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title: How   do   Resortifi   hosts   keep   great   relations   with   their neighbors
hide_title: true
---
## How   do   Resortifi   hosts   keep   great   relations   with   their neighbors

EYour vacation rental home might be getting great reviews from guests and
making a tidy profit. But if your property is in a residential area that isn’t
specifically aimed at tourists, you risk alienating your neighbors. You might
even attract the attention of the local authorities and face a ban on your
vacation rental property.

Your best strategy is to get your local community on your side and build
great   vacation   rental   neighbor   relationships.   If   you’re   proactive   in
communicating with your neighbors, you’ll be more likely to achieve a
peaceful solution should problems arise.

Let’s begin by looking at the strategies you can use to build trust and rapport
with your neighbors

**Communicate and show you care**

One  way  or  another,  your  neighbors  are  going  to  find  out  about  your
vacation rental, but how they hear about it will affect their reaction. The last
thing you want is for your neighbors to realize they’re living next to a
vacation rental when they notice a group of strangers in your backyard.

Tell   your   neighbors   about   your   plans   before   you   list   your   property   on
Resortifi.  Take them a bottle of wine or a gift basket and try to put their
minds at ease by showing you’ve given careful thought to how you’re going
to manage your rental. For example:

- Assure them you’ve got all the necessary permits as per compliance
requirements
- Tell them you plan to screen your guests
- Explain how you’ll market the property and the types of guests you aim
to attract
- Tell   them   about   the   house   rules   you’ll   set   to   ensure   guests   are
respectful of your residential neighborhood.
- Give your neighbors your contact information and a direct line for
emergencies, and make sure you answer their call immediately.


## Find out what problems they’ve had in the past

Ask your neighbors about their past problems with rental properties in the
neighborhood. If your neighbors are opposed to the idea of living next door
to a vacation rental, it’s possible they’ve had a bad experience in the past.

Listen to their concerns and explain what plans you have in place to address
them. So if your neighbors tell you they once lived next door to a short-term
rental where guests arrived in the middle of the night and woke them up, you
can assure them that you’re only going to allow check-in during the day, or
even at weekends.

Ultimately, you want your neighbors to feel they’ve had the chance to air
their concerns and that you’ve listened to them.

**Set clear house rules**

Setting house rules so your guests know what you expect from them will
encourage good behavior. You can set out your house rules in the listing
itself, and add them to your confirmation email and other correspondence.

Getting the tone right is important. You want to be firm, but not be so
draconian that you risk alienating your guests before they even arrive.

In   particular,   you   should   set   clear   rules   on   issues   that   might   disrupt
neighborhood   relationships   like   parking,   check-in   and   check-out   times,
excessive noise, use of communal areas, and how many people can be in the
property at once.

**Screen your guests**

You can screen guests yourself by checking out their profiles on Resortifi or
to see what other hosts have said about them. Unfortunately, this isn’t a
foolproof system as it’s easy to create a new guest profile if you get a bad
review and want to hide the evidence.

**Encourage them to reach out**

Encourage your neighbors to keep in touch and respond quickly to their
concerns. To get your communication with neighbors off to a good start, you
can send your neighbors a quick message to let them know when guests are
arriving and follow up afterward to make sure everything was fine.

As   well   as   letting   them   know   about   guest   arrivals,   you   can   keep
communication channels open in other ways. If you’ve set up a guidebook to
the   area,   you   can   share   it   with   them   and   ask   if   they   have   other
recommendations for restaurants or local attractions.

Also if you have a regular gardener or housekeeper who works for you, you
can ask your neighbors if they’d be interested in employing them too. You
might  be  able  to  negotiate  a  discounted  rate,  and  your  neighbors  will
appreciate the fact you’re organizing a useful service for them.

**Install noise monitoring hardware**

Most complaints from neighbors about a short-term rental relate to noise. To
reduce the chance of a party taking place that upsets your neighbors, create
a noise reduction action plan that includes:

- Clear guidelines for guests on quiet hours
- Consequences for guests that violate your house rules about noise
ordinances
- A limit on the number of guests who can stay
- Limiting parties

**Designate parking spaces**

If parking is at a premium in your area, your neighbors won’t be very happy
if your guests take the few available parking spots. Consider paying for a
nearby car park if your property is in a city or town center with limited
parking. Or you can suggest a place where your guests can safely leave their
car and get public transportation to your property.

**Trash management plan**

Every residential neighborhood has its own rules and regulations about which
days to take out the trash, where to leave it, and which items can be
recycled.

If you provide your guests with detailed instructions on what to do, there’s a
good chance they’ll respect the house rules. But it’s worth having a backup
plan in case sorting and taking out the trash isn’t high on your guests’ list of
priorities for their stay. This can involve:

- Sending a friendly reminder to guests to take on the trash on collection
day
- Asking a neighbor to alert you if they spot any trash piled up outside
your property
- Asking your housekeeper to keep an eye on the property during a stay
and dispose of any trash left outside