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The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

nytimes.com

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Re: The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

#31

Post by smallgovt »

matchbok wrote: post #14

More bad behavior that is encouraged by the AirBnb leadership. Disgusting. They could solve this problem overnight with their software but choose not to because it makes ~70% of their revenue, while at the same time claiming they are a "home-sharing" site. AirBnb needs to go into the trash. They consume resources and push costs onto the community and neighbors, while making millions.

> They could solve this problem overnight with their software

Can you expand on what the software solution would look like here? I'm curious why the hotel lobby doesn't scrape Airbnb and report all the properties that are breaking regulation.

Re: The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

#33

Post by ddebernardy »

tnolet wrote: post #29
lordnacho wrote: post #27

Why doesn't the city just make a law that fines Airbnb if they offer something they don't like? Is that impossible or did I miss it?

No, Paris just fined AirBnB $14M.

... which (unfortunately?) is a rounding error for AirBnB.

Re: The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

#34

Post by karzeem »

matchbok wrote: post #17
pmichalina wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People using it would beg to differ. Just don’t use their service.

The platform actively harms communities. Don't be selfish.

It harms communities by allowing housing inventory to flow to where the demand is most intense?

Re: The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

#36

Post by tptacek »

karzeem wrote: post #34
matchbok wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The platform actively harms communities. Don't be selfish.

It harms communities by allowing housing inventory to flow to where the demand is most intense?

No, it harms communities by turning apartments into hotels. Hotels have externalities, which is why they're zoned.

Re: The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

#37

Post by massivecali »

matchbok wrote: post #28
massivecali wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The same could be said for all foreign realestate investment where homes sit empty. (Granted that could be solved by a vacancy tax.) But people already buy places and rent them out as income property. This puts a burden on renters and increases the incentives for builders to only construct larger apartments and homes. It raises the price for everyone and poor single people suffer the most. Im not following how airbnb…

Because renting != hotel. There is a huge different between how a tourist treats a building/apartment/neighborhood and a resident does. There are many good reasons why hotels have regulations. Mini-hotel platforms are not subject to the same things.

All of the laws regarding noise, littering, loitering, smoking, etc. don't magically vanish. You have the same recourse against a renter as you would a tourist.

Re: The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

#38

Post by jseliger »

massivecali wrote: post #21
matchbok wrote: post #14

More bad behavior that is encouraged by the AirBnb leadership. Disgusting. They could solve this problem overnight with their software but choose not to because it makes ~70% of their revenue, while at the same time claiming they are a "home-sharing" site. AirBnb needs to go into the trash. They consume resources and push costs onto the community and neighbors, while making millions.

The same could be said for all foreign realestate investment where homes sit empty. (Granted that could be solved by a vacancy tax.) But people already buy places and rent them out as income property. This puts a burden on renters and increases the incentives for builders to only construct larger apartments and homes. It raises the price for everyone and poor single people suffer the most. Im not following how airbnb…

If only there were some way, a technology, even, of increasing the total number of units on a given plot of land, such that those who want to live in a city or visit a city wouldn't have to compete so vigorously for livable housing units.

Alas, we can only dream that such a technology. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel_frame

Re: The Rise and Fall of a Multimillion-Dollar Airbnb Scheme

#40

Post by ceejayoz »

jimrhods23 wrote: post #13

I don't really thing what this guy did was a bad thing: He had positive reviews, multiple maids to cleanup after guests, and willingly broke leases and lost money when there were complaints.

You'd probably feel differently if you were these folks:

> “It’s been 3 a.m. and I’ve had people ringing my buzzer to get in,” said Ziograin Correa, 40, who lives in the building with his wife and six children. “They don’t have a key, so they ring my buzzer.”

The other residents in the buildings can't leave an AirBnB review.

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