Airbnb House Rules: Actionable Tips and Templates
Airbnb house rules are as important as an attractive description, clear photos, and a catchy headline for your Airbnb listing. Guests need a bit of information and direction about your home and what you allow.
Besides, your Airbnb rules for guests are part of your marketing. They let travelers know if your space is suitable for them—and if they’re the right guests for you. For example, people who travel with pets will look for properties that allow fluffy ones.
You may want to check out our article about Airbnb’s ground rules for hosts and guests.
So, your house rules may turn away some potential guests, and that’s fine. You should clearly state what the guests can and can’t do and what is expected. In this way, you can ensure that the right people book your property and hopefully prevent many problems before they have even occurred.
Pro tip: Use your Airbnb house rules as an opportunity to demonstrate your commitment. If possible, try to phrase the rules to tell your guests what they can do instead of what they can’t do.
It’s up to you how you write your house rules. You might prefer them fun rather than formal or serious, but there are certain areas all hosts should address.
Airbnb House Rules: The Dos and Don’ts
Airbnb provides some suggested rules you may want to set in your listing. Here are some common house rules examples that many Airbnb hosts include in their listing pages:
- No loud noise after 11 pm
- No food or drinks in bedrooms
- No parties or events
- No smoking
- No pets / Pets allowed
The sky’s the limit, and you can add some more rules on top. Remember that writing a memoir of restrictive rules is among our list of renter’s sins. Keep your rules simple and specific, and don’t leave anything open for interpretation.
You may tailor your house rules communication to the type of guests. For example, if you’re about to host a couple of millennials, it’s best to remind them of your “no-party-in-da-house” policy.
Have conversations with your guests even when you sleep
You can set any rules you wish, but it’s important to consider the balance between protecting your properties and encouraging bookings. Set rules that demand reasonable behavior from your guests, but make sure you demonstrate a sincere interest in providing a pleasant experience.
Remember that travelers are looking for a relaxing vacation, not a long list of dos and don’ts. Strive to be concise, clear, positive, and welcoming.
There’s so much you need to do and NOT do in the short-term rental business. We collected a list of the worst Airbnb hosting blunders you want to avoid. Do yourself a favor and learn from the mistakes of others.
What to Include in Your Airbnb House Rules
What do you want your guests to know to give them a preview into your hosting style and set clear expectations about their stay? Here are some common topics you can address when creating your house rules for Airbnb.
Parking
Include any information about parking that is relevant to your guests. Specify where exactly your guests can park. If you have a parking space associated with your property, you should clearly define which space is theirs.
Off-limit areas
Even if you rent out the entire property, there might be some areas that you want your guests to avoid. Clearly outline which areas are off-limits to your guests so they can feel comfortable using the proper spaces.
Check-out
Make it clear to your guests that they must adhere to the set check-out time. That will allow you to plan everything after they leave your house and schedule the time for the cleaners to arrive.
Pets
Think about whether you allow pets on your property. Many people travel with their furry friends today, so it makes sense to consider making your Airbnb pet-friendly. That can help increase your bookings.
However, there are also some cons to take into account. Pets are more likely to cause damage and mess to your living area, and your property might require extra cleaning. Besides, travelers with pet allergies won’t book your rental space.
Smoking
Whether you are a smoker or not, we recommend you seriously consider banning smoking at your rental property. The odor of smoking is extremely difficult to remove, and this could potentially turn away many future guests who don’t smoke. Unfortunately, you cannot impose a smoking fee.
Parties and events
Parties and gatherings are always associated with the risk of a loud noise that will drive your neighbors crazy and a mess that you want to avoid at all costs. That’s why adding the “no parties” rule to your house rules list is better.
Visitors
Think about whether you’ll allow any extra visitors or not. Unregistered guests at your rental can be a burden, leading to more wear and tear on your property and increasing the risk of damage. But limiting their number is still a good idea if you are fine with your guests bringing visitors along.
Noise
To avoid complaints from your neighbors, set rules against excessive noise. Emphasize that your guests must keep noise to a minimum so they don’t disturb your neighbors, especially during nighttime.
