AirBnB Hosts Overextended; Air Back to Its Roots? - Washington Post Article

Behind a paywall, trying to find full article. More signs that Air hosts who bought in to making more money with STR are being hit hard. If I were any of them, I’d sell several properties and invest the money in the ones I’m keeping.

This has been posted once already. Here is a non paywall version.

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Thanks. I’ve been out of the loop. Delete this post if you’d like so it’s not repetitive.

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My sympathy meter just hit a feck all.

To quote Windsor Davies, oh dear, what a shame, never mind.

JF

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I have to agree. The article talks about those ‘hosts’ who spent to lot of money thinking that STR was the road to riches. And of course, the fact is that ‘if it was so easy, everyone would be doing it’. They tried, they failed. That’s that.

In 2016, they started a company named Local, spending more than $14,000 to outfit apartments with rugs, throw pillows, art and chandeliers. They grossed about $1.5 million annually, mostly through Airbnb, Ms. Landrum said, renting the 18 apartments they leased and 21 apartments they managed to corporate travelers and film-industry workers.

They spend about $50,000 annually with cleaning services, about $25,000 on an inspector and $30,000 a year on maintenance staff and landscapers, Ms. Landrum said, not to mention spending on furnishings.

I’m not sorry for her, I’m afraid. Putting in that sort of investment without having back up and contingency plans set up seems pretty daft to me.

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Not sorry to see the “slum landlords” leave AirBnb.

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:violin: :violin: :violin: Play me a sad song (not).

Ditto. No sympathy for the Hosts who are warehousing homes in the name of greed.

I wish I had $105,000 per year in disposable income to make my house nicer… Sheesh…

Neither am I. Here’s hoping Air goes back to its roots and finally realizes what it should be.

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I wasn’t scolding, just informing. Sometimes folks post something and don’t get much response and I suspect it’s due to having already been seen. But it appears that not many saw it the first round.

So, thanks for posting again.

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It’s even more interesting to read some of the comments from this article. It’s a regular Airbnb host hatefest.

The vast majority of us get the proper license and collect our sales and hotel taxes. Because my home is not owner occupied, my property taxes are double that of my neighbors. My guests frequent the spas, local restaurants and shops bringing money into our community; I hire locals for cleaning and maintenance, all of which results in revenue for my small town.

I’ve never had a complaint from my neighbors, but articles like this make it seem like we are all a bunch of troublemakers, overextending ourselves and then expecting a bailout.

The only people who think this is easy money (and a cash cow) are the ones who have never done it.

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Oh I know you weren’t scolding. I did miss it the first time 'round and am glad I got to read it without the paywall, so thanks loads! :slight_smile:

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Exactly, KarenWV! I’m in WV too and our town has an EXCESS of housing because the population has dropped by about 40% of the last 40 years or so as the plants have closed and business closed up or moved away.

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