Steve Nguyen runs two Airbnb units in a downtown Victoria apartment building, including one decorated and paying homage to the television show, “Friends”. He says he’s still reeling from the news he soon won't be able to operate it as a short-term rental since he doesn’t live there.
  • athos77@kbin.social
    124·
    11 months ago

    The equity that I’ve worked so hard for in these units has vanished in a day.

    The equity is still there, dumbass, you just still owe on the mortgage.

    [He] plans to list it for $150,000 less than he bought it for a year ago

    You bought it a year ago?! How could you not see this was a likely thing to happen a year ago?

  • Rentlar@lemmy.ca
    98·
    11 months ago

    Airbnb operators can cry me the Fraser friggin’ River. There are a lot of people needing long term rent, we don’t need the operators sucking out the supply.

  • Nik282000@lemmy.ca
    75·
    11 months ago

    but plans to list it for $150,000 less than he bought it for a year ago – its value walloped because in a matter of months, it will no longer be useable in most cases as an Airbnb, “The revenue stream dictates the value,”

    The system works!

  • TotallyHuman@lemmy.ca
    551·
    11 months ago

    Remember this moment the next time someone says that business people deserve wealth beyond the wildest dreams of avarice because they “took a risk”.

    • SkyeStarfall@lemmy.blahaj.zone
      36·
      11 months ago

      The whole “took a risk” stuff is so dumb because in most cases what they risk is ending up with less money… which is still more than most people have throughout their lifetime.

      I’d feel totally safe risking 900 million USD if I already had 1 billion USD. What’s the worst that can happen, like, really?

      • HopeOfTheGunblade@kbin.social
        18·
        11 months ago

        To add on to that, what gives people a special right to be able to take “risks” like that in the first place? It’s not like the basis for risk taking is distributed in a way that most people can, so they’re taking advantage of most people not even being able to as well as it being little real risk.

        • FilthyHookerSpit@lemmy.world
          10·
          11 months ago

          Just another way the game is rigged. If I spent every cent I had to create a risky startup, I’d be homeless. If someone from an affluent family spends every cent they have, they’d always be able to borrow life changing money (even 5k could change someone’s life) or move in to someone’s summer home, etc.

          • m0darn@lemmy.ca
            4·
            11 months ago

            Yeah it’s false to equate risk to investment.

            Risking 50 dollars is very different to a wage slave than to someone in the middle class.

            You have to look at the situation they’re risking putting themselves into, not the number of dollars or hours of labor they’re risking.

            It’s like when conservatives say they’re in favour of equality of opportunity (but not in favour equality of outcome, a total red herring but that’s a different rant). Like when has there ever been equality of opportunity?

      • Rodeo@lemmy.ca
        1·
        11 months ago

        The risk actually complete and utter bullshit anyway, especially if you’re operating under a corporation.

        Consider I take out $1m to start business. I buy a property and equipment for the business. I operate it for a year, make some money, then go bankrupt.

        The bank takes back the business assets and … That’s it. They can’t touch your personal assets unless you agreed to put them up as collateral. If it was a sole proprietorship your credit score goes to zero which sucks for a few years, but if it’s a corporation the company goes bankrupt and you walk away scot free.

        So I spent a year running a business, made some money, and wind up in the same place I started. What did I lose? Maybe a credit score and that’s it.

        If there is nothing to lose, then there is no risk.

    • whoisearth@lemmy.ca
      51·
      11 months ago

      Also remember these AirBnb owners are more often like you and I except absolute shitheads looking to exploit the market for their own personal gain.

      The problem may be partly those in charge but we need to point the finger at ourselves. We all bought into the same system that encourages this shitty behaviour.

  • FfaerieOxide@kbin.social
    40·
    11 months ago

    Nguyen says he makes enough by renting out his unit on Airbnb to cover its mortgage

    Well it sounds like you shouldn’t have done that.

    • festus@lemmy.caEnglish
      251·
      11 months ago

      It’s not even the right calculation he should be considering - a mortgage payment pays down interest and principal. Rent should only be expected to cover the interest portion of a mortgage - anything that covers principal is basically free money for the landlord. This guy is basically upset because he can’t find a tenant who’ll give him a free house fast enough. I have no sympathy.