Is Airbnb Dying? 

The cleaning request after paying the cleaning fee sounds like pure madness

AirBnB Owners gentrified the hell outta every city. They had profited a lot, while incentivizing the housing crisis. I can't say I feel bad for them.

I used to stay at AirBNBs because they were cheaper than hotels. For the most part it is no longer the case

Didn't airbnb start out as a company where people could rent out their house when they were away? From my memory, it didn't start out as a way to make money on owning a home, but instead just making a little money on the side when you're on holiday

Air BnB is one of the worse thing for new home buyers.

No pity for the owners of these AirBNB, they took the risk for the profits. Now that it's turning against them they need to live with the consequences.

I only stay at an AirBnB if it’s something unique like somebody’s farm, or a boutique tree house etc. After learning about the harm AirBnBs put on local home prices and service workers, the morality of renting one is questionable.

She purchased a house to list it on Airbnb... I have no sympathy for her or anyone like her. We need to stop viewing property as an investment. A home is one of the things in life that we actually need. Why are we letting this people keep doing this?

Wanting to be a hotel business without being a hotel drove up home prices like how car prices went up because a certain company wanted to be a taxi business without holding taxis or paying its drivers fairly.

What kills me is the fact that the listing can be a complete fabrication, and the only thing you can do is suffer through the stay and ding them "inaccurate description" afterward....

As an NYC resident I fully support requiring the host in the same building, ideally sharing a wall with the rental unit. You cannot bring irresponsible, noisy and potentially dangerous guests to a building and let the other tenants feel the burden. You bring a stranger to the building, you deal with the consequences. Not in NY, but in another city, I had to get the Abnb guests kicked out because they were partying at 4am.

One thing you guys failed to mention. We live on a Spring feed river in Florida and think about the neighbor who lives next-door to one of these nightmares. We’ve had as many as 25 people staying next-door doing drugs, partying till 3 AM. It’s a sad situation, our two daughters are constantly woken up by the sounds next-door.

I can't sympathize with that host ie at 1:08 because she's expecting $468 per night. That's just...downright silly.

I had 2 nightmare scenarios (no running water or electricity because they didn't pay their bills and another house was condemned) that stood out so much compared to the many positive experiences I've had. Air BnB did 0 to help me and I didn't get a refund on either and the 'hosts' got angry for me leaving a not 5 star review. Hotels and legit bed and breakfast places only for me now.

It’s crazy that this video popped up today because I just checked out of an Air bnb within 2 hours of arriving because it was dirty and reeked of smoke. I will say (after speaking to more than 4 consultants), my issue was resolved through air bnb and they’ve fully refunded me. The hosts however were so rude and said they’d inspect the property the next day and declined a refund (even for that one evening) or giving us a different room (they own many properties in the building). The way the hosts responded was really the last straw for me and I think I’m going back to legit hotels and guesthouses that have health and safety standards.

They charge a huge cleaning fee and then you are required to do a whole list of cleaning chores. It’s stupid!

I hope so. The people who own these places are RIDICULOUS. It’s much more worth it to use hotels these days. At least I don’t have to worry about what I touch and don’t touch.

As usual, this is yet another business that started as a good idea but was ruined by people's greed.

Society has turned homes into investments which is completely paradoxical.

I don’t want to clean on vacation, I stopped doing airbnb as it didn’t meet what I wanted for my travel needs and the quality vs cost just doesn’t meet my expectation vs a hotel stay

The New York law seems very reasonable. I have no sympathy for people renting out additional properties.

Airbnb should be banned. Individuals are purchasing properties solely for Airbnb rentals. I'm glad hotel corporations are actively lobbying against this practice.

Remember when rich people complain about regulations and how oppressed they are, sometimes, but not always it’s because they can’t turn peoples homes into vacation rentals.

I’m sorry but if you invested in a Airbnb rental and it doesn’t end up profitable, that’s part of investing. There’s no law that says that everything that everyone invests in HAS TO make money. Should have known the risk

To answer the question posed by the video title: God, I really hope so.

We rented a beachside Florida AirBnB condo a couple years ago over Easter weekend. The power kept cycling in and out, and I got an electrical shock in the shower. The owner couldn't get the electric looked at because it was a holiday weekend. We left early and stayed inland instead.

