Salt Lake City's Airbnb hosts are making a killing
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Salt Lake City Airbnb hosts made 11% more than the typical host nationwide last year, according to company figures shared with Axios.
Why it matters: Renting out your home is one way to bank extra income as the cost of living goes up, Axios' Sami Sparber writes.
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.
Zoom in: Rocky Donati and her husband listed their Park City treehouse on Airbnb in 2019 and a two-story cabin in 2021. The treehouse eventually became the most wish-listed Airbnb in the state and both properties are booked 365 nights a year.
- "It is a very active involvement if you want to be successful," Donati told Axios, adding she and her husband, who each work full-time jobs, spend 20 to 30 hours a week maintaining their Airbnb properties.
- Donati said about 70% of her clients are from the Salt Lake area looking for a short-distance getaway to celebrate an anniversary or birthday.
By the numbers: In 2021, Salt Lake County had 3,420 short-term rentals, fewer than 1% of the county's housing units, per a University of Utah Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute analysis.
The big picture: Vacation rental hosts are expecting a surge in demand this summer. According to a recent survey from Vrbo, 69% of host respondents expect occupancy to be the same or higher than last summer.
- Also, 9 out of 10 say their rates this summer will either be the same or higher.
- "Two-thirds of hosts tell us they're covering their entire mortgage payment with rental income through Vrbo," company spokesperson Melanie Fish says.
By the numbers: The typical host in Salt Lake City earned approximately $15,500 in 2022, compared to the national median of $14,000, per Airbnb data.
- Grand, Wayne and Garfield were the highest-earning Utah counties for hosts last year.
- Daggett and Kane counties rounded out the top five.
- Pro tip: Vrbo hosts can use this resource to help calculate potential earnings.
Be smart: Salt Lake City does not currently have specific land use regulations for short-term rentals. In general, the city categorizes Airbnbs and Vrbos as hotels, motels or bed-and-breakfasts, which are typically not allowed in residential zoning districts.
What we're watching: Some apartment dwellers can also get in on hosting. Last year, Airbnb announced a new listing service for rental units in partnership with big-name landlords, the Wall Street Journal reported.