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Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

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Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#81

Post by JumpCrisscross »

hypeit wrote: post #73
mastercheif wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem is that it’s essentially illegal to build new hotels in NYC. This is because NYC’s hotel labor unions successfully lobbied to enact a law requiring city council approval to build new hotels in the city. Effectively damning any new developments to endless hand wringing and grandstanding from NIMBYs and other interests. Many new hotels in recent years were staffed with non-union labor, this was their way to…

> The problem is that it’s essentially illegal to build new hotels in NYC. I really wouldn't classify this as a problem. It's completely possible today to book a hotel room in NY at all manner of price points. The prices are not noticeably different than anytime in the past few years. There is a ton of hotel inventory in NYC. If I was a resident, I wouldn't even want more hotels built because the city is already full…

> lacking space for affordable residential property

We are not space constrained. Like in California, housing shortage is a policy choice by New York’s voters. (In this case, we chose to shift some of the burden onto tourists versus property owners.)

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#82

Post by shortcake27 »

chollida1 wrote: post #14

Well AirBnb banning in New York is alot different than in other cities just by virtue of the type of accommodations that are available in New York. If you ask most people why they airbnb over hotels they say its because I can take my family or group of friends to an airbnb, where as in a hotel we'd need to get 4-5 rooms. In most other cities you can trivially find 5 bedroom places that fit that bill. In New York I'm…

For me it’s the price of single occupancy.

I’ve spent a lot of time nomadic freelancing in the past 10 years. In most cities around the world, a room on Airbnb is about the same price as a bed in a hostel. And a hotel is usually double the price.

My needs as a traveller are certainly less important than those of the residents in the cities I visit. Nonetheless, I still lament, as the ever-growing ban on Airbnbs effectively kills the nomadic lifestyle.

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#83

Post by hypeit »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #81
hypeit wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The problem is that it’s essentially illegal to build new hotels in NYC. I really wouldn't classify this as a problem. It's completely possible today to book a hotel room in NY at all manner of price points. The prices are not noticeably different than anytime in the past few years. There is a ton of hotel inventory in NYC. If I was a resident, I wouldn't even want more hotels built because the city is already full…

> lacking space for affordable residential property We are not space constrained. Like in California, housing shortage is a policy choice by New York’s voters. (In this case, we chose to shift some of the burden onto tourists versus property owners.)

> We are not space constrained.

I'm sorry but New York is famously space constrained. There is no new Manhattan land showing up any time soon.

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#84

Post by toomuchtodo »

mastercheif wrote: post #48
hypeit wrote: post #3

I seriously doubt hotels will get more expensive as they still have to compete with each other. I would say Airbnb has never had any influence on hotel pricing in NYC. That being said, I tried Airbnb in NY a few times and it was absolutely disgusting. In most places Airbnbs will be a bit dirtier than a hotel but in NY it wasn't even close. Rats, cockroaches, showers that don't drain, grime everywhere... After a few e…

The problem is that it’s essentially illegal to build new hotels in NYC. This is because NYC’s hotel labor unions successfully lobbied to enact a law requiring city council approval to build new hotels in the city. Effectively damning any new developments to endless hand wringing and grandstanding from NIMBYs and other interests. Many new hotels in recent years were staffed with non-union labor, this was their way to…

If you damage the city's economy, would that not lead to a reduction in housing costs eventually? If you can't build your way out, destroy demand.

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#85

Post by JumpCrisscross »

hypeit wrote: post #3

I seriously doubt hotels will get more expensive as they still have to compete with each other. I would say Airbnb has never had any influence on hotel pricing in NYC. That being said, I tried Airbnb in NY a few times and it was absolutely disgusting. In most places Airbnbs will be a bit dirtier than a hotel but in NY it wasn't even close. Rats, cockroaches, showers that don't drain, grime everywhere... After a few e…

> doubt hotels will get more expensive as they still have to compete with each other

They already have, by double-digit figures [1]. Both in terms of rates and average revenue per room.

There are a lot of hotels in New York. But within each lodging category, in each neighbourhood, it’s more limited. During marquee events (UN, fashion week, et cetera) or the holidays, a given set of hotels have a virtual oligopoly, as the alternative is hoofing it from New Jersey.