Ordinary homes and neighborhoods should not be hotels. Airbnbs have further exacerbated the high housing costs where I live and decreased quality of life for actual residents. The city has a bunch of regulations on paper but they're toothless (very low petty fines) nor the personnel necessary to actually enforce the law so most of the Airbnb's are openly flouting the law without a care in the world.

i dont like airbnb anymore. Having to be my own cleaner is a little crazy as well as having a long list of rules.

Oh no, "entrepreneurs" made an investment that isn't panning out? It's almost as if investing comes with risks. Poor things....

Greed is one hell of a drug

I still use AirBnBs when I'm with large groups, as I find a 3 bedroom house is easier and cheaper than like 3 hotel rooms. But I use it a lot less than when it was in its heyday, and I've had some bad experiences. I also dislike what it does to the housing market; I've seen multiple people buy homes just to AirBnB rent them, as opposed to long term rental or owner occupied. It's a symptom of a bigger problem of not building enough housing in general, but still a problem. I've never lived next to an AirBnB either but can imagine the frustration with that. I'm still in favor of the original intent of AirBnB; renting out like a room or a ADU/guest house on a property you actually live on, and it seems a lot of the local legislation is moving in this direction. In my city, the regulations and allowances for owner occupied rentals are much easier/less restrictive.

My Airbnb listing is the cheapest in Finland. Locally the prices are quadriple. What are they dreaming? They feel entitled to huge fees, even though our area is distant. I have guests only during June - August. My expenses are minimal unlike in the metropolis.

I was going to book a two day stay at an airbnb but the “cleaning fee” made the two day cost nearly double the original asking price. Criminal we are just staying at a hotel and I don’t need to worry about anything

I have a couple of apartments on Airbnb and the truth is that investing on property just for this activity is plain stupid. If it is a “summer home” that you already payed for and you want it to pay its monthly expenses and minor maintenance it works like a charm, but if you seek to buy properties and have Airbnb to pay for it’s acquisition it’s not worth the risk. With the government increasing taxes (which I find good to balance the competition against hotels) and guests that can leave your place in terrible conditions, the best bet is to have a property that could work with a traditional rental if Airbnb or its model fails or is banned.

I will never do airbnb again! Fire hazard by AC condensation splashing onto electrical socket and I only got half of my money back even though I never stayed there because of issues. This was a week ago!

I have never booked an Airbnb and have no interest in doing so.

There are several cities here in Texas that have banned short term rentals as well

I was host and guest, and in both cases, had very unpleasant two experiences. Customer service has been even worse than experiences.

A really interesting piece! My wife & I are Airbnb hosts; we rent out our spare room to help cover our mortgage. We have our own bathroom & bedroom, but share the rest of our home. With a ~40% occupancy rate (by choice!) it covers our interest on our mortgage. A huge help! I think where it gets less suitable is when the whole property is rented out. My parents started renting out their old home near the beach on Airbnb in late 2020, thinking they could earn more than in a long-term rental. For them, it was a huge loss after paying for a cleaner each time, etc., and they had multiple bookings totally trash the house. In our experience in hosting, we’ve had extremely respectful guests. I think I would only ever consider hosting on Airbnb if I was living on-site. It makes sense on so many levels!

Airbnb should’ve never have been allowed. They’re essentially motels which are a commercial use in the middle of quiet neighborhoods. That’s what zoning laws are for. It prevents people from opening car washes, theaters and MOTELS next to someone’s house. Communities will fight back, hence all the bans from areas plagued with Airbnb.

Here is a good rule of thumb for anyone considering entrepreneurial opportunities. If social media influencers are pushing it, they're pushing it to millions of people, and by the time you'd be ready to set up shop, the market will likely be oversaturated. Oh, and those people selling courses to show how to do every money making opportunity from crypto to dropshipping, to selling on Amazon, to trading stocks? If their method is so good, why are they selling it to you and others effectively creating competition for themselves which will dwindle potential profits? I'll tell you why, because the lucrative timespan for that particular enterprise has likely already dwindled or in the skeezier cases, it never was. There's more money to be made selling that dream to others now than in actually doing it. As the old saying goes, don't just trust an influencer. You have to do your own research, esspecially if the financial outlay for your entrepreneurial vehicle is going to be substantial, and/or involve a loan to get it rolling.

