Airbnb to give Attorney General renter names and addresses?

Maybe.

Hooked on Airbnb?

Bed and bonkfest: Hookers abuse Airbnb website to turn your home into a brothel

Prostitutes use Airbnb for Sex

Airbnb reputation takes a hit from prostitution scandal

Can you give me a discount?

Found this image on a blog called CottageMe
 that has a much better post than mine about the same subject.

Every once in a while I get people asking for a reduced rate.  The answer is always no.

It's not like I'm the only game in town. If they want to pay less there are always plenty of other Airbnbs where they can find a better price. The thing is, they really prefer my place but don't want to pay for nice.

The last time this happened was back in February. A woman from England was looking
to stay for 2 days and wanted me to reduce the price from $70 a night to $65.

I explained that I had already lowered my price to account for the off-season and that the price I was charging for an entire apartment was competitive with what others were charging for private rooms.  She decided not to book.

What I found especially irritating about it was this: she's British, paying in pounds. How much was she really saving here?  With the dollar worth about $1.60 pounds, she was offering to pay £38.83 instead of £41.82.  Big difference.

Get a smoke/co2 detector or get delisted

Airbnb is offering U.S. hosts free safety items.

Airbnb expects all U.S. hosts to install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors by the end of 2014. Once you have them installed you must indicate it in your listing. If you don't comply they say they will remove your listing from the site.

To help get hosts on the road to safety they're offering to send you one free detector, a first aid kit, and an emergency numbers card.

Not a bad idea.  I had them installed years ago in all my rental properties.  Each kitchen also had a fire extinguisher (still does) and I'm surprised they're not requiring that too.

Smoke/CO2 detectors aren't very expensive and you should have more than one in a property. If you want to spend some money,  NEST has one out with one that costs about $130 and can be silenced by waving your hand at it (in case you burn the roast.)

Airbnb makes smoke and carbon monoxide detectors mandatory

Bad weather, cancellation policy change

The weather in Philly, and elsewhere on the east coast has been terrible.  In the neighborhoods the roads are barely plowed, many sidewalks are not shoveled and parking is non-existent. I mean, people are sledding down the Art Museum steps fer christ's sake!

Normally, my cancellation policy is set to 'Strict.' However, given the weather conditions, I've temporarily changed it to 'Flexible', which enables guests who can't make it to cancel and get their money back.  The only thing they won't get back is Airbnb's fee. I've also emailed guests to let them know of the change and the reason for it.

So far, the only guests to cancel were the ones who were do to arrive tomorrow.

It's my hope that Airbnb will understand cases like this and agree to waive their fees.

Year-end analysis, or why I'm so tired

As I mentioned in a previous post, 2013 was a busy year. Let's look at the numbers.

Increases from 2012 to 2013

Avg. guests per stay: 58%
Total number of guests: 112%
Avg. nights stayed: -2%
Total nights stayed: 32%
Total number of reservations: 33.33%
Revenue: 80%

Percentage of nights in 2013 that were booked: 71%
Percentage of nights in 2012 that were booked: 54%

For most of 2012 the maximum number of guests who could stay was 2.  Then, near the end of 2012, I furnished the second bedroom and added an air mattress, increasing the number of guests who could stay to 6.

The end result was an increased number of bookings, since I could now accommodate both large and small groups, and an increased number of guests per stay.

But it could be exhausting.  Here's an example.  In June I had this run of 2 night stays:
3rd-5th, 2 guests
5th-7th, 5 guests
7th-9th, 5 guests
9th-11th, 5 guests

And June was the quiet month. July and August was that pattern continue for those entire months. Whew!

Keep in mind it could have been worse.  When I was out of town I blocked off my calendar. If I hadn't done that I could have had an extra 45+ days of reservations.

I do all my cleaning myself although I am reconsidering that decision.  I've since added a cleaning fee in anticipation of hiring some help.  Since adding the cleaning fee I've noticed that most of the inquiries I receive are for 4+ days stay.

What was your year like?

