New Host in Florida

Jennifer4577
Level 2
Greensboro, VT

New Host in Florida

Hello My name is Jennifer and I am a new host in Beverly Hills, FL. I first came to Florida last year to the parks and fell in love. We live in Vermont but purchased a home in Beverly Hills to enjoy. We have had 4 guests and so far they seem to enjoy it. I would love advice any way! Looking forward to meeting new people.  

1 Reply 1
Kia272
Level 10
Takoma Park, MD

Hi @Jennifer4577  Your place looks really nice, although I have a couple of observations. 

 

8 guests is a lot for a two bedroom place. It's a newbie host thing to think that higher capacity is better, but it isn't always. I didn't see that your dining table or living room would really accommodate 8 people. 

 

I think the important thing to do is to figure out who your target market is, and adapt the property to meet the needs of that demographic. A large family would be six people. I realize you've got the bed space, but 8 seems high. One thing I would do is possibly set the price for 4-6 guests, and charge per guest after that. Right now your pricing is for the whole house regardless of the number of guests. I started a mock reservation for 7 people and got a price of $158/night. (there was a weekly discount of $55) With 8 guests that comes to under $20 per person per night. 8 is more wear and tear on the plumbing, and certainly more of a cleaning burden. 

 

Also, I wonder if you could rearrange your living room into a cozier set-up. Right now it looks like two couches that are quite distant from each other, and also not enough seating for 8 people. 

Maybe an area rug would help define the space, and you could somehow place the couches closer to each other and add an additional chair or two. You've got to be prepared for 8 if the listing says capacity is 8. 

 

Last, I would use the captions feature with the photos. It helps explain to guests how the house flows, and you can throw in other details. 

 

Are you charging a pet fee? I would if you're not. I didn't see one, but I didn't look very carefully. Again, it's way more cleaning when a dog has been in the house. 

 

Good luck with your hosting venture! Kia