Keep your short-term rental party-free this summer

With the 4th of July weekend behind us, summer party season has officially started, and many organizers are looking to Airbnb for their ideal party location. How can you make sure they don’t pick your listing? And is there a way to prevent parties without having to invest a lot of time and resources in the process?

SUPERHOG reports that 1 in 5 guests causes property damage, with the average cost estimated at $1,296. When you add lost revenue (time blocked off for repairs), and aggravated relationships with neighbors, unauthorized parties become an issue that’s impossible to ignore. Fortunately, there are ways to minimize the risk of parties that are time- and resource-efficient.

1. No one-night reservations

One-night bookings can be very lucrative, but they also tend to be the riskiest. 

Airbnb recently announced their anti-party crackdown measures for this summer, and banning one-night reservations from guests without a history of positive reviews was among them. The Airbnb ban only applies to two key weekends: Memorial Day and 4th of July; but if you want to avoid parties all summer, then you should consider disabling them altogether.

Of course, that can sometimes mean losing perfectly good reservations. So you need to figure out whether introducing length of stay limitations is right for your business; or whether you prefer to rely on other party prevention methods instead.

2. Guest screening

Another way to block risky reservations is to disable instant bookings and screen every guest before confirming their stay. You will want to read their reviews, make sure they’re not locals, check if they’re above your allowed age, and ask about their reasons for travel. Based on those questions, you should be able to spot any potentially troublesome guests.

3. Monitor your properties

While limiting one-night reservations and screening guests can get you far, party prevention should not stop there. Some party guests can still slip through the cracks. That’s where noise and occupancy monitoring tools like Minut come in.

Noise and crowding are the early signs of any party. Minut sensor monitors noise and occupancy levels in the rental and alerts the host to any irregularities. It can even message and/or call guests when it detects noise. In 97% of cases, just one message is enough to resolve the problem. So it’s an easy way to prevent parties with minimal resources.‍

4. Get an STR insurance

Lastly, should all else fail, you should have your insurance to fall back on. It’s important however that it covers STR use, as many Homeowners Insurances don’t. For an example of insurance created with vacation rental use in mind, check out Proper Insurance.

Host Happy

With the right tools, property management doesn’t have to carry a huge risk. In just a few simple steps, you can make sure worries about parties, neighbor complaints and even local STR bans are a thing of the past. So implement them today and enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your properties and business are safe.