[go37pi]

You're right about the financial expected value, but I think you might be disregarding the trust aspect of the transaction, which I think was why Airbnb was so successful. Buying into the brand reinforces a particularly optimistic world view that people who are likely to use Airbnb enjoy.

Plus, when you are giving your key to another person, the risk is not just monetary, but the additional emotional risk of just being violated. I think it was very telling that EJ was particularly betrayed by the lies in the ongoing email updates and not just the monetary loss.

[jamesteow]

Exactly. People (including myself who used the service) felt that it was more legit than Craigslist when in fact, they have the same financial protection.

[AndyJPartridge]

With respect, your misconception on safety levels are not a fault of AirBnB. It's our trusting nature.

I've read lots of the discussions about this today, and I think I'm the first to post this:

http://www.airbnb.com/home/safety

It is no better or worse than Craigslist, as humans are involved. Some humans always screw things up for the rest of us.