeks as the construction work is now level with our windows so it all resonates straight across from about 20ft away.

I'm planning to offer 100% refunds to anyone who wants to cancel in advance, and a further 10% for those who confirm they are happy to stay anyway. I'm hoping that heads the problem off before I get hit by a deluge of issues. Any thoughts?

[Jennifer137]

Thanks Michael. That plan sounds quite reasonable to me as a host, and it would it I were a guest, too.

In my case, all the guests committed several months ago, so it's not a case of warning future guests.  And after meeting and talking with the new neighbors I'm unsure as to when the construction actually will start (due to delays in building permits, etc.), though they promised to keep me posted on the construction schedule and also to do something to mitigate the noise (maybe start later in the day and end end early afternoon). So I am in a position of perhaps offering a discount and/or cancellations in advance that is not needed.

On the hosting side, it seems that Airbnb will penalize me as a host due to a series of cancellations, effectively ruining 3 years of hard work of building this business. Have you had any direct dealings with Airbnb management on this matter? I would be very grateful for any information. 

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/990/i-m-a-host--what-penalties-apply-if-i-need-to-cancel-a-reser...

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1320/what-if-i-need-to-cancel-because-of-an-emergency-or-unavoid...

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@Michael1681 wrote:

Similarly I have a neighbouring block that was torn down and is being rebuilt. I reduced my prices by 20% and wrote in the general description AND in the Noise Potential space they have to acknowledge, that building work might start as early as 6am.

Originally it was never before 7am and not as bad as it is now - the noise is now too much to sleep through unless the windows and blinds are closed fully and you wear earplugs - and even then it's fairly audible. I'm hoping it's only this bad for a few weeks as the construction work is now level with our windows so it all resonates straight across from about 20ft away.

I'm planning to offer 100% refunds to anyone who wants to cancel in advance, and a further 10% for those who confirm they are happy to stay anyway. I'm hoping that heads the problem off before I get hit by a deluge of issues. Any thoughts?

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[Luke44]

Jennifer I have a new situation in Brooklyn as a host and just starting to grapple with the same issues.  I think the offer of cancellation is up to the guests to do, not you.  It's only if YOU cancel that you get penalized and potentially delisted, right?  Can you tell me more how this has played out in the last half year so that I can better judge what I should do?  Many thanks in advance, Luke

[Luke44]

What I'm trying to say is, if you give them all the information and a warning, the decision to cancel is up to them, and on them, not you...

[Jennifer137]

Hi Luke --

At the end of a jam-packed summer of rentals, I was willing to forego a week's rent to avoid having unhappy guests. 

So, I warned my guests about the potential noise and emailed them several alternatives in the area and suggested that they would be happier somewhere else.

In the end, they opted to stay in my house anyway -- and luckily for all of us, there was a week-long lull in the construction so it all worked out. They even mailed me a thank you note because they were so happy with their stay.

For me, being brutally honest upfront about the potential noise level (rather than waiting to see if they complained)  made me feel better about the situation I couldn't control, and built trust with my guests. 

Hope this helps you. 

Jennifer

[Luke44]

Thanks Jennifer.  Even before you answered I added warnings on the listing in both description and potential for noise and sent warnings to the already booked guests as well.  I agree with your general philosophy and appreciate your honest response.  Many thanks,

Luke