Proving flexibility is key with short-stay

It will come as no surprise to learn the number of short-term rental listings in the City of Melbourne is on the rise.

Following a period of dormancy due to a global pandemic, short-stay listings jumped by 37 per cent over a 12-month period to 5051 listings in April, according to AirDNA data.

Lara Moro, Partner – Short Stay at property and financial advisory firm, The Hopkins Group, told Southbank News the appeal of flexibility and steady rental yields were key contributors to the growth.

“What we are seeing is what we call ‘lifestyle investment’. Owners may live down the coast or regionally, but they still need income to cover the cost of owners’ corporation (OC) fees and other expenses … short staying the property can pay that off,” Ms Moro said.

“What short-stay rentals have revolutionised is providing owners with the opportunity and flexibility to rent their property for a period of time if they decide to go on vacation, to their holiday homes or even deciding to sell the property.”

According to Ms Moro, another incentive to short-stay apartments is a greater rental yield compared to long-term tenancies.

“Typically, the net-net figure, minus agent and OC fees and other expenses, for long-term traditional rentals will return 2 per cent on the investment for the year,” she said.

By short staying your apartment or property, you will likely see double that figure, with our numbers indicating a return of four per cent per annum.

“As The Hopkins Group offers both short stay and long-term traditional rental management services, we are able to provide impartial advice for clients to determine whether it is best for the owner to short-stay the property or to rent out their property as a long-term rental.”

Dispelling rumours or anxieties with short-stay listings both for owners, neighbours and tenants, is an everyday task for Ms Moro and her team.

By short-staying properties with The Hopkins Group, Ms Moro explained that clients were mitigating the risks sometimes associated with short-term rentals like nightmare tenants or unruly parties.

“There is no myth. Issues can arise from short-stays, but they can also happen in a tenanted apartment as well,” she said. “The great thing about our organisation, and short stays in general, is we have a lot more control.”

“With short-stay, you have the right to evict guests if they go against the short-stay policy, and by having a professional management company like The Hopkins Group, it means we can professionally manage and vet who comes in.”

“We have bespoke strategies tailored to the purpose of the property. For luxury properties and holiday homes to our owners, we might choose to only use limited platforms like Airbnb to be able to carefully vet and control who can stay. For our investor properties, we would have maximum exposure through all the online booking platforms.” •