What we learned living in Airbnbs for a year
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Some of you may know that we spent 2022-2023 living in Airbnbs around the USA. Here’s a map of our journey. We traveled with our two cats and lived in different regions for one to two month stints. We booked everything with Airbnb and learned a lot about how to book and what to look out for.
I feel like we’re experts now because we learned so much about how Airbnb actually works including the nuances and little things that you can only be uncovered by staying in places long term. Here’s a compilation of notes that I wish we had before we had embarked on that journey—hopefully they will save you some headache and heartache next time you’re looking for an Airbnb.
If you’re staying for longer than a week, make sure it’s set up to be a long term rental. Some long term rentals have the “Long Term” tag on them in the app but many don’t. Some Airbnbs are set up for short term, some for long term, some for both. The last thing you want is to be shacked up in a bare-bones Airbnb meant for weekenders without any ammenities.
Pay attention to what the couch is like. This might seem silly but you’ll be spending a lot of on the couch, and many Airbnb have the most uncomfortable couches you’ve ever sat on. A couch can be a make or break for an Airbnb because not having a place where you can relax is a bad experience.
Airbnb doesn’t list square footage (but it should), so you really need to ask the host for the dimensions and size of the place is in a DM. Photos don’t tell a good story about the space you’ll be living in—they’re optical illusions. So before you book, make sure you ask.
The area you stay in matters a whole heck of a lot. You’ll want to do a bit of research beforehand—if you’re staying in a city, make sure you’re not on the wrong side of town. There are places that “look cool” on the inside in photos but you might be next to a freeway, in a sketchy part of town, or just generally not by anything you’d want to do.
Always read the reviews but take a chance on places that only a few reviews or none at all. When you contact the host, make sure you have solid communication with them. The places with fewer stars can give you some good discounts and the hosts tend to be more flexible and helpful (because they want to make a good impression and boost credibility).
Not having to fix stuff is really nice. Just be up front about any issues that arise. Typically the host will handle it immediately but if you don’t mention it, they could get upset that you waited or that they had to find out after you had left. For example, we had started to accumulate some standing water in the shower the week before leaving an Airbnb and the host would have appreciated us letting her know beforehand. So just be cool.
Bring your own sheets and pillows if you can. This one might seem weird but honestly it’s great because it makes it feel like you’re at home. We were driving and had the luxury of bringing our own. I realize that this would be difficult if you’re flying in so don’t worry about it but if you’re able to bring them, do it—you won’t regret it.
Storage is nice to have. If you’re doing a long term stay, make sure to book a place that has ample storage for all of your stuff. We had to haul in all of our crap from the car each month and didn’t want it just sitting out because we were trying to make it feel like home.
If you’re traveling with a significant other, try booking places that have a King sized bed. Queens can be okay but vary wildly in terms of comfort. Optimizing for a King typically means that the bed will be more comfortable, spacious, and luxurious.
Avoid booking an Airbnb in a flight path. Our Austin Airbnb was directly underneath a flight path, like literally as the plane was about to touch down. So it was insanely loud all of the time… it disturbed us and the cats. We couldn’t sit outside and enjoy coffee or drinks without having a 747 barreling toward the tarmac directly over out heads.
People in the Airbnb comments tend to be short term stayers, and they also tend to giving glowing reviews without touching on any of the negatives. People are generally too nice in their reviews so you have to take all of them with a grain of salt. And if you’re staying there for the long term then having a review from a short term stayer won’t be accurate.
Some Airbnbs say that they’re “pet friendly” but oftentimes it just means they’re only dog friendly and are less friendly toward other animals. Reach out to the host and be as transparent as you can about the animals because being on the same page helps. Many times they’ll try and charge a pet fee but sometimes you can get this waived if you have a cool host. The coolest hosts have no pet fees.
Buy a “furniture shield” for pets. Then coat the couches and anything that looks like it could get damaged. These shields aren’t perfect but they help a lot.
Pay attention to house rules. You have to scroll all the way down the page to find them but they’re super important. For example, the host might allow pets but they’ll have rules about certain furniture items the pets cannot go on—like a tabletop or couch. So just be sensitive to that because you don’t want to get hit with some lame charges that are totally avoidable.
If you have to rebook because of an issue, make sure you work directly with an Airbnb representative—they will either refund or credit your account in full. We had to do this a couple of times and the experience was great. Just describe the issue in detail and you should be okay.
That’s it for now but feel free to check back here. I may be adding more notes as they arise.