The Impact of Sharing Economy on Local Employment: Evidence from Airbnb

A growing literature has documented the impact of home sharing. We study a new externality in which local people can enjoy more job opportunities because of the entry of home sharing. Using data from Airbnb and employing a quasi-experimental design, we find the following evidences. We find that home sharing provides more employment options to locals especially for lesseducation and low-income population. As home sharing becomes an incentive for local employment, our study provides important understanding of home sharing and its implications to local welfare, Airbnb hosts, and policy makers