Garbage and recycling
Many cities have specific rules in place regarding waste disposal and recycling. Make sure to include in your house rules the details on how your guests have to dispose of the garbage and where exactly they need to throw it out.
No shoes inside the house
This rule is a great way to keep your floors clean and reduce the amount of dirt and dust tracked in. It will help preserve your floors and carpets and significantly reduce cleaning time and costs.
Airbnb House Rules Template
Hosts often ask for sample house rules for Airbnb guests. Time to put all that theory into practice! Here is a short Airbnb house rules template to help you get started.
When sending the rules, it’s better to personalize them. This gives a feeling of a welcoming message rather than a restrictive copy-paste. In the example below, we use short codes that help every message sent through Hospitable look genuine and personal.
Dear %guest_first_name%,
I am so happy you chose my %listing_type% for your trip. I hope you’ll make the most of this cozy home, its amenities, and your opportunity to relax and visit the surrounding area.
I would appreciate it if you took a moment to read these house rules at the beginning of your stay and follow them. If anything is unclear, please contact me so I can explain in further detail to avoid misunderstandings.
I’ve put much effort into making this %listing_type% into a lovely space. Please treat it with the same respect as you would do your own home. Please don’t rearrange our furniture, don’t eat in the bedroom, and clean the kitchen after you use it.
Make sure to turn off the lights, air conditioning, and any electronics when you leave the house. Don’t forget to close the windows and lock the door.
Our neighborhood is important to us, and most residents live here full-time. Please respect the community and try to avoid making loud noise between 11 pm and 8 am.
Smoking is not allowed inside the home, but you can smoke in outdoor areas such as the balcony.
Pets are welcome at our home, but please don’t let them up onto the furniture, especially sofas and beds.
Thank you in advance for being a super guest!
Cheers,
%host_first_name%
You can use this template to create house rules and personalize them to your property.
Remember that your rules may change over time, so if something you consider super important, you should communicate it to your guests via messages.
We developed a few graphical house rules templates (like the one below). Feel free to download them using the links below and attach them to your welcome messages.
House rules template—condensed
House rules template—condensed, pet-friendly
How to Communicate Your House Rules to Renters?
First, make sure you’ve indicated your property’s restrictions in the Airbnb listing. Once a guest has booked your property, you should continue communicating your requests with other messages, such as an Airbnb welcome letter.
As a rule of thumb, you should connect with your guest at the four touchpoints:
- pre-booking
- between booking and check-in
- during the stay
- after the stay
The first two phases are best to remind your guests about your house rules. Don’t forget to mention the most important rule of all—have fun!
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There is one more way to communicate your house rules to guests—include them in your digital guidebook and provide a link to it in your welcome message. Then, your guest can access it online from their smartphones anytime, wherever they are. Today, traditional printed guidebooks and house manuals are becoming a thing of the past as modern guests expect convenience and immediate access to information needed for their stay.
Creating a beautifully designed and insightful digital guidebook is a great way to enhance guest experience. And the good news is that you don’t need technical skills. For example, you can easily make a digital book for your Airbnb property using such online platforms as Touch Stay, DACK, SuiteOp, or Charge Automation.
Since Hospitable has integrations with all these platforms, you can connect your Hospitable account to any of them. Then, the tool you choose will create reservation-specific links to your digital guidebook for your guests every time you get a booking. You need to set messaging rules, and Hospitable will automatically include the reservation-specific guidebook link to your messages to guests.
With a well-formatted digital guidebook, your guests can learn about your property, its surroundings, and local attractions and plan their arrival as soon as they book your place. You can easily update your digital guidebook with new details so your guests can always access the most current information.
Conclusion
Be selective when setting your house rules in the Airbnb listing and limit their number to the top 3-5 most important to you. You can communicate the other expectations during the pre-arrival phase and the check-in process. Besides, you can include other rules in the home manual you develop and refer your guests to it.
Be polite and try to phrase the house rules in a way that will resonate with your Airbnb guests. If you do it right, your guests will see your rules as an effort to create a great space that they will benefit from.
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