Something for nothing for newbies

Don't know how I missed this but Airbnb is offering a free night's stay to first-time Airbnb users when you stay more than 2 nights.  Hurry, you need to book by Jan. 17 and travel my March 31!

Hotels try to cope with rival Airbnb and other news

Is Airbnb really a rival of the hotel industry?  In the past I would have said no.  That was until a conversation I had at a holiday party.  The conversation was with a woman who is a well known (in the industry), well reviewed, legit B&B owner.  We'd spoken about Airbnb a year and a half ago, shortly after I started hosting.

This time when we spoke she asked if August had been slow for me.  No, actually, it was one of my busiest months ever. She went on to say that her business was very slow with few bookings.  Things were so bad for conventional lodgings that she even had some local hotels calling to see if she was as slow as they were.

I'd always guessed that my guests were people who only stayed in Philly because Airbnb made it affordable. Wrong.  Looks like Airbnb is starting to siphon business off the hotels.  That could spell big trouble.

Airbnb takes a bite out of the hotel market
A Boston University study finds that low-end hotels are especially vulnerable to being replaced by Airbnb accommodations, while hotels that cater to business and luxury travelers have less to worry about.

Hotels 'disadvantaged’ by web rivals, claims IHG boss

Richard Solomons says startups such as Airbnb should be regulated in the same way as traditional firms

The Hotelier’s Invisible Enemy
Many hoteliers assume that only backpackers or very budget-conscious consumers will consider using these sites, but they would be incorrect. 

In other news

Top 5 Ways to Protect Yourself When Renting Your Home to Airbnb Users

As Airbnb scales, the traveler experience needs work
Now that Airbnb has grown up, has a huge valuation, and is causing fear in the hotel lobby in cities across the world, can the traveler experience get a little better, please?

To Airbnb or not Airbnb?
In the end, it comes down to cost. Going "off-piste" is cheaper. But, sometimes, you get what you pay for. Hotels are predictable. Reliable. Certain.

First guests from Turkey!

I had my first guests from Turkey, a really nice group of four economic students who were here for a conference.

A few months ago, we hosted a couple of Russian anthropologists.  Next up, a group from Iceland in town for a soccer coach's convention.


How else other than Airbnb would you have a chance to meet such a wide range of people?

Hosting burnout

Happy new year and all that.

The new year finds me suffering from the remnants of a cold and ENT infection and a serious case of hosting burnout.  Maybe the two are related.

Just before I got really sick I downloaded the .csv of my hosting data from Airbnb. Holy c***!  I thought I was busy this year and the data confirms it.  No wonder I'm so worn down!

The symptoms of burnout hit before the cold virus. A string of problematic guests in November was the last straw and I dealt with it in the following ways: I increased my minimum stay to 3 nights and now require at least one positive review from another host before a guest can stay.  Reservations had already become slow (as widely reported on Airbnb's Hosting 911 group) so I also slashed my prices hoping to compensate for my new requirements.  The result?  Only one new reservation during the past month.  And you know what?  It's okay, because I can really do with the break.

Next week I'll post some numbers and analysis from my hosting data. In the meantime, I'll catch up on some rest.

Retiring sheets and towels

Got stained or worn out sheets and towels that need to be retired?  Don't throw them away!  Instead, wash and donate to your local animal shelter.  That goes for blankets, comforters and rugs too.  Most animal shelters desperately need these things and will be glad to take them off your hands.

Of course, if you're not so keen on pets, have a bit of time on your hands and are crafty you can crochet some rugs.

What NOT to do as an Airbnb guest

1. Show up 4 hours before check-in time

My check-in time is 2 p.m. Check-out time is 11 a.m. The guests who just left had agreed by email to check-in at 2 but arrived at 10:30 am (all 5 of them) expecting to check-in.  They let themselves in just as the last guest was walking out the door. Not good.

2. Call with false complaints

10 hours later I got a panicked call and email from these same guests saying the heater wasn't working and the apartment was cold.  The weather outside was extremely cold so I was immediately concerned. I asked them to go to the thermostat and tell me what the temperature read.  70F (20C). This is a case where my programmable thermostat saved me.

