They say a man’s home is his castle. That’s one of the reasons I’m building a moat. But while I’m waiting for my permit to come through, I’ll settle for security cams, motion detectors, and concertina barbed wire. I may even build a great, big, beautiful wall. That’s my general reaction to the new trend where people try to make a few bucks by renting out parts of their abode to strangers. It’s like AirBNB without either of the Bs. “Sniffspot is among the latest start-ups designed to help homeowners capitalize on every inch of their properties. While vacation apps like Airbnb and Vrbo have long dominated the market with conventional home rentals, newer ones have crashed the party with specialized offerings — like Swimply, where homeowners rent out their pools by the hour, and Splacer and Peerspace, which turn living rooms into party venues. The uses vary, but the underlying concept is the same: A homeowner creates a profile on an app, uploads a few photographs, and presumably the bookings roll in.” NYT (Gift Article): Your Backyard Is Actually a Lucrative Private Dog Park — if You Say It Is. I say it isn’t. But this does make me feel less weird about charging my kids rent.