Kiwi homeowners earn hundreds of thousands of dollars renting out their houses on Airbnb

Friday, 1 December 2017

Owners of some Kiwi homes on Airbnb are scoring big, with their houses raking in a third of a million dollars a year.

The highest-earning New Zealand homes on the peer-to-peer rental website are in top tourist locations and are rented out most nights of the year, according to research website AirDNA.

One fancy three-bedroom Queenstown house with mountain and lake views has brought in its owner $344,000 in the past year, at an average daily rate of $1200. 

Reviewers on Airbnb – a global website with mainly private homes and rooms available for people to rent – describe the house as 'amazing' with 'breathtaking' and 'spectacular' views.

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Another house in the resort town, rented out at $2800 a night, has earned $337,000 in a year. Several others were also making more than $250,000.

Competition from Airbnb and similar fast-growing websites has caused concern in the accommodation industry worldwide. United States-based Airbnb boasts more than 4 million homes and rooms in nearly 200 countries on its site and 260 million guest arrivals during its 10-year history.

Some overseas cities have introduced regulations controlling the length of stay or requiring owners to file reports or obtain licenses.

An estimated 14 per cent of homes in the Queenstown district were occupied by Airbnb users and the Queenstown Lakes District Council has proposed requiring those rented for more than a set number or weeks to obtain consents.

Auckland Council is considering widening a tax levied on hotels and motels to those Airbnb properties rented out frequently.

Besides big-earning Queenstown, location homes making big returns for owners include Auckland and Christchurch, according to AirDNA.

Auckland's top earner is a five-bedroom villa in the upmarket suburb of Newmarket. Rented out at $1000 a night, it has brought in $169,000 in a year.

Second is a three-bedroom waterfront apartment on Princes Wharf, rented out at $1500 a night and earning its owner $143,000 a year. Next is a St Heliers house bringing in $143,000 a year at $510 a night.

In Christchurch, the best-performing homes are bringing in close to $150,000 a year.

The top earner is a one-bedroom glass house near Little River, half an hour from the city, which earned $149,000. The home, described as chic, sleeps two and has a nightly charge-out rate of $490.

Second most lucrative is a five bedroom house on the Lyttelton hillside, earning $146,000 a year at a rate of $750 a night, followed by a Riccarton house making $102,000 and one on the hill above McCormacks Bay bringing in $95,000.

Wellington's top-earning property, a five-bedroom house on the hill above Houghton Bay with views of Cook Strait, earned $163,000 at a rate of $598 a night.

That is followed by a three-bedroom central city apartment returning $109,000 and an Oriental Bay home returning $93,000.

Auckland has the country's most homes and rooms on Airbnb with 7750, followed by Wellington with 2450, Christchurch with 2100 and Queenstown with 1200. Tauranga has 890, Rotorua 725, Dunedin 710 and the Coromandel district 660.

Average daily rentals for homes were $334 in Queenstown, $169 in Wellington, $165 in Auckland and $143 in Christchurch.

Peak season is January and February in most parts of the country and winter in Queenstown.