AirBNB should I write a review?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm an AirBNB host and here is the reality. We aren't professionals in the hospitality business. We aren't a big business with 3 maids on staff. Of a maid doesn't show or misses something the guest will discover it before we do!

With that in mind - all of these are forgivable. Agreed that you should have gotten your cleaning fee or part of it back.

The host needs to get an ozone machine for smoke smells when that happens.

If the place wasn't grossly misrepresented it doesn't warrant a super negative review.

I disagree. I've been staying in airBnB's for at least 8 years and stayed in many all around the US. Good hosts either clean themselves or they check the property after the cleaning crew visits, before new guests arrive, or they speak directly to the cleaning crew. A host who hires a cleaning crew, doesn't speak to them and doesn't check the property after the crew to make sure the place is ready, is not a good host. You are responsible for the condition of the property and making sure that the place is ready for check-in. If you are delegating the responsibility, you are still responsible. If the place is not cleaned, then you either need to get the crew back over to the place, or go yourself to do basic cleaning. If you don't do any of these things, then you deserve a factually based bad review.

A review from OP that said that the place was nice, but had not been cleaned with dirty dishes put back into the cupboards and the smell of smoke in what was supposed to be a smoke-free rental, is an appropriate review. It tells potential renters that the owner did not take the basic responsibility to ensure that the place was ready to be rented. It deserves to be a public response that other renters can see. And you, as the owner, can respond to say that you have cancelled the cleaning contract to hire a different team, or you have worked with the hired cleaning crew to ensure that this doesn't happen again, or whatever the appropriate response is. Future renters have a right to see that there was an issue and what amends you have made and decide whether that is sufficient for them to trust the host to have fixed the issue.

I have found that superhosts have not had such issues. All of the superhosts I have rented from have either personally checked the property after the cleaning crew visited, or they had the cleaning crew call them when they were finished and discussed the property before our check-in.

Its not that hard to become a " super host"- just accept every booking request, cancel less than 3 reservations a year and respond timely- that's it

As for if Super Hosts are a safer bet, well here's one quote " super host" profile:

- multiple reviews on the property are by people who have - supposedly been AirBnb guests for 8 years, BUT in those 8 years have only stayed at ! place- you guessed it: the Super host's place, which they gave 5 stars

- other reviews for this " super host" are from other hosts who live in same neighborhood as the " super host" AND have maybe 58 reviews as Hosts, but only 1 as a guest at guess where ?? you got it : the " super host's place"

Those look like fake reviews to me

Then the kicker, an actual guest shows up and writes a scathing review: " peeling paint, windows sealed shut, leaking roof, no A/C on a 97 degree day AND a leaking roof

Hmmmm....

What does Air BnB do ?? Send out an inspector ? No. Take the advert down ? No. Instead, the place pops up on page 1 of the search for the town with a discount AND Ms " Super Host " still has her badge icon affixed to her sun-glassed covered face, with her head tipped down so you can't even see what she looks like

That's Airn BnB for ya'

While this may be true of some places, there are other.

Our Airbnb has over 750 reviews averaging 4.92 stars. I assure you, those are not all friends and neighbors.

You should be agitating for more transparency and accountability in the ratings, then. Your honest good reviews don't count for nearly as much as they should, in a system where even the cr*ppiest places are getting five stars. It's like Amazon. I no longer trust Amazon reviews because they seem so poorly correlated to reality, and so there are some products I just don't buy there anymore - I think AirBNB is heading in that direction, too, between the untrustworthy reviews and the terrible search function that makes it d*mn near impossible to just look for properties in the fricking place where you actyually want to stay and not 15 miles away from there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm an AirBNB host and here is the reality. We aren't professionals in the hospitality business. We aren't a big business with 3 maids on staff. Of a maid doesn't show or misses something the guest will discover it before we do!

With that in mind - all of these are forgivable. Agreed that you should have gotten your cleaning fee or part of it back.

The host needs to get an ozone machine for smoke smells when that happens.

