Guy Mocks Airbnb Hosts Who Set Absurd Rules And Demands For Guests, Goes Viral With 1.2M Views
InterviewYou know Airbnb, right? That short-term accommodation service that was supposed to be the financially-reasonable alternative to hotels?
Well, times are a-changing and so is how things are run on this platform.
Folks online have been critiquing Airbnb—more specifically, a certain segment of hosts—for the peculiar business choices that they have made with their accommodations that patrons are calling shenanigans on. That is, chores and cleaning fees.
This inevitably prompted a good bit of satire on TikTok that went viral and here we are talking about it.
More Info: TikTok
Rules imposed by some Airbnb hosts have grown a bit too ridiculous for the internet’s taste, so folks started pointing it out, with Jet Cessant’s video being a prime example
Image credits: thefamousjet
Jet Cessant, an entrepreneur and content creator, has recently come out with a video taking a jab at some of the rules that hosts like to impose on their temporary tenants.
The plot of the video follows Jet seemingly freshly coming into an Airbnb during one of his travels and stumbling upon a letter left by his host. In it, the host details all of the rules that the temporary inhabitant of the apartment will have to abide by. And while you would think the rules in and of themselves are reasonable, the extent to which they are pushed is not.
Quiet hours start at 5 PM, so no music or snoring? Mind the noise detectors? Mind the cameras in all the private spaces? Do the laundry, take out the trash, and mop the floors? Erm… what did this host go though to lead to these rules? The video is appropriately captioned “all those fees for so many rules. It’s a scam!”
Jet posted a video on TikTok taking a jab at how some hosts go overboard with their rules for their accommodations
Image credits: thefamousjet
All exaggerations aside, there is some truth to the words said (read?) in Jet’s video. Bored Panda got in touch with Jet for an interview, and he did share his extensive experience of staying at Airbnbs.
“I have stayed at a lot of Airbnbs over the past few years and some of them have had inconvenient chore lists such as taking the trash out to an alley a few blocks away or quiet hours starting at 7 PM,” elaborated Jet. “Most recently, my Airbnb asked that guests do the laundry. These might be minor tasks, but things you don’t have to worry about at a hotel, and when I’m on vacation, I don’t feel like paying a cleaning fee to do chores.”
Besides this, in a recent trend, folks online have been roasting Airbnb for more or less the same level of ridiculousness when it comes to some host rules. The thing many pointed out, Jet included, is the idea of having to do certain chores all the while also having to pay a cleaning fee. What?
You can watch the video in its entirety below
@thefamousjet All those fees for so many rules. Its a scam! #airbnb #travel ♬ original sound – Jet
Image credits: Open Grid Scheduler / Grid Engine (not the actual photo)
“If you are paying a $200+ cleaning fee, I don’t think you should be expected to do anything you wouldn’t do at a hotel,” said Jet. In theory, this is in place to urge people to stay longer and with more people per location, but many do still raise the question of how messy can anyone be to justify a cleaning bill like that?
Other commenters said that it’s time everyone went back to using hotels again. At least then you won’t be charged a cleaning fee that’s more than the actual accommodation. And yet others shared some of their Airbnb mishaps, like that one time with the Wi-Fi fee, or another one that had “feed the cats” as a chore. Well, all right, this one’s nice, but still, people want to vacation—not do chores.
And folks online were all for it, pointing out the ludicrous idea of doing chores AND having to pay a cleaning fee, among other things
It is important to note that these rules come from some hosts, and not Airbnb itself. In their Resource Center, Airbnb suggests creating house rules to manage guest expectations and whatnot. They even provide tips on how to create house rules. They do include the idea of chores and provide the example of taking out the trash.
Also, Airbnb isn’t specific on whether it imposes cleaning services or cleaning fees upon its hosts. However, it is common practice among them to choose to include it all because the apartment has to be cleaned either way—whether by themselves or by a cleaning crew and it costs money either way. Airbnb points out that the average cleaning fee for smaller rentals is around $65, whereas bigger places can be around $105.
Typically, the fee is an extra service cost that’s added to the total, but some hosts prompt for a more expensive per night rate without a surprise cleaning fee on top. They do however provide guidelines for what a cleaning service should include. Taking out the trash isn’t in it though.
