should you rent to someone who has one bad review?

[Noorhayati0]

I received a rental request from a guest that has a total of 7 reviews with one review that says the guest left the house dirty.  Their other reviews short with no complaints but given as a host it can be risky to leave a bad guest review not sure if I  should be reassured by them. Any advice on renting to a guest with one red flag review would be greatly appreciated.  Also, they've already asked for a late check out as well.  Thank you!

[Zheng49]

Bad review as in...what? 4 stars? 3 stars?

For me, if they have 6 good reviews, and 1 bad review, I'd be okay with that unless that bad review is the most recent one. 

[Noorhayati0]

Thank you!

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Noorhayati0 Hosts views of what qualifies as 'dirty' vary massively. Occasionally we had crumbs left everywhere in the lounge but whilst it looks bad it needs hoovering even if there are no crumbs so we wouldn't mark the guest down.

I wouldn't worry too much if it is only 1 in 7.

[Elisa]

Hi @Noorhayati0 😊

Thank you for asking this question here!

Did you decide to accept this reservation?
Our Host shared great advice with you. Did you get a chance to review it?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts! 

Warm regards 🌻

[Noorhayati0]

I decided to not rent. Oddly the person withdrew their rental request and the sent another request under a different profile name.  

[Clara116]

So @Noorhayati0  how did you handle the second request??  So curious if you also declined that request also.?? I am fairly sure if you decline many request often it could prove to be a disadvantage for your placement on the platform. 

I would have looked at the 7 reviews and when they were happening....also I would have considered that often times guests travel with different people and many times their friends are not so tidy and that can prove a problem for someone that had a perfect record but had one in their group that was really messy and the main guest didn't make sure to tidy up, or check on all their friends on the stay. Did they have a late flight out and that's why they asked for a late checkout?? What is your check out time? 

I've moved check out time from 11 to 12.....and I changed my check in time to 2pm. 

Many traveling arrive earlier and if its possible having to wait till 4-5 pm seems so late in a new place for many, myself included when traveling. Most of my guest arrive later and leave earlier so its never been an issue, but I can open the times, so I thought WHY NOT? 

Keep us posted on how hosting turns out.

Happy Hosting,

Clara@116

[Noorhayati0]

Thanks you Clara. I"m pretty new to airbnb so still learning how to navigate being a host.  I had a bad experience with a guest prior and I think  I just got a little paranoid.  

[Helen3]

Probably because they were worried their bad review would affect their ability to book. It's against Airbnb's T&C to have duplicate profiles. 

Sounds like you dodged a bullet .

@Noorhayati0 

[Guy991]

Hello @Noorhayati0 ,

I would do the same and not accept this guest. Your instincts served you well this time. This is why reviewing guests is so important. I once had a guest who, after leaving a review, sent me a private message apologizing, saying she never gives 5 stars because she believes no property deserves 5 stars. Luckily, my instincts kicked in during the stay, and I suspected she might pull something like this. So, my honest review warned other hosts that this guest could be trouble.

By the way, how many guests were on the reservation? It happened to me once that I refused a guest, only to receive another booking request from his wife. I declined them again.