[cameldrv]

Airbnb was cheap when it they were renting excess space. Empty nesters. People whose roommate moved out. People on extended vacations. People who lost their job and needed some extra cash and could live without an extra bedroom.

These people were not trying to pay a mortgage and professional housekeepers and turn a profit. They were just trying to recover some sunk costs.

If you look at hotels vs. apartments or houses, the maintanence and cleaning costs of residential housing are very high because you don’t have the economies of scale you need. The hotel cleaners push their cart down the hall 20 feet while the airbnb cleaners drive all over town, and that’s just one of the many ways hotels are more efficient.