Post: #1

Everyone I meet raves about these things where you basically rent out people's assets they aren't using. First there is AirBnB, and recently I've read about this thing called RelayRide, where you get free parking at an airport in exchange for them renting out your car, which when I first heard of it (like AirBnB) I thought was an amazing idea.

But I have to say I just don't get it. Am I alone? AirBnB you can rent an apartment for 2-4 times the price the owner pays, often in a residential section of town compared to the centre of action, often no daily maid, no room service, no pool, and also you are dealing entirely with unofficial channels where you have less protection, can't go to the front desk and get a map of town, and its far more of a hassle to setup. Compared to just going to a website and booking a hotel in 5 mins. I agree it's good to have a full place with kitchen, but at the same time, hotels for the same price are typically more luxurious, nicer sheets, better location, more amenities, etc.

Then with these car rental programs, I'm looking and from SFO, there is nothing under $20 a day, and this is like a '96 Nissan. Or you can get a '07 BMW 3 series for $150 a day. You'll pay for the car in three months.

With apartment complexes, if you can make 10% a year on the asset value you're doing ok. Here it's 400%. These things remind me of those rent to own places where poor people rent TVs and couches. Horrible deals which pray on people who don't know math.

Or you can go through official rental agencies, and for $25 a day get a fairly new car, dealing with a company who's entire business is looking after and cleaning them, and a ton less hassles. I've rented cars within the last few years for $8 a day, and can't see how they justify this. I mean I guess if people pay it fine, but I just don't see the draw, unless the rates were on par or less than a lease.

I think they're both great ideas, making use of otherwise idle assets, but as far as I can tell in most cases they charge comparable or more then what hotels/car rental places do, for generally an inferior product.

Post: #2

You're telling me an airbnb is a ripoff compared to hotels?

I like the feeling of 'home' especially when I'm setup in a spot for a few weeks. I want to cook my own meals, host guests, and generally do as I please like it's my house.

In terms of meeting women, it flows much easier with my 'I'm living here' background.

Also, I try to stay in genuinely one-of-a-kind places on airbnb. I've stayed on boats, layed on hammocks, and slayed in a converted wine cellar.

Post: #3

AirBNB works well if you need privacy and washing/cooking facilities, or if you're in a group of more than two people (eg. families, groups of friends, etc.). There are some pretty cool places on there too.

Generally I find much better deals and a wider selection on the local real estate sites, Eg. in Italy: http://www.casa.it or Craigslist in the US

Post: #4

I find it way easier to pull a girl to an apartment/condo/house over a hotel any day.

Post: #5

Is AirBNB down for anyone else, by the way? I haven't been able to get to it for a couple of days (in Russia right now).

Post: #6

DirectDanger is right, in some countries people will feel quite strongly against being seen with you at a hotel, and some don't mind at all.

The only time I do a hotel is if I need guaranteed quality and the waitstaff to do things.

The reason I like Airbnb/those apartment rentals so much is that in many places the hotels aren't right next to the areas that you want to be living a block away from. Pricing is pretty much always going to be better for the amount of space you get/location.

DaveR, Airbnb isn't down for me. You can try using http://www.downforeveryoneorjustme.com/ next time for any site.

Post: #7

Dude are you fucking high? I just paid $100 a night to stay in a penthouse apartment in the flatiron district of Manhattan, on park avenue.

A comparable hotel room would have cost me $500/night. Maybe more. If that's your idea of a superior product, enjoy your 3500/week experience for what I just paid 700 for...

Post: #8

Where I live you can get a four bedroom house with a spa on airbnb for the same price as a hotel room. No, airbnb is absolutely not a rip off. There may be a few cheaper alternatives, but when it comes down to it, it's the cheapest for it's convenience.

Post: #9

There's a simple answer here, supply and demand.

