LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — For weeks, 13 Action News has been warning locals and tourists about a rental car shortage, both here in Las Vegas and across the country. Now, there's an app that's benefiting from that shortage by connecting car owners and renters in need.
Often called the Airbnb for cars, Turo claims it is the world's largest car-sharing marketplace. The app provides people with a platform to rent a vehicle or become a host and rent their own vehicles.
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When David Sapper first found out about Turo, he started by renting a single vehicle. Now, he has a full fleet of his own and can't keep them on the lot, in large part thanks to the pandemic.
"We've got 50 cars, roughly, and it's just slammed. If I had 100, they'd all be gone too, so it's busy. As the rental car companies liquidated their fleets, it just took off like wildfire. The demand is insane. Every car you see here, even though it's here, it just got dropped off and it's getting cleaned, and getting ready to go back out," said Sapper.
Turo hosts can rent out as many vehicles as they'd like, but they have to pay a percentage of their profits to Turo.
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"Turo is great because it lets you grow at your pace. To start a business from scratch takes a ton of money. To start Turo, you can start with a $5,000 car, or put a $10,000 car on, put a car you already have a payment on. So you can sort of grow at your own income level and pace," said Sapper.
Now, thanks to a rental car shortage, Sapper says his business is booming and there's plenty of room for more Turo hosts in Las Vegas.
"Do a lot of research. Jump on -- there are a lot of Facebook groups and stuff like that -- and learn. But I'd 100% recommend it. We do real estate and nothing has the ROI [return on investment] of this. You put $200,000 in a house right now in Vegas, you can rent it for $1,200 a month. You put $200,000 into Turo, you can make $10,000 a month," said Sapper.
If you'd like to learn more about Turo, click this link.
