15 April 2025: New research from the University of Canberra shows that short-term rental owners and users are rarely property moguls and often not tourists, instead compromising diverse groups ranging from soon-to-be retirees to women fleeing domestic violence.
A new research project, led by University of Canberra academic Professor Naomi Dale in collaboration with Activate Consulting and Hornsby and Co, investigates the relationship between short-term rentals (STR) and housing affordability and availability across 18 local government areas (LGAs) in Australia.
The interim report, Short-term rentals in Australia, released this week, finds that a growing number of people are renting out their primary residence to keep up with rising cost-of-living pressures.
“It was a small but growing cohort – this group is using STR to either earn supplementary income or increasingly, to help cover rising mortgage and living costs,” Professor Dale said.
“This cohort were more likely to be women or retirees, people who are just trying to survive, or who own family homes that they can’t relinquish.”
The report found that in most LGAs, STR are seen as having little to no impact on housing availability and affordability – an issue instead attributed to a convergence of factors including population growth, planning policies, lack of land release and housing supply, COVID-19 impacts and vacant housing.
Instead, STR were seen as creating local employment ecosystems and providing other social benefits, which go largely unreported in larger debates around Australian housing affordability. For example, up to 40 percent of STR use was associated with accommodation for temporary key workers, people accessing medical or hospital treatment and emergency accommodation for insurance clients.
The STR rental sector also provides flexible employment and income opportunities for vulnerable groups including women, retirees, migrant workers and neurodiverse individuals.
“Other than three LGAs, the research finds that short-term rental users are largely not leisure visitors, and STR owners are largely not property moguls,” Professor Dale said.
The findings indicate that policies and proposals for STR sector regulation will largely fall short of their goals – such as encouraging more owners to list their properties for long term rentals.
Professor Dale said that across the six broad types of STR owners identified, it was uncommon to see property owners switch between STR and long-term rentals.
“Many STR owners were soon-to-be retirees or other people who owned the homes with the intention of moving into them in future,” Professor Dale said.
“These owners were dissuaded from switching to long-term rentals due to laws that largely favour renter rights, which may prevent them from moving into them when they need to.”
The research raises questions around short-term rental policy and regulatory interventions.
“Areas like the ACT are looking to enact a 5 percent levy on STR bookings made through third party apps such as Airbnb, but if, implemented, it’s unlikely that this will see more properties enter the long-term rental or housing market.”
To read the full report, visit; Short-term rentals in Australia - University of Canberra.
Photo by Jandrie Lombard.