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Roomorama review – our first apartment rental
New apartment
The system was the same: arrive, get keys, sign a contract, get orientated. The new apartment was smaller than the last, but the pool was a bit bigger. We took the opportunity to explore this side of town, and the amazing murals at the Antiques Market are worth a visit just by themselves.
New street art! A Pum-Pum mural right next door
Roomorama review: the conclusion
Pro: Your own space, and own apartment — without a hotel feeling.
Con: Lacking the social support of a hostel or couchsurfing.
Pro: A kitchen of your own, so you can cook better meals than in a hostel.
Con: Booking fee can be prohibitive for stays of one or two nights.
Pro: Prices vary, but are generally cheaper than a hotel, similar to a private double in a hostel.
Pro: If you are in a group (3+ people), you’ll save a lot.
Be aware: Of additional costs, like compulsory cleaning or high security bonds.
Roomorama
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Roomorama is a short-term and vacation rental website. The company offers over 300,000 professionally-managed accommodation worldwide.[1] From city apartments to beachfront villas, Roomorama serves leisure and corporate travelers who seek the comfort, privacy and amenities of a home in neighbourhoods where hotels are usually not found. The website offers 24/7 live chat and customer service. Founded in 2009, Roomorama is currently headquartered in Singapore and operates from the U.S., France, Philippines and Thailand.
| Short-term Property Rentals | |
| Industry | Accommodations |
| Headquarters | Singapore |
| Services | Travel Accommodations |
| Website | http://roomorama.com/ |
History[edit]
Roomorama received US$2.1 million in seed funding from PROFounders, Lerer Media, Thrive Capital, and Jose Marin, who also invested in travel sites like HipWay and GuestMob.[2]
Roomorama absorbed competitor Lofty to fill growing demand for inventory.[3] Roomorama had a higher number of registered users and folded Lofty’s properties into their own inventory.[3]
Roomorama opened in 2009 with 11 properties available to rent.[4] As of 2012, Roomorama had 70,000 registered properties.[5] Most of the site’s registered users are business travelers and groups of friends or families who do not want to book multiple hotel rooms.[6] Roomorama reported a 215% increase in bookings from 2010 to 2011.[7]
In April 2012, Roomorama reported an average booking value of $1,300. 80% of bookings lasted between eight and fourteen days.[4][5]
Roomorama worked with travel site Tripping.com to research the factors that drive travelers to choose short-term rentals rather than hotel stays.[8] Their research concluded that travelers are seeking more unique stays, safer alternatives to hotel rooms, and larger, more spacious alternatives for family travel.[8]
Roomorama’s properties are located across North America,Europe, Asia, South America, northern Africa and Oceania. Hosts can black the out days, weeks, or months they want to retain use of their property, ensuring that they have access.[6]
Roomorama is the first company in the short-term rental space to introduce an open API[clarification needed] to its customers.
Security[edit]
The site allows the host to see the full name of anyone applying to visit their property. This allows homeowners to complete abackground check on their expected guest.[9][10] Site users are required to send in a photocopy of their ID. This extends the registration process but is designed to increase accountability.[9][10] Roomorama’s hosts safety features that are not available when looking for short-term rentals on free sites, likeCraigslist.[10] Roomorama is the first in the short-term rental industry to introduce a payment code process, which ensures that payment is only released to the host upon a successful check in. Roomorama provides a 6 digit code to the traveler, which is turned over to the host upon arrival. The homeowner then redeems the code for payment from Roomorama.[11] This process ensures that payment is not given unless the apartment is as portrayed online and is designed to protect the traveler.[11]
The company also does manual and automated fraud detection and background checks on its hosts and guests
https://reason.com/archives/2013/05/22/new-york-goes-to-war-against-airbnb-and
New York Goes to War Against Airbnb and Roomorama
Your spare bedroom is not your own.
My kids moved out! I have two empty rooms in my apartment. Maybe I can rent them? A tourist visiting New York City could have a different experience, and save hotel money. I’d make money. Wouldn’t it be great?
No, says the government of my state.
Gustavo da Cunha Pimenta / photo on flickrNew York recently passed a law making it very difficult for people to offer short-term rentals via popular websites like Airbnb and Roomorama, which connect room-owners and room-renters. I could be fined $25,000 if I rent to tourists through those services.
New York State Sen. Liz Krueger defended the law on my TV show.
"Tenants all over the city are begging their legislators for help. They were being harassed by strangers in the middle of night entering their building, moving into the apartments next door ... violating the fire code, the safety code, and harassing people, sometimes very aggressively, out of the buildings."