3.  Call at 11 pm the night before check-out and ask if they could stay until 6 pm the next day

Well, at least they asked.  The answer was 'no.'

Kids are people too*? Maybe, says Airbnb

A while ago I had these 2 guests stay.  Well, at least that's what they booked the apartment for.  Then they showed up with their 2 young kids.  Now, I'm not opposed to letting young children stay for free if extra beds aren't needed.  But I do like to know who's staying.

So I asked Airbnb about it. Here's the transcript of our chat:

me: I had a recent guest reserve the apartment for 2 people. He and his wife arrived with 2 children, one an infant and the other a toddler of about 4. Are children not people? Usually, I have no problem letting people with children stay without extra charges but they always ask me about it first. This couple just showed up with the kids. What is airbnb's policy about this?


Lindsay W: Is your place listed as family friendly?

me: Yes (Turns out I was incorrect. It was NOT listed as family friendly)

Lindsay W: Airbnb doesn't have an official policy about this. It's up to the host. But since you've listed as Family Friendly, I'd just suggest that you write something in your listing's description that guests need to book for everyone, babies included

me: Does airbnb have a suggestion box? I'd like to suggest they have a separate drop down for people to list the number of children and change the People dropdown to Adults
Also, its not up to the host when the host doesn't know about it.

Lindsay W: We do! airbnb.com/feedback
Dialogue with our users is a core part of what makes Airbnb great. We value your feedback and it is important our our community
And yes, good point



My take-away from that conversation? It's the host's responsibility to tell guests they need to count their children. Which means, by default, that kids are NOT people too.

And I'm sticking by my suggestion which I did submit to them: that the booking form have fields for guests to report number of adults and number of children and their ages, just like what you're expected to do for hotels.

*You have to be an American of a certain age to have seen Kids Are People Too.

Airbnb Open - A Global Host event

Airbnb is holding a live-stream event on November 12 at 10 a.m. pst and plans to announce a new product aimed at hosts.  Wonder if it has anything to do with this.

If you want to attend, you'll need to order a 'ticket' which you can get on their Facebook event page.

Wait a minute Mr. Postman?

Can't blame the Postwoman for this one.

After guests checked out the other day, I went upstairs to start cleaning and found several pieces of my mail sitting on the table.  Weird, I thought. Why would guests pick up my mail?

Several hours later a friend contacted me. She hadn't yet gotten my RSVP to her wedding invitation.  What invitation?  I never got it.

After some checking, I realized that I also never received that month's water and cable bills.

That's too much of a coincidence for me.  The only conclusion is that guests have been picking up and throwing out my mail.  Now, why the hell would they do this?  Don't know but apparently it's another thing you shouldn't have to tell adults that I will now have to warn them about.

Monkey Monkey Underpants*

By far, the most commonly left behind (no pun intended) item is underpants/knickers/panties, call them what you will.  Left on the floor, in the bureau, amongst the bedding.  I've also had people leave discarded jeans, blankets, electronic devices and, in one case, an entire set of their own bedding including pillows.

My policy is, if they want it back they need to come pick it up.  How do you handle situations like this?

*If you were a fan of Gilmore Girls you'll get the reference. Here's the clip:

Lockboxes

Sometimes you just can't be there to meet guest when they arrive.  Or they arrive so late that you don't want to have to wake up to let them in.  Key lockboxes are the solution.

For a long time I used the Master Lockbox. It's kind of heavy and clunky but it did the job.  The only problem was that some guests couldn't figure it out.  I'd get a panicked call and have to talk them through it.  And, honestly, the lock is a bit trickier than it needs to be.  You've got to set the numbers and then hold down the black lever next to them while you pull the lockbox door toward you.

One time I got a call from a guest complaining that they had set the combo numbers correctly but the door to the house still wouldn't open. Of course, they hadn't removed the keys from the box.  They seemed to think the house door would magically unlock itself once the numbers were set (and no, they weren't Americans.)

A few weeks ago I decided it was time to find an easier lock.  After some searching around I found exactly what I wanted. The Vault Locks 3200 Key Storage Lock Box is small and very easy to use - just set the combo and pull the box towards you. I bought 2 of them and use the other to store a spare set of my own keys.

