If AirBnB is going to get big, they need to have anti-discrimination policies. Without such policies, the states and federal government will sue them into oblivion--whether any laws were actually broken or not. Civil rights groups will boycott AirBnB and any TV network that carries their advertising. The list of hurts goes on and on.
So there is no future for hosts like you who want to vet people. Vetting allows too much room for all sorts of unsavory discrimination. More importantly for AirBnB though, vetting gets in the way of AirBnB making money and competing with hotel chains.
This company dreams of being the "Uber of hotels." You're in their way. You're like the old-timey Lyft driver who wanted people riding in front and doing the fist bump. That's over.
The sort of hosting you want to do is going to have to route through some informal mechanism, like an email list or word of mouth or some web forum, or maybe a random Facebook group. It's incompatible with a Bigcorp that wants to make money, lots of money.
Yeup. Airbnb told me to "go fuck myself" a long time ago. It was fun well it lasted I suppose.
Brilliantly written comment I must say. Everything you said was spot on.
Craigslist's sublet/temporary section is a pretty good place for this. I've found it works pretty well being able to rent a place for a few weeks while the owner is out of town/country. Obviously unlike AirBnB there is no false pretense of security, but that's fair enough seeing as how you (as owner/lessor) have the greatest incentive to look after that.
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It's a lot easier to say, "buy a second home or apt and make some money renting it out" than it is to say "make some money by letting a stranger go through all your personal shit. And if you don't, you're racist"
"Home sharing" is over. Airbnb is all about being a broker for unlicensed mini-hotels now.
Before arriving in some foreign place I want to know if the host is reliable. The host wants to know if they can trust me to be in their home. Ratings are helpful but no substitute for finding out what type of person you're dealing with. Even though I'm a pretty private person I prefer connecting with hosts on social media beforehand. I definitely want a voice call, even though all the expectation setting needs to be in writing on airbnb.
Both sides need to show themselves and accept being judged. Hosts need to be able to refuse without needing to justify their decisions. Otherwise there can never be enough trust to share valuable properties.
I only spoke on the phone with one guest before hand and we ended up connecting very well. Her and her daughter were first timers and I walked them through the whole process. Her feedback said something like she considers me family now haha
Airbnb has basically stripped that ability away from me. So thanks Airbnb. I'll stop being the racist you've incorrectly accused me of being.
/oh and for the record, I am Latino/Native American.
Why do AirBnB hosts need all this when VRBO hosts did not?
In fact I've usually had to try to negotiate with them over the phone as they suddenly jack up the price to twice what they advertised, or tell me that they made a mistake in the listing and they weren't actually available.
I don't even know why; I'm not part of any class that would usually be discriminated against. Maybe I sound young on the phone.
I think it's unreasonable to say that all home-sharers must act like hotels.
First, Airbnb hosts are not "sharing" their homes. They're renting them out for financial profits.
Second, the name is literally Airbnb, as in "Bed and Breakfast". Most B&Bs don't get anything close to that amount of information, and it's illegal for them to discriminate on the basis of protected classes, just like hotels.
Respectfully, I disagree. If you allow someone to stay in the home you live in while you're away, to sleep in your bed, to cook in your kitchen, drink from your cups, and so on, you are most definitely sharing your home. It doesn't matter if you profit or not for that to be true.
I know a lot of Airbnb hosts aren't doing this. They're renting out places they never lived in. There's a big difference.
I, personally, am not arguing that discrimination isn't wrong (though some other threads have clarified the actual legality). I'm just saying that the methods Airbnb has chosen to prevent said discrimination also make it impossible for me to host and those methods are shaky at best.
- book a flight,
- buy bread or milk, or
- get a girl friend
you discrimate in favor of one and against all others.
Subjective discrimination is the only way to choose, discrimination is the sure consequence of your every choice.
That's your choice. No one made you.
"Why should we lump hotels and my apt into the same bucket? They are different types of businesses"
They really aren't. They provide the same service.
"I think it's unreasonable to say that all home-sharers must act like hotels."
I don't. Especially with regards to anti-discrimination laws.
1.) Airbnb is still a new concept to a lot of people. Hosts need to time to work with a guest to make sure they know how the arrangement is suppose to work. Airbnb use to have a 'respond within 24 hrs rule' which got changed to a 'accept booking within 24hrs rule'. That change gave me little time to work with guests (especially first timers). I can't tell you how many times first-timers ask me questions as if i were hotel, "do you mind if i check in at 2am after my international flight gets in?" No.
2.) Removing pictures increases anonymity for guest and risks for hosts. Transparency is great for building trust. I could usually tell if a guest was going to good by the amount of information they shared about themselves. I hated it when first-time guest would reach out with zero information about themselves or a picture. It's like guests want to know everything about me, but they get to hide behind a veil of secrecy.
3.) Increasing the use of "instant-book" favors professionals as opposed to part-time home-sharers. Since I rented out my entire personal apt during work trips (never did room shares), I wanted to be damn sure a guest would be respectful of my home, so I needed to work with them (see #1). However, people who have a full-time airbnb place don't really care as much. They have a bunch of cheap ikea furniture and no personal belongings to worry about. This is in sharp contrast to what Airbnb claims to be, especially in SF. Since I have more to care about and more risk, the new policies do not work for me.
4.) Hosts aren't always forth coming with information NOR do they read the fine print before booking. I can't tell you how many people expected me to check them in at 2am, have an elevator, child proof my apartment, allow for dogs, and the list goes on and on. Great, now I've got to deal with people who don't bother to follow the rules.
Look, I realize I have a lot of requirements, and you might say "well maybe I shouldn't be airbnb-ing" But my apartment was great for the right person and I was happy to share it. And I was almost always able to find the right person. I think Airbnb is great when its about finding the right place for the right person. I'm sorry that everyplace can be right for everyone. My apt is not a "one-size-fits-all" hotel and since they are forcing me to be one, I am no longer using the service.