Airbnb just scored a big victory in San Francisco

By Virginia K. Smith | November 5, 2015 - 2:59PM

Even as Airbnb continues to withstand accusations of jacking up rents and contributing to housing crises all over the country, it seems that not everyone wants to see the service squashed: San Francisco residents decisively voted down a measure this week that would have significantly cracked down on short-term rentals, CNN Money reports.

Proposition F—widely referred to as the "Airbnb proposition"—would have cut down the number of days allowed for a short-term when the primary resident isn't present from 90 days per year to 75. (In San Francisco, if the apartment is occupied by the host at the time of the short-term rental, the number of days allowed is unlimited.) According to CNN, Prop F also would have required that hosts give proof of the apartment's authorization for short-term rentals, and submit quarterly reports. (Worth noting that these laws are a lot more lenient than NYC, where it is, indeed, totally illegal to rent out your apartment for less than a month at a time.)

So does this mean the people have spoken, and they think the pros outweigh the cons when it comes to the short-term rental economy? Not necessarily. The big win in SF is largely being attributed to the $8 million Airbnb threw at the election, and as Gizmodo points out, shows just how far the site is willing to go to come out on top in these kinds of showdowns (in a word: very). And with this victory under their belts, word is that the site is looking to expand its reach even further here in NYC. All of which is to say you may want to brace yourself for some, er, "interesting" subway ads, and an increasingly nasty PR battle.

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