Push to regulate booming Airbnb. Why!

The Australian Hotel Association has called on the State and local governments to regulate Airbnb listings, after the release of a report that found the on line accommodation service was booming in WA.

It has been revealed that there has been a 50 percent increase in WA listings over the past year to more than 8100 and this number continues to grow at around 4% per month. The report also determined that 61% of all listings are entire homes or apartments.

Not only has Airbnb become a great way to earn additional income but in many cases Airbnb has been the saving grace that has saved many who have been on the brink of losing their homes through foreclosure due to financial hardship being experienced in the current real estate down turn.

There is absolutely no doubt that Airbnb has been a revelation in the travel and accommodation industry and as is often the case with all ‘disruption models’ their success is accompanied by detractors.

Airbnb has received its fair share of criticism including complaints about fair housing implications and discrimination, privacy and terms of use, pricing transparency, tax avoidance by both Airbnb themselves and their hosts as well as the effect their model is having on housing affordability (rental pricing).

Sometimes the criticism is warranted and understandable, like when once quiet and peaceful beach side neighbourhoods are infiltrated with waves of young raucous and rowdy school leavers. Certain circumstances may justifiably warrant regulation, but in most cases those making the biggest noise are the ‘Old Guard’, businesses build on clunky inflexibly business models with the inability to adapt or worse they are led by people who fear change!

The West Australian real estate market is akin to the Travel and Accommodation industry; they fear change. We speak to hundreds of real estate agents on a weekly basis and on a weekly basis we hear the same excuses, ‘auctions don’t work in WA’, ‘auctions don’t work in our area’, ‘auctions are only for properties on the higher end of the market’, ‘I am too old or been in the game too long to try auction’ or ‘auctions only work over East’.

This is nothing other than a fear of change!

Auction Services’ 5 Stage Selling Strategy with Auction Option, offers sellers and agents the flexibility to adapt with changes in any market conditions. By stripping price from the equation it allows the market conditions to control the sales process. Throughout the 5 stage selling strategy you have up to 5 opportunities to create a competitive environment resulting in properties selling in less time (on average 28 days) and for the highest the market is prepared to pay!

Auction Services is offering FREE training on this amazing strategy, our next workshop is on the 13 December 2017.