If the place wasn't grossly misrepresented it doesn't warrant a super negative review.

I disagree. I've been staying in airBnB's for at least 8 years and stayed in many all around the US. Good hosts either clean themselves or they check the property after the cleaning crew visits, before new guests arrive, or they speak directly to the cleaning crew. A host who hires a cleaning crew, doesn't speak to them and doesn't check the property after the crew to make sure the place is ready, is not a good host. You are responsible for the condition of the property and making sure that the place is ready for check-in. If you are delegating the responsibility, you are still responsible. If the place is not cleaned, then you either need to get the crew back over to the place, or go yourself to do basic cleaning. If you don't do any of these things, then you deserve a factually based bad review.

A review from OP that said that the place was nice, but had not been cleaned with dirty dishes put back into the cupboards and the smell of smoke in what was supposed to be a smoke-free rental, is an appropriate review. It tells potential renters that the owner did not take the basic responsibility to ensure that the place was ready to be rented. It deserves to be a public response that other renters can see. And you, as the owner, can respond to say that you have cancelled the cleaning contract to hire a different team, or you have worked with the hired cleaning crew to ensure that this doesn't happen again, or whatever the appropriate response is. Future renters have a right to see that there was an issue and what amends you have made and decide whether that is sufficient for them to trust the host to have fixed the issue.

I have found that superhosts have not had such issues. All of the superhosts I have rented from have either personally checked the property after the cleaning crew visited, or they had the cleaning crew call them when they were finished and discussed the property before our check-in.

Its not that hard to become a " super host"- just accept every booking request, cancel less than 3 reservations a year and respond timely- that's it

As for if Super Hosts are a safer bet, well here's one quote " super host" profile:

- multiple reviews on the property are by people who have - supposedly been AirBnb guests for 8 years, BUT in those 8 years have only stayed at ! place- you guessed it: the Super host's place, which they gave 5 stars

- other reviews for this " super host" are from other hosts who live in same neighborhood as the " super host" AND have maybe 58 reviews as Hosts, but only 1 as a guest at guess where ?? you got it : the " super host's place"

Those look like fake reviews to me

Then the kicker, an actual guest shows up and writes a scathing review: " peeling paint, windows sealed shut, leaking roof, no A/C on a 97 degree day AND a leaking roof

Hmmmm....

What does Air BnB do ?? Send out an inspector ? No. Take the advert down ? No. Instead, the place pops up on page 1 of the search for the town with a discount AND Ms " Super Host " still has her badge icon affixed to her sun-glassed covered face, with her head tipped down so you can't even see what she looks like

That's Airn BnB for ya'

While this may be true of some places, there are other.

Our Airbnb has over 750 reviews averaging 4.92 stars. I assure you, those are not all friends and neighbors.

I’m also a super host. I have about 30 reviews and all but one was five star. That doesn’t mean it’s luxury. It’s not. Not at all. It means I met their expectations. That’s all. It is impossible for friends and neighbors to leave reviews without a transaction taking place. I guess you could accept a minimal amount but you’d also have to block your calendar for those dates. This isn’t like Amazon where you’ve don’t have to have bought something to leave a review.

I can not imagine a circumstance by which anyone can manipulate the reviews without having actual transactions from friends. And reviews ALWAYS appear with most recent first. Bad reviews are never hidden. The only exception is that sometimes reviews from outside the US don’t appear chronologically. The only phenomenon I’ve observed is that when guests deal directly with a host and especially if they meet them in person they are much less likely to leave a critical review than if they were reviewing a hotel or vacation rental more anonymously. Even a small connection with the host tends toward better reviews. I’ve had plenty of reviews that were great but the guests had minor issues that they just raised with me personally.

Also it’s not as simple as PP suggests to become a super host. The biggest criteria is above 4.8 average on your reviews.

