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Airbnb employee here. (Software engineer; I don't speak for the company.) Personally, I like staying in listings that are owned and operated by the resident. It
by BMorearty 9y ago
Airbnb employee here. (Software engineer; I don't speak for the company.) Personally, I like staying in listings that are owned and operated by the resident. It's more personal and it lets me connect more with some locals. One of my favorite nights at an Airbnb was a dinner with the delightful couple who rented out a room in their Paris apartment. Much less enjoyable was a night in a Seattle room--it was very clean and a five-star room, but it felt like a hotel in that I was lonely.
Both of those were business trips. My vacation travel is different: I have a wife and 3 kids, so it's almost impossible for the five of us to stay in someone's private residence. For those trips, I look for places where the owner only has one property, which to my mind indicates they give it--and my family--a high level of personal attention. Sometimes it's a cottage in their backyard, like the ones I've stayed in at Tahoe and Pescadero. Those a nice because I can meet the owner and they're just 20 feet away when I need help. I am also an Airbnb host of a cottage in my own backyard. It's booked about 90% of the time but the neighbors on my street tell me they usually forget I'm even hosting because they don't even notice.
But there are hosts who manage many properties and there are guests who stay in them. I personally don't like the feeling of being tricked into thinking a place is owner-occupied and then finding out it's managed by a property manager, and I will say so in a review. (We have rules for employees; I won't look at our internal systems when booking to try to see more than the usual customer would see.)
The managed properties are more common in some large urban cities. That is why last year Airbnb banned owners of multiple properties in some large cities around the world. I honestly don't know the specifics of any one city such as Cologne, which is mentioned in the article.
- __strisk 9y agoGod I hate those backyard cottages, did you label yours as a "casita" too? Some AirBnB hosts literally go to home depot, haul a shed, plant it, add crappy insulation and list it. I actually find that to be the worst aspect of AirBnB, if I go to a hotel and I do not like my room I can switch it. If I use AirBnB and the place sucks, well, I'm stuck. Unless I want to go through a lengthy customer service battle. Listings managed by professionals are pleasant on the other hand, I honestly do not want to check-in putting up a front after lining my "host"s pockets. I pay for a service and receive service. Let's not pretend they're doing this for any other reason. AirBnB damn isn't Couch Surfing.
- user5994461 9y agoThe disputes are usually quickly opened and resolved. Just take pictures, explain the problem and open the dispute.
- wanderr 9y agoAs an Airbnb employee I hope you don't mind feature requests. ;) I have severe animal allergies, so using Airbnb is quite annoying for me, there's a way to filter for places that allow pets but not the inverse. Every time I try to use Airbnb I have to look at tons of places to find one that doesn't have or allow pets. It would be really awesome to be able to just eliminate pet places from my search.
- BMorearty 9y agoI don't mind at all. ;-) That sounds like it would be helpful to a lot of people. I'll pass that suggestion to the right team. You can also suggest it yourself since suggestions directly from customers mean a lot. Go to https://www.airbnb.com/help/feedback https://www.airbnb.com/help/feedback and choose "Traveling / Finding a place" as your feedback category.
- wanderr 9y agoI did that a few years ago so I'm hoping you have better luck. ;)
- bluescreenofwin 9y agoAs an employee, would you say that the article summarizes a legitimate problem?
- BMorearty 9y agoThat's a great question. I'll start by repeating that I don't know the specifics of the market in Germany at all and the article focused on Germany, so my comments are more general than what was described in the article. The sense I get within the company is that we have a pretty strong preference for the small owner over someone who has many properties. There are a lot of reasons for this. A big reason for this is ideological: we truly believe in Airbnb as a human platform, not just a place to find lodging but a place to connect with other human beings. Internally, at least in my circles, we don't focus on supporting property managers. It hasn't come up in any meeting I've been in over the 2 years I've been here. In fact I've seen plenty of bugs caused by an engineer not considering the fact that an owner might have a lot of properties. That wouldn't happen if everyone was always like "don't forget the property managers!" More directly answering your question: I believe the article is summarizing something that is a legitimate problem in some cities, which is why Airbnb has engaged with cities and has banned multi-property owners in some. But I also think the article is using hyperbole and flawed logic to exaggerate the problem. Two examples: 1. "Even though Airbnb told the SZ that the focus of its business model was "home-sharing," the platform appears to actively encourage professionalization - with tips including stipulating set check-in times." How do tips about stipulating set check-in times encourage so-called "professionalization?" That just seems weird. Naturally we ask hosts to specify the check-in time. Guests want to know that information. 2. "Some 58 percent of all offers on Airbnb in Germany are entire apartments or even apartment blocks - meaning professional landlords are effectively the core of Airbnb's business." I find this dubious. Tons of hosts list an entire home/apartment even when it's their only listing. The cottage behind my house is listed as an entire home/apartment because it's not a shared space, but it's my only listing and my wife and I clean it ourselves. There are a lot of people who only rent out their place when they are on vacation, to help pay for the vacation. That doesn't create the "emptying of inner city neighborhoods" that the article describes.