Post: #10

I'm not saying there are no deals anywhere, I'm saying that I don't see what the big deal is for the amount people go on about it. However I will concede glancing at NYC, there do seem to be a lot of deals there, and actually is more what I expected across the board, but with lots of people there, natural competition will do that. I primarily searched Tier 2 and 3 cities with only a few places for rent.

For instance with 2 more mins of searching: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1428127?s=97a2 a single room in a small city in northern Ontario (Sudbury) for $78 a night. I rented a bigger room in the same city for $300 a month (mind you 7 years ago, but still). I just don't see how the leap from $300/mth -> $2400 is justified because you're on AirBnB. Renting one room for more than your entire mortgage payment is.

So while people pay it, and I actually have friends who make decent money renting their places, I still think it's generally overpriced. At least in many places, the price/value seems to be comparable to a hotel, yet they don't have any of the overhead a hotel does, so their profit margins are astronomical compared to a hotel. Not to mention that the money for many is tax free.

I really like the idea, but like new york, I would expect the AirBnB rooms to be cheaper by at least a factor of 2 from hotels. For the same reason I would expect an unlicensed taxi to be considerably cheaper than a regular one. No taxi license, no commercial insurance, no advertising overhead. And I mean I guess that's my whole point. I'm not against it, I really just don't understand the huge deal given the current prices in a lot of cities. You could make the argument that AirBnB is the lodging equivalent of an unlicensed taxi (and I think many hotels have...) so given that it should be considerably cheaper.

Post: #11

Some places it's just way cheaper. The place I rented in Colombia had a maid once a week, a pool, a gym, soccer field, playground. Plus in a hotel you don't have a kitchen. I like to cook for myself. I prefer an apt over a hotel. Plus I was only paying $500 a month when compared to probably $1000 minimum for a hotel. And that would likely be a shitty hotel, not even close to comparable to the place I was renting. You just need to find the good deals.

Post: #12

Yes I think you are the only one, I like Airbnb because I negotiate down the price by 50% on most of my purchases

Post: #13

(11-26-2013 07:21 AM)bojangles Wrote:  Yes I think you are the only one, I like Airbnb because I negotiate down the price by 50% on most of my purchases

True, most hosts are perfectly willing to come down. (Their break even point just to pay their rental contract usually is anywhere from 5-10 days depending on their rates, and a lot of them don't exactly have the best business savvy)

How to get the best deal on AirBnb:
Enter City along with price point (don't be afraid of going 10-30% above your price point for just the initial search)
Message any listing that fits your minimum requirements asking for availability
After 24 hours a good enough of hosts will reply, for the higher priced ones say "I have an offer for XXX, can you beat or match that?"
Paying cash always your negotiation (But for first timers i'd go through Airbnb)

Post: #14

(11-26-2013 02:20 AM)Sugar Wrote:  Dude are you fucking high? I just paid $100 a night to stay in a penthouse apartment in the flatiron district of Manhattan, on park avenue.

Please do post a link to that one.

I know there are some deals, but $100 for a penthouse in Manhattan???

Shared apartment??

Post: #15

(11-26-2013 10:54 AM)Qwest Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 02:20 AM)Sugar Wrote:  Dude are you fucking high? I just paid $100 a night to stay in a penthouse apartment in the flatiron district of Manhattan, on park avenue.

Please do post a link to that one.

I know there are some deals, but $100 for a penthouse in Manhattan???

Shared apartment??

Yeah, I wouldn't mind seeing that one too.

Post: #16

Pluses for air BNB:

1. Air BNB usually saves you about 25% relative to similar accommodations.
2. It allows you to get ideal logistics if you know the city well or do your research eg RVF questions
3. Chicks will more likely believe you just moved there or are living there

Hotels:
1. Better for immediate accommodations, dry cleaning, usually a nice bar/restaurant
2. Better for Vegas/spring break

Basically, airbnb wins on the chasing girls front as most don't want to seem like "sluts" going to a man's hotel room.

