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Airbnb investors reap from rise in occupancy and leasing fees
Operators of short-term rental properties will be required to register with the Tourism Regulatory Authority (TRA) effective immediately. PHOTO | SHUTTERSTOCK
Kenyan homeowners with properties listed on the short-term house rental platform Airbnb earned a monthly average of Sh42,795.4 ($298) in the 10 months to July amid rising lease fees.
Data from vacation rental research firm AirDNA shows the monthly revenue grew from Sh30,157.8 ($210) in October last year –when the occupancy rate was at 19 per cent— to Sh52,417.2 ($365) in July 2023.
The occupancy rate more than doubled in the five months to July aided by the increased travel and spending by Kenyans.
The average daily cost of leasing Nairobi homes through the short-term house rental platform Airbnb rose from $44 (Sh6,318.8) in September last year to over $48 (Sh6,893.2) in December 2023.
The daily rate is the average cost of nightly bookings plus cleaning fees.
“The median monthly revenue (nightly rate and cleaning fees) earned over the past 12 months. This revenue figure represents the past 12 months and does not include taxes, service fees or additional guest fees,” added AirDNA.
Airbnb is popular among travellers seeking affordable accommodation, convenient location and household amenities.
The service offers spaces to travellers looking for a place to stay. They can rent a space for multiple people to share, private rooms, or the entire property for themselves.
Most of the properties listed on Airbnb are located in middle-class locations within Nairobi, including Kilimani, Parklands, Kileleshwa, Westlands, Lavington, Yaya and Valley Arcade.
Samra Apartments with 49 listed properties was ranked the best property manager followed by Destination Africa Limited with 29 listings and Day One premium with 13 rentals was third.
Property managers were ranked based on ratings and reviews from searching tourists.
The data revealed listings from Samra and Destination Africa fell four per cent and 15 per cent respectively in the last 12 months.
Last year, Nairobi homeowners had 10,902 active rentals on Airbnb with over 8,000 listings of entire homes and about two thousand are private rooms according to AirDNA.
“Active rentals are those that had at least one reserved or available day in the last month,” said AirDNA.
Amenities offered on the listed AirBnBs include air conditioning, parking, internet, cable TV, a kitchen, a swimming pool, a hot tub, a washer, heating and a dryer among others.
