All Forum Posts by: Chris Gottshall

@Tara Bergstrom It would be a much cleaner arrangement (no pun intended) if she billed you for supplies and ancillary services rather than hoping that were made up for in gratuities. Plus, it is good for your accounting to know if paper supplies cost $100 annually or $300 versus just tipping the housekeeper and expecting everything will be taken care of. My housekeeper does this - paper towels, toilet paper, tissues, dish soap, hand soap, laundry detergent - all are EITHER included in the base price OR itemized on my invoice when they are incurred. I like knowing where the money goes - repairs, supplies, management fees, etc.

I previously had a housekeeper for my own home and *those* folks, I tip. But not for my business. Although, I would consider giving something extra IF someone gives us 5 stars on the "cleanliness" rating, if I wasn't already able to achieve superhost status because of issues with cleanliness.

I hope this one works out for you, but I would not be comfortable hiring her with these assumptions.

I do not tip my house keeper, but I work with a small business, not just an individual. We're in our 3rd year working together and I've never gotten the impression that I should have sent them tips. I'm going to follow this thread, as I'm very curious if I'm possibly doing something wrong. :)

Yeah, they basically said "we'll pay you" but neglected to say "... only if you had a strict cancellation policy." Non-ironically, they are ALWAYS trying to prompt me to abandon using a strict policy in favor of more flexible terms to "attract more guests." Well, I feel pretty good about rebuffing those attempts and this has further cemented why we'll be sticking with a strict policy going forward.

I reached out to them via their support chat on Monday of this week to ask where my March cancellations payment was because they said they would send them monthly and today is already the end of April. I just got my email last night confirming the amount they calculated. Yes, it is peanuts, even though I have a strict cancellation policy. Less than $400 for the 5 reservations they canceled on me. Thanks, I guess? I would have rather they let me handle the cancelation myself instead of ripping the rug out from under us for half of March and April. Oh well... Airbnb has always been more than 90% of my bookings, so I'm just gonna roll with it and hope I can make up for it later this year.

I wonder how many housekeeping companies will bother reading Airbnb’s CYA cleaning policy. Doubtful many would. All PR for them at our expense.

I just saw the renewal for one of mine and yes, it’s up about 33% YoY. My carrier in Liberty Mutual. Not sure why though. I’m shopping.

Following this thread because I would love to get into Bend, OR, too, and I am really curious to learn more about that market.

Nope. No money or communication.

Glad I’ve never flinched on my strict policy at this point in time. 

I'm expecting this to last all summer if not all year at this point.

@Rachel Hughes Perhaps. My guests have always been direct in saying they can’t keep the reservation. Whether they find the “Cancel” link, the extenuating circumstances link, or just message support directly, I’m not sure. But I’ve seen this message a few times this week, unfortunately. 😢 I’ve lost $2000 in bookings so far due to COVID-19. And I’m nervous for May when things are supposed to pick up for summer. Could be a rough year.