Starting with bookings made on Nov. 20, an Airbnb host can't require guests to strip the beds or wash the dishes before they leave. It's one of several platform changes landing this fall. In Austin, late fall and winter are usually quieter outside the big event weekends, so the open nights on your calendar right now are the ones worth working for. I'm going through all of this this month on Hummingbird, my own STR, which is listed on both Airbnb and Vrbo. Here's what I'm changing, roughly in the order I'd do it if you own an STR here.
Before Nov. 20: rewrite your checkout instructions
Airbnb's new house rules policy applies to reservations booked on or after Nov. 20, 2026. Hosts generally can't ask guests to do tasks that take significant time or effort or that a cleaner would normally handle. Airbnb's examples are stripping the bed, starting laundry, washing and putting away dishes, and taking trash offsite. You can still ask guests to put used dishes in the sink, gather used towels, sort trash and recycling into the indoor bins, and turn off the AC when they leave.
The part that's easier to miss is where the rules live. Under the new policy, house rules and requests have to be in the designated section of your listing when the guest books. You can't add new ones afterward by message, by a sign in the house or in person. So the checklist on the fridge, the automated checkout message and the guidebook all need to match what's on the listing, and none of them can add a chore the listing doesn't mention. Fines and penalties are also off the table. Airbnb says it will highlight requests that don't comply in the Listing editor, and guests may see an "includes cleaning requests" alert on listings that don't fix them.
If your turnover plan quietly depended on guests starting a load of laundry, talk to your cleaner now. It may change their time on site, and possibly your cleaning fee.
Decide where the top-rated guest discount fits
Airbnb added an optional 15% discount for guests rated 4.8 stars or higher with at least three reviews. Airbnb says listings that offer it show up in more searches, and that hosts who offered similar discounts earlier this year earned 19% more and booked 24% more nights on average. That's Airbnb's own modeled estimate from a pilot that ran July 31 to Aug. 30, which is peak summer, and Airbnb says results vary by listing and market.
The bigger issue is your price floor. The discount comes off the nightly rate after your pricing is set, and it can stack with one other discount like a weekly discount or a last-minute discount. If you use a pricing tool like PriceLabs, as I do on Hummingbird, treat the minimum price you set there as the rate it sends to Airbnb, not necessarily what an eligible guest pays. PriceLabs notes that discounts applied on Airbnb's side can bring the final price below your PriceLabs minimum. Say your minimum is $150. A top-rated guest pays $127.50 a night, and if they also qualify for a 10% weekly discount, it's $114.75. If that number doesn't cover your costs on a slow Tuesday, raise the minimum before you turn this on. On Hummingbird, I'm treating it as a slow-week tool and checking it again before busy stretches.
Let your pricing tool fill the gaps
The one-night hole between two bookings is one of the most common open nights I see on Austin calendars. If you use PriceLabs, two settings help. Orphan day pricing lowers the rate on short gaps between bookings, and the orphan gap minimum stay can drop your minimum to the length of the gap, so a two-night opening can actually book. Dynamic Minimum Stay recommends minimum stays by date and lowers them when your next 90 days are booking behind the market. You set a lowest minimum stay, and it never goes below that.
One setting to check while you're there: if PriceLabs is setting your prices, PriceLabs says Airbnb's Smart Pricing must be off, because it overrides the rates PriceLabs sends. Airbnb also started rolling out a new dynamic pricing feature in October. PriceLabs' guidance doesn't name it yet, so if it shows up in your dashboard, I'd leave it off too rather than have two systems setting the same price.
Describe your place the way guests now search
Airbnb's fall update added AI search in the U.S. Guests can search in their own words or by voice, and typing "baby" into filters now surfaces cribs, playgrounds and children's toys.
That search can only work with what you've told it. Be specific in your amenities and descriptions. "Outdoor space" doesn't say much. "Two kayaks, a fenced yard for dogs and a separate guest house" gives a guest something to match on, and so does a short walk to a park or trail. I'd also add the same detail to your photo captions, so guests scrolling the photos see it too. And never list something you don't have, because it will show up in a review.
Airbnb also added 3D floor plans. You scan the rooms with an iPhone 12 Pro or later, or an iPad with LiDAR, and Airbnb builds an interactive layout. Airbnb said in late September it would reach all hosts within weeks, so check whether it's in your app. For a house with a casita or a tricky layout, it answers the question every group asks: who's sharing a bathroom?
Vrbo: rerun your numbers after the 12% change
Vrbo moved most hosts to a flat 12% commission on bookings made on or after Oct. 29. It's charged on the rent plus the fees you charge guests, like cleaning and pet fees, but not on taxes or refundable deposits. Vrbo is still charging guests a separate service fee, too.
Vrbo's new host terms also require your Vrbo rates and fees to be at least as favorable as what you offer on other channels. As of mid-October, reports say Vrbo plans to drop that requirement for your own direct booking website, but not for other platforms like Airbnb, and the published terms hadn't changed as of then, so check Vrbo's current Host Terms before you rely on it. So the simple fix of raising Vrbo prices by 12% has limits. OwnerRez points out that a 12% increase doesn't fully cover a 12% fee anyway, because the fee is charged on the higher price. You'd need about 13.6%. If that puts your Vrbo price above your Airbnb price, it runs into the parity terms. My approach is to look at what each channel actually pays out, then adjust from there. I'll go deeper on platform fees in a post next week.
Evergreen refreshes that still work
I like to revisit the basics of a listing regularly. Start with the title: rewrite it so it accurately describes the property and uses words guests actually search for. Keep it clear rather than stuffing in keywords. Then look at the photos with fresh eyes. Add new ones when they show something useful, rearrange the order as the property or season changes, and remove any that don't add value. I also check that the listing details are complete and accurate, then make small description updates from time to time. If your listing needs a refresh, snoozing it for a day and relisting after 24 hours may help visibility, though there's no guarantee. Make any needed fixes first, so guests see an accurate, inviting listing when it returns. Check your platform's current settings and consider the effect on bookings before pausing.
If you're buying
Everything above is a management decision, and that's good news for buyers. A listing with checkout rules guests resent, a calendar full of single open nights, amenities described in two vague words or Vrbo prices that haven't been touched since the fee change is leaving money on the table. Location and layout come with the house, but management and furnishing are usually easy fixes that can raise revenue for the next owner, and I look for them every time I review an operating STR for a client.
If you own an STR in Austin and want a second set of eyes on your setup, or you're looking at one to buy, you can find me at atxstrs.com. I'm always glad to talk it through.
This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Platform policies change, so check your own dashboard and the current terms.
ATX|STRS, a division of E-Rae Realty
