A dip in rental profits and a shift to longer stays has led some US hosts and property managers to circumvent Airbnb, including asking guests to book directly
Context & Ripple Effects
This is a renewed instance of host disintermediation, not a wholly new dispute: during the pandemic, frustrated operators began building their own direct-booking sites, and some later sought to bypass the platform after its refund-policy change shifted cancellation risk toward hosts.
The new profit pressure and move toward longer stays matter because they make the economics of retaining a guest relationship outside a marketplace more salient for property managers.
First-order effects
- Hosts and property managers that steer guests to direct channels can avoid Airbnb fees on those stays, but take on booking, payment, support, and trust responsibilities themselves.
- Airbnb risks losing transaction revenue and reduced visibility into guest demand when bookings that originate on or near its platform are completed elsewhere.
Second-order effects
- Direct-booking software and services become more relevant to professional hosts seeking to own repeat guest relationships and manage longer reservations.
- Airbnb faces added pressure to demonstrate that its distribution, payment protections, and guest acquisition justify remaining on-platform, particularly for operators with multiple properties.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern broadens, short-term-rental marketplaces may increasingly function as customer-acquisition channels while larger operators seek to monetize repeat and extended stays directly.
- The outcome depends on whether platform trust and demand generation outweigh fee savings; the tension points to a more contested division of value between marketplaces and their supply base.
The trend: Travel marketplaces are facing a broader push by professional suppliers to reduce platform dependence and own more of the customer relationship.