How Airbnb can help communities

Read aguanomics http://www.aguanomics.com/ for the world’s best analysis of the politics and economics of water I got a few ideas on how to address Airbnb’s main problem of disrupting communities while talking to a reporter about my post (“Airbnb is harming Amsterdam’s communities“).

First, Airbnb should require that any owner get the permission of their neighbors before they can list their  apartment or condominium on Airbnb. In most cases, this will happen via a home-owners association (it’s verenigingen van eigenaren or VVE in Dutch, meaning “association of owners”). The requirement for permission will force neighbors to agree on who, how and when Airbnb should be used.

Second, Airbnb should allow the neighbors to see who is staying in a place at any given time, to reduce fear over strangers. In most cases, neighbors and guests will not interact, but the knowledge that they can see each others’ profiles and have each others’ contact information will make it easier to say hi and harder to be mean to each other.

Airbnb can connect each host with neighbors’ Airbnb accounts or new “neighbor” accounts. The neighbors would then check the “I-approve-my-neighbor’s-participation” box and see who is coming when.

Neighbors who have bad experiences with guests (or their neighbor/host) could withdraw their permission at any time, for any reason. Is this too much power to give neighbors? I think not IF Airbnb is actually interested in helping communities stay friendly in the long term, and especially if Airbnb is going to avoid lawsuits, bad press and bans by various city governments for ruining communities.

Bottom Line A neighborhood is made of connections, rights and duties among its neighbors. Airbnb can protect neighbors and preserve neighborhoods with a few simple changes to its platform and contracts. If it refuses to do so in a rush to make damaging profits, then Airbnb should be banned as an anti-social vandal.