What’s that famous line from The Godfather?
“Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.”
That’s how I feel sometimes when I complete a blog post, publish it, and then emails make me realize there’s more to the story.
Here’s an example, earlier in the month, I wrote this Boston real estate blog post:
Boston real estate and Cape-Cod short-term Airbnb rentals, which briefly saw a reservation surge in popular tourist destinations such as Cape Cod as people were looking to flee fled dense urban spots like New York City, were promptly banned by some New England towns and cities, as city councils are fearful that their limited healthcare infrastructure and off-season supply chains would be overwhelmed by outsiders.
Year over year short-term rental reservations for 2020 summer travel is now down by 75%. Airbnb hosts, many of whom rely on their short-term summer rentals for critical supplemental income or, in many cases, all of it, now credit Covid-19 for what they call “Cancellation Apocalypse”.
What I didn’t mention:
Airbnb Has Plenty of Money in the Bank
Despite its current losses, Airbnb had more than $2 billion in the bank at the end of the year, according to Bloomberg. Like everyone else, Airbnb will have to undergo some severe financial engineering to get through 2020, but that $2 billion will help it navigate these unprecedented conditions.
