UK Airbnb host Elin Rose spoke to Clinton Moodley about being an Airbnb host. This is how the interview went...
Why did you decide to host?- I travel quite a lot and I love to stay at Airbnb’s during my travels. I resonate with the hospitality aspect of it and I get to meet people from all corners of the world.
Where are you from? I´m a citizen of the world, I come from many places. My home country is Iceland.
Is the demand high where you stay? Yes, I have Airbnb properties in big and busy cities in the UK.
How have your guests been. Can you share some of your favourite, and not so favourite guests? Guests are usually always great, understanding and forgiving. My favourite ones are those you get to know and hang out with, many of them give very constructive feedback. Not so favourite are they ones that think that our Airbnb’s are a big corporation and will expect accordingly. Someone once asked if they could be picked up in a limousine from the airport. He was not joking.
What is the one thing every host wants their guests to know? That the properties are someone's home where you are welcome to stay as a guest. We (hosts) always go the extra mile to make sure the guests are safe, comfortable and happy. We communicate with them constantly to make sure everything is well.
What are the cons/negative of this? The only negative thing is that the host is just as vulnerable to random people coming to their house as the guest is. There aren't nearly enough security protocols issued by Airbnb to ensure or maximise security for the hosts when guests are background checked. Likewise for the guest, Airbnb does not engage in any security measure for the properties that are listed. For example, do you as a guest know where the fire escapes are in case of fire? Do you know where fire blankets, fire extinguishers or smoke detectors are located? I urge you as a guest to make sure you know these things. A good host will brief on these upon arrival and have all these protocols in place.