TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin French side hotels worry about Airbnb

Daily Herald story Anyone here stayed at an airbnb in St. Martin? I'm thinking it's mostly French nationals who use it on St. Martin?

Personally we do not like airbnb or B&B's. I don't feel comfortable in someone's house. We like the resort a atmosphere.

I am with you. Not
for me.

Not sure if this answers your question, but we own a condo in Porto Cupecoy (Dutch side), and when we're not on island, we rent it out for short-term vacation rentals on VRBO. Most of the guests have been from the USA, but we've had some from Canada and France (and other places).

I was going to stay in one in November that looked wonderful (was listed on both Air BnB and Home Away) and put money down. However, it had neither an ocean view nor a pool, and I decided I couldn't live with that for three weeks so I cancelled. Was easy getting my money back.

I would not hesitate to use either of the above as long as there were sufficient positive reviews.

We rent through VRBO. We always stay in an apartment and wouldn't do it any other way. A hotel room for 28 days would drive us nuts!

People we have rented from have one or more units strictly as rental units. They are not renting out their own homes while they are away. (I do know many people where I live that do that, though.)

One can only assume that they are reporting the income and paying the appropriate taxes.

I have looked at AirBnB and it looks similar to VRBO, but we haven't used them as I find that website slow (and we have always been happy with the selection on VRBO).

I advertise mine on Airbnb, but have only gotten 2 rentals from it so far.

When it started, I understood Air BnB was mostly rooms for rent in an owner's home, so was not really interested. When I look at the SXM listings now, there are some rooms but there are also complete homes and apartments, very similar to VRBO. There's even a Divi Little Bay for rent, so I'm assuming that's someone's timeshare week. We have used VRBO for SXM and lots of other places. I think many tourist destinations are becoming concerned because of the impact of vacation rentals on the availability and price of long term rentals for regular residents as well as the issue of unlicensed rentals.

Air B&B has definitely evolved over the years. The original concept was just as StMartinFan stated; renting out an unused room in your home for a little extra income. As it has become more popular, more traditional rental properties have started advertising on the site as well. My wife and I owned a B&B in Maine for 10 years and feel lucky that we got out when we did. The landscape in the lodging industry has changed dramatically from what is was 15 years ago.

We have rented a condo through VRBO for many years and we have always had good luck. Although this year we have been switched to Airbnb for the same condos we have rented in the past. It is my understanding that many of the Owners are now switching their units to Airbnb in lieu of VRBO because VRBO has imposed some pretty stiff fees for the Owners. It is also my understanding that Airbnb does not have the same fees to the Owners.

I really noticed the it this spring when we were trying to book our condo for 2018. I told my wife that that seems to be not as many choices to pick from this year. The pickins were pretty slim. Then I remembered talking to Donna at Piazza Pascal during dinner one evening last February and she told me that she switched her condos to Airbnb from VRBO because the of the extra/new fees. So, then I checked out Airbnb and to my surprise there was a plethora of condos to pick from. We then booked our February 2018 condo through Airbnb (Donna) which has went very smoothly so far.

In short, I would guess that the rapid rise of Airbnb is due to the new/extra fees that VRBO has imposed. I guess many of the Owner have flocked to Airbnb because of the better price structure. IMHO both VRBO and Airbnb both are very similar. Both have a good cell phone app, both have a good website, and both have now worked for us.

We have rented private homes and apartments in MANY countries and in the USA for years but only on Homeaway or VRBO (same company). I don't know why they are keying on AirBNB but maybe because it used to be a "rent a room in your house" kinda thing but has since evolved. I checked Homeaway and there are also many hundreds of private homes/apartments for rent in St. Martin

We MUCH prefer renting a home/apartment than a hotel room but that is our preference (we have never done this in SXM though)

When we rent in the USA we pay taxes on the rental (in most states...Florida 11%)...that is a given. We also pay a rental fee to the agency.

St. Martin should just get with the program and tax the rentals like a hotel does. It would make private rentals cost a bit more but then it would be up to the consumer to decide if they want to spend two weeks or more in a room or in a home or apartment.....

Even the playing field and let the market decide. IT's up to St. Martin not AirBNB/Homeaway

Full disclosure: In SXM I would much rather stay in a resort on the water than a home a bit away from it and a home ON the water might be a bit too pricey for me <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Wink.gif" alt="" />

We stayed at an AirBnB in Grand Case and loved it. We are planning on staying at the same place in April. It is incredibly common for owners to list their property on AirBnB, Homeaway, or any other site simultaneously so you can get a good sense of the sitaution by reading all of the reviews. Agreed that at this point "AirBnB" is kind of a misnomer as many of the listings are nothing like a B&B or even part of someone's home. Our spot in Grand Case is a 4plex of sorts where the owners rent out all 4 apartments, all of the time. They have one employee who lives in the penthouse apartment and is a caretaker of sorts for the rentals below.

ETA* - said rental in Grand Case is right on the water and more affordable to us / allowing us to stay longer than the Grand Case Hotels, which are beyond lovely but a also beyond our budget. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Joy.gif" alt="" />

I think you have got the answer. I know a lot of owners have howled about the new fees at VBRO.

The added booking fees were a shock but I found that after a first rental I have always been able to do a direct rental with the owner and save those fees. Our last two rentals we saved $300-$400 each

With that said I would be hesitant to do it the first time renting a place...feel much better on a repeat visit

Renting from an agency you also pay the fee but it is just included in the price and not so obvious

Not that it's your concern, but I wonder if you rent directly from the owner, whether any taxes get paid on that rental? I think that's at least part of the concern regarding these rentals..

On french-side St. Martin, there simply is no way that a "hotel," taxed and regulated as such, can compete on price or (in my opinion) value with the huge market of accommodations of which airbnb is just a part. We have rented direct with an owner of a room or condo for well over ten years - pay in cash - and do not worry about the owners' tax returns. This is far easier on sxm for us, of course, because of how long we have been visiting the island and how well we know the island and many people on the island. I think it just a slight exaggeration to say that in St Martin (at least french-side) it is hard to know anyone who does not have a room or place that they would rent out to you for a stay or a family member or close friend who would.

When traveling to places we have never been or visit only very rarely, places in Europe for example, I still am inclined to look at licensed hotels because of a (probably completely unnecessary) concern about not knowing the area or the people renting out rooms.

Yup, no clue how they could have any evidence of how many taxed rental weeks were used or for that matter whether the owners' income tax on those rentals was paid....

As you said, not my issue BUT I do look at the $400 saved <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Wink.gif" alt="" />

I have used VRBO many times from private owners Dutch and French Side and never been charged any taxes or extra fees. Not sure if they are to collect tax but if don't collect it then they can't and should not pay it. That said, I also now prefer at Hotel with Beach, Restaurant and Bar!