Please. Of course some renters behave badly. But they can be dealt with by building owners. There’s no need for authoritarian governments to ban consenting adults from renting to each other.
Krueger says that despite these services’ rapid growth, their customers are unhappy -- and that despite the online customer-satisfaction reviews and ratings that enable everyone to compare thousands of different offerings, and blacklist renters and homeowners who behave badly, customers are being duped.
“They think they’re signing up for a hotel room. They pay through a credit card. They walk into a situation that is not safe, not clean.”
This is how politicians think.
Jia En Teo, co-founder of Roomorama, has a different explanation for why businesses like hers are attacked by politicians: “Short-term rentals have been growing in popularity ... that has posed competition to hotels.”
At age 26, Teo left a job at Bloomberg media to start Roomorama. She understood business -- but didn’t have political pull. Big hotel chains and their unions do. They have lobbyists who pressure legislators. The Hotel Association of New York says people who use sites like Roomorama risk their safety.
But despite such fearmongering, Roomorama hasn’t been squashed. It now operates in 5,000 cities around the world. Tourists get to use empty apartments and pay less. They get a novel experience. Property owners make money. Win-win!
But Roomorama threatens the status quo. Hotels and hotel unions don’t like it. Regulators who issue permits to hotels don’t like it. So the established businesses, the insiders, work with friendly politicians to craft rules that crush the newcomers.
Economists call that process “regulatory capture.” It happened even during the New Deal. FDR railed against “the money interests” and pushed through regulations controlling what businesses could do, including establishing a minimum wage, maximum hours, agreed-upon production levels and minimum prices for each industry, to eliminate “cutthroat competition.” Working at night was forbidden. Government enforcers made surprise inspections and could seize control of businesses on the spot.
It turned out that most of those regulations were shaped by big business itself, because the established businesses didn’t want competition, and both business and regulators like predictability.
Even when regulators mean well -- when they worry about safety or whether customers get basic services -- regulations are based on the old, familiar ways of doing things, simply because regulators don’t know anything else. That’s great for old, familiar firms -- but bad for the innovative startup that wants to try something different. And bad for consumers who might have benefitted.
The new idea might be a bad one, but if it is, it will die on its own. Market competition will kill it.
But the new idea might be the next Microsoft. Or Roomorama. Or Lyft, a ride-sharing app that helps people find cars without having to use (heavily regulated) local taxi cartels. Like a Roomorama for cars, Lyft lets most any car owner give people rides. It, too, faces regulatory opposition.
Regulators always say they must protect the “little guy.” But it’s the little guys who are most hurt by these rules.
Something can always go wrong -- with businesses new or old. But unless we allow innovators and their customers to try new things, we’ll be stuck in the past.
Then the fat cats win, not the little guy.
BBB Business Review
THIS BUSINESS IS NOT BBB ACCREDITED.
Roomorama
Phone: (877) 750-7666133 2nd Ave Apt 6, New York, NY 10003info@roomorama.comhttps://www.roomorama.com/! THERE IS AN ALERT ON ROOMORAMA !
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BBB Accreditation
This business is not BBB accredited.
Businesses are under no obligation to seek BBB accreditation, and some businesses are not accredited because they have not sought BBB accreditation.
To be accredited by BBB, a business must apply for accreditation and BBB must determine that the business meets BBB accreditation standards, which include a commitment to make a good faith effort to resolve any consumer complaints. BBB Accredited Businesses must pay a fee for accreditation review/monitoring and for support of BBB services to the public.
Reason for Rating
BBB rating is based on 13 factors. Get the details about the factors considered.
Factors that lowered the rating for Roomorama include:
- Length of time business has been operating
- 5 complaint(s) filed against business
- Failure to respond to 2 complaint(s) filed against business
Factors that raised the rating for Roomorama include:
- Resolution of complaint(s) filed against business
Customer Complaints SummaryRead complaint details
5 complaints closed with BBB in last 3 years | 0 closed in last 12 months
| Complaint Type | Total Closed Complaints |
|---|---|
| Advertising/Sales Issues | 1 |
| Billing/Collection Issues | 1 |
| Delivery Issues | 0 |
| Guarantee/Warranty Issues | 1 |
| Problems with Product/Service | 2 |
| Total Closed Complaints | 5 |
Customer Reviews SummaryRead customer reviews
0 Customer Reviews on Roomorama
| Customer Experience | Total Customer Reviews |
|---|---|
| Positive Experience | 0 |
| Neutral Experience | 0 |
| Negative Experience | 0 |
| Total Customer Reviews | 0 |
Additional Information
BBB file opened: October 28, 2013
Business Category
VACATION RENTALSAPARTMENT FINDING & RENTAL SERVICE
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