Airbnb crackdown a windfall for NYC hotels

Business is booming for New York City's hotels, and the city's recent crackdown on short-term rentals may be a driving force

In December, New York saw the highest occupancy rate among the top 25 U.S. markets, reaching 86.6%, per STR. This coincided with a sharp decline in short-term rental availability, dropping from around 13,500 listings in August to under 3,000 in December.

Key takeaways

• Jan Freitag, STR's senior VP of lodging insights, noted the correlation, citing a "very strong performance" for New York in December, the first full month of enforcement for short-term rental regulations;
• Even after the holiday season, New York's hotels maintained momentum. During the first 20 days of January, the city's hotels saw a 6% increase in average daily rate (ADR) compared to the previous year, surpassing the national average ADR growth of 3.1% over the same period;
• Airbnb has criticized New York's short-term rental strategy, pointing out that hotel prices are "at an all-time high" and suggesting that anticipated benefits for housing affordability and availability have not materialized.

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