6 Things We Learned After Hosting a “Tough” Guest

Out of our 80+ guests, we were bound to have one bad apple, and she came this week. I’ll spare you all of the details, but don’t worry, it’s not like anything from Airbnb Nightmares but she will not be getting a glowing review from our home.

One host told me today: “Lesson learned from my experience- if you start to feel uncomfortable at your own place, call Airbnb, report it and refund the outstanding nights. Not worth it.” However, if that is not an option, here are some tips that we learned the hard way.

1. Set the guest’s key code as the last four digits of their phone number (or have them come up with a code), that way they can’t forget it and wake you up at midnight when they forgot their code and temporarily disable the smart lock. Here is the one we have:

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2. Make sure all communication goes through the Airbnb app. We never offer our phone numbers, but they can get your phone number off of the reservation. If they text or call, respond to them through the app. This keeps track of all of your correspondence so Airbnb can see it as proof of any issues.

3. Stick to your cancellation policy. If your policy is that you do not refund, Airbnb will back you up.

4. Refer to your listing. We had a guest that was upset there was not breakfast included (she also demanded we give her laundry detergent since the washing machine and dryer were available for use) and we encouraged her to look back at the listing for available amenities. We do not have an obligation to include anything more than listed and she just clearly did not read the listing closely.

Source

5. Along with the previous point, make sure that your listing is as specific as possible. For one of our listings, we made sure that it says several times climbing stairs are required and that the room is in the basement to make sure we do not have any misunderstandings.

6. Another host recommended to me that when there are any misunderstandings or frustrations to name them right away and preface any messages, “There seems to have been a misunderstanding, and I want to make sure that you enjoy your stay,” and ask what can you do to help.

As a “homeshare host” you’ll have plenty of uncomfortable or difficult conversations, but in general, it’s best to be straightforward and over communicate expectations/house rules. Today I am reminding myself that guests like this only come by once in awhile and our next guests will be normal again.