Caleb Hearon was a stand-up comedian in Chicago, but now has relocated to Los Angeles and creates content mainly on Twitter. He also has a podcast with Shelby Wolstein on which they reflect on art, media and culture in a comedic way.
Caleb has 242k followers on Twitter, so a post going viral is not a surprise. One of the most recent ones that reached a wider audience than usual was a tweet about Airbnb.
In that post, Caleb says that he is done with this service because the hosts list the most ridiculous requirements like having a curfew or a list of chores to do. On one of the most recent stays, Caleb was instructed to take out his trash, do his dishes and water the plants. Airbnb was supposed to be an alternative to hotels, but Caleb would rather choose them over an Airbnb stay.
The tweet currently has almost 400k likes and nearly 3k people joined the conversation. Most of them agreed with the original tweet and gave examples of their Airbnb hosts listing the things they can, can’t and should do.
As you can imagine, Airbnb is mostly used by tourists and the purpose of their stay is a vacation. They pay for the service, but the hosts tell them to bring their own sheets, to start the laundry or to throw away the trash. That can make a vacation feel less relaxing as it seems that you didn’t escape your home and you paid someone only to do your own chores.
There were also some Airbnb hosts in the comments and they defended themselves, saying that it is their home and they shouldn’t even be asking for the guests to clean up as it is just common courtesy.
Other Twitter users had a big problem with that view and showed screenshots of the bills they would have to pay for some stays, which included cleaning fees reaching and surpassing $100, so they don’t think these hosts have a right to ask them to do chores.
Hosts would clap back saying that people don’t leave messes in hotels either and it is just nice to collect trash and put your towels into one pile before leaving. They claim that it’s the same, but Airbnb is a better choice because it’s cheaper.
Also, the hosts have to deal with damaged things and get their things stolen, so they want to be compensated for that risk. On the other hand, a lot of people get scammed because the photos don’t reflect reality and they might come to a place where there is a huge hole in the ceiling.
To make sure their homes are kept safe, the hosts might set up cameras, but then the guests feel uncomfortable and creeped out, especially if those cameras are in the bedroom or such a place like a hot tub.
The discussion in the thread seems endless, as for any complaint a guest has, a host has a counterargument. However, there were a few people who had quite a logical explanation to this whole situation.
Colby Howard explains that new Airbnb homeowners just didn’t know what they were getting into. And they definitely don’t know how the service industry works.
He presents a scenario of a host hiring a cleaning person, but they quit after two months. Or you are at work and get a call that something broke at the house, so you have to fix it if you don’t want to receive a bad review. To make their own lives more convenient, the hosts just put those responsibilities on the guests.
Colby thinks that “Airbnb stands for Air Bed and Breakfast for a reason.” One of the thoughts he expressed probably sums up really well what most guests think: “You’re getting paid to provide a great experience and put up with all the c**p that you yourself give hotels and rentals when you vacation. That’s the deal you made.”
Do you agree that Airbnb hosts are asking for too much from their guests? What were your experiences with Airbnb stays? Do you think people are just entitled and think they think they are too good to take care of someone else’s home? Let us know your thoughts on the topic in the comments!
