[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] Bloomberg reported on the 18th (local time) that the surge in short-term rental housing, such as Airbnb, in New York, USA, is making it more difficult for actual residents to find homes.
According to the communication's own data tracker (AirDNA) survey, the number of short-term rental homes registered in the five boroughs of New York through Airbnb and Vrbo, a lodging platform of the Expedia Group, exceeded 22,000.
According to the April report by Manhattan real estate brokerage Douglas Elliman, the rental inventory in parts of Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens is slightly over 7,500 units.
In Manhattan, the median rent for new lease contracts last month soared to $3,870, continuing its upward trend. This is a 6.2% increase from March, one month earlier, and a 39% rise compared to a year ago.
Manhattan's vacancy rate is 1.55%, the second lowest ever after 2014. This figure was close to 12% in early last year. The number of general apartments available on the rental market was 4,709, a significant decrease compared to 20,743 units the previous year.
Some market insiders point out that Airbnb's business model is making it difficult to find homes in cities popular with tourists. While Airbnb focuses on short-term rentals centered around cities, its competitor Vrbo places more emphasis on vacation homes.
In New York City, some restrictions on short-term rentals have been strengthened, requiring platforms like Airbnb to share hosting and listing data with the city if they intend to rent homes for less than 30 days.
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