I have heard other hosts say this too, but it just doesn’t add up to me.
Shareholders, a lot of them hosts, wouldn’t stand for it and that would create a lot of risk exposure for Airbnb. Their lack of real risk I think is one of the genius moves for Airbnb because we as hosts take a lot of the risk for them while still providing a great product for them to make money selling.
I personally think they are trying to do something innovative to ensure they do not lose the market share they have gained from VRBO/Homeaway over the years. They are doing it badly right now without a doubt, but it will take time to turn this once nimble start up around because now they are a behemoth whose name is synonymous with what they sell. Not to mention, they are also working to impress shareholders as we could be slipping into a recession.
I firmly agree though that we are in for a bumpy ride.