Occupancy levels, average daily rate and revenue per
available room changes have favored short-term rentals over hotels during the Covid-19
pandemic, according to STR and short-term rentals analytics company AirDNA. The
two companies conducted an analysis of the lodging types using weekly data from
Jan. 1, 2019 through June 27, 2020.
The companies analyzed 27 global markets, with accommodations
divided into three categories: traditional hotels, hotel-comparable short-term
rentals (studios and one-bedroom units) and larger short-term rentals (two
bedrooms or more). These were further divided into 15 urban markets and 12
regional markets.
Findings show that for the week ending March 28, 2020, hotel
occupancy bottomed out at 17.5 percent, while short-term rentals reached a low
of 34.3 percent. In terms of declines compared with the week of March 31, 2019,
hotel occupancy declined 77.3 percent year over year, while hotel-comparable and
two-bedrooms-plus short-term rentals were down 45.1 percent and 46.2 percent,
respectively. For ADR, the declines were 50.4 percent for traditional hotels,
and 11.6 percent and 6.4 percent for the two types of short-term rentals.
Urban and regional markets showed similar weekly occupancy
changes from the prior year for the end of March comparisons: urban and
regional hotel occupancies were down 78 percent and 79 percent, respectively.
Hotel-comparable urban and regional rentals were down 45 percent and 46
percent, with the two-bedrooms-plus urban and regional rentals declined 47
percent and 46 percent, respectively.
Factors behind the greater effect of the pandemic on hotels
included the cancellation of many business meetings, conferences and other
events, the report noted. Given the hotel sector's reliance on demand from
group and business travel compared to the short-term rentals sector, "this
had an unequal impact on hotel occupancy." Another factor was that hotel
travelers still traveling during the pandemic migrated toward midscale and
economy class segments, which led to a decline in ADR.
The report also cites the ability of short-term rentals to
make social distancing easier given the availability of larger units and entire
homes, as well as inventory in more rural and remote vacation markets. Further,
most short-term rentals offer full-service amenities like kitchens and living
space, which allow for longer-term stays.
Both traditional hotels and short-term rentals have seen
their numbers begin to recover in since the low points of late March, but the
report noted that it's difficult to predict whether this will be long lasting
given recent spikes of the virus in certain markets. Still, short-term rentals
are closer to pre-Covid-19 levels in RevPAR than hotels, at least as of June
21. The year-over-year weekly RevPAR change for short-term rentals was down 4.5
percent to $165.35, compared with hotels down 64.8 percent to $115.83.