It wasn't like that in the early days, especially pre-IPO and before Airbnb turned into a business for wannabe landlords. In like 2010 Airbnb was magical for exploring a city like San Francisco. I remember paying like 50 bucks a night to stay in someone's beautiful house in the heart of the mission district. Hosts back then were genuinely good people that wanted to help travellers. It was a couch surfing kind of vibe and community. Nowadays all of that magic is long gone, and it's way more expensive.