140. Looking at Airbnb’s November 9, 2021 Update in Detail

In your short-term rental business, Airbnb is one of the biggest and best tools out there to get your spaces booked and busy. But as a small business owner, big platform updates can sneak past you, leaving you open for issues down the line. Don’t worry, we’ve got you, boo. Today, we take a deep dive into all of the recent Airbnb updates to keep you in the know and on top of your game.

On November 9th, 2021, Airbnb pushed out a massive update. 

• Update your Wifi speed from within the app

Airbnb is no longer recommending you take a picture of your Wifi speeds. Instead, you want to test it directly from the app and they will share that information with the guest. Wifi is one amenity people are paying close attention to, especially in the age of remote work. Make sure this is on your listing ASAP.

• Options for built-in pet fees

This is something we’ve wanted for a while, but unfortunately it’s still limited in its implementation. You can only set a flat pet fee, not a per-day fee – which is how we like to charge our pet fees. On top of that, if you don’t include a pet fee, Airbnb will put “Pets stay free” on your listing. So while this seems like a good move on paper, it can end up throwing a wrench in your own pricing plan.

• Short stay cleaning fee

We’re not sure how this one will shake out, but if it gets adopted, it could completely change the short-term rental Airbnb culture. From our perspective, it doesn’t make sense to charge less for cleaning for a one night stay when the cost of cleaning is often fixed. But now that it’s an option, if it becomes widely adopted, we may see this being the new competitive move – and adapt to it appropriately.

• AirCover

This is one people are very excited about (though we’re a little skeptical). Airbnb is going to start covering damage to your property as well as lost income due to accidents. This does not replace homeowners insurance, and we still believe you should set aside a personal reserve of cash for anything that crops up. But this could, in theory, greatly simplify the process of making claims and recovering lost funds.

Here’s a list of other changes that we can’t do a deep dive into but are worth mentioning:

• The new “Today” tab
• Increased accessibility options on listing
• More translation options
• Flexible dates

Whether you’re excited or nervous about these changes, you need to know about them to make the best decisions possible for your small business. Airbnb will continue to change, but it’s important to understand how to use this tool as best as you can.

Resources:

• Sign up for Proper Insurance [affiliate link]
• Visit thanksforvisiting.me/workshop to watch our Hosting Business Mastery Method workshop!
• #STRShareSunday: @elkhartaframe