[Anonymous]

The last Airbnb I stayed in was a studio apartment in a beach town in Central America. It was a great little place, but I thought the owner (a superhost) had oversold the location. While he was technically correct that it was a 15 to 20 minute walk on the beach to the center of town, what he left out -- which every single local I talked to was quick to warn me -- was that you'd be absolutely insane to walk on the beach at night in either direction and that once night fell the area around the apartment was so desolate that there were no cabs to be had. So, basically, if you didn't arrange for transportation in advance or leave for town in daylight you were out of luck unless you were willing to risk getting mugged.

I didn't go into all of these specifics in my review, but I did say -- after praising the apartment itself -- that guests should be aware that describing the apartment as a "15 to 20 minute walk on the beach" into town was a little misleading to anyone who hoped to have the flexibility to stroll into town whenever they wanted because it was universally agreed that walking on the beach at night wasn't a good idea and there are no cabs in the area surrounding the apartment.

I really pissed the superhost off, and he slammed me in response. I didn't care, because if I were a guest considering the apartment this is something I'd definitely want to know. I thought his response was pretty petty.

[Anonymous]

AirBnB has a system that allows you to write a public review, then private add details that only the host will be able to read.

For a stay where I wasn't entirely happy about the cleanliness (mouse droppings on the coffee maker), I wrote about the good parts for the public review, but docked several stars for the cleanliness assessment, without commenting further, and then detailed the mouse dropping issue with the host privately, who apologized and said he was having issues with his cleaning staff.

After that experience, I started paying a lot more attention to the cleanliness assessments left by other reviewers and what's left unsaid in reviews. I will only book when the host has 5/5 stars. Reviewers are like, too kind to point out all the flaws in public, but they try to convey their impressions with what's unsaid or not explicitly said.

[Anonymous]

Actually Airbnb has a weird and untransparent way of sorting reviews. The first 20 or so are in reverse chronological order, but If you keep scrolling down, at some point, new ones start popping up again. While far from perfect, I prefer booking’s review functionality which allows sorting and filtering by traveler type.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
AirBnB has a system that allows you to write a public review, then private add details that only the host will be able to read.

For a stay where I wasn't entirely happy about the cleanliness (mouse droppings on the coffee maker), I wrote about the good parts for the public review, but docked several stars for the cleanliness assessment, without commenting further, and then detailed the mouse dropping issue with the host privately, who apologized and said he was having issues with his cleaning staff.

After that experience, I started paying a lot more attention to the cleanliness assessments left by other reviewers and what's left unsaid in reviews. I will only book when the host has 5/5 stars. Reviewers are like, too kind to point out all the flaws in public, but they try to convey their impressions with what's unsaid or not explicitly said.

Wait you found literal mouse sh*t ON the coffee maker and did NOT put that in the review?

See this is why I don't trust AirBNB reviews anymore. What in the effing world do you think future potential guests would not want to know about the mouse sh*t on the coffee maker? What are these reviews for if not to mention that there is actual mouse sh*t on the coffee maker?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm an AirBNB host and here is the reality. We aren't professionals in the hospitality business. We aren't a big business with 3 maids on staff. Of a maid doesn't show or misses something the guest will discover it before we do!

With that in mind - all of these are forgivable. Agreed that you should have gotten your cleaning fee or part of it back.

The host needs to get an ozone machine for smoke smells when that happens.

If the place wasn't grossly misrepresented it doesn't warrant a super negative review.

I disagree. I've been staying in airBnB's for at least 8 years and stayed in many all around the US. Good hosts either clean themselves or they check the property after the cleaning crew visits, before new guests arrive, or they speak directly to the cleaning crew. A host who hires a cleaning crew, doesn't speak to them and doesn't check the property after the crew to make sure the place is ready, is not a good host. You are responsible for the condition of the property and making sure that the place is ready for check-in. If you are delegating the responsibility, you are still responsible. If the place is not cleaned, then you either need to get the crew back over to the place, or go yourself to do basic cleaning. If you don't do any of these things, then you deserve a factually based bad review.

