Same here. I’ve probably done over a dozen stays now. I just always book with a Super Host or whatever they call them, check their rules and fees over a few times, and most places I stay, the owner lives there on the same property.

I like it because I figure people won’t ignore things like bedbugs in their own full time living space, I like getting to know them and their tips for what to check out and where to eat. I like meeting their pets! And it makes it feel like you’re staying somewhere in particular, not in a generic space that could be anywhere in the world, it is one unique spot that is nowhere else.

I do agree with the problems it can cause in communities. My neighborhood isn’t Airbnb homes, but due to many foreclosures, we do have a lot more rentals and it does have a different vibe, so I can empathize with that. But I have only stayed at one that the host didn’t live on site. That is in a middle of nowhere place in a very rural area I’ve been visiting by entire life though, and most of the already not great hotels in the area have closed.

I wouldn’t not ever stay in a hotel, but I try to go to unique places and I feel the experience I seek out on Airbnb adds to my traveling.