Sydney short-term rental management platform MadeComfy has been acquired Oyo, the travel business rival founded by 31-year-old Indian billionaire Ritesh Agarwal. The deal gives Oyo access to the Australian and New Zealand markets, which it sees as high-yield. It already operates in more than 35 countries, managing nearly 233,000 properties and is backed by SoftBank,… Read more »
A former Airbnb executive responsible for the short-stay rental platform’s early success in Australia and New Zealand has signed on as chief operations officer (COO) at local property management scaleup Hometime. Aiau Yong was most recently APAC GM at logistics payment platform PayCargo, and previously spent nearly six years as Airbnb ANZ supply lead, recruiting… Read more »
An eight-year-old Sydney-based Airbnb property management platform has raised $10 million as it looks to grow through a merger and acquisition startegy. Hometime, founded in 2016 in Perth, previously raised around $12.7 million in debt and equity in 2019 from the likes of NAB Ventures, One Ventures, and AS1 Capital. The latest cash injection comes… Read more »
Up to 63,000 Australians who used Airbnb between January 2018 and August 2021 may be eligible for compensation after the platform admitted it misled people by quoting prices for Australian accomodation in US dollars. The Federal Court has also hit Airbnb Ireland – the parent company that runs the Australian operations, including the website and… Read more »
The current housing crisis has renewed debates about how to regulate short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb. The international research on the impact of these rentals is clear: when landlords “host” tourists rather than residents, housing supply is depleted, rents rise and neighbourhoods change. Given Australia’s dire shortage of rental housing, restricting short-term rentals seems… Read more »
COVID-related travel restrictions and the sudden drop in tourism provided an ideal natural experiment to examine the impact of shifts in the supply of short-term rental accommodation. Our research, released today, found even modest reductions in Airbnb listings, as owners switched to longer-term rentals, increased supply of these properties. The result was lower local rents.… Read more »
Morning and happy Thursday. There’s plenty of big news from the tech world, so let’s go. 1. Ousted WeWork founder sues investor WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann is suing the company biggest backer, SoftBank, for failing to buy US$3 billion worth of WeWork stock from the former CEO and other shareholders, claiming the Japanese investor… Read more »
1. Airbnb’s IPO may call in sick 007 is not the only one (see below) laid low by coronavirus. Airbnb’s much-anticipated IPO, previously announced for 2020, may be delayed until 2021, Bloomberg reports. Like many in the travel and tourism sector, Airbnb’s been hit hard by the sudden contraction brought on by travel bans and… Read more »
It’s Friday. Here’s out the week ends. 1. In for the long haul It’s been a tough week for investors as global markets were smashed by coronavirus fears. The ASX All Ordinaries Index, after recently soaring through the 7000 barrier, is down nearly 10% for the week going into Friday’s trade, sitting at around… Read more »
Short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb are increasingly displacing hotels and holiday letting agencies as the go-to form of accommodation. The ease of booking it all in seconds on your smartphone adds to the appeal of renting a well-appointed flat in Noosaville, or having basil or turmeric on hand in the kitchen of your Katoomba… Read more »
Hello Thursday! Let’s see how the rest of the day pans out. 1. Vodafone and TPG win merger decision The $15 billion merger between Vodafone and TPG will go ahead following a Federal Court case that today ruled in favour of the country’s third and fourth biggest telcos and against competition regulator, the… Read more »
It’s Friday and major stuff’s happening. Like. 1. Airbnb will audit houses after Vice exposed a massive scam After 11 years in business, a US$35 valuation and hopes for an IPO, the normally aloof house sharing platform Airbnb is actually going to take more than a casual glance at what’s going on with the… Read more »
If you’ve just lodged your FY2019 tax return and left off income from renting out a room for a few nights on Airbnb, you’d better let the Australian Tax Office (ATO) you need to make some amendments quickly. The global online accommodation site has given the ATO the rental income data – and much more… Read more »
Hometime is going from strength to strength, announcing its launch into top tourism markets Byron Bay and the Sunshine Coast.
Airbnb is making a play for the luxury travel market, today unveiling a series of new offerings as part of a roadmap for its “core Homes business”.
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