Short-term rentals rising nationally, but Detroit host income below average
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Detroit Airbnb hosts made 50% less than the typical host in the U.S. last year, according to company figures shared with Axios.
Why it matters: Renting out a home is a growing way to bank extra income as the cost of living goes up, Axios' Sami Sparber reports.
- But the practice — which has stoked controversy for how it impacts the areas where rentals open — isn't quite as fruitful in Detroit as it is in the U.S. at large.
What's happening: The national short-term rental supply reached record levels in 2022, swelling 20% year-over-year to 1.3 million listings, per new data from AirDNA, a short-term rental analysis firm.
By the numbers: The typical host in Detroit earned approximately $7,000 in 2022, compared with the national median of $14,000, per Airbnb data.
- Michigan's top five counties where hosts made the most money last year were in the U.P., northern Lower Peninsula and west side of the state: Alger, Allegan, Berrien, Marquette and Van Buren counties.
Zoom in: Detroit hosts aren't making a killing like in some other parts of the country. But from the visitor perspective, there are ample options — from a $309-a-night mansion with a game room and grill in Boston-Edison that sleeps 12 to an $84-a-night guest suite in North Rosedale Park.
Plus, Airbnb affords visitors more options to stay outside downtown than the city's hotels clustered in the central business district.
- The majority of Detroit's Census tracts (60%) had at least one Airbnb listing but no hotels as of last year, with 65,000 total guests staying in those areas last year, Axios' Alex Fitzpatrick reports.
Yes, but: Airbnb's presence outside traditional tourism areas, like on residential streets, is controversial. Hosts are sometimes accused of effectively reducing the supply of local housing and thus driving up prices.
Flashback: A former Detroit City Council member proposed legislation in 2019 to try and limit the impact of short-term rentals on the city's neighborhoods. Concerns included noise and nuisances from Airbnb and other similar units, as well as taking up highly needed affordable housing.
- But there's been no substantial movement on the proposal recently.
- Other municipalities in northern Michigan have taken action in recent years to limit short-term rentals, Crain's Detroit reported.
- The state legislature has debated whether or not to prohibit local bans on short-term rentals, per MLive.