How to survive being an Airbnb host

Austin, Texas

AFTER my first Airbnb guests checked out of our garage apartment last February, I eagerly called up their online review. I had no reason to suspect anything but flattering comments from the two young women from Oregon, one of whom had originally planned on coming with her husband to celebrate their fourth anniversary until he had to drop out at the last minute. She brought a friend instead, but disappointment, I discovered, came along in her suitcase.

When they arrived for the three-day stay in my home south-west of Austin, Texas, I met them cheerily with a basket of muffins and walked them through the apartment, which my husband and I used to rent out long-term until we decided to jump on the Airbnb gravy train. If all went well, we figured that we could make the US$650 that we used to get per month in six nights.