Airbnb is looking to drum up some more support in New York City.
Last year I wrote a couple of posts about Airbnb fighting NYC for the right to operate in the city. (Airbnb Wins NYC Appeal- Resident Must Be Home and Help Save Airbnb In NY.)
I find Airbnb to be a really awesome and innovative travel company. Over the past few years, Kim, Lucas and I have stayed in Airbnb properties a bunch of times. Airbnb to me is like thinking out of the box when it comes to traditional lodging options. When we can’t find a hotel or hostel that fits our needs we’ll usually then turn to Airbnb.
After our first stay using Airbnb in Singapore we were immediately impressed and looked forward to trying the service again. While we do not host people we’ve enjoyed meeting and chatting with our hosts in places like Singapore, Italy and Omaha!
With the prices of hotels in NYC being so high, Airbnb is probably a great options for visitors to the city.
Airbnb says that it is great for NYC because it:
- Provides supplemental income for tens of thousands of New Yorkers
- Increases tax revenue for our city and our state
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Leads the way in community building
The economic impact Airbnb claims to have on the city seems to be pretty amazing. Check out this graphic which shows how hosts in 3 neighborhoods generated around $70 million in economic activity.
If you’d like to sign up to support Airbnb in NYC you can do so here.
Have you tried out Airbnb? If so, where did you stay and how was the experience?
If you haven’t already signed up for Airbnb, consider signing up through my link. You’ll get a $25 credit towards your next qualifying reservation on Airbnb and I’ll receive a $25 credit after your stay is completed.
In other news- Check out a post by Brian from The Gate about Airbnb”Host” Scams.
Dani- I could totally see big problems with apartments being used as Airbnb. I think my building in Brooklyn (which is a co-op) would defintely fine me and sue if I tried to rent a room…
Joey- Airbnb is definitely not perfect and can probably be abused by some. Overall, we’ve had very positive experiences (we do not rent our place) being guests. It really increases our options when the hotels/ hostels are slim-pickings.
globetrotter- Glad you enjoyed your stay with Airbnb in NZ! It sounds like being an Airbnb landlord in CA is definitely not worth the headaches from what you described.
We had used Airbnb in NZ and it was a wonderful experience. It was an ocean-view two bedroom condo. The owner offered to let us stay there alone but we insisted her being there during our stay. CA also has many obscene tenant-landlord laws in the book. You are gambling with your nest egg and frying your mentality by being a landlord in any rent control area: I would avoid it at all cost because of the high risk. Airbnb must require all members to submit sizable deposit and property deed to prove their ownership of the property before renting it. Residential tenants must never be allowed to profit from their rental because they are not subject to county and state ordinances. It is a shame to see the rising tide of abuse and fraud in this country, second to the lawless Russia, East bloc and third world countries.
I think it is an innovative idea and I do have friends who rent out their apartments (technically they “live” there but when they have airbnb guests, they just stay at their other apt.), however, it just seems unregulated at the moment and that part is what I’m uncomfortable with. I recently read an article how a lot of escorts in nyc tend to use airbnb for their clients since it’s certainly cheaper and more discreet.
I have used airbnb twice in the past but only because all the hotel rooms were fully booked already (kona championships and sochi olympics). My experience with airbnb was perfectly fine.
As a landlord airbnb is awful. We have rent stabilized tenants who pay a 1/3 of market value renting their apartments out for a giant profit and I am stuck with this tenant. In another property of mine who had an airbnb tenant we had an outbreak of bedbugs. NOT GOOD!!
Justin- Sounds like some pretty awful situations. As a landlord do you have the right to ban people from renting out their apartments? I’m guessing no.
Sadly, it’s not so easy. The way rent stabilization laws in NYC work it can take months before you can even get the tenant into court let alone having anything happen. Conservatively, from the time we get the tenant into court they can continue to rent out the unit for an additional 5-7 months…. Usually more!!
Wow! That sounds a bit ridiculous…
As a neighbor is not that great either. I live in a 60 units building (NYC) and one of the apartments has a rotation of around 2/3 different people a week. Constant parade of new faces, rolling luggage at any hour, the keys get stuck at the main door and the solution is: let’s buzz until an idiot opens the door, laundry room packed with people that have no right to be there, and the guy shares the key to the gym with all his airbnb guests. He might be getting a supplement of his income and that is great, but his neighbors are paying for it in different ways. Also, the old lady that lives below the guy has to suffer all the unnecessary traffic that this guy is creating in his apartment. Airbnb is great if you have a house/townhouse but on an apartment complex, I am sorry- Not a big fan.