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Sadly that's what happens when you challenge an existing business model and industry who are afraid and will spare no expense to get legislation passed preventi

Sadly that's what happens when you challenge an existing business model and industry who are afraid and will spare no expense to get legislation passed preventing competition from battering your profits. I understand that services like Airbnb and Uber are unregulated, but instead of working with these companies to draft legislation that addresses the concerns, you're seeing draconian bills just outright banning them. It doesn't matter what the people want, when there is money involved, you can bet the side who doesn't necessarily make the most noise, but has the most money will win. Whether or not politicians, corporations and residents afraid of change like it or not, the sharing economy is here to stay and will always find a way around any opposition. Look at Uber, opposed not only in multiple states in the USA, but also in other states in other countries.

colept 11y ago
Competition from hotels is just one side of the issue. The other side is safety and security. I lived in a building next to a hostel for a year and a half. It was well maintained and the guests were regulated. Never had any complaints about the guests. On the other hand, my next door neighbor rented out his condo AirBnB style for a few months. It was obnoxious, the owner was remote and the guests were never regulated. The common areas were trashed, the guests were loud, and none of it mattered because they only had to deal with the consequences for a short term. The fact of the matter is: there needs to be a distinction in regulation between short term and long term housing. As much as I am a fan of startups that make life convenient, the unregulated nature of AirBnB makes life difficult for anyone else not in the exchange. That's what hotels are for, to abstract that difficulty so that it only involves those within the boundaries of the exchange: the guests, the owners, and the service.

colept 11y ago

Competition from hotels is just one side of the issue. The other side is safety and security. I lived in a building next to a hostel for a year and a half. It was well maintained and the guests were regulated. Never had any complaints about the guests. On the other hand, my next door neighbor rented out his condo AirBnB style for a few months. It was obnoxious, the owner was remote and the guests were never regulated. The common areas were trashed, the guests were loud, and none of it mattered because they only had to deal with the consequences for a short term. The fact of the matter is: there needs to be a distinction in regulation between short term and long term housing. As much as I am a fan of startups that make life convenient, the unregulated nature of AirBnB makes life difficult for anyone else not in the exchange. That's what hotels are for, to abstract that difficulty so that it only involves those within the boundaries of the exchange: the guests, the owners, and the service.