The End of Airbnb in New York | WIRED:

Gone are the days of sleek downtown apartments outfitted for bachelorette parties, cozy two- and three-bedroom apartments near museums for families, and even the option for people to rent out their apartment on weekends when they’re away. While Airbnb, Vrbo, and others can continue to operate in New York, the new rules are so tight that Airbnb sees it as a “de facto ban” on its business.

At a general level, I totally support these sorts of laws. Having so much living space be gobbled up by corporate landlords who then turn it into short-term rental means less affordable housing for locals. It also sucks from a community standpoint to have the housing stock be so transient.

I will admit, however, to having found it very convenient personally to be able to pretty easily find a place for our family to stay in NYC that was not a hotel. I also feel like individual landlords should have some flexibility to keep their places occupied, especially in a place where housing costs are so ridiculously high.

Mostly, it just sucks that predatory corporate landlords have to ruin things for everyone else.