Where do the candidates stand on vacation rentals?

We’ve seen significant changes in the vacation rental regulatory environment.

• The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) hosted a robust debate about the sharing economy in which Airbnb and the AH&LA debated the vacation rentals, leaving ample room for potential federal regulation of the industry that supports millions of Americans.
• There are approximately 1.3 million vacation rentals in the U.S. and thousands more American jobs that support the industry. 

Hillary Clinton

Hillary Clinton openly spoke out against the sharing economy labeling it the “gig” economy.

“Many Americans are making extra money renting out spare rooms, designing websites, selling products that they designed themselves at home, or even driving their own car,” she said, in what could be interpreted as a reference to Airbnb, Etsy, Uber, and Lyft.

•  Clinton said, “it’s also raising hard questions about workplace protections and what a good job will look like in the future.” Hillary Clinton believes these endeavors are creating unregulated income for entrepreneurs.
• “I’ll crack down on bosses (Airbnb, Uber, Lyft, etc.) who exploit employees by misclassifying them as contractors or even steal their wages.”

Donald Trump

Donald Trump has said little about vacation rentals or the sharing economy in his campaign speeches. Yet as the Chairman and President of Trump Hotel Collection and a self-proclaimed proponent of increased business regulations, vacation rental managers may have cause for concern.

The AH&LA has already waged war on the vacation rental industry.

It appears unlikely that Trump, as an AH&LA member, will abandon his hotel interests to support an open vacation rental environment.

The size of the professionally managed vacation rental industry falls in the following range:

 Taking the PhoCusWright and HomeAway data at face value:

• $24B divided by $27,360 per property = 877,192 U.S. Vacation Rentals
• x 44% Pro Managed = 385,965 Professionally Managed Vacation Rentals
• This would mean there are between 5,146 and 7,719 Professional Vacation Rental Managers in the U.S.

 PhocusWright and Wyndham

• 44%  of 1.3 million vacation rentals in the U.S. = 572,000 Professionally Managed Vacation Rentals
• This would indicate there are between 7,626 -11,440 Professional Vacation Rental Managers in the U.S.

 Using U.S. Census Data

• If we add in the U.S. Census data and AHS estimates, the picture looks more like this:
• Number of Professionally Managed Vacation Rentals: 511,423 -715,992
• Number of Professional Vacation Rental Managers: 6,819 -14,319

Industry analysts estimate the number of vacation rental managers in the U.S. to be 8,000. 

Source: vrmintel.com/u-s-presidential-candidates-stand-vacation-rentals