STR Data Lab™ by AirDNA

The short-term rental industry is entering a promising new chapter, but changing platform policies, shifting traveler preferences, and economic uncertainty mean hosts and property managers need to stay ahead of the curve. With Airbnb, Expedia, and Booking.com reporting stronger-than-expected Q3 results, demand accelerating faster than supply, and new Airbnb house rules taking effect November 20, t...

Everyone in the short-term rental industry is talking about direct bookings, but how much effort should you actually put into getting them? While reducing dependence on Airbnb and Vrbo sounds great in theory, building a profitable direct booking strategy takes more than just launching a website. It requires the right marketing channels, a recognizable brand, and a clear understanding of the econom...

What if you could grow your short-term rental business without growing your team? AI agents are rapidly changing how property managers handle guest communications, coordinate operations, and scale their portfolios — potentially reshaping the entire industry. But with new technology emerging every week, which tools are worth keeping, what can you automate, and where does the human touch still matte...

What happens when one of the biggest names in short-term rental property management faces major financial challenges? For Vacasa, the answer was a dramatic transformation that could reshape how the industry operates. In this episode of The STR Data Lab , Jamie Lane, Chief Economist at AirDNA, sits down with Joe Riley, CEO of Casago, to unpack the acquisition and rapid transition of Vacasa’s proper...

After several challenging years for short-term rental operators, are things finally starting to turn around? In this episode of The STR Data Lab, AirDNA’s Chief Economist Jamie Lane and Bram Gallagher break down September’s STR performance data and explore what slowing supply growth, improving occupancy, and stronger nightly rates mean for hosts, property managers, and investors heading into the h...

The short-term rental industry is entering a new era—and the old playbook for growth may no longer work. In this milestone 200th episode of The STR Data Lab recorded live at the VRMA conference, AirDNA Chief Economist Jamie Lane takes a data-driven look at where the industry stands today, from slowing supply growth and stabilizing occupancy to shifting traveler demand and a challenging housing mar...

What happens when a vacation rental executive who has experienced the industry at virtually every level decides to go back to the basics? In this episode of The STR Data Lab, Jamie Lane sits down with Bob Milne, CEO and President of First Chair Destinations, to unpack decades of lessons from building, scaling, and reshaping vacation rental management businesses. From running thousands of homes in...

The U.S. short-term rental market may look weaker at first glance—but the latest data tells a more nuanced story. In this episode of The STR Data Lab, Jamie Lane and Bram Gallagher unpack August performance and explain why headline declines in demand and occupancy don't tell the whole story. A calendar shift around Labor Day significantly affected year-over-year comparisons, while underlying d...

Doubling your property management portfolio is one thing. Doubling it while maintaining top-tier guest reviews is another. In this episode of The STR Data Lab, Jamie Lane sits down with returning guests Joe and Max Bachmeier, whose property management business grew from roughly 120 to 260 listings in just 12 months—while remaining among the highest-rated property managers in the country. They brea...

What does it take to scale a property management business without sacrificing the guest experience? For Steve and Kim Resnick, co-founders of HeavenlyRez and AirDNA’s 2026 #1 Property Managers, the answer starts with one principle: hospitality comes first . What began with managing their own Ocean City, New Jersey vacation rental evolved into a 100+ property operation built around five-star review...

Revenue management is getting faster, smarter, and more accessible—but building the next generation of pricing technology comes with a surprising challenge: how do you get operators to trust the numbers? In this episode of The STR Data Lab, Chief Economist Jamie Lane sits down with AirDNA’s Data Science Manager Marc Moreno and Senior Product Manager Jordon Myers to go behind the scenes of building...

The short-term rental industry is entering a new phase—and the old playbook of growth at all costs may no longer be the answer. In this episode of The STR Data Lab , Jamie Lane sits down with Annie Holcombe and Alex Husner, to unpack how the industry has evolved, what operators have learned from the post-COVID growth boom, and why professionalism isn't necessarily about managing hundreds of proper...

The way travelers discover short-term rentals is changing—and the biggest shift may be happening before they ever visit Airbnb, Vrbo, or a property manager’s website. In this episode of The STR Data Lab , AirDNA Chief Economist Jamie Lane sits down with Jason Cincotta, co-founder of Kismet, to unpack how AI-powered search is reshaping travel discovery, how much revenue it may already be influencin...

