August smart locks open new doors for Airbnb hosts and guests

By Lulu Chang Published June 28, 2018

August Smart Lock Third Generation review door ajar — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Leaving a key for your Airbnb guest will soon be a practice of the past, as long as you have an August smart lock installed. On Tuesday, June 26, the smart home company announced additional features in their partnership with Airbnb that promises to simplify rental access for hosts and guests alike. Now, anytime a vacationer makes a reservation in an August Smart Lock and August Smart Keypad-equipped home, August will auto-generate a customized entry code for the booking time and date. That means that hosts will no longer have to wait around for their guests to arrive, or hide keys in clever spaces. Instead, their smart lock will do all the heavy lifting for them.

“Our Smart Locks are the perfect complement to any Airbnb rental, giving hosts complete control over guest access and the freedom to manage their property from anywhere,” August Home CEO Jason Johnson said. “By expanding our Airbnb integration to include the August Smart Keypad, we’re making it simpler for guests to enter and exit a property by simply entering a security code. This makes Airbnb rentals more secure by removing the need for physical keys, which can be lost or copied.”

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The collaboration between Airbnb and August will give hosts three options for providing access to their property. They can have their August lock generate a PIN code for an August Smart Keypad with one-touch locking, or give their guests mobile phone access via the August app, or for maximum convenience (for the guest), give them both the code and app access. Guests will be able to come and go as they please, without cramping their hosts’ style.

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August has been a member of the Airbnb Host Assist program for a while now, which means that providing keyless access to Airbnb properties is quite straightforward. Hosts will need to link their Airbnb account and August account within the August app to begin the syncing process. For hosts who already have an August Smart Lock installed, enabling Smart Keypad access is as easy as updating their August/Airbnb settings in the app.

Then, when a guest makes a reservation, they’ll receive an email with instructions on how to access the property based on the method(s) selected by the host. Any changes to the reservation (whether it’s a different time, day, or an outright cancellation) will automatically change permissions within the August Smart Lock. And when the reservation ends, so too does guest access to the property.

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