How to help prevent hosting challenges

Despite your best efforts, problems just happen sometimes. Maybe a guest can’t find the key you left for them, or the plumbing gets backed up. Although it’s rare to encounter a major issue, successful Hosts plan for the unexpected.

Here’s how Diana, a Superhost from Oakland, California, recommends handling challenging hosting moments.

Hosting is about community, and that community includes the people who help your hosting business run smoothly.

“We have the names and numbers of a plumber, an electrician, and a house cleaner at the ready,” Diana says. And when she’s out of town herself, Diana has her sister, who is her backup Host, on call. “We’re never left stranded if an issue arises.”

What’s better than being prepared to quickly address a leaky pipe or broken heater? Preventing the issue from happening in the first place.

“I have a maintenance checklist that I review every year,” Diana says. “Some of these tasks I do myself, others I hire professionals for. Every space is different, but it’s important to pinpoint what it takes to keep yours in great shape for guests.”

Diana’s annual maintenance checklist includes:

• Clearing the gutters of leaves and other debris
• Checking that all heating, ventilation, and air conditioning units are functioning
• Washing hard-to-reach skylights to keep her space well lit

Effective communication with guests is about being honest and realistic.

“I think it’s so important not to overpromise, but instead to always overcommunicate,” Diana says. “Even if I don’t have a solution figured out, I let the guest know what I’m working on.”

So when a pipe burst right before a guest arrived, Diana instantly picked up the phone.

“I called the guest and let them know that we were dealing with the situation and asked if we could push their check-in time,” Diana says. “I also offered a later checkout, which they loved, and left a bottle of wine and a thank you note. For many guests, open communication and small tokens of appreciation—whether it’s wine or a gift card to a local coffee shop—go a long way.”

“We have really tricky doors that guests often don’t know how to open, even though I’ve included instructions in our house manual and check-in instructions,” Diana says. “When this happens, I always listen to their frustrations and then patiently talk them through it over the phone or in person.”

A few things Diana has learned from listening to her guests over the years:

• Provide keyless entry to make check-in easier
• Provide ample outdoor lighting to help guests arrive safely in the dark
• Ask for travel info upfront and reiterate check-in and checkout times

Early guest arrivals, late checkouts, and cleaning issues can all cause challenges. Here are some ideas for mitigating potential issues:

• Provide clear check-in and checkout times and your reasoning behind them (“Please check in no earlier than 3:00 p.m. to allow time for the cleaners to prepare your room”)
• Set your reservation preferences to leave more time for cleaning 
• Consider offering to store guests’ luggage if you know they will be arriving early
• Include key details—how to get into your space, what your space looks like, etc.—in your listing description and check-in instructions to help set expectations

• Provide a house manual that contains instructions for accessing the wifi and using tricky appliances