What is airbnb

My name is Hayley and I am travelling through Europe with my husband and two children. We are looking forward to coming to stay! You can do all of this via the app or on a desktop via the website.

Here is a detailed video walking you through each step of the booking process. Many people earn a decent sized income from their Airbnb rentals and some have even managed to turn it into a full time job! Being an Airbnb host is easy. You simply list your accommodation on the site, which is free. You then decide on the details of your rental such as prices, schedule, requirements for guests etc. Once your ad is live you can then welcome your first guests.

Simple as one, two, three! Although the act of advertising and securing rental income might be easy, however, there are also many things that you need to consider. Theses are listed below:. There are a number of websites and books that are available to help guide anybody who is looking to rent out their property on Airbnb. Like many organisations nowadays, both hosts and guests will receive a request to add a review after their stay. This allows a person to build up a profile, which is publicly available to those who they may opt to do business with in the future.

A series of bad reviews can be devastating for a host or for a guest , so it is in their benefit to provide a satisfactory or more than satisfactory experience for their guests. Whilst there has been a growing body of public literature which views the use of Airbnb and the wider sharing economic as negative in terms of its impacts, particularly economically, there are also a number of positive impacts of Airbnb.

Many Airbnb accommodations are in areas away from the usual tourist hot spots. I have stayed in rural areas of Costa Rica, inner city Cape Town and in a suburban apartment in Calgary, for example. Read more about why I love Airbnb here. This can help to bring much needed income to areas that otherwise would not benefit from tourism. Whether its from buying your tea at the local supermarket or going out for dinner in a restaurant round the corner, tourists typically spend money in the vicinity of their accommodation location.

Most people know that Airbnb can save the traveller money, which is one of the biggest motivating factors for opting to use the company when choosing their accommodation options. Airbnb accommodations can cost a fraction of the price of a traditional hotel or other accommodation option serviced by the tourism industry.

As I pointed out earlier on in this article, Airbnb provides travellers with a more authentic and local experience because they are living with locals or staying in local communities.

Airbnb has welcomed many entrepreneurs and businessmen and women into the sharing economy industry. It has allowed people to make an income when they may have previously been unable to. This can provide economic benefits to marginalised communities, impoverished areas and people experiencing economic hardship, which is particularly prevalent in developing countries.

Unfortunately, there are also many negative impacts of Airbnb, namely economic impacts. According to the Economic Policy Institute , the costs of Airbnb businesses are likely to outweigh the benefits. Here are some of the negative impacts that have been noted:. Airbnb can be a big revenue earner. Once home owners begin to realise this, they are likely to snap up further properties in the same, or alternative, locations. Because the price of property goes up, many local people begin to be pushed out.

People can longer afford the accommodation available to them in the area that they live and are therefore forced to relocate to cheaper areas. There are many examples of throughout the world, which is explained at length in this academic article.

Another economic impact of Airbnb is the difficulty in collecting taxes. Traditional tourism accommodation providers are subject to a range of tax laws, from employment taxes on cleaners and cooks to city taxes.

It is a lot more difficult to collect taxes from Airbnb providers. This loss in revenue means that there is less money in the pot for community investments in areas such as healthcare or education, therefore having a knock on effect on the overall welfare of the community. Tourists may be ignorant to local customs, for example by wearing revealing clothing in a Muslim country or by swearing in the street. Tourists may be inconsiderate to neighbours by playing loud music or by littering.

Tourists may flaunt expensive gadgets and jewellery that the locals cannot afford, therefore encouraging feelings of resentment and perhaps even rises in crime. In fact, many of the wider negative social impacts of tourism in general, can be applied to smaller communities that house Airbnb properties. Although the review system should help to reduce such incidents, unfortunately this does not always seem to be the case.

From hosts placing meth pipes in their accommodation and watching guests on hidden cameras, to guests using the accommodation as a brothel and having huge parties, Airbnb is not without its fair share of dramas. Fortunately, horror stories like these are not common, and most people have a perfectly pleasant and safe stay in their Airbnb accommodation! In fact, Airbnb have several measures in place to ensure safety for their guests. Airbnb was not an immediate success, though. The startup experienced several ups and downs , and it went through at least three separate launches.

Graham invited the founders to join a program called Y Combinator, which provides a startup with cash and training in exchange for a percentage of their company.

While Airbnb has lost some value in along with other hospitality ventures , the company has filed an IPO to go public after delaying the decision once in Airbnb does not own properties. It acts as an intermediary between those who want to rent out space and those who are looking for space to rent. Creating an account on Airbnb is free, and it is relatively simple.

To do so, you enter your name, email address, birthday, and a password. Airbnb also asks that you agree to treat everyone equally, regardless of race, religion, sex, or other factors. Once you agree, your account is active. You also have the option to sign up through Facebook or Google. If you like the listing, you can request to book it. The site prompts you to go through a few more steps, like entering in more of your information. Once you complete those steps, you can complete your request and pay for your room.

After your first booking, the process is much quicker and easier. For non-instant book listings, Airbnb also recommends that guests message hosts before booking to double-check availability. The average price for these is typically higher. Airbnb hosts and guests do not exchange money in person.

Guests pay for everything on the Airbnb site when they make their reservation, even having the option to split costs between friends , and hosts receive pay from Airbnb. Airbnb uses PayPal, direct deposit, and other payment methods. Airbnb has different hosting options — you can rent out the extra space in your home , you can rent out your entire home, or you can host experiences in your area. To rent out extra space in your home, you must first create a free Airbnb account.

A listing is a lot like a profile page for the space you want to host; just like a social media profile, the nicer your page looks, the more attention it will draw. How much should you charge? This will only bring up properties that provide breakfast.

Crisis averted. So many homeowners and tenants are listing their properties on the platform. This has started to skew the rental market as well as infuriate the neighbours. Why you ask? I recently visited a popular town in New Zealand and tried to find a house to rent for a 12 month period.

There were at least 30 people that turned up to apply for the house. This was the same at every house I went to that day. There is a huge shortage of houses for rent which is driving the prices sky high. So to curb this, major cities around the world now require hosts to get a city-approved license. They must do this before listing their house or apartment. Failure to get a license has seen countless properties delisted off the platform.

Some cities are even enforcing a city tax onto each booking. The toughest regulations have come from the city of Santa Monica. Most small towns and smaller cities remain unaffected. So if you are considering listing your place on Airbnb, it is best to check with your local council. Failure to do so could result in fines and your home delisted. The rules and regulations change depending on the city. So if you are hosting in these cities, you will need an Airbnb license.

New York. This is where you will find some of the strictest laws in the world. Hosts in New York may only list one home, their own home, at a time. Los Angeles. As a result, it restricts hosts to a maximum of nights per year. But the kicker? Hosts may only rent out their primary residence, where they spend at least 6-months year. The city of Amsterdam was one of the first to enact harsh Airbnb regulations. Hosts may only rent out their home or apartment for a maximum of 60 nights per year.

But that figure will drop to 30 nights should a new law pass, expected in Airbnb is massive in Paris with excess of 60, properties listed. It comes as no surprise that Paris is heavily regulated on Airbnb. For instance, there is a maximum of nights per year. Plus you must register with the city and hope they approve you. All hosts in Barcelona must register their property with the city and obtain a permit number.

Hosts must display their permit numbers online for all to see. The city is very strict in cracking down on unregistered listings, with big fines. Thinking of hosting in Japan?