The home-rental site Airbnb is expecting 10,000 Washington-area guests during January’s presidential election. “The demand is big.”As thousands make plans to descend on Washington for Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration — as well as the next day’s Million Woman March protest — local Airbnb bookings are nearing all-time highs, company spokesman Crystal Davis says. More than 10,000 people are expected to book Airbnb rentals in the Washington area for inauguration day — a 600 percent increase from 2013 during President Obama’s second inauguration, according to company projections. “This is, without a doubt, the busiest event for us,” said Karl Scarlett, owner of Great Dwellings, a District-based company that helps homeowners manage Airbnb rentals. Lara Hawketts, owner of Home Sweet City, which manages local Airbnb rentals, says inauguration weekend prices are, on average, four times higher than the usual going-rate.

Source: Washington Post November 17, 2016 18:11 UTC