A decline in listings for short rentals in region

Fires, regulations and mid-term demand are thought to be driving the downward trend.

- BY JACK FLEMMING

TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA AFP/Getty Images AIRBNB has pointed to a rise in mid-length bookings, a trend that mirrors changing demand in Los Angeles.

For the last four years, Katherine Taylor rented out her Westside guesthouse on Airbnb. She came to rely on the extra income at a time when it felt like everything was getting more expensive.

But this spring, she took the listing down.

“I'm out,” Taylor said. “The rules are too much. All these new regulations kept popping up, and it felt like it was only a matter of time before I got fined.”

Across the L.A. region, many people who rent out their homes for income seem to be changing their preferences. Short-term rentals are much more lucrative than longer stays, but the steady turnover often creates headaches for landlords, and increasingly they are in the crosshairs of local ordinances, including the risk of fines.

Because of this and other factors, short-term rental registrations have dipped over the last year.

Last July, there were 4,228 active Home Sharing registrations in the city of L.A., according to the Planning Department. This July, there were 3,972 — a 6% decrease.

Short-term rental software platforms show a decrease in listings as well, to varying degrees. In analyzing a sample set of short-term rentals in the L.A. metro area, Hospitable estimated a 44% drop in listings year over year, with steady declines each month. AllTheRooms reported a 13% drop in Airbnb listings across L.A. County over the same stretch.

The data sources vary, since companies have different access to listing data. AirDNA reported an 8% increase in Airbnb and VRBO listings in the L.A. metro area over the last year, but noted a decrease since January fueled by big drops in fire markets: a 56% decrease in Altadena, 36% decrease in Pacific Palisades and 25% decrease in Malibu.