The sharing economy is more and more of a thing, even though the local conversation in Detroit rarely talks about it.
In fact, it’s making a pretty large direct economic impact for Detroiters and Michiganders.
New numbers are out from Airbnb, a service that helps people rent out a spare bedroom or a spare apartment to travelers. According to their data, their host community earned a combined $48 million in supplemental income in Michigan while welcoming approximately 364,000 guest arrivals to the state in 2017.
They’re growing quickly, too. 364,000 stays were booked with Airbnb in 2017, representing 90% year-over-year growth.
There are now just under 6,000 Michigan hosts who share their homes for via Airbnb, typically earning about $6,300 annually in supplemental income.
In the city of Detroit specifically, there were 47,000 guest arrivals and hosts – mostly all individuals and Detroit residents – made a total of $5.21 million in revenue.
This correlates with huge growth in Detroit hotels, who have tended to prove that if you build quality stock people will come. The average daily rate to stay at Detroit hotels has skyrocketed more than 21 percent, and occupancy is up 14.1%.
The state of Michigan also has been benefitting, according to Airbnb data. In the first three months of an agreement that was inked in June, $1 million in taxes were paid to the state.
So how does it break down across the state? Well, Below are the top ten markets.
| City | Total 2017 Guest Arrivals | Total 2017 Host Income |
| Detroit | 47,000 | $5.21 million |
| Traverse City | 29,300 | $4.38 million |
| Ann Arbor | 26,700 | $4.56 million |
| Grand Rapids | 17,000 | $1.58 million |
| Holland | 11,600 | $1.39 million |
| South Haven | 8,100 | $1.34 million |
| Marquette | 7,900 | $819,900 |
| New Buffalo | 7,450 | $1.1 million |
| Saugatuck | 7,000 | $1.25 million |
| Bellaire | 5,200 | $536,200 |