9flats blogger
Why I love being a 9flats.com host!
by Christine Neder
I’ve had my apartment, Grandma’s design Butze, listed on 9flats.com for over six months now.
I’ve already had loads of bookings and have met a lot of friendly people. The great thing about being a host with 9flats is that I get to choose who I want to have as a guest. The first impression is really important to me and to get this, I have a look at a guest’s profile picture – to see if it gives me a sense of honesty and credibility. If the guest hasn’t uploaded a picture or any information about themselves, I usually reject the booking request.
For my book, 90 nights, 90 beds, I spent 90 days staying with 90 strangers. During this time, I only had good experiences and received so much hospitality. Because of this, I’ve become a very open person who approaches new people easily. Even still, before I accept a booking request on 9flats I always look at the person’s online profile, and read all their recommendations and evaluations – both as a host and a guest. I then like to contact them first so I can arrange key collection and a face-to-face chat. It also gives me peace of mind to know that the guest has to upload their payment details on 9flats.com before they can book, so their identity can easily be verified. For further security, I sometimes ask for a copy of their ID card or passport. Some hosts I’ve stayed with have asked me for this too, and I’m always happy to give it to them. Finally, I get to know my guest properly when I meet them in person at the key pick-up. I show him or her around the flat, explain everything and of course let them in on the best Berlin tips to make sure they have a memorable stay.
All these steps help me get to know my guests or hosts before I meet them, and because of this I never have any concerns – and actually I feel a lot safer than in the days when I was writing my book and stayed with total strangers. 
Also, something that shouldn’t be forgotten: 9flats has a support team that is always on hand to offer help and advice.