> but at least they refurbish them before turning them into AirBnBs--whereas the original owners (which, surprise surprise, were not actually living in them) wouldn't put forward a single penny to renovate
Have you looked deeper into this? In Greece (that is pretty much on the same boat) it is often the case that you can get a generous (typically EU-funded) subsidy to renovate the property and put it on AirBnB rent. But any renovations on your own home, you have to pay out of your own pocket, and even the banks are hard to loan you.
So governments may not exactly innocent for properties being handed off to foreigners and the AirBnB-fication of tourist destinations.
Have you looked deeper into this? In Greece (that is pretty much on the same boat) it is often the case that you can get a generous (typically EU-funded) subsidy to renovate the property and put it on AirBnB rent. But any renovations on your own home, you have to pay out of your own pocket, and even the banks are hard to loan you.
So governments may not exactly innocent for properties being handed off to foreigners and the AirBnB-fication of tourist destinations.