HomeAway CEO sees tough short-term rental laws as a "nuisance"
Skift Take
We'll almost inevitably see a convergence between the vacation homes of HomeAway and Flipkey, and the apartment rentals of Airbnb, and that will highlight how these companies share common interests when local legislators try to curb their activities.
HomeAway may have initiated the formation of a coalition with Airbnb, TripAdvisor and Flipkey to fight restrictive short-term rental laws, but CEO Brian Sharples thinks municipal crackdowns are "more of a nuisance than a problem" for HomeAway.
One reason is that owners and property managers renting their homes through HomeAway are primarily offering second-homes in traditional vacation destinations and not urban markets, Sharples says, and another is that HomeAway doesn't collect money as part of the transaction, leaving that between owners and guests.
The Short Term Rental Advocacy Center, launched last month, counts the four companies as founding
