Tag Archives: Airbnb warning for guests

Listen to my Warning about Using Airbnb

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I have used Airbnb a lot during a period, and advise people not to use it (at least the budget accommodations, a bit cheaper than a hotel, but sometimes not).

I found 5 out of 10 hosts had a criminal record (even money laundering) and the rest had serious financial troubles. Many people who rent out rooms are in desperate situations because of their personality and choices they have made. Desperation makes bad hosts. They all have introductions about how they love to meet people from different cultures, but most rent solely to make a buck the easy way. Many lie about their work (unemployed, fired, criminality). I have found mobsters use Airbnb a lot to launder money.

Reviews are wildly exaggerated positively, as guests seem to lie just to be able to stay cheaply (poor? stingy?). It is a veritable lalaland, to be found nowhere else. On Airbnb, hosts, guests, and the company seem to have some kind of joint psychosis.

Indecent sexual advances are quite common. I have had one sexual assault (he broke into my cottage) and several other highly inappropriate Superhosts. Most hosts lie: inaccurate photos, how many people are living there, internet, breakfast, location, noise, busy roads, etc. Lying is standard on Airbnb.

Airbnb does not give a s$#t, as long as it does not give bad publicity. They just want money and do not care about your safety at all. Their standards are abysmal. Airbnb destroys the housing market globally and actually promotes greed. If you are not extremely poor, stay at a hotel. It will also be cheaper in the end (proper breakfast, etc.), and you will not have to deal with shady hosts and unplanned negative surprises. Stay safe.

Aren’t Service Dogs Welcome at Airbnb Properties?

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I tried to book an Airbnb in Norman, OK for three nights in mid-September with someone who has a no pets policy. However, I have a service dog. A real, bonafide, has to be with me, medical alert, highly trained with impeccable manners, service animal as defined by the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. As a courtesy, I told the host that I would be traveling with my service dog, so she would not be surprised. I later received a reply that she had accepted a long term rental last week. The property still shows that it is available for the dates that I requested in mid-September. If I am truly not welcome there, I am not going to force the issue, but if she is in violation of Title III of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 she should be made aware of her legal liability in situations such as mine, as should all Airbnb hosts. If there is a good reason that a property stays listed as available, even though it is not, I would like to know it. If you are not familiar with the ADA of 1990 I encourage you to research it (although I would be very surprised if this issue has not arisen before now). In it, it is stated specifically that I cannot be treated differently than any other customer, by any business anywhere, because I have a service animal with me. I cannot be given a table in the back because of her. I cannot be charged a pet deposit at a lodging. I cannot be refused any service, or entry to any place that I would be allowed to go without her because she is with me.

A Word of Caution to Airbnb Guests

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Just as a caution, when using an airbnb property, you never know how many people “out there” have keys and access to the place where you are staying. I usually opt for the entire property, and have tended to be a fan of airbnb, but I think that is going to change. In my last two rentals, people have come in unannounced, not a pleasant experience. One person came to get the host’s mail and another had his property for sale – and didn’t inform me – and a real estate agent came unannounced and without my permission. My family and I also needed to depart early from a property because it turned out to be an unsafe neighborhood. When we requested a refund, our hosts damaged their own property and photographed it, and it was our word against theirs. I had never experienced anything like that. In fairness to airbnb they gave us a $100 credit. It just seems like there are a lot of risks associated with airbnb, in principle it should work well, but from now in I will look at alternatives. When it works well, it is a great alternative to hotels but that is not always the case.