Short-Term Rental and Vacation Rental News

The $100 billion industry vacation rental sector could be going into over-drive as it attracts growing interest from investors, major hospitality brands and travelers seeking alternate accommodations.

Should hotels be as worried about Airbnb and home-sharing as headlines seem to suggest? That depends, suggests a new study from the Pew Research Center.

Airbnb knows that the road to worldwide acceptance (and legalization) is a long one. Joining an organization like the UNWTO brings the company one step further along in that journey.

While short-term rentals and ride-sharing are becoming more used and accepted by Asia-Pacific travelers, the survey points out that many of these travelers are also highly brand-sensitive as they want to experience iconic hotel brands when they travel abroad.

It's obvious that states and cities throughout the U.S. are trying to find the right balance between welcoming the sharing economy and regulating it. It's still unclear whether laws like this streamline the experience for consumers or ignore community needs when it comes to short-term rentals.

The Priceline Group is looking for a CEO who can handle disruption and big changes in technology and market conditions in coming years. Just look at the changes in the Group's accommodations mix as lodging alternatives are approaching half of the company's roster of properties.

Stats can provide a snapshot of a business in a way that few other bits of information can.

To some extent, Expedia is molding HomeAway to its liking. Unlike Booking.com (for now, at least), HomeAway is backing off its goal of making all vacation rentals online bookable. Expedia is also adding apartments in urban areas to better compete against Airbnb and Booking.com.

From the looks of it, this new experiment seems like a smart move for Airbnb to test out: it broadens Airbnb's appeal even further to guests who expect or want more hotel-like amenities at an Airbnb, and it helps them compete against other startups that try to offer a more service-oriented home-sharing experience.

An SEIU partnership would have helped Airbnb score brownie points with Americans supporting the Fight for $15. But even if the deal had gone through, it's very doubtful whether Airbnb would have been able to get its hosts to hire unionized cleaners.