A review from OP that said that the place was nice, but had not been cleaned with dirty dishes put back into the cupboards and the smell of smoke in what was supposed to be a smoke-free rental, is an appropriate review. It tells potential renters that the owner did not take the basic responsibility to ensure that the place was ready to be rented. It deserves to be a public response that other renters can see. And you, as the owner, can respond to say that you have cancelled the cleaning contract to hire a different team, or you have worked with the hired cleaning crew to ensure that this doesn't happen again, or whatever the appropriate response is. Future renters have a right to see that there was an issue and what amends you have made and decide whether that is sufficient for them to trust the host to have fixed the issue.

I have found that superhosts have not had such issues. All of the superhosts I have rented from have either personally checked the property after the cleaning crew visited, or they had the cleaning crew call them when they were finished and discussed the property before our check-in.

Its not that hard to become a " super host"- just accept every booking request, cancel less than 3 reservations a year and respond timely- that's it

As for if Super Hosts are a safer bet, well here's one quote " super host" profile:

- multiple reviews on the property are by people who have - supposedly been AirBnb guests for 8 years, BUT in those 8 years have only stayed at ! place- you guessed it: the Super host's place, which they gave 5 stars

- other reviews for this " super host" are from other hosts who live in same neighborhood as the " super host" AND have maybe 58 reviews as Hosts, but only 1 as a guest at guess where ?? you got it : the " super host's place"

Those look like fake reviews to me

Then the kicker, an actual guest shows up and writes a scathing review: " peeling paint, windows sealed shut, leaking roof, no A/C on a 97 degree day AND a leaking roof

Hmmmm....

What does Air BnB do ?? Send out an inspector ? No. Take the advert down ? No. Instead, the place pops up on page 1 of the search for the town with a discount AND Ms " Super Host " still has her badge icon affixed to her sun-glassed covered face, with her head tipped down so you can't even see what she looks like

That's Airn BnB for ya'

While this may be true of some places, there are other.

Our Airbnb has over 750 reviews averaging 4.92 stars. I assure you, those are not all friends and neighbors.

You should be agitating for more transparency and accountability in the ratings, then. Your honest good reviews don't count for nearly as much as they should, in a system where even the cr*ppiest places are getting five stars. It's like Amazon. I no longer trust Amazon reviews because they seem so poorly correlated to reality, and so there are some products I just don't buy there anymore - I think AirBNB is heading in that direction, too, between the untrustworthy reviews and the terrible search function that makes it d*mn near impossible to just look for properties in the fricking place where you actyually want to stay and not 15 miles away from there.

What is Air BnB anyway ? Its a company founded by 30 somethings, once of whom was famous for providing a platform for spammers.....

Its disturbing how they have a 10,000 word release of all claims that you have to sign before renting a weekend stay anywhere

Do these 30 somethings who formed AirBnb have any sense of good old fashioned standing behind your product or is it all smoke and mirrors... and , yes, SPAM- in my opinion

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm an AirBNB host and here is the reality. We aren't professionals in the hospitality business. We aren't a big business with 3 maids on staff. Of a maid doesn't show or misses something the guest will discover it before we do!

With that in mind - all of these are forgivable. Agreed that you should have gotten your cleaning fee or part of it back.

The host needs to get an ozone machine for smoke smells when that happens.

If the place wasn't grossly misrepresented it doesn't warrant a super negative review.

I disagree. I've been staying in airBnB's for at least 8 years and stayed in many all around the US. Good hosts either clean themselves or they check the property after the cleaning crew visits, before new guests arrive, or they speak directly to the cleaning crew. A host who hires a cleaning crew, doesn't speak to them and doesn't check the property after the crew to make sure the place is ready, is not a good host. You are responsible for the condition of the property and making sure that the place is ready for check-in. If you are delegating the responsibility, you are still responsible. If the place is not cleaned, then you either need to get the crew back over to the place, or go yourself to do basic cleaning. If you don't do any of these things, then you deserve a factually based bad review.

