Questioning the purpose of the stay

[Andy144]

As a high school counselor I am hearing more chatter amongst my student who are now renting a Airbnb to have parties and or illigal activities. Are we allowed to ask the age and the purpose of the stay?  

[Alice-and-Jeff0]

They cannot rent on Airbnb without being 18 yo and Airbnb will check their ID, @Andy144 , because they cannot legally enter into a contract as a minor.  As a host you absolutely can ask what the purpose of their stay will be and how many people will be there.  Age is trickier - but most will probably lie if their intent is to do something illegal or have a party.  Some hosts put on their listing that they do not rent to people under age XX in their house rules and on their listing, but this may not be 100% legal nor really enforceable.  However, you CAN ask for IDs when guests arrive and write the relative information down (they must do this in other parts of the world) - post right on your listing that you will be engaging in this activity - many ne'er-do-wells won't book there.  

[Sarah977]

@Andy144  I have a suggestion for you- work a bit on your listing descriptions. They are very brief, there is no information on Interaction with Guests at all on the beach house, and the apartment only states that you're available if needed but you prefer to give guests their own space. This kind of wording, or lack of wording, gives potential guests the impression that they are not being watched, that there is no one around,. and can encourage partiers to book. 

Try to make your listing description a bit more personal, getting across the message that these are personal homes, not faceless rentals, mention yourself and your spouse, mention that you live close by (maybe you live upstairs of the apartment rental?), things to make it clear that you could possibly drive by or that you can hear and see what's going on, without saying that directly.

Also your ad doesn't market towards any specific type of guest- try to do that. For instance, you could say it's a perfect place for a family beach vacation, or a romantic weekend away kind of thing.