Post: #17

(11-26-2013 10:54 AM)Qwest Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 02:20 AM)Sugar Wrote:  Dude are you fucking high? I just paid $100 a night to stay in a penthouse apartment in the flatiron district of Manhattan, on park avenue.

Please do post a link to that one.

I know there are some deals, but $100 for a penthouse in Manhattan???

Shared apartment??

It's a shared apartment with the hostess, yes. NYC does not allow (illegal) hosts to rent the apartment on airbnb if they are not home.

If you do a search on airbnb you'll see dozens of listings that meet this criteria. I suppose if you really need privacy a hotel is better, but my experience in new York is that the hosts are rarely home, and don't mind you essentially doing what you want.

Post: #18

(11-26-2013 09:29 AM)johnwu Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 07:21 AM)bojangles Wrote:  Yes I think you are the only one, I like Airbnb because I negotiate down the price by 50% on most of my purchases

True, most hosts are perfectly willing to come down. (Their break even point just to pay their rental contract usually is anywhere from 5-10 days depending on their rates, and a lot of them don't exactly have the best business savvy)

How to get the best deal on AirBnb:
Enter City along with price point (don't be afraid of going 10-30% above your price point for just the initial search)
Message any listing that fits your minimum requirements asking for availability
After 24 hours a good enough of hosts will reply, for the higher priced ones say "I have an offer for XXX, can you beat or match that?"
Paying cash always your negotiation (But for first timers i'd go through Airbnb)

I'm an airbnb host, and I've never negotiated on the price. May be that I am not charging enough. Only one guest ever even tried to negotiate.

Post: #19

(11-26-2013 04:52 PM)Sugar Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 09:29 AM)johnwu Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 07:21 AM)bojangles Wrote:  Yes I think you are the only one, I like Airbnb because I negotiate down the price by 50% on most of my purchases

True, most hosts are perfectly willing to come down. (Their break even point just to pay their rental contract usually is anywhere from 5-10 days depending on their rates, and a lot of them don't exactly have the best business savvy)

How to get the best deal on AirBnb:
Enter City along with price point (don't be afraid of going 10-30% above your price point for just the initial search)
Message any listing that fits your minimum requirements asking for availability
After 24 hours a good enough of hosts will reply, for the higher priced ones say "I have an offer for XXX, can you beat or match that?"
Paying cash always your negotiation (But for first timers i'd go through Airbnb)

I'm an airbnb host, and I've never negotiated on the price. May be that I am not charging enough. Only one guest ever even tried to negotiate.

Depends on your location, in europe most airbnb hosts will negotiate, because they'd rather have an occupant for a month then no occupant at all.

Post: #20

(11-27-2013 07:35 AM)bojangles Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 04:52 PM)Sugar Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 09:29 AM)johnwu Wrote:  

(11-26-2013 07:21 AM)bojangles Wrote:  Yes I think you are the only one, I like Airbnb because I negotiate down the price by 50% on most of my purchases

True, most hosts are perfectly willing to come down. (Their break even point just to pay their rental contract usually is anywhere from 5-10 days depending on their rates, and a lot of them don't exactly have the best business savvy)

How to get the best deal on AirBnb:
Enter City along with price point (don't be afraid of going 10-30% above your price point for just the initial search)
Message any listing that fits your minimum requirements asking for availability
After 24 hours a good enough of hosts will reply, for the higher priced ones say "I have an offer for XXX, can you beat or match that?"
Paying cash always your negotiation (But for first timers i'd go through Airbnb)

I'm an airbnb host, and I've never negotiated on the price. May be that I am not charging enough. Only one guest ever even tried to negotiate.

Depends on your location, in europe most airbnb hosts will negotiate, because they'd rather have an occupant for a month then no occupant at all.

What is the longest time you've rented for in Europe?

I've limited my rental to 5 days at a-time because I don't want it to be like a roommate situation.

For hosts willing to rent out a month at a time, I'm not sure why they don't just get a roommate.

Post: #21

I've rented for 3 months, but I don't rent a room, I rent an apartment.