A review from OP that said that the place was nice, but had not been cleaned with dirty dishes put back into the cupboards and the smell of smoke in what was supposed to be a smoke-free rental, is an appropriate review. It tells potential renters that the owner did not take the basic responsibility to ensure that the place was ready to be rented. It deserves to be a public response that other renters can see. And you, as the owner, can respond to say that you have cancelled the cleaning contract to hire a different team, or you have worked with the hired cleaning crew to ensure that this doesn't happen again, or whatever the appropriate response is. Future renters have a right to see that there was an issue and what amends you have made and decide whether that is sufficient for them to trust the host to have fixed the issue.

I have found that superhosts have not had such issues. All of the superhosts I have rented from have either personally checked the property after the cleaning crew visited, or they had the cleaning crew call them when they were finished and discussed the property before our check-in.

Its not that hard to become a " super host"- just accept every booking request, cancel less than 3 reservations a year and respond timely- that's it

As for if Super Hosts are a safer bet, well here's one quote " super host" profile:

- multiple reviews on the property are by people who have - supposedly been AirBnb guests for 8 years, BUT in those 8 years have only stayed at ! place- you guessed it: the Super host's place, which they gave 5 stars

- other reviews for this " super host" are from other hosts who live in same neighborhood as the " super host" AND have maybe 58 reviews as Hosts, but only 1 as a guest at guess where ?? you got it : the " super host's place"

Those look like fake reviews to me

Then the kicker, an actual guest shows up and writes a scathing review: " peeling paint, windows sealed shut, leaking roof, no A/C on a 97 degree day AND a leaking roof

Hmmmm....

What does Air BnB do ?? Send out an inspector ? No. Take the advert down ? No. Instead, the place pops up on page 1 of the search for the town with a discount AND Ms " Super Host " still has her badge icon affixed to her sun-glassed covered face, with her head tipped down so you can't even see what she looks like

That's Airn BnB for ya'

While this may be true of some places, there are other.

Our Airbnb has over 750 reviews averaging 4.92 stars. I assure you, those are not all friends and neighbors.

I’m also a super host. I have about 30 reviews and all but one was five star. That doesn’t mean it’s luxury. It’s not. Not at all. It means I met their expectations. That’s all. It is impossible for friends and neighbors to leave reviews without a transaction taking place. I guess you could accept a minimal amount but you’d also have to block your calendar for those dates. This isn’t like Amazon where you’ve don’t have to have bought something to leave a review.

I can not imagine a circumstance by which anyone can manipulate the reviews without having actual transactions from friends. And reviews ALWAYS appear with most recent first. Bad reviews are never hidden. The only exception is that sometimes reviews from outside the US don’t appear chronologically. The only phenomenon I’ve observed is that when guests deal directly with a host and especially if they meet them in person they are much less likely to leave a critical review than if they were reviewing a hotel or vacation rental more anonymously. Even a small connection with the host tends toward better reviews. I’ve had plenty of reviews that were great but the guests had minor issues that they just raised with me personally.

Also it’s not as simple as PP suggests to become a super host. The biggest criteria is above 4.8 average on your reviews.

This is simply NOT TRUE . Fake reviews can be purchased on the dark web and it is rampant on AirBnB where the cool aid is not just being served, but force fed....

Any host who doesn't get 5 stars is lowered on the listing algorhtym

AirBnB claims that they are just a payment platform and that " HOSTS are not our employees" Yet.... READ this information about how a terrible host who is bad enough to get their account suspended can " earn it back"

https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1303/why-was-my-listing-paused-or-suspended#section-heading-0-2

My question: if AirBnB does not disclose to guests that a prior Host's account was suspended and THAT GUEST then books is Air BNB not putting them in harms way for finanical gain?

Communities need to regulate AirBnb and properties need to be annually inspected for the public safety.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm an AirBNB host and here is the reality. We aren't professionals in the hospitality business. We aren't a big business with 3 maids on staff. Of a maid doesn't show or misses something the guest will discover it before we do!

With that in mind - all of these are forgivable. Agreed that you should have gotten your cleaning fee or part of it back.

The host needs to get an ozone machine for smoke smells when that happens.