So, why are people in an uproar about chores in the first place? Entrepreneur Colby Howard took it to Twitter to explain what it really means to be an Airbnb host. Most folks don’t really know what they’re getting into when they choose to be an Airbnb host. And then after all the cleaning and the maintenance and the subsequent bad reviews when something tiny is unaccounted for, among other things, hosts start to take shortcuts. That’s where the chores and other factors come into play.
And then they forget that Airbnb really stands for bed and breakfast—it is a service, one that should provide vacation comfort and one that will demand an investment. No “passive income” without loads of work. And nobody really wants to work hard.
So, is it worth going back to hotels if this is how most Airbnbs are going to be from here on out? It depends. Jet explained that there are upsides that make the service well worth it:
“I have stayed at really nice Airbnbs and if you are with a large group, I think it’s absolutely worth it if you all want to stay in the same house. Some Airbnbs have amenities such as private pools that you just can’t get at any hotel. But if you are traveling solo or with a partner, I would just stay in a hotel.”
Whatever the case may be, Jet’s video went viral, garnering around 1.2 million views with nearly 135,000 likes (hearts?) and thousands of comments. In fact, you can check it out here, or somewhere in the article. Scrolling will get you there. You can also check out his channel, Instagram and Korean-inspired drinkable jelly snack startup.
But before you check out and depart to your next article, we leave you with a very short, yet very important piece of advice from Jet on what people ought to consider before renting Airbnbs: “Read the reviews! Every single one!”
So, do that, and also leave some of your reviews of Airbnbs that did your head in (or the ones you enjoyed a lot) the comment section below!
Charlie Spring Heartstopper And in the bathroom wtf.
Load More Replies...Had a 5 day trip to Santa Cruz recently. AirBNB was $1,950 plus $250 cleaning fee, $254 service fee for a two bed apartment (total $2,454, plus the 9.25% sales tax in the area making it $2,680). I found a hotel with a two bed suite, kitchen, pool, pretty lavish breakfast, garaged parking for $1,400 all in. Room was cleaned every day. How does AirBNB make any sense?
I used to love Airbnb because my food restrictions make it easier and much cheaper if I just cook. But for my next trip, I got a beachfront hotel with breakfast included and the difference between the hotel and the cheapest Airbnb in the same area will still cover my very specialised lunch.
And this why I am a proud user of FamBnB! Trip to NYC..."Hey ma, can I crash at your place for a few?"....going to Texas "Hey Cuz! Can I bring my air mattress?"....free laundry and wine!
Please! Not all Airbnb properties are the same. Our wifi is free. There is no cleaning fee. There are no cameras. I could go on, but don't condemn all hosts.
Wifi is free at every hotel I’ve stayed at, you just “log in” with your room number and last name it’s booked under. Home vacation rentals are also bad for the housing market. People are buying homes to keep as rentals, rising prices (and lowering availability) for those who need a home to live in.
Load More Replies...I really wanted a couple of nights away to recharge. The hotels are more than I can afford right now so I looked at Airbnb. I was thrilled to find several reasonably priced places. Everytime I tried to check out though, with taxes (expected), service fees, and cleaning fees, the price per night almost doubled. Guess I won't get my get away right now. I'll save for the hotel.
Airbnb raised the "Service Fee" from a few dollars to over a $150. nope! WTF is that for? it's a scam. I still stay at them when I need to just so I can cook. the last place I wanted to stay at had a no cooking policy! it was outrageous! no cooking? why even have a kitchen? idiots. Oh and they buried it in the house rules.
I just couldn't stay somewhere that was only cleaned by the previous guest. So disgusting
Wonder how many affordable houses would flood the market if short term rental was no longer allowed.