In Victoria bc, they're implementing a ban on shirt term rentals unless the host lives in the unit, and almost overnight when the new law was announced rent for new leases dropped almost 1k/m and the rental market was absolutely flooded with new listings

As an Angeleno, I’ve always had a negative view of Airbnb. There have been SO MANY news stories about landlords kicking out permeant tenants to rent short term. Housing prices here are already INSANE and this is just making the problem worse!

The legislation should be on number of weeks per year. 8 weeks is ok, cause you can go on holiday and rent out your property while away. Anything more than that is a business and should be taxed as such, with appropriate regulations (insurance, fire safety, etc). That's how London does it.

I grew up in Bedford-Stuyvesant. I can't afford to live there now.

I would think that people living in a neighborhood would hate living next to a house used as an AirBnB with so many different people coming and going from the house.

I feel like if you can't pay your second home on your own income, you really shouldn't be having a second home loan.

Haha...you are right about vacuuming floors at the end of an AirBnB stay!...practically needing to clean the whole house before leaving by 10AM in the morning... :(

I try to get an Airbnb the other day. The rate was 100 dollars a night for two nights. The final prices was 360. Between cleaning fee and fee there was an extra 80 dollars a night. Plus I have to make the bed and take out the trash. No thanks I’ll go to a hotel where they do everything for me and it’s about the same price.

We bought a house to suit our future needs. But at the moment, half of the space was unused so we converted the daylight basement into an airbnb. When I was watching videos about how to improve your listing, I was disgusted by the "influencers" who bought up 20+ properties to turn into airbnbs. I am not surprised people are upset about airbnbs contribution to increased housing prices, but I don't think an outright ban is appropriate. Airbnbs like ours take pressure off the short-term rental market without using up limited housing inventory.

You also didn't mention that some travellers absolutely destroy the place where they stay while AirBnB does nothing to compensate the host.

"California scrapped the tax altogether" Oh, so actually we can tell which one will have more of an impact: The law that's still around lol

I don't think people should be allowed to have second or third properties to rent out on AirBNB, all it does it drive up the cost of living for everyone else. Same with corporations buying homes, or landlords reserving apartments for short term rentals vs leasing long term to people who actually live in the city. I was looking at places to stay in Philadelphia two summers ago and found out that one of the places I was looking at was someone's dorm room....needless to say I picked an actual hotel instead.

Can there be a Federal law that a single SSN can only have 1 home and that too after the age of 18. Maximum 2 homes per married couple, and can't buy a 3rd home until a child turns 18.

Airbnb has been a disaster in Australia too, especially outside of resort town that traditionally had numerous short-term rentals (and even there it has causes issues for residents). Turning a human necessity into a commodity can only go one way and it has. I'm glad this business model is softening. It needs to be restricted to places that primarily operate as holiday towns and have a small local population (or, you know, fail altogether. It's not like realestate agents didn't list the same offerings before Airbnb turned up). It's ruining cities and suburbs for liveability.

Airbnb will eventually go down the tubes. They do nothing for clients if a stay goes bad, for instance, not as described, safety issues, failed services like operating plumbing, you name it. I have been in Mexico for two years now, and I have had some terrible experiences, did Airbnb do anything? No, nothing. Mostly the what happens is someone buys a condo in one of the tourist areas, or in a popular city, and sets up shop. Time passes, and things age, but the pictures first taken when the unit was new do not. It's kinda like being catfished on a dating site, you don't know the stay is bad until you get there. I've experienced black mold, beds so worn I could not sleep, sewer smells, and a roach crawl across my face, all in Mexico Airbnb’s. Airbnb rentals in Mexico are a crapshoot. I lived in Thailand for six months, same model of operations there, EXCEPT, short term rentals, like Airbnb are against Thai law, yet, Airbnb operates in the market.

thanks guys

Hmm as someone that watches your channel quite a bit, I’m a little disappointed with the bad reporting and obvious bias in this video. People forgot that short-term rentals make up 1% of the housing stock. It blows my mind that Airbnb hosts (usually mom and pops) are demonized so much more than other forms of real estate. Like hmm, I dk, hotels?! Lol. Hotel chains are billion dollar operations. And for some reason TikTok wants to get mad at me over the fact that I pay my cleaners $30/hour vs. $7.25/hour like most hotels. Anyway, sure, a lot of airbnb owners are hurting right now. But not because of an Airbnbust or because of oversaturation. It’s because they are shitty hosts. Plain and simple.

