I totally agree. I am a new member, but the response rate metrics seem just fine to me.
Brilliant!! Long overdue. 4 days is plenty of time to give some type of response. It would make holiday planning SO much easier and more enjoyable. I honestly feel that the platform shouldn’t be used if you are too busy to respond in the simplest way to a request. To me it just comes back to courtesy and respect for your fellow exchanger.
Thank you Kindly for considering this change.
Just a quick ‘no’ or ‘maybe’ takes 2 secs and allows you to move on to other options instead of waiting in hope that the host will respond. Out of respect to a future guest (and so they can plan their holidays with ease,) I always respond within hrs of a request.
Interesting points. I think the 4 day automatic no (for GP echnages) would work for a lot of people, but possible not for everyone. How about making that a setting, such as:
Automatic ‘No’ replies after:
- 4 days
- 7 days
- 14 days
- never
And leave the default to ‘Never’ - this way people that would like to use this feature can select to do so, and thereby increase there response /reactivity level.
No cause it causes problems behind for support, forgotten preapprovals, blocking New ones etc
The only thing I see this as really useful for is finalization. Initial contact not as much but if someone is pre-approved they should accept in 4 days. I don’t even know if that is a problem though.
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Hi, great to hear you’re working on this. A few points from me 
Would it help if the platform blocked or notified the requestor when they make a request for dates that are either already allocated to another guest or blocked? This might reduce the amount of messages one has to reply to (and therefore increase the ability to actually meet the 4 day deadline).
I think reactivity level as a term could be improved. ‘Reactiveness level’ or ‘React Rate’
Side note - I wished I had better understood how to read the response rates as I would have saved myself a heap of time not wasted on sending messages to people that don’t ever reply. I think the lack of response really undermines the value of the HE platform and ideally these non-responders are either removed from the platform or a clear warning or banner is applied when attempting to try and contact them/make a booking.
My experience to date with guest points hasn’t been very positive. We are travelling to 5 countries in the summer and not one request has been accepted however we’ve had to vacate our home to earn points and pay the membership but for nothing in return. Better management of response rates would have been a good warning to me that e.g 20 listings in one town will most likely be a 1-2 response rate at best.
Thanks!
I have a vacation home in a very popular destination, but I NEVER ignore requests. That seems rude to me, and I am annoyed when I make a request and never, ever hear back. If you put the app on your phone you can give a quick response in about 45 seconds. I don’t understand people who have been on HE for 3 or 4 years and have no exchanges and 0 response rate. Why are you even paying the fee? If you feel burdened by people requesting an exchange then maybe this is not for you.
A lot of members are on the site without paying the fee. You join for free and only pay to finalize a first exchange. @PlayBall
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I love this idea. Thank you. I don’t like the name reactivity though. Maybe just the same - response rate. That still includes the time it takes to respond.
Everyone on the system has a duty to reply within four days even if it’s just to ask for more time to think about it.
Thanks for all you do.
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Yes it’s a tricky one because of the translation into so many languages - often what works in French (which is where the company is based) doesn’t work so well in English. But it is something I will feedback!
Great news - i’ve checked with the product team and the term used will be ‘response rate’ 
More news will be coming soon…
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Just wondering if this discussion is still ongoing, but if so my thoughts:
I do think the combination of a percentage of requests replied to AND the average number of days it takes to reply is a great combination. Let everyone decide for themselves which figures are acceptable. In fact, what is acceptable might not only change from person to person, but also from situation to situation. If I am looking for a short-time exchange next week, I would contact people who respond quicky only. If I am looking for a home for my next holiday in six months time, a longer response time is more acceptable.
I also think that automatic replies are unnecessary. If somebody doesn not reply within my time-frame, a “no reply” is indeed a kind of reply for me. Then if they replied too late I would tell them so. Maybe if they get a few messages like that the message will sink in.