"We want you to be able to have privacy on the go," said CEO Manny Bamfo.
[Ads /]
Bamfo says hourly rental rates run from $20 to $125 . The service is not just for travelers who need a place to crash between meetings. It also caters to people who live and work in San Francisco.
Mimi Fan is a Recharge host who is recharging her wallet. Fan is renting out a spare bedroom in her home during the day.
"The house is empty it's not being utilized," said Fan.
Fan's room rents for $30 an hour. She gets 80 percent of that and puts the money towards her mortgage.
[Ads /]
"It's not cheap living in San Francisco," said Fan.
Fan makes approximately $2,500 a month because she manages and cleans her own home. Hosts who want Recharge to manage and clean their property make approximately $500 a month.
Unlike Airbnb, the rooms cannot be rented for overnight stays.
In an emailed statement, the San Francisco Planning Department Communications Manager Gina Simi wrote to ABC7 News, "Short Term Rental (41A) regulations don't apply in this case; however, we haven't been able to thoroughly analyze this particular type of operation. The Planning Department will need to take a closer look to determine if there are any Code issues, whether they might be Planning or another agency."
"People always like to say oh this must be for rock and roll this must be for people partying in the rooms and we just don't see that," said Bamfo.
[Ads /]
Bamfo says Recharge goes to tremendous lengths to review customers and hosts though he would not specify how.
"The only issue we have is that we need more homes," said Bamfo.
There is a more than 1,600person waitlist to get on the platform.
As of 4 p.m., 91 percent of 159 people who voted in an ABC7 News Twitter Poll said they wouldn't be down with renting out their room by the hour. 9% said they would.