People should only be able to have 1 property that they can open for purpose of short term rentals. Drive up prices, ravage local community, and are always overpriced

That last vacuum comment was personal 😂

Great and apt video for the times!

I travel a lot. Stopped using Airbnb long time ago. They're no longer cheaper than hotels so no point.

Boo hoo to all the “struggling” AirBnB hosts. That’s what happens when you’re a money greedy monster. Get a real job like everyone else.

Yes and its a good thing

Stayed at a few airbnbs on my honeymoon and was surprised at how rude and bitter some of the newly divorced landlords seemed. One lady was so mad that we were late checking in that she feigned a migraine and made her 10 year old son deal with us for our entire stay. We cleaned and made the bed in every place we stayed with some hosts locking the trash cans so you have to pack out garbage even camp sites have a dumpster, charges for things like the water level in the hottub (having no hose to refill it or dish soap for the kitchen) so you either go buy it or have to beg the landlord for assistance. Definitely lacking in hospitality for my dollar

I stayed 3 months in Gilbert AZ this winter and had a very pleasant experience with Airbnb host

5:56 wouldn’t the over supply and hence lower demand disincentivize that on its own? Where I’m getting stuck is “we’ve got an over supply, so we’ve got to restrict the supply.” No you don’t. Demand will drop, short term rental will become less profitable, and people will either list those properties for long term rental or sell them.

6:17 I like CA’s solution way better, but aren’t local zoning restrictions and nimbys the main thing stopping new home construction? Instead of taxing more, why not give an incentive to homeowners who live in “yimby zones” or something.

This video is so timely because it brings light to the reality of what many still don't want to see! Certain things you can't unsee (even if you want to turn a blind eye) and the facts in this video is one of them. There are several other opportunities to invest outside of Airbnb rentals. Many investors don't consider the impact it has on the neighbors as well as the lack of available homes for rent/live in. I'm definitely for making money, but not when it's going to hurt others in some kind of way and there several investors who think the same. Unfortunately, there are many who only care about the money! As always, great video, breakdown, and financial education that continues to inspire others like myself... Keep up the great job!

Airbnb does a great job of serving two ends of the market - budget travelers and luxury travelers. You can find places on Airbnb, specifically shared accommodations that are less expensive than traditional accommodations. At the same time, there are luxury accommodations that are much more unique than 5+ star hotels. The mid-market, which is where a large number of their original budget customers have now grown into, is an area where Airbnb doesn't currently excel. I think a lot of these people are calling Airbnb "dead". The core business prolly still fine.

My city passed an ordinance where the nearest 250 houses in the city or quarter mile for unincorporated areas. proposed site of an Airbnb have to get mailers and at least a 45% approval within 30 days before they allow the house to become an Airbnb, luckily you're able to go on the city website and vote that way as long as you show a picture of your ID with your current address to make sure it's a valid request.

4:28 with you till here, but I’ve never seen a convincing argument that these are the same apartments and the same prospective renters. I wonder as well if the people clamoring for restrictions on airbnb would support more home construction in general, which is the only reliable way to bring rents and home prices down.

I booked an AirBNB listing that says 2 bedrooms for a friend and I. It only had 1 bedroom! I explained this to AirBNB and count only get some of my money back - $20 still went to AirBNB. And no punishment to the host for lying. That's messed up!

I love these videos ❤

California government: *Raises taxes to fund homes* Investors: *pretends to be normal people and buys them* *Cycle continues* This is exactly what is happening in Canada and I don't know how no enforcement at all happens until it becomes a problem for the stupid senators in office who probably have a hand in the game... Imagine settings rules to a game while participating in it... People who want change should really vote independent people in but you know... You have to be blue or red...

Anyone see an Airbnb ad at the beginning of this video? 😂

Unless Airbnb goes back to its original state (a way for people to make money from unused rooms which allows people to get affordable accommodation) then I hope it dies off completely. The current state of being a luxurious accommodation is disgusting.

