Dear Editor:

I was pleased to see Matthew Stilphen interested in doing an article about the impact of the new “sharing economy” last week. There are a few facts I can share to expand on his article and clarify a few points.

Consumer awareness of vacation rentals as a lodging option is growing fast. Currently, only four out of 10 U.S. travelers know about vacation rentals as an option when they travel.

Cottage Connection is embracing this new visibility and adapting our marketing strategies with technology. We partner with AirBnB to help introduce Boothbay to 80 million travelers in 191 countries around the world. But, to be clear, there are very different models of vacation rental properties. Our clients are single family homes that are rented to a family or people who have a connection, in other words, they have commonality, which is different from an AirBnB model where you may have people with no connection renting rooms. A traditional vacation rental does not serve meals; they are sometimes referred to as a “self-catering facility,” meaning that no meal or food is offered with the rental. We understand that many homes leasing rooms through AirBnB leave food in the refrigerator or offer some type of meal. There have been several bills before the Maine Legislature that sought to “level the playing field” when it comes to facilities that offer food, such as a bed and breakfast rental, which is required to have state inspections. Again, this is not what a traditional vacation rental offers and we do not want to be lumped into these types of accommodations.

Cottage Connection and about 90 other vacation rental companies in Maine are facing increased competition from big Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) that want to control the consumer access to websites and companies. Companies, like the one that Jason Schlosser is representing, do not pay taxes in Maine and are not Maine-based. They may hire a “local” but they are not local. They may hire some local people, however, they are not the local entities such as ours that live here, pay taxes here and are part of our local communities.

In closing, we believe there is room in the rental market for a number of different models, and we do not seek to keep anyone from entry. We do, however, believe there are some important distinctions in the rental market that are important for the consumer to assess when they are making their vacation or travel plans.

Audrey Leeds Miller, Co-owner

Cottage Connection of Maine, Inc.

Boothbay