Most cities saw continued growth in short-term rentals from May to June, with the exception of the cities that are cracking down on vacation rental properties, according to the AllTheRooms.com Vacation Rental Index.
Total short-term property counts dropped 10.4% in Chicago and 4.5% in New Orleans. The two cities now have laws requiring Airbnb, HomeAway and other vacation rental service hosts to register with the city.
Recently, New Orleans cracked down on Airbnb rentals, sending out more than 400 notices of short-term rental infractions since May 1. While the city is still struggling to enforce the new ordinances, it seems the crackdown might be working to keep vacation rentals off the market.
The drop in short-term rentals is the second monthly decline in Chicago but the first in New Orleans.
Each month, AllTheRooms.com, an accommodations search engine, tracks vacation rental volume, price and booking trends in the top 50 cities around the world and the top 25 cities in the U.S. The index identifies the hottest vacation rental markets, along with trends in accommodation count and type, median rate, and availability based on live data from leading vacation rental websites, such as Airbnb, VRBO, HomeAway and TripAdvisor.
“Chicago and New Orleans stand out among very few cities in the U.S. and internationally that are showing monthly declines in listings,” AllTheRooms.com Co-founder and CEO Joe Ditomaso said. “It’s no coincidence that both cities have recently passed legislation requiring hosts to register, and, in the case of New Orleans, receive a license to rent their home.”
“Whether this will be a short-term blip or a longer-term trend remains to be seen, but it is an important indicator for what kinds of initial impacts new vacation rental legislation can have on the bourgeoning marketplace,” Ditomaso said.
