8. Controversy
It sounds like a win for everyone, not necessarily. First, hoteliers are not completely satisfied with the way Airbnb takes away their business. Whereas before 2008, staying in a hotel was the default for travelers, with Airbnb, staying at someone’s home was often the preferred option.
Airbnb has expanded to countries outside the United States, and there are regulations regulating home-sharing in some states and some jurisdictions in the United States. For example, in the UK, residents must pay council tax each month based on the number of residents in the home. Whether Airbnb guests should be counted as residents when determining the council tax amount is debated.
Then there are fears that tourism will rise to an unsustainable degree. With Airbnb travel much cheaper, many people visited countries they might not have been able to attend. As a result, many residents believe there are too many tourists.
