Culture: SXSW is Austin's "Musical Super Bowl"

SXSW is a mammoth $325M event for Austin, something akin to the Super Bowl in terms of economic impact. And that economic benefit is spread far and wide, from concert venues and local clubs to the guy who rents out his spare room. 

Last year's SXSW Conference, with two-dozen tracks and 5,000 speakers, attracted more than 285,000 attendees, according to the festival organizers. The event hosted more than 2,000 music acts and 133 world-premiere movies, along with more than 1,000 parties at venues either in or near downtown. The festival organizers estimate more than 50,000 hotel room nights were booked across 70 hotels in the city in 2017. Another 11,000 room nights were booked through Airbnb, Homeaway and other similar services. 

The combination of Austin's major events — SXSW, Austin City Limits and F1 — have made this midsize city one of the Top 10 most active short-term rental markets in the country, right behind San Diego and Seattle. 

Many listings, including Airbnb and others, can compete head-to-head with top-tier hotel brands in Austin, at a better price. "In many circles in the hospitality industry, of course, Airbnb is considered a disruptor," Binford said. "I've talked with a lot of the hotel folks who were upset with them just for the mere fact that they are what they are, and they take away some business." Hotels offer a lot of reasons for disliking short-term rentals, Binford said. The two products are not on the same playing field. Short-term rentals do not have to meet the kind of health and safety inspections required of hotels. 

So why does Binford suggest the SXSW Festival — as well as Austin hotels — should be thankful to the short-term rental industry? "I would argue today that many large-scale events either would not happen, or would not be as successful as they are, if not for the temporary accommodations provided by Airbnb," Binford said. "There's no way SXSW could be this large without them."