Airbnb highlights S.F. growth after implementing host registration

“We had the mindset that we are a platform and cities should figure it out,” Airbnb Global Policy Chief Chris Lehane tells Axios of the company’s long-held prior stance.

• Upon defeating a San Francisco ballot measure in 2015 that would have added more restrictions on short-term rentals, Airbnb sued the city in 2016 after its Board of Supervisors passed a new law that would impose harsh fines. It settled the following year.
• But the company had a “shift in thinking,” and concluded that “long-term, giving our hosts stability is the best thing to do,” Lehane said of Airbnb’s agreement to make hosts register with the city.

By the numbers:

• Total San Francisco listings: more than 7,800, including more than 3,700 long-term and hotel listings (30+ day rentals, traditional B&B’s and boutique hotels).
• Listings growth since January 2018: 22%
• Growth in total nights hosted per listing: 42%, though total booking value was unchanged between 2017 and 2018.

• Airbnb removed 4,780 listings as part of the integration a year ago, and nearly 70% of these had not been booked in the prior six months. This left 6,300 active listings, including 2,600 long term and hotel listings.

The bottom line: Airbnb is steadily growing, hitting the numbers it had before its big compliance integration a year ago.

Yes, but: Airbnb is still not done battling cities. Last week, New York City issued a subpoena for data from the company to make sure hosts aren’t breaking the law, a move that came weeks after a judge halted a city law that would crack down on short-term rentals.