Airbnb hosts on Long Island earned almost $50 million in 2018.
About 140,000 guests came to Nassau and Suffolk through the home-sharing service.
Liz DeBold Fusco, press secretary for Airbnb, says the majority of hosts are just sharing space within their homes.
“The fastest growing section of our community is seniors, for example, who are living on a fixed income that could use a little bit of extra income. But they have a lot of space in their home because maybe their kids have left the home and now that they have this extra space, they want to make it work for them.”
The company is working with Nassau and Suffolk Counties to figure out a hotel tax collection agreement, which would go to promoting tourism.