Igor55
Level 4
San Francisco, CA

Feeling bad because of ungrateful guest

Hi there! I am new here in AirBnB as a host and I can say I am thrilled about it. I started hosting end of February here in San Francisco.

So far, it is great receiving 13 bookings and all of them except one gave me 5 stars. Just want to share the feeling. I really felt bad towards this one guest because she gave me 3-star after all the hospitality that I did: 1) drove her to downtown SF, which is 3-4 miles from my place; 2) allow her to do laundry for free; 3) upgraded her to a private room instead of shared room for free; and 4) shared some of my foods with her. She only paid around $90 for 3 nights in San Francisco, which is very cheap by the way for SF.

I rated her 5 stars coz she is nice other than I did not like how she gave me 3-star just because of the distance of my place to downtown and how she takes bus when in fact I was very clear about it in my description. If only she rated me first, I could have given her 3-star for being ungrateful.

I really hope I won't encounter such guest again. I am aiming to become a Superhost and everything is okay except the rate has lowered because of this one outlier.

(Deep breathe...)

Welcome to hosting!  You have indeed experienced an ungrateful guest.  They happen.  The best you can do is try and spot them before you accept a reservation, but even that isn't fool-proof. In my opinion, anyone who keeps asking for extras is bound to be a problem, so be wary.  Not sure why you are upset about offering her a ride, it states right in your listing you provide this service, but I totally understand that you were kind and giving and that resulted in a 3 overall when she clearly didn't read the listing or understand her environment. So sorry this happened.   

You didn't ask for advice, so I apologize for offering some in advance. Make sure you are following all the rules laid out for San Francisco:

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/871/san-francisco--ca

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1463/business-licensing-in-san-francisco

 

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Well with the ride it is okay for me to give free rides as long as it is on my way to work or if I am going somewhere and it is on my way. I am just sad how people don't appreciate it and funny how to get the rate on value very low. I raised my eyebrow. I am a Registered AirBnB host and I have a permit from the City Hall. 

Helen3
Level 10
Bristol, United Kingdom

Personally I wouldn't be giving people rides you're not a taxi service. Unfortunately guests who often take the most, are the most ungrateful - as you have found to your cost.

 

Why are you giving people a lift when there is a bus service.

 

People know your location when they book - hence the price I presume.

 

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I was thinking sharing rides as long as it is on my way is another way to help the environment. I like pooling in car. But I don't do often and it should only be conplimentary.

Gordon0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Cheap rates = [some] cheap guests. 
As you say; deep breath, and on to the next [nice] guest.

 

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I guess I need to be clearer. That space is a shared space so I charge less (in the living room) just for those who want a place to crash or sleep and not really into have a private room. 

Gerry-And-Rashid0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Igor55

 

There really does seem to be a theme that the cheaper your rate, the more you offer for that rate the more likely you are to attract people who think they should get the Ritz experience for pennies. It's much better to keep your prices that bit higher and attract people who value what you offer and what you do for them. 

 

Good luck

I am new to AirBnB so I started at lower cost. Also, I am not really in downtown SF. I am 3-4 miles away thus the lower cost. But in terms of the place, it is definitely a good one. I have been traveling a lot and seen hotels that are not good, including the one I booked in Rome, Italy. 

Cynthia-and-Chris1
Level 10
Vancouver, WA

@Igor55  You'll want to read more about how the review process works.  Reviews are double-blind - meaning you can't see what the other party gave you until you give your own review.  This helps prevent retaliatory reviews, much like you're suggesting you would have done to your guest if you had known she only gave you 3 stars.

 

Just keep being a kind, helpful host and you'll see you get more 5's than 3's.

This type of case is not uncommon between people of the same age range and the opposite sex (sometimes the same sex, too). Maybe she was interested in you romantically but realized you were not eqaully interested in her. A male friend of mine who is self-identified as gay as well as slightly transgender has quite a lot of similar experience with his lady friends/clients/guests who fall for him due to his charm and who finally all develep a hatred towards him. But as far as I know, he is an extremely kind-hearted person and would never do anything bad to hurt those ladies. 

 

Note that your driving her downtown may be a sign of personal interest to her and many other women. 

Wow! Seems like you saw what happened. Haha! I mean, this guest was very sweet. We had great talks and one time she got closer to me when we were having conversation in the living room. I offered her some dinner and she offered back her drinks. Also, she asked if she can do laundry with mine, which was okay with me. I did not expect her 3-star rating. 

Huaai0
Level 10
British Columbia, Canada

@Igor55 See? I was *right on spot.* Pretty skilled in psychoanalysis, don't you agree? 🙂

Thank you for the encouragement. I will maintain kindness. You are right with being kind. I remember hearing from someone, "You will never go wrong with kindness."

John498
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

Igor, Do you have a uest book for messages? If so, when they leave you a message but a poor rating you could quote it in your public response. If they don't leave a message then you have a possibility that they are not completely connected. 3 stars is a mean rating so you could think what you could have done to avoid this in the future. There is also a wally factor with 5% of guests who will be difficult no matter what you do for them. You have to develop strategies for these type of guests if you can or a thick skin for criticism if you can't.