Hosting a first time guest - to Airbnb

[Pam2462]

this is the first time I have a reservation from a new Airbnb guest. They want to rent for a month and appear to be from out of the country? Thoughts

[Kitty-and-Creek0]

@Pam2462 

A month is a long stay to approve of, with a guest new to the platform. If this is a request, I'd engage in a conversation with the prospective guest. Ask what is the purpose of the stay, what are their goals, eg are they house hunting, job hunting, exploring the region on a lengthy trip? We love to pamper guests new to the platform, of course. Guests coming from abroad are great, we love when they stay with us; but we do have a week limit in our home share. Then again, this may be a fishing expedition without good intentions, as others have written about on this forum. 

Do let us know how this evolves and resolves.

[Joan2709]

@Pam2462 

I agree with @Kitty-and-Creek0 to use caution accepting new guests for long-term stays. I advise Hosts I work with not to accept long term bookings unless the guest has at least two, 5-star reviews.  Ask alot of questions and if they don't answer them, are evasive, ask you to send them a video of the property, or communicate off-platform it is a scam. 

[Pam2462]

@Joan2709 Thank you.  I've been hosting for 2yrs, and this is my first time encountering a first-time guest.  I am extremely hesitant to accept the request.  I was honest and asked her that since there were no previous reviews, I wanted to understand why she was coming to the area.   Her response gave me little comfort: "This is a business trip, and this time, the main part of the past was to explore the wine market .A total of 3 of us, are women over 30, we have no pets and don't smoke."  Thank you for confirming my gut instincts. 

[Pam2462]

@Kitty-and-Creek0  —Thank you for your thoughts. I, too, thought this might be a fishing exercise, which would be my first encounter on this platform and happens to me frequently on the competitor platform.   I am not going to accept this request, and I appreciate your validating my initial reaction/response.

[Paula]

Hello @Pam2462,

Thank you for bringing this topic to our Community Center!

I’m glad to see all the great suggestions from our experienced hosts. What did you decide to do in the end?

Keep us posted!

[Pam2462 · Accepted solution]

Thank you - I did not pre-approve the guest.  There were to many red flags.  Thanks again for all your insights