The U.S. short-term rental market is showing surprising strength—even as the broader economy sends mixed signals. In this episode of The STR Data Lab , Jamie Lane and Bram Gallagher break down July’s performance and explore what’s really driving growth across the STR market. U.S. RevPAR jumped 7.2% in July , with ADR emerging as the biggest contributor, while occupancy also moved into positive yea...

Did the FIFA World Cup live up to the hype for short-term rental hosts—or did the headlines get it wrong? After months of tracking booking trends, pricing, and occupancy across all 16 host cities, Jamie Lane sits down with AirDNA Senior Research Analyst Linda Rollins and Kansas City Short-Term Rental Alliance leader Susan Brown to separate fact from fiction. They unpack what actually happened duri...

What is your short-term rental business really worth—and more importantly, what are buyers actually looking for right now? In this episode of The STR Data Lab , CEO of AirDNA Rohit Bezewada sits down with C2G Advisors' Managing Partner Jacobie Olin. They unpack the realities behind today’s M&A market for property managers, cutting through the noise of tech buzzwords and surface-level metri...

The first half of 2026 is in the books—and the latest data is telling a much stronger story than many expected. In this episode of The STR Data Lab, AirDNA CEO Rohit sits down with economist Bram Gallagher to break down June’s performance, the impact of the FIFA World Cup on short-term rentals, and why existing hosts may be entering one of the strongest competitive positions they've seen in ye...

What happens when the biggest trends shaping short-term rentals don't come from within the industry at all? In this special midyear outlook, Jamie Lane and Bram Gallagher unpack the economic forces influencing STR performance—from inflation and interest rates to international travel and changing consumer behavior—and explain what hosts and property managers should be watching for during the se...

Is now still a smart time to invest in short-term rentals—or has the opportunity already passed? In this episode of The STR Data Lab , AirDNA CEO Rohit sits down with John Bianchi, better known as the Airbnb Data Guy, to unpack the data-driven framework that's helped identify more than 400 profitable STR investments. From finding resilient markets to evaluating deals and designing properties t...

What does it take to survive—and thrive—through 15 years of nonstop change in the short-term rental industry? In this episode of The STR Data Lab, AirDNA Chief Economist Jamie Lane sits down with Brian Egan, Co-Founder and CEO of Evolve, to unpack the evolution of one of the industry's earliest and most influential companies. From launching before Airbnb became a household name to navigating COVID...

What if your next hire wasn’t a person—but an AI employee that never sleeps, never misses a task, and proactively manages your business? As labor costs rise and operational complexity grows, short-term rental operators are looking for new ways to scale without sacrificing guest experience. In this episode of The STR Data Lab, AirDNA Chief Economist Jamie Lane sits down with Bill Ulammandakh, forme...

After a slow and uneven start to the year, short-term rental performance is finally showing signs of life. In this episode of The STR Data Lab , Jamie Lane and Bram Gallagher break down the latest data—and what it really means for hosts, property managers, and investors navigating today’s shifting travel landscape. From the first occupancy gains in nearly a year to surprising demand patterns acros...

What happens when consumer confidence is shaky, global tensions are rising, and yet… travel demand keeps growing? In this episode of The STR Data Lab , AirDNA’s Jamie Lane sits down with Tourism Economics President Adam Sacks to unpack one of the most important—and confusing—trends shaping the short-term rental and lodging industry right now: resilience in the face of uncertainty. From stronger-th...

Airbnb is no longer just a marketplace for stays—it’s becoming a fully integrated travel platform. In this special episode recorded live from Airbnb’s 2026 Summer Product Release in San Francisco, Jamie Lane sits down with Airbnb’s Chief Business Officer, Dave Stephenson, to unpack what these changes really mean for hosts, property managers, and the broader STR ecosystem. At the center of it all i...

What happens when strong travel demand collides with rising costs and global uncertainty? April’s data gives us a clearer picture—and it’s more nuanced than you might expect. In this episode of The STR Data Lab , Jamie Lane and Bram Gallagher break down the latest U.S. short-term rental performance and what it signals for the critical summer season ahead. On the surface, the numbers look solid: AD...