The Subramaniams are in their 60s. With children settled abroad, it leaves just the two of them in their three-bedroom apartment with a full time domestic help who also doubles up as a cook. To make the best use of the empty rooms, and have occasional guests when they want company, they decided to sign up on AirBnb after staying with a host in Germany. “The extra money is good, but more than that it is the company we are looking forward to. After returning from Germany, my son requested me to host a couple at home, and we enjoyed the opportunity to show them our city’s non-touristy secrets,” says Shankar.
Peer-to-peer accommodation sites offer several options in Hyderabad, and their takers are not always conventional tourists. Families who come for medical treatment to the city’s many hospitals, for instance, use them because these sites offer them the chance to rent an entire home, instead of just a room.
While there are many couples like the Subramaniams, enthusiastic about sharing their living space, there are also people who look at this as a good way to make money from property they already own. Especially young, single investors.
Then there are those who look at it as a way of subsidising the rent they have to shell out every month for their apartments if the house owners do not object. “I recently listed my rented apartment online with my owner’s consent. I am single and I hardly have stay-over guests, so even if I make a few extra bucks on weekends by renting out a part of my space there isn’t any harm. If my guests want I can take them sight-seeing on weekends or give them company for dinner,” smiles C. Ashish, a senior research associate.
Young couples say, the option of being able to list or remove themselves at their will makes Airbnb a feasible site to work with. It is helping R. Ramya, a homemaker, earn a few extra bucks after paying EMIs on the flat every month. “When friends and family stay over, we de-list ourselves,” she says.
