PARADISE VALLEY - Some people in the Paradise Valley weren't directly affected by recent flooding - but for others, while their property looks safe, they are now dealing with the aftermath of the flood in an unforeseen way.
“We’re all just holding our breath hoping that they don’t cancel and that they still come,” says Airbnb Host, Missy Miculka, talking about guests who hope to stay at her Airbnb while they visit the area.
Airbnb host Ting Ting Lin has seen cancellations increase in the days following the floods.
“A reservation was canceled due to extenuating circumstances,” says Lin.
Her frustration is how the policy is being applied by Airbnb, the company that helps facilitate rentals.
“Understanding how this specific natural disaster has impacted Park County,” says Lin.
Lin says her property was left unaffected by the flood, but she says its company policies are leaving her frustrated.
“They weren’t very transparent as to what those extenuating circumstances were,” says Lin.
In a statement to MTN News Airbnb says “we activated our extenuating circumstances policy on June 14th for stays in the region. The policy will be currently in effect until June 24th. We are monitoring closely and will extend the policy as needed based on the conditions in the area.
According to their website, this policy takes precedence over their cancellation policy. An event that could be classified as an extenuating circumstance, would be a war or in the case of Park County a natural disaster.
“Our cancellation policy is the only protection that we have to protect our income,” says Lin.
Miculka, a host in Gardiner, says that the area relies on tourism and wants help to keep people coming to the area.
“We’re making a letter to the governor, to senators to see what they can do to help us, where they can point us,” says Miculka
They say while they weren’t affected by the flood directly, they are feeling the effects and want to ask for help from Governor Greg Gianforte, Senators Steve Daines & Jon Tester, and Representative Matt Rosendale to help hosts with economic recovery.
“We have lost 30 to 60 percent of our income just in the last two weeks,” says Miculka
According to Airdna.com, In the Gardiner area, there are 250 active rentals in the Emigrant area 137. The area averaged 83-90 percent occupancy. Lin and Miculka want to continue to see numbers this summer.
