Newly-registered South African Airbnb hosts collectively earned over R115 million in income between January and September 2022, according to new data from the online accommodation booking platform.
Airbnb says South African homeowners have been flocking to register their homes on the home-sharing platform, as the rising cost-of-living leads to a new wave of people considering hosting for the first time.
Newly-registered homes in SA and across the globe on Airbnb are getting booked almost immediately, with half of listings activated and booked in Q3 2022 receiving their first reservation within three days, it notes.
The global aviation industry was among the worst hit by COVID-19 lockdowns, with all travel and tourism sectors reporting massive losses, as a result of closed borders and travel restrictions.
As the industry steadily returns to a post-pandemic period, Airbnb says domestic and short-distance travel continues to be strong.
“About 15% of South African hosts that became active last January went on to become ‘superhosts’ by September, with the average new host earning an estimated R8 350 over the same period,” says the company.
“We may only be a few weeks into the new year, but many soon-to-be hosts are wasting no time listing their homes in 2023. Our 2023 hosts are joining the ongoing travel resurgence and new economic opportunities for communities, as well as new hosts looking to earn extra income,” says the company in a statement.
The home-sharing platform has over the past few years received backlash from users who complained about deceptive property descriptions, doctored images and fraudulent activity from hosts.
In response, the company said it is constantly taking steps to protect Airbnb's integrity and mitigate the risks and losses associated with fraud, scams and abuse by taking action against violators.
While the company is not revealing its local user and host numbers, it points out that since the beginning of the pandemic, over 60 million unique visitors have visited Airbnb’s host page, with over 40% of those visiting in the last year.
According to Airbnb’s November 2022 report, the company is witnessing increased growth after a significant slowdown during the pandemic. Last year, a typical host in South Africa earned more than R25 400 and total host earnings globally increased by 30% in 2022 Q3, compared to the same time the previous year.
The uptake, according to Airbnb, was partly boosted by the introduction of Airbnb Setup last year.
The feature enables new hosts to access one-to-one guidance from a superhost, providing the opportunity to have an experienced guest for their first booking and specialised support from Airbnb Community Support agents.
New Airbnb host Benita, from the Western Cape, says: “My daughter moved out of the house to go to Theatre School in Cape Town and this created the opportunity for us to convert her space into an Airbnb listing.
“I think we’re all noticing the rising cost of living and having the additional income has certainly helped us pay bills and other everyday costs. Setting up the listing was so easy and we had our first booking four hours after we went live. We are so excited, and it is doing so well that we are planning to set up two units soon.”
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