Post by High Priestess on Sept 21, 2015 2:05:57 GMT
Today the SF Chronicle has a series of articles on Airbnb --
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#1
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#2
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#3
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#4
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#5
reply
Very interesting indeed. The main problem I have with these "data scrapes" is that the scrapers constantly equate a listing that is classified as "entire home" on the website with someone who is indeed vacating their home. But that is NOT the case. Many of us will list properties as "entire home" to capture guests who are looking for privacy...such as can be provided in a basement suite or an in-law apartment with no kitchen. These units are will never be rented long term and yet they are counted in the "scrapes" as evidence that Airbnb is taking units off the precious rental market. When I finally see a data scrape report that allows for this mis-categorization of units I may actually believe what conclusions they draw! Of course, the only way to truly know whether this is the case is to look in-depth at each photo and read the associated text...which would take more time than these psuedo researchers have.
Reply
I completely agree Also, judging from the sorts of articles that SF CHronicle (and most media) do on Airbnb, one should be reluctant to view them as capable of sufficient objectivity in this enterprise. The media seem to love to engage in AIrbnb-bashing, and Airbnb -scapegoating. And those who dont' know how the system works, dont' really understand how all these categories are used.
For instance, I have read on the forum where a host lived in a house with an upstairs floor to offer to guests, 2 bedrooms and a full bath,and wondered how to list it, and was told by Airbnb customer service to list it as "entire apartment". Other hosts likewise chose to list their "suites" as entire apartment because they felt that category better fit their offering, than the "private room" category, and Airbnb doesnt' offer a "suite" category. So this is an example of how one has to take the categories with a grain of salt and realize that something may not be as it appears on the surface.
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#1
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#2
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#3
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#4
www.sfchronicle.com/airbnb-impact-san-francisco-2015/#5
reply
Very interesting indeed. The main problem I have with these "data scrapes" is that the scrapers constantly equate a listing that is classified as "entire home" on the website with someone who is indeed vacating their home. But that is NOT the case. Many of us will list properties as "entire home" to capture guests who are looking for privacy...such as can be provided in a basement suite or an in-law apartment with no kitchen. These units are will never be rented long term and yet they are counted in the "scrapes" as evidence that Airbnb is taking units off the precious rental market. When I finally see a data scrape report that allows for this mis-categorization of units I may actually believe what conclusions they draw! Of course, the only way to truly know whether this is the case is to look in-depth at each photo and read the associated text...which would take more time than these psuedo researchers have.
Reply
I completely agree Also, judging from the sorts of articles that SF CHronicle (and most media) do on Airbnb, one should be reluctant to view them as capable of sufficient objectivity in this enterprise. The media seem to love to engage in AIrbnb-bashing, and Airbnb -scapegoating. And those who dont' know how the system works, dont' really understand how all these categories are used.
For instance, I have read on the forum where a host lived in a house with an upstairs floor to offer to guests, 2 bedrooms and a full bath,and wondered how to list it, and was told by Airbnb customer service to list it as "entire apartment". Other hosts likewise chose to list their "suites" as entire apartment because they felt that category better fit their offering, than the "private room" category, and Airbnb doesnt' offer a "suite" category. So this is an example of how one has to take the categories with a grain of salt and realize that something may not be as it appears on the surface.