[1] https://www.pwc.com/us/en/industries/consumer-markets/hospit...

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#86

Post by hospitalJail »

rdtsc wrote: post #25

The stories I have read over the years had kept me from trying Airbnb. Maybe I am too risk averse, but if I spend money and time on vacation, leaving all that up to some unknown shady host to mess up and then having to fight with Airbnb support sounds not enjoyable at all. I'd rather be surprised by fun and enjoyable things. > Hyatt announced a new vacation rental platform, Homes & Hideaways by World of Hyatt, the sa…

I've both used and hosted AirBnB. I probably have ~50 experiences of various transactions.

0 problems.

I hate that the fees are hidden until you are about to pay, but the actual service is like renting out a furnished apartment/house. Way back when, people were renting out rooms in their home, so you actually got to talk to a host to get advice about the area, and the home was decent.

Today its basically a bunch of landlords who have some property manager and cleaning service taking care of a furnished apartment/house.

But its just another hotel-style company. I imagine you havent tried chatgpt either.

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#87

Post by JamesBarney »

RC_ITR wrote: post #55
JamesBarney wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Regions do not support tourism for the sake of the tourist. They support tourism, because tourists spend lots of money which flows into the pockets of the people that work there. Tourists spend around 48 billion on the NYC economy.

This is always such a weird argument to me, because you know who else adds to an economy? People who live and work there. Forcing people to commute in from Jersey City is a huge net drain on NYC's economy.

In a well functioning city you just build more buildings so you can have tourists and locals.

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#88

Post by Salgat »

genericname wrote: post #66
Salgat wrote: post #30

Sounds like this will promote growth of new hotel construction/expansion. Great!

NYC recently passed a zoning amendment which requires special permits and additional construction rules for new hotels https://www.hvs.com/article/9578-new-york-citys-2018-2021-ho... Unfortunately, I do believe the extra burden will lead to less construction and I worry that short-term stays will indeed become more expensive because of the lower supply of rooms.

In many parts of the city hotels have already outpaced other non-residential development. These regulations, on top of supporting union workers, just ensure that hotels don't take over too much of certain parts of the city. The biggest issue with AirBNB is that you have unregulated conversion of residential property into short term hotels, which impacts long term residents living in the city. A hotel shortage mostly impacts tourism, which is already booming in the city and is a less critical issue for NYC residents.

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#89

Post by gumby »

Simulacra wrote: post #57
gumby wrote: post #37

He’s whistling past the graveyard, as I suppose he should be. As others have commented, Airbnb was never enough to move the needle on hotel prices in NY anyway. But they did move the needle on quality of life for people who live there, which is whom the government represents. Historically it’s the visitors who get soaked everywhere (car rental fees at airport, hotel visitor taxes and of course Cheesecake Factory in T…

If not then why is the city and hotel industry fighting so hard to shut them down? Airbnb was competition.

I believe the real pressure is coming from city residents who don't like having an ABNB nearby or object to the reduction of rentable apartments, while the hotels are just piling in on the scrum.

Re: Airbnb CEO: NYC hotels will get more expensive after short-term rental crackdown

#90

Post by welldoneator »

yieldcrv wrote: post #44
rdtsc wrote: post #25

The stories I have read over the years had kept me from trying Airbnb. Maybe I am too risk averse, but if I spend money and time on vacation, leaving all that up to some unknown shady host to mess up and then having to fight with Airbnb support sounds not enjoyable at all. I'd rather be surprised by fun and enjoyable things. > Hyatt announced a new vacation rental platform, Homes & Hideaways by World of Hyatt, the sa…

thats… yes, too risk averse people have overwhelmingly positive experiences with airbnb and a few outliers, or people make fun of the pricing of the fees but the actual experience is pretty benign

...until something goes wrong and you're dealing with a situation at best more annoying and worst downright hostile (ask me how I know). Your only recourse if something goes wrong is a random host whose income is directly tied to not helping you. If you're dealing with an issue at a hotel, there's strict policies in place and at the very least the person on the other end gets paid regardless of whether or not you're refunded, so you're more likely to actually be refunded via policy rather than the whims of a fraudster.
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