Airbnb says families earned $8.1 million from lodging app

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Between January and December 2017, residents of Delaware  made $8.1 from using the Airbnb app to book homes for visitors.

Rehoboth Beach accounted for a large chunk of the revenue at $2.7 million, more than double the figure for second place Bethany Beach. 

“Home sharing through Airbnb continues to be a unique and flexible way for Delaware families to make more money, pay their bills, and support their communities,” said Will Burns, public policy director for Airbnb in Delaware. “We look forward to 2018 being another successful year of giving residents in Rehoboth Beach, Dover, Wilmington, and all corners of the state an economic boost, travelers more affordable accommodations, and neighborhood businesses more foot traffic.”

Other data included:

  • A total of 45,000 Airbnb guest arrivals occurred across The First State.

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  • Approximately 800 Delaware families hosting  at least one Airbnb guest.

  • The typical host sharing  their home 39 nights and earned $8,100 in additional income.

  • Fifty-seven percent of Airbnb hosts in Delaware are women.

Data by community is below: 

City

2017 Guest Arrivals

2017 Host Income

Rehoboth Beach

13,100

$2.7 Million

Bethany Beach

5,100

$1.1 Million

Wilmington

4,500

$801,000

Lewes

3,700

$597,000

Ocean View

3,400

$544,000

Dewey Beach

2,700

$671,000

Selbyville

1,600

$252,000

Milford

1,600

$255,000

Milton

1,500

$181,000

Newark

1,200

$158,000

Dover

950

$111,000

Millville

790

$120,000

Greenwood

770

$61,000

Frankford

640

$89,000

Millsboro

410

$54,000

To learn more about Airbnb’s host community and policy developments, visit https://airbnbcitizen.com.

Airbnb was Founded in August 2008  and  operates in  65,000 cities and 191 countries.

The service has remained controversial with reports of owners using their properties as year-around rentals in residential areas of tourist destinations  like New York City.

On the beach, realty firms are also turning to apps to book summer rentals that come with lucrative commissions.

A group known as Airbnb Watch says the service is also prone to price gouging and does not offer guests protection from discrimination or health and safety standards of other lodging establishments.

In Delaware, reports continue to surface of towns and cities seeking to get a share of the lodging tax that now goes to counties and the state for promotion efforts. 

Delaware beach communities have a rental tax of more than 7 percent that funds a large chunk of budgets, but may see some leakage from individuals using Airbnb periodically.

The rental  revenue has helped Rehoboth and other communites build impressive city halls and finance other services.  

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