Even though I have the option of using a lockbox, there are times when I insist on meeting the guests in person - usually when there is a large group of students staying.  My experience has been that they don't always reports the true number of people in their group.  Once they know that you will be there waiting they suddenly have another friend who decided to join them.

Oh, one other thing: I change the lock combination after every guest and set the new combo to the last four digits of the guests phone number. I thought that would help people remember but no guest has ever recognized it was their own number.

People who shouldn't use Airbnb: Craig

Every now and then I browse through the other Airbnb listings in my area.  It helps me make decisions about what to charge and is just a good way to see what guests like (or not) in other places.  Occasionally, you read a review that seems completely out of line.  Here's an example.

Meet Craig, who's description reads "My wife and I divide our time between Kent, CT and Greenwich, CT. We are semi-retired investors with a great love of travel. We are devoted parents of a 12 year old girl and 15 year old boy."

Okay, good.

Now here's his review of Affordable, Cosy and Private Escape.

"I was not going to leave a review at all because I didn't want to mess up Alicia's business, but then the requests for money for broken items started arriving. That was odd since we decided not stay in the apartment at all.

As we approached Alicia's townhouse, my son noticed signs in bodega windows notifying customers that the police would be called immediately if anyone entered the store while wearing a hood or mask. The R.I.P. gangster wall murals also created quite an impression.

Top 10 lists

Top 10 lists can be fun to read.  These two offer advice for both guests and hosts.

1. 10 Ways To Be A Terrible Airbnb Host
2. 10 Ways To Be A Terrible Airbnb Guest

I don't agree with everything in there, especially providing food and (especially) liquor for your guests, but that's a subject for another post.

Here's something I really don't care about - 

Airbnb Launches Celebrity-Themed Promotion In LA

And here's something that has the potential to turn hosts into real hospitality professionals.  In my mind, that is the real threat Airbnb poses to the hotel industry. 

Back from summer hiatus

No, I wasn't away on vacation.  I was just super busy with my full time job and having my best 2 Airbnb months ever. And by best I mean the most lucrative.  Also the busiest.

Many of the guests stayed the minimum 2 nights.  That meant cleaning every other morning.  But one great thing - 2 solid months of really excellent guests where nearly everyone exceeded my expectations. Also, at least 70% of our guests were from France.  Not sure what that's about but it's definitely been a positive experience.

I caught a break for the month of September, with a 2 week stay at the beginning of the month and a 3 week stay starting a week after the that. I've used the extra time it's given me to do some sprucing up around my own place and get some projects done.

Check out this story from Nashville Ledger correspondent and Airbnb host Jeannie Naujeck,
Want to rent your space through Ainbnb? Some tips for success
My project for the upcoming months is to download and analyze my Airbnb hosting data.  I'll be presenting that towards the end of the year when it's ready.

Programmable thermostats

One of the smartest things I did as an Airbnb host was to have a programmable thermostat installed. And not just any kind of programmable thermostat either.  First, it needs to be one that will allow you to set high and low temperature limits.  What does that mean?  It means that guests can't turn the heating above or the cooling below the limits you set. Second, you should be able to lock it using a PIN/password. This is sometimes known as a landlord's thermostat.

A regular old thermostat like this will
wind up costing you lots of money

A thermostat like this doesn't need to be expensive.  I chose a Robert Shaw model that cost less than $100. Of course, the one you choose will depend on your heating/cooling set up so check with you HVAC contractor if you're not sure.

Ok, so why do you need this? Do I really have to explain it?  Because without it guests will turn the heat up or the air conditioning down as far as it will go. And leave it there.  Even while they're out all day.  Not all guests, mind you, but enough to cost you plenty. Your current thermostat lets you set the heat as high as 90F (30C)?  Then some guest will set it there.

Before switching, the worst problems I had were with Brits who set the air conditioning to 59F (15C).  One didn't bother closing the windows either.  So while a programmable thermostat won't solve the window issue, it will at least help rein in guests and help keep your utility bills under control.