When Airbnb Hosts Say No to Guests

You find their Facebook profile, which advertises a party to friends on the weekend they requested to book with you, clearly intending to use your property. You decline the booking.

Half an hour later, you get another request from a woman booking on behalf of her son. Your suspicions are raised again, so you check the woman’s social media and discover that her son is friends with the initial party planner. You decline this booking too.

When guests have good reviews, you generally don’t feel the need to do more than ensure they have a pleasant stay. But sometimes, checking social media profiles is necessary to avoid potential issues.

A survey by home safety company Minut, involving 247 rental property managers in the UK, US, France, Germany, and Canada, reveals that about 43% of managers have dealt with noise complaints, and 25% have had the police called due to noise. You are part of the 8% who check social media profiles before accepting bookings.

As someone who has owned up to 17 short-term rentals and now operates 12 (we sold five—more on that in a future newsletter), protecting our properties and investments is crucial.

Since launching our first short-term rental in May 2022, we’ve had over 3,000 nights booked. That’s a lot of guests and plenty of stories. Initially, with no experience, we faced “unscheduled events” and some pretty bad guests. It happens but it is a very small percentage. Over the years, we’ve learned from our mistakes and are more careful about the bookings we accept.

Although not fail safe, here are our recommendations for screening guests:

• Research Guests: Request the guest’s full name and research them on social media. Verify that their story matches the information they provide.
• Reason for Visit: Send a message before booking to confirm the purpose of their stay. Decline any guest who fails to provide a reason.
• Local Guests: If a guest is local, ensure they have a solid reason for booking, such as hosting out-of-town family. Use your best judgment in these cases. Otherwise, we decline most of these requests.
• Event-Related Bookings: Decline bookings mentioning birthdays, graduations, reunions, or similar events.
• Age Requirement: Guests must be at least 25 years old.
• Required Stay: The booking guest must be present for the entire stay. If not, they must provide a reasonable explanation. Corporate bookings, which account for about 40% of our guests, often stay a week or longer.
• Third-Party Bookings: Be wary of guests booking for family members or children, as this often a red flag. I can say with certainty there will be a party.
• Weekend Bookings: Require a minimum of two-night bookings from Thursday to Saturday. Do not allow one-night weekend bookings.
• Long-Term Bookings: Decline guests requesting to book for a month or more but wanting to pay weekly. They must pay for the entire stay upfront.
• Direct Bookings: Decline guests who want to communicate with you via WhatsApp requesting to book outside of platforms like Airbnb or VRBO for two reasons. First, if either one of these services find that you attempted to circumvent their service to avoid paying their fees, they will ban you from their platform. Second, it may be a scam.
• New Guests: Scrutinize guests with no reviews or new to the platform. Be cautious with local guests and use your best judgment. Most are legitimate bookings but if they are new to the platform and also local, definitely decline them.
• Scams on VRBO: Be cautious of potential scams on VRBO. If an inquiry asks, “Is this available to book?” it’s likely a scam. Obviously, the calendar shows availability so why are they asking? Also, be wary of bookings that request to book directly using a corporate check. Do not respond to these requests.
• Rating Requirement: Accept bookings from guests with a 4.5-star rating or better. Lower-rated guests often don’t follow check-out procedures, leave a mess, or damage property. Past behavior is the best predictor of future actions.
• If damage occurs, Airbnb’s AirCover provides damage protection with reimbursements typically within two weeks. VRBO guests must buy the $89 insurance policy, covering up to $3,000 in damages. It may take up to a month to be reimbursed by VRBO’ insurance carrier.

Careful screening helps you maintain the quality and safety of the property, providing an enjoyable stay for responsible guests and peace of mind for you.