Short Term Rentals will be safer than long term rentals if the host is experienced. There are many things a host can do to prevent incidents from happening. Here is a list of barriers that the host can create to prevent incidents from happening:
From the picture above, you can see that an inexperienced host has only 3 barriers (or less) to prevent an incident from happening while an experienced host has at least 7. The following is an explanation for each barrier:
Barrier 1: Basic House Rules
The standard rule when setting up an Airbnb is "No Parties". This would prevent some from throwing a party but it does not define what a "party" is.
Barrier 1b: Advanced House Rules
Advanced house rules define the amount of people allowed in the unit and the fine associated with each extra person. Also the advanced house rules will define the quiet time and the fine associated with breaking this rule. See the Airbnb House Rules blog post for more information.
Barrier 2: Guest Info
Every guest must provide their name, phone number, and email. If the guest wanted to throw a party they could possibly use a fake name and email.
Barrier 2b: Advanced Guest Screening
Advanced guest screening is a risk-based approach for approving reservations. See the Advanced Guest Screening Blog Post for more information.
Barrier 3: Security Deposit
If a guest pays a deposit they will be much more less likely to damage a place because they want their money back.
Barrier 4: Surveillance
Good hosts will have multiple surveillance avenues such as 1) Doorbell camera, 2) Condo building cameras (if applicable), 3) Noise monitoring, 4) Neighbor Monitoring. A good rule of thumb is to have 2 out of 4 of these.
Barrier 5: Cancel Reservation
If the house rules are written properly, the host can cancel a reservation if the guest has been giving a warning.
Remember, if all these barriers fail there is insurance:
- Host Guarantee protects the hosts unit and property
- Host Liability Insurance protects the condo buildings property