Great animation what a great way this was put togather thabks PBS

I hosted an AirBnb listed house for a few years (I live in the house now), and yes I charged a cleaning fee but I never expected the guests to do anything other than place their dishes in the dish washer. I even stated this on the house's listing and I swear it helped me stay 80-100% booked compared to the rest of the area. Either charge a cleaning fee, or have the renters do the cleaning. You can't have both. I don't blame people moving back to traditional hotel/motels, especially if the stay is just for a short visit. AirBnBs should be reserved for special locations or for large families. The fact that apartments and small town-houses are trying to become AirBnBs is convincing me I made the right decision to leave the market before the bubble truly popped.

Hard for me to fully empathize on people locking out houses just for rentals - especially short term.

Airbnb was the cheap alternative to hotel… not anymore

I am a 20+yr resident in my town. Raised kids, supported this community and have loved living where I do. Until Mr. E arbitraged the large house near me. It has been nearly 2 years of problems and our quality of life, safety of my family, and our well being have declined to the point that I don't want to live here anymore. It feels like a battleground and my county has NO STR policies in place..NONE. Buncombe County NC- get your stuff together!

Had a house on my street bought for an AirBnB. The best short term renters were a pornography production company. Everyone was polite and notified neighbors whenthere were going to be production vans coming. Luckily we have an HOA and were able to eventually show AirBnB that the homeowner was violating our guidelines. Because the rotating drug dealers who were the primary short term renters were constantly shooting at people and parking illegally. Not to mention the human trafficking. Sharing this story so people can know what type of people can be attracted to short term rentals.

Cleaning fees and rules are out of control. If I’m not staying somewhere luxurious a hotel is much better.

Those are great points regarding how A&B impacts new buyers and the rental market.

I live in a country with a terrible housing shortage. We can only dream of housing being as 'affordable' as it is in the US. When I briefly lived in Canada, AirBNB was an affordable way for me to live in someone's spare room, for less than a standard rental term. In these cases, there might be a place for it. I disagree with cities/towns that have glut of short-term rental accommodation. It's really challenging for the people who live there...especially if it then needs lots of hospitality/retail workers to service all the visiting tourists.

Twice I tried to book an AirBnb in Australia for a popular weekend, and twice my request was ghosted by the provider. What hosts do is ignore requests while they progressively put up the price. When the number of requests slows to a trickle they know they're hit peak price, and allow a booking. Since I was rejected from AirBnB, I booked a traditional hotel. 5 minutes later I paid and had a confirmed room from a professional organisation, instead of who-knows-what private landlord that also charges cleaning fees.

I lived in airbnbs my first 3 years in Europe. Found great places in the US, Germany, and Croatia. Ita great for foreign countries because you can get a fully furnished apartment or house with utilities for a good monthly prices. Recently when Ive used it for shorter trips, it has been less than overwhelming..... Plus the cleaning fees cost more than the dang rooms sometimes!!

Up yours Shelby.

Airbnb needs to stop letting hosts charge a $200+ cleaning fee as they still require me to vacuum, take out the trash, etc.

Airbnb prices are no different to hotels these days.

You have to clean, AND pay a ridiculous cleaning fee 😑

The first time I stayed in an Airbnb, we were staying in a couples guest room in the apartment where they lived. For years, my parents would rent out my and my brothers rooms when we were away at college and the whole of my childhood house when they went out of town. That was a model that actually made sense for me. Was it for everyone? No. But it provided a new and useful element of the market.

Hotels are way better than someone else’s house anyways

in the long run would these home hoarders sell their properties at a lower price to actual would be home owners?

This is great news!!!

Got no love lost. They were part of the problem with rising home prices.

2:29 ok this made me itch

I remember the first time i stayed at one.... i saw the list of rules for the house... was paranoid about the littlest things.... went around taking pictures of everything... found a buncha cobwebs 😂 .... then when i saw that id have to clean up before (sheets and everything😮) ..... never again

I once was asked to clean the apartment. I told him it's cleaner than when I arrived. And that's it. And I had to pay the utilities above the airbnb price, which was hidden info on the listing