Hidden camera in the bathroom? seriously has to be illegal. I refuse to use these, have had great stays at bed and breakfasts, cheaper and not expected to clean and do laundry before I leave
I'm a host. Although turned out from AirBnB, work more with booking.com. It takes me to drive 350 km to my apartment, then tidy it and got back. And I still do it. No cleaning fees. Camon, what cleaning fees it has to be counted in the price of the rent! Apartment has the same quality furniture and appliances that stand in our own home. We provide coffee, tea, spices, refillable shampoo and shower gel. I adore that feeling when people say it's cozy at my apartment and that they had wonderful vacation. This is what business is about - creating a coziness and pleasurable experience for people. Camon, it's not all about money. The requirements of this AirBnB here seems that they see all their guests as potential thieves, or mess makers. How can you do not trust and treat your clients like that?
This varies wildly from one place to the next. I often check what is available both in hotels and Airbnbs, if the area I'm going to doesn't have a problem with unscrupulous airbnb investors
We rented an airbnb once and it was infested with bed bugs. Owner didn't want to give us our money back, but, after a lot of heated arguing, we managed to get it back and we rented a hotel.
No. It’s the Airbnb owners and their ridiculous expectations.
Load More Replies...Charlie Spring Heartstopper And in the bathroom wtf.
Load More Replies...Had a 5 day trip to Santa Cruz recently. AirBNB was $1,950 plus $250 cleaning fee, $254 service fee for a two bed apartment (total $2,454, plus the 9.25% sales tax in the area making it $2,680). I found a hotel with a two bed suite, kitchen, pool, pretty lavish breakfast, garaged parking for $1,400 all in. Room was cleaned every day. How does AirBNB make any sense?
I used to love Airbnb because my food restrictions make it easier and much cheaper if I just cook. But for my next trip, I got a beachfront hotel with breakfast included and the difference between the hotel and the cheapest Airbnb in the same area will still cover my very specialised lunch.
And this why I am a proud user of FamBnB! Trip to NYC..."Hey ma, can I crash at your place for a few?"....going to Texas "Hey Cuz! Can I bring my air mattress?"....free laundry and wine!
Please! Not all Airbnb properties are the same. Our wifi is free. There is no cleaning fee. There are no cameras. I could go on, but don't condemn all hosts.
Wifi is free at every hotel I’ve stayed at, you just “log in” with your room number and last name it’s booked under. Home vacation rentals are also bad for the housing market. People are buying homes to keep as rentals, rising prices (and lowering availability) for those who need a home to live in.
Load More Replies...I really wanted a couple of nights away to recharge. The hotels are more than I can afford right now so I looked at Airbnb. I was thrilled to find several reasonably priced places. Everytime I tried to check out though, with taxes (expected), service fees, and cleaning fees, the price per night almost doubled. Guess I won't get my get away right now. I'll save for the hotel.
Airbnb raised the "Service Fee" from a few dollars to over a $150. nope! WTF is that for? it's a scam. I still stay at them when I need to just so I can cook. the last place I wanted to stay at had a no cooking policy! it was outrageous! no cooking? why even have a kitchen? idiots. Oh and they buried it in the house rules.
I just couldn't stay somewhere that was only cleaned by the previous guest. So disgusting
Wonder how many affordable houses would flood the market if short term rental was no longer allowed.
Hidden camera in the bathroom? seriously has to be illegal. I refuse to use these, have had great stays at bed and breakfasts, cheaper and not expected to clean and do laundry before I leave
I'm a host. Although turned out from AirBnB, work more with booking.com. It takes me to drive 350 km to my apartment, then tidy it and got back. And I still do it. No cleaning fees. Camon, what cleaning fees it has to be counted in the price of the rent! Apartment has the same quality furniture and appliances that stand in our own home. We provide coffee, tea, spices, refillable shampoo and shower gel. I adore that feeling when people say it's cozy at my apartment and that they had wonderful vacation. This is what business is about - creating a coziness and pleasurable experience for people. Camon, it's not all about money. The requirements of this AirBnB here seems that they see all their guests as potential thieves, or mess makers. How can you do not trust and treat your clients like that?
This varies wildly from one place to the next. I often check what is available both in hotels and Airbnbs, if the area I'm going to doesn't have a problem with unscrupulous airbnb investors
We rented an airbnb once and it was infested with bed bugs. Owner didn't want to give us our money back, but, after a lot of heated arguing, we managed to get it back and we rented a hotel.
No. It’s the Airbnb owners and their ridiculous expectations.
Load More Replies...
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