Vacation rental owners in New Orleans are enjoying the largest increase in traveler interest, compared with other popular destinations, despite the BP oil disaster.
In the second quarter 2010, New Orleans' vacation rental owners saw a whopping 160 percent increase in traveler interest over the same period last year, according to the recently released "HomeAway Vacation Rental Marketplace Report" by HomeAway.com.
The report also said New Orleans, still shaking off the ravages of Hurricane Katrina, has ranked in the top three markets with the largest year-over-year percent increase in traveler interest for the past four quarters.
Survey results are based on 813 responses from travelers collected between September 14 and September 20, 2010 and 264 responses from vacation rental owners received between Aug. 17 and Sept. 1, 2010.
Corporate business up
The sixth quarterly report also saw more vacation rental interest from business travelers.
Ten percent of travelers say they booked a vacation rental for a business trip and 42 percent say they would consider a vacation rental while traveling for business.
Why? Business travelers say they appreciate access to a kitchen and laundry room (69 percent), they get more bang for their buck (58 percent), it feels more like home (49 percent) and there's more space (44 percent) for coworkers, family, entertaining and privacy.
"Those traveling on business can avoid pricey hotel restaurants and mini-bars by dining in their own home away from home, and they have more space to work or relax – something that's not easily done in a cramped hotel room," said Brian Sharples, chief executive officer of HomeAway.
Other findings
The HomeAway Vacation Rental Marketplace Report also found:
• One in five (20 percent) travelers say they have dreamed of owning a vacation home.
"While many people dream of buying a beach home or mountain cabin one day, most don't realize that it's more affordable than they think," says Tom Kelly, real estate expert and author of "How a Second Home Can Be Your Best Investment" (McGraw Hill, $16.95).
"Second home owners can generate rental income that can help offset the mortgage and other home costs," Kelly added.
• More than one-in-three vacation rental owners have generated more revenue this year compared with the same period last year, and approximately 40 percent of owners reported generating about the same amount of income from their properties as they did last year.
• Sunset Beach, N.C., has ranked as the market with the largest increase in new vacation rental listings in all of the past three HomeAway Vacation Rental Marketplace Reports.
• Fourteen percent of second home owners purchased their vacation home before buying their primary residence.
• Sixty-one percent of those surveyed say they have or would rent their vacation homes out for a sporting event or festival – be it the Super Bowl or a local wine festival.
• In the most recent report for the second quarter of 2010, after New Orleans' 160 percent growth in traveler interest, the following destinations had the largest year-over-year percent increase in traveler interest:
• West Hollywood, Calif. (up 151 percent)
• Santa Monica, Calif. (up 139 percent)
• Chicago (up 131 percent)
• Hot Springs, Ark. (up 129 percent)
• Lancaster, Pa. (up 122 percent)
• Snowshoe Mountain, W. Va. (up 112 percent)
• Phoenicia, N.Y. (up 109 percent)
• New York City (up 104 percent)
• Beverly Hills, Calif. (up 95 percent
To get the full report on HomeAway.com, click here
Broderick Perkins operates the Silicon Valley-based DeadlineNews Group digital news service. Get the feed from the Deadline Newsroom
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Comments
This is not surprising to me. Vacation rentals are becoming more popular, as hotels are slowly but surely pricing themselves out. I have found a lot of great vacation rental websites out there, like http://www.metroflats.com
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