Investors may decide to switch from ‘Airbnb model’ to longer-term tenure, says La Trobe academic
Australia’s shrinking rental housing market may be an unexpected ‘beneficiary’ of losses caused by the Covid-19 crisis to tourism property investments in short-term accommodation, a La Trobe University academic has said.
Myfan Jordan, a member of the university’s health ageing group and director of social innovation with independent Melbourne think tank Per Capita, suggests the health risks of short-term holiday rentals may motivate investors to switch to a more stable market.
In a policy brief that looks at changes to Australia’s rental market, Jordan says that more than 350,000 houses are listed as Airbnb rentals. This has had a significant impact on home rental availability in local communities and has been linked to an increase in homelessness in some areas.
“Beyond the immediate impact of coronavirus on tourism in Australia, it’s possible the increased risks in the holiday lettings market may provide the impetus to align the interests of landlords and tenants around longer-term tenure,” she writes.
“Letting through digital platforms with access to a global market of tourists has brought high-rent, low-risk dividends for people with investment properties. The coronavirus pandemic, however, is revealing cracks in the foundations of the holiday-letting model.”
The policy brief is part of a Per Capita series called Home for Good. It calls for “a rethink” of Australia’s rental housing system, including financial incentives for landlords to “eschew the higher returns of the Airbnb model for the relative stability of residential tenancies”.