Written by Robert Jordan, Member of the Host2Host Board and host in NE Portland.
We have all heard Airbnb horror stories of guests who won’t leave. After 4+ years of problem-free hosting, I finally had that unfortunate experience. Let me tell you about it.
Bookings have been few and far between this past pandemic year, and we had had no guests for several weeks. The room was all prepped and ready to go, so when we got a three-day booking inquiry one Monday night, asking if they could get in early the next day, I didn’t hesitate to say “yes”. First lesson – they had zero reviews, despite the account being 5 years old. A bad sign that I failed to even notice. They were two adults and according to Airbnb were from Eugene, so I assumed they were a couple driving up here for a few days (not true – I later learned they were from Portland). Second lesson – don’t make assumptions.
Did I say that the worst snow and ice storm of the season had just hit Portland and when they arrived the next morning there was ice and snow on the ground? I was outside when they pulled up – in a SafeRide Health van. The young man got out and proceeded to assist the other guest, an older disabled woman in a wheelchair. Our unit is up narrow stairs above our garage, as is clearly stated in our listing. When I pointed this out, the young man said, “She can walk some, she just has a spinal injury. She can get up the stairs.” What could I do? Tell them “no”, and leave them out in the cold? As he unloaded her in the wheelchair and then bag after tote-bag, it dawned on me that these people were homeless… (another assumption, but I never found out if it was really the case).
Our unit has only a microwave and a little fridge - I told him there was a grocery store nearby, but he said they had food. And then for the next three days we didn’t even see a light go on out in the unit, and nobody left it. He was very uncommunicative, not answering his phone or responding to text messages over Airbnb. I finally was able to talk to him by banging on the door and talking through it. All along I was imagining the worst (more assumptions). Being concerned that they were starving, I ended up spending a good $30 on groceries for them, which I left at the door. And three days later the morning of their check-out arrived…
About two hours before they should have left, they requested an extension – which I had no intention of granting, just wanting them out of there. We finally communicated over the phone, and they both got into the back-and-forth with me, not understanding that they couldn’t just extend without our permission. When at 11 AM they were still there, it was time to call Airbnb.
Once I found a phone number to talk to a real person at Airbnb (not easy!), they opened a case and tried to communicate with our overstay guests, but with no success. We were told that until 36 hours had elapsed Airbnb really could take no action, but at that point something called an “extraction team” would take over. That could have added a lot of excitement to this tale, but the next day (at about hour 34) the couple found another place and moved out, having stayed one unauthorized night. Some time later I ascended the stairs, conjuring up a horror story of what sort of a mess they might have left in the room - but in fact it was left perfectly clean (one more worst-case assumption).
We let Airbnb know they could close the case, and directed them that we would forgive the debt for the extra night. My conclusion is that these were not partiers or addicts or anything of the sort, just people in dire straits who needed a place to stay in the storm (rooms in Portland were virtually unobtainable due to the power outages). They probably took our room despite its being totally unsuitable for a person in a wheelchair, because they had to.
I feel a certain amount of guilt for having entertained so many negative thoughts during this episode, and of course, we were out the grocery money and the free night’s lodging. I decided not to write any kind of review – I could hardly recommend them to other hosts, but slamming them under these circumstances didn’t seem right either. Maybe Airbnb will suspend their account due to the overstay. I don’t know, but I’m glad they are out of our place.
Did I learn anything? Sure, I could have seen their lack of reviews and the hurried last-minute request and declined it. Then that might have left them out on the street in the cold. It’s impossible not to make some assumptions about our guests. We only have so much of a guest's story to approve a booking and then to be comfortable during their stay. Blanks get filled in with our own thoughts and feelings. As for my guests, now that the weather is improving, I like to imagine that their luck has improved, too.
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