Is Airbnb Jacking Up Your Own Rent?

photo of an apartment building
Does this building harbour short term rentals? Unlike hotels, it's difficult to tell.

So you don’t really care that Airbnb and similar online room and apartment booking agencies are putting strangers in your apartment building, giving your neighbour a few extra bucks.

But as a renter, you should realize that the sheer volume of these bookings is actually reducing housing availability in many cities. When rental housing becomes more scarce, long term rents increase across the city, including YOUR long term rent.

A recent study by McGill University estimated that in New York City, STRs (Short Term Rentals) increase long term rents in New York City by about half a percent a year. That’s a yearly increase of $144 on a $2400/mo apartment.

But not all STRs are created equal. Some take housing off the market. Others don’t. Now many cities are trying to sort out the baddies from the goodies.

For more on how cities in general, and one in particular, are curtailing STRs that make housing more unaffordable, read in PEW Charitable Trusts: Cities Tell Airbnb to Make Room for Affordable Housing

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.