I disagree. I just cancelled my AirBnB listing. As a vacation house owner that rents their place out 3/4 out of every year, it was a waste of my time. I have been a VRBO user for 5 years, and they have driven a lot more traffic for those time periods, with a lot less hassle and restrictions. Frankly, for the serious vacation home owner, I don't think VRBO / HomeAway has anything to worry about any time soon.I want to stress that I think AirBnB fulfills a market need, for sure. Just not my market.Kind of like trying to race the Indy 500 in a cute Ford Focus.

Here is my experience so that you can compare for yourself. I am quite certain that I will probably have someone from AirBnB comment and tell me that I just didn't know how to set something up right. That's fine. Still doesn't change my perception of the system being to hardwired for the novice, single room renter:

1. The setup with AirBnB was a lot easier than VRBO. The AirBnB interface is slick and nice..definitely pulled me in. :-)

2. They have a major glitch in the system. I put in daily rates for the off-season, and weekly rates for inseason...yet the daily offseason rates kept over-riding the weekly in season rates, and this caused a lot of potential renters to be very confused when they thought they were getting the "steal of a lifetime" on summer rates. Left a bad taste in my mouth, and with the prospective renters. VRBO may be more difficult to set up, but it's pretty idiot-proof when it comes to rates (thank God).

3. WIthout exception, every single client that inquired via AirBnB wanted some sort of discount or deal. 99% of my renters via VRBO will rent at the full rental price. And,my prices were exactly the same on both sites.

4. I cannot control fee or deposit scenarios on AirBnB. I am forced to follow their sites rules - which are heavily in favor of the renter and do not protect the owner enough (IMHO). Payment isn't made to the owner until the renter checks in, and there is no way to note a pet fee requirement. This scenario is not acceptable to me. It's too easy for a renter to cancel at the last minute, which puts me in a huge bind if the rental period is during the high season. On VRBO, I require a deposit up front, equal to half the rent, in order to secure my property, and a pet fee (which is legal in my state) per pet. Been working this way for 3 years.

5. In addition, the refund system is lacking in AirBnB. I have to select from their refund options. I cannot employ my own refund system. This, to me, is a big drawback. Each rental home owner I know has their own refund policy.

6. AirBnB controls all monies. This, to me, is the biggest issue I have. I am a good owner. I always seek to make my renter happy. I will go above and beyond to do so. I resent having a 3rd party determine if and when I get paid on my rental property. This is why I got rid of property managers in the first place, it's a layer of bureacracy that I don't need.

7. Vacation rental rules - many vacation areas have their own county or state rental laws and regulations. To my knowledge, the constraints put in AirBnB's system for booking or refunds do not leave room to incorporate those laws, potentially putting homeowners at risk.