Airbnb and neighborhood crime: The incursion of tourists or the erosion of local social dynamics?

PLoS One. 2021 Jul 14;16(7):e0253315. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0253315. eCollection 2021.

Abstract

The proliferation of internet-based home-sharing platforms like Airbnb has raised heated debates, with many in the general public believing that the presence of Airbnb listings can lead to an increase in crime and disorder in residential neighborhoods. Despite the importance of this debate to residents, policymakers, and other stakeholders, few studies have examined the causal linkage between Airbnb listings and crime in neighborhoods. We conduct the first such empirical test in Boston neighborhoods, focusing on two potential mechanisms: (1) the inflow of tourists might generate or attract crime; and (2) the creation of transient properties undermines local social dynamics. Corresponding to these mechanisms, we examine whether the number of tourists (approximated with reviews) or the prevalence of listings predict more incidents of private conflict, social disorder, and violence both concurrently and in the following year. We find evidence that increases in Airbnb listings-but not reviews-led to more violence in neighborhoods in later years. This result supports the notion that the prevalence of Airbnb listings erodes the natural ability of a neighborhood to prevent crime, but does not support the interpretation that elevated numbers of tourists bring crime with them.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Boston
  • Crime / statistics & numerical data*
  • Housing
  • Humans
  • Models, Statistical
  • Residence Characteristics / statistics & numerical data*
  • Social Environment*
  • Tourism*

Grants and funding

The authors were partially supported by the TIER 1: Seed Grant/Proof of Concept Program of Northeastern University. The work was also in part supported by the National Science Foundation, under Grant CMMI-1548521. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.