http://www.theedgeproperty.com.sg/co...tals-here-stay

Ready or not, short-term rentals here to stay
By Lin Zhiqin / The Edge Property | May 20, 2016 9:00 AM MYT
Tags: Condo/ApartmentRentingHousing Policy

The number of Airbnb listings in Singapore has nearly tripled from 2,254 to 6,208 over the last year, according to Airdna, which provides analytics on Airbnb rentals, as more people turn to "sharing economy" sites for short-term rentals.

The growing popularity of sites such as Airbnb is inevitable, given the benefits they provide consumers and home owners. A June 2015 study by The Edge Property estimated that short-term rental landlords would need to rent out their units for only about 20 days a month to net the same revenue as regular landlords. Data from Airdna tells the same story. Top performing Airbnb rental properties fetched average monthly revenue ranging from $3,418 for studio units to $10,230 for units with four or more bedrooms. These properties could fetch between 31% and 84% more revenue compared with a typical long-term rental contract (see chart).

Given the lucrativeness of the Airbnb model, and softening rental market, more landlords are turning to short-term rents to generate rental income. The surge in the number of Airbnb listings despite the existing URA guideline points to the fact that landlords are willing to take the risk in exchange for a slice of the sharing economy pie.

http://www.theedgeproperty.com.sg/co...tals-here-stay