The figure reported on a 1099-K (1a) can represent a plethora of types of income, some of which are not even taxable.
For example, the payment could simply be a gift that was processed through the likes of an app such as Venmo or Zelle.
Moreover, merely because the payment is processed through VRBO or AirBnB does not necessarily indicate that the rental income is reportable on Schedule C. There are numerous rentals through both sites where "services" are not provided and/or the rental periods are for longer than a day or a week or even a month.
In addition, the figure reported on a 1099-K could be of the type that would be reported as miscellaneous income not subject to self-employment tax (such as hobby income) or the sale of personal-use items that would be reported on Form 8949 (as the sale of capital assets).
Finally, note that a figure reported on a 1099-K is the gross amount of the payment processed without reduction for refunds, exchanges, etc. Therefore, a taxpayer could receive, for example, a 1099-K that shows $1,000 despite the fact that the taxpayer refunded 100% of the $1,000.
This is going to be a colossal mess for a lot of taxpayers and I would not be surprised in the least if adjustments in the law and/or regulations are made in the future.
