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Do you have a lot of unanswered questions about how to host Airbnbs? My team and I have managed a heck of a lot of reservations. We’ve been asked a lot of questions. We’ve sent and received over 140000, so we’ve got a little bit of experience with this. I want to break down the top 9 questions that you will get asked at some point. These are after guest checks out after the reservation ends. You should know the answers to these questions since they will be asked of you at some point. Take time to clarify expectations before digging into the hosting game.
Question #1
Can I have a late check-out?
You will get it when someone’s reservation ends, so maybe they haven’t left yet, but the reservations are almost over. They’re going to ask whether I can have a late checkout. Hopefully, they’ve asked you a little bit in advance, and hopefully, you have your answer already set up for this. Late checkouts will wreak havoc on your schedule and cause conflicts with your next reservation, especially if you have multiple reservations.
Our team and I typically don’t allow late check out because it makes it hard with all the operations. Most of the time, our housekeepers are there ready to clean the unit as soon as that check-out time arrives for us — that’s 11:00 AM.
Ascertain that guests are aware of the exact time they must check out, and highlight the importance of this by explaining why.
Question #2
Can I extend my stay?
If the guest has a good time and wants to stay longer, they may extend their reservation. Can I extend my stay? Sometimes people ask this very last minute when they’re checking out, so it will come up. They’re going to ask you if the dates are still available. If they’re not, maybe you’ve got another place to put them, but if not, unfortunately, that’s just what happens when we do things super duper last minute.
Question #3
Is there anything we need to do before our checkout?
Checkout for some hosts just entails requesting guests to close the door behind them and relax on their way home. Other hosts provide thorough cleaning instructions. Whatever your hosting style, ensuring your guest checkout expectations are well communicated is critical to ensuring an excellent conclusion to their stay.
We send our check-out instructions to all of our guests a few hours before their check-out time, and they’re straightforward. Usually, it’s just— “Hey, if you don’t mind, please turn off the lights and AC unit, lock the door behind you.” You can ask them to take out the trash or anything like that; of course, you can if you want to. Every space and host is unique. The expectations will differ depending on whether you’re renting a whole property or simply a room, but guests will ask you what they need to do to check out.
Guests will remember all of the fun they had in your space instead of the worry of locking it up, and you’ll be ready for your next booking with a smooth checkout experience. Leave clear instructions for them.
Question #4
I left my __________at your property. Can I pick it up, or can you ship it?
The most common is a phone charger, but sometimes someone leaves something a little more valuable. Your guests will undoubtedly leave items on your property, so you need to have a way to kind of manage that with storage spots. We will store some things thereon many of our properties for some time. If the guest asks for them, we’re happy to ship them back. If it’s something valuable, it will cost us a lot to send, and then we would charge them for that. Phone chargers, you’re going to get timeless, so you probably won’t ever have to repurchase one or your housekeepers, I should say. How??? Because people don’t come back for those minor little tiny things, but people will leave items, so make sure you’ve got a plan to handle that.
Question #5
We checked out, but can we leave our luggage at your property?
It is up to you guys how you want to handle that. We can’t allow this because we usually have another guest checking in, but you will get asked that, and it’s nice to have a recommendation. Suppose they can’t leave their luggage at your property. In that case, some businesses offer luggage storage services to keep your guest stuff safe in either lockers or designated storage facilities in exchange for a variable price. Maybe you have a favorite cafe nearby that you can recommend where they can hang out with their luggage and use fast wifi and drink good coffee and all that stuff.
Question #6
Where can I leave my review, or can you leave a review for me?
When a guest checks out, their stay isn’t done. Other travelers rely on their candid feedback, but Airbnb requires the host to have a specific number of guests post a review. Reviews are a fantastic way for hosts and guests to engage with one another. It also helps our community plan ahead of time by knowing what to expect.
Once the guest checks out, we leave a review right away. We’re always going to leave reviews for our guests. That’s right: reviews work both ways.
This one might come up.
Question #7
I accidentally took your _________. Do you want me to send it back?
It will probably be something like a garage remote or a parking pass or a set of keys or something small that the guests accidentally took. Maybe they used it during their stay and rushed off to the airport. They rushed off to go wherever they needed to be and forgot. They come up with some sort of a miscellaneous item, and then they’re going to ask whether you want me to send it back to you. Well, hopefully, they ask if they should send it back to you, and that’s up to you to handle. So it’s always a good idea to have backups for that stuff— backup garage remotes, backup keys, anything that you need for your next upcoming guests. That’s crucial. The keys to getting in, that’s good to have backups for those.
Question #8
I accidentally broke ____________. Are you going to charge me?
It is nice that the guest is telling us. Of course, our housekeepers will find out if something is broken as well. But someone may write you that the broke the TV or I accidentally broke a bedside lamp. It fell off the table, broke a vase, or broke some wine glasses. How do you want to handle that? It’s good to have a response, especially for your receptionist helping you with your guest messages. It’s good to have a reply ready to go because the better prepared you are with the answers, the smoother everything goes, the better experience our guest has, the better experience our team has— the better it is overall. Just be prepared so if it’s something a large item, we usually ask for some sort of compensation. If it’s something small that broke like a wine glass (that happens all the time), then we’re not going to ask for them. You know, send the $6 for a broken wine glass, but if they broke a whole bunch of wine glasses or they ruined a whole bunch of towels, then we are going to ask for some sort of compensation, and we would file a resolution if that’s something that we need to do so.
Question #9
Why did I get charged incorrectly?
This is going to happen sometime after the guest checks out. They get home, they view their invoice, and if they don’t know how much they spent, they’re going to say I got charged incorrectly. Now, if you’re booking directly through Airbnb, that’s going to be pretty cut and dry because Airbnb handles all payment transactions. Still, if you’re booking through your own platform, where you’re charging the guests, maybe something got messed up there. We have the reservation booked most of the time, and the guests know exactly how much is upfront. They may have misread something, unfortunately. You will get that question and how do you want to handle that. Do you want to work with them? Most the time, we’ve got reservations cut dry in our situation, so we’re going to go ahead and stick with that.
Those are 9 top questions that you will get as the guest’s check-in or after they’ve already checked out.
The more flexible you are, though, the better. When your guests have a problem and can’t make it on time, they’ll be grateful if you’re still available, and they’ll likely mention it in their reviews. The higher your properties will go up in the search rankings. The more money you will make with your short-term rentals.
Again, it’s better to be prepared. The quicker we can respond, the better the guest experience will have.
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