If the place wasn't grossly misrepresented it doesn't warrant a super negative review.

I disagree. I've been staying in airBnB's for at least 8 years and stayed in many all around the US. Good hosts either clean themselves or they check the property after the cleaning crew visits, before new guests arrive, or they speak directly to the cleaning crew. A host who hires a cleaning crew, doesn't speak to them and doesn't check the property after the crew to make sure the place is ready, is not a good host. You are responsible for the condition of the property and making sure that the place is ready for check-in. If you are delegating the responsibility, you are still responsible. If the place is not cleaned, then you either need to get the crew back over to the place, or go yourself to do basic cleaning. If you don't do any of these things, then you deserve a factually based bad review.

A review from OP that said that the place was nice, but had not been cleaned with dirty dishes put back into the cupboards and the smell of smoke in what was supposed to be a smoke-free rental, is an appropriate review. It tells potential renters that the owner did not take the basic responsibility to ensure that the place was ready to be rented. It deserves to be a public response that other renters can see. And you, as the owner, can respond to say that you have cancelled the cleaning contract to hire a different team, or you have worked with the hired cleaning crew to ensure that this doesn't happen again, or whatever the appropriate response is. Future renters have a right to see that there was an issue and what amends you have made and decide whether that is sufficient for them to trust the host to have fixed the issue.

I have found that superhosts have not had such issues. All of the superhosts I have rented from have either personally checked the property after the cleaning crew visited, or they had the cleaning crew call them when they were finished and discussed the property before our check-in.

Its not that hard to become a " super host"- just accept every booking request, cancel less than 3 reservations a year and respond timely- that's it

As for if Super Hosts are a safer bet, well here's one quote " super host" profile:

- multiple reviews on the property are by people who have - supposedly been AirBnb guests for 8 years, BUT in those 8 years have only stayed at ! place- you guessed it: the Super host's place, which they gave 5 stars

- other reviews for this " super host" are from other hosts who live in same neighborhood as the " super host" AND have maybe 58 reviews as Hosts, but only 1 as a guest at guess where ?? you got it : the " super host's place"

Those look like fake reviews to me

Then the kicker, an actual guest shows up and writes a scathing review: " peeling paint, windows sealed shut, leaking roof, no A/C on a 97 degree day AND a leaking roof

Hmmmm....

What does Air BnB do ?? Send out an inspector ? No. Take the advert down ? No. Instead, the place pops up on page 1 of the search for the town with a discount AND Ms " Super Host " still has her badge icon affixed to her sun-glassed covered face, with her head tipped down so you can't even see what she looks like

That's Airn BnB for ya'

While this may be true of some places, there are other.

Our Airbnb has over 750 reviews averaging 4.92 stars. I assure you, those are not all friends and neighbors.

I’m also a super host. I have about 30 reviews and all but one was five star. That doesn’t mean it’s luxury. It’s not. Not at all. It means I met their expectations. That’s all. It is impossible for friends and neighbors to leave reviews without a transaction taking place. I guess you could accept a minimal amount but you’d also have to block your calendar for those dates. This isn’t like Amazon where you’ve don’t have to have bought something to leave a review.

I can not imagine a circumstance by which anyone can manipulate the reviews without having actual transactions from friends. And reviews ALWAYS appear with most recent first. Bad reviews are never hidden. The only exception is that sometimes reviews from outside the US don’t appear chronologically. The only phenomenon I’ve observed is that when guests deal directly with a host and especially if they meet them in person they are much less likely to leave a critical review than if they were reviewing a hotel or vacation rental more anonymously. Even a small connection with the host tends toward better reviews. I’ve had plenty of reviews that were great but the guests had minor issues that they just raised with me personally.

Also it’s not as simple as PP suggests to become a super host. The biggest criteria is above 4.8 average on your reviews.

Ummm.... then why does the AirBnb online forum " Host Community support" have a 7 page thread on the topic of Fake reviews then ?

There are even websites that give directions on how to do what is called a " custom booking " for a $14 fee.