http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20170927/REAL_ESTATE/170929895/airbnb-says-the-top-destination-for-new-york-users-is-nyc
More than 2 million New York City residents used Airbnb to travel over the last year. Their top destination: New York City.
A new study from Airbnb crunched a year’s worth of data beginning in August of 2016 and found that New Yorkers using the site were most likely to book accommodations right here at home, beating out Los Angeles, Paris and Havana. The motivations behind the stays were not included in the report, which looked at the entire state, but city residents are likely using the service for mini-getaways within the five boroughs or to plug gaps between apartment leases, a spokesman said.
Whatever the reasons, Airbnb is using the data to bolster its argument that average New Yorkers benefit from the service, and should be allowed greater leeway to rent out rooms and apartments on a short-term basis.
“It’s time that New York follow the lead of other cities, states and nations in embracing homesharing,” the report said.
So far, the company’s main argument has been that middle-class residents rent out rooms to make ends meet in an expensive city. Wednesday’s report is an effort to highlight additional benefits, though only about 120,000 city residents used Airbnb to stay here over the last year, representing just 6% of the total.
Airbnb is looking to turn the legislative tide in Albany by pushing a bill that would allow hosts to rent out their apartment for less than 30 days—an illegal but fairly common practice—provided they disclosure additional information and pay taxes on the income. The legislation, sponsored by Assemblyman Joseph Lentol, has been stalled in an Albany committee since April.
Opponents of the bill—and there are many—argue that homesharing takes apartments off of the market and contributes to high housing costs. With that in mind, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a law in 2016 that upped the fines for illegal sublets. Bolstered by the new fines, the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement subsequently began cracking down on illegal hotels and Airbnb hosts in the city, though a July Crain’s report showed that New York listings on the site were not declining.