{"id":90348,"date":"2025-04-10T08:47:47","date_gmt":"2025-04-10T08:47:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/?p=90348"},"modified":"2026-04-02T10:18:36","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T10:18:36","slug":"sleep-tight-growing-airbnb-listings-in-cape-town","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/2025\/04\/10\/sleep-tight-growing-airbnb-listings-in-cape-town\/","title":{"rendered":"Sleep tight: Growing Airbnb listings in Cape Town"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>\u00a0\ud83d\udcdd<\/strong> <strong>By Alastair Otter, Gemma Ritchie\u00a0and\u00a0Ro Manoim<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There were 25,816&nbsp;Airbnbs&nbsp;listed in Cape Town in December 2024. This is 2,798 more than in March 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This number has also increased by more than 5,000 since we first visited this topic in September 2023. At that time there were 20,583 listings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"810\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Line-Chart-AirBNB-quarters.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-90349\" srcset=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Line-Chart-AirBNB-quarters.png 810w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Line-Chart-AirBNB-quarters-400x400.png 400w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Line-Chart-AirBNB-quarters-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Line-Chart-AirBNB-quarters-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This means Cape Town has roughly the same number of listings as other major cities in the world including Mexico City (26,281)&nbsp;and&nbsp;Tokyo (21,058)&nbsp;and&nbsp;Istanbul (29,400).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But this number is significantly lower than London with more than 95,000 listings&nbsp;and&nbsp;Paris with more than 91,000.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"810\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Bubble-Map.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-90350\" srcset=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Bubble-Map.png 810w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Bubble-Map-400x400.png 400w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Bubble-Map-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Bubble-Map-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Where are Cape Town\u2019s&nbsp;Airbnbs? And&nbsp;which are the most expensive?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Airbnb&nbsp;has come under fire in many cities around the world because of the rapid growth in listings&nbsp;and&nbsp;particularly the number of multi-listing owners. For many city managers the growth in short-term rentals like&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;is worrying as it reduces access to long-term housing for residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Airbnb&nbsp;operators also tend to focus on high-traffic areas closer to the centre of cities which means less rental space is available to those that work in the city, pushing them further out to areas where there is space&nbsp;and&nbsp;more affordable rentals. But this also often puts additional strain on transport systems to get workers back into the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"810\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/capetown-map.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-90351\" srcset=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/capetown-map.png 810w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/capetown-map-400x400.png 400w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/capetown-map-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/capetown-map-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>In Cape Town the city centre&nbsp;and&nbsp;the nearby Seapoint, Camps Bay&nbsp;and&nbsp;Clifton areas are home to the most&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;listings in the city. In the CBD there are more than four times the number of listings than in most other areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"810\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-90353\" srcset=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre.png 810w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre-400x400.png 400w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The CBD listings, however, don\u2019t command nearly the same prices as Camps Bay&nbsp;and&nbsp;Clifton listings,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the more affluent suburbs of Bishops Court&nbsp;and&nbsp;Constantia move into the higher price brackets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also more outlying areas closer to Stellenbosch command better prices as the listings attract the country &amp; wine tourists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"810\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Costly.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-90354\" srcset=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Costly.png 810w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Costly-400x400.png 400w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Costly-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Costly-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Multi-listing empires<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>While the original concept of&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;was for homeowners to make a little extra money from renting out a room or a flatlet on their property, the opportunity has also created a growing industry of people operating two, ten or even more rental listings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In Cape Town a third of properties listed on&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;are managed by operators with 10 or more listings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Two thirds of the listings in Cape Town are single listings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"810\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/ListingCount.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-90355\" srcset=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/ListingCount.png 810w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/ListingCount-400x400.png 400w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/ListingCount-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/ListingCount-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Or, looked at another way, 15,588 of the 25,816 listings in Cape Town are operated by owners with more than one listing. In most parts of the world this is the most common pattern, with the exception of Paris where tighter regulations around short-term rentals have switched the pattern. In Paris a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sortiraparis.com\/en\/news\/in-paris\/articles\/322773-paris-is-tightening-its-regulations-on-tourist-rentals-like-airbnb-what-s-changing?utm_source=outlierafrica.beehiiv.com&amp;utm_medium=newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=107-outlier-newsletter-dd-4-april-2025-supporter-edition&amp;_bhlid=b083a45cd859d1e38c957c5b4ea3c9daaa2aa416\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">new cap limiting short-term rentals to 90 days a year<\/a>&nbsp;instead of the previous 120 per year have begun to change the face of the&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Similarly cities like Montreal in Canada has started to introduce limits on when&nbsp;Airbnbs&nbsp;can operate, gradually pushing operators towards more long-term stays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example: In Cape Town&nbsp;<strong>98.6% of rentals through&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;are short-term stays<\/strong>. In Montreal just&nbsp;<strong>43.8% of rentals are short-term stays<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"810\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/9-cities.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-90356\" srcset=\"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/9-cities.png 810w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/9-cities-400x400.png 400w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/9-cities-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/9-cities-768x768.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[709,5,1387,1380],"tags":[418,293,92,40,1376,420],"newsletter-post":[],"site":[],"class_list":["post-90348","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business","category-economy","category-the-outlier","category-this-week-in-charts","tag-airbnb","tag-cape-town","tag-economy","tag-south-africa","tag-stellenbosch","tag-tourism"],"acf":{"big_number":"","big_number_caption":"","big_number_link":"","big_number_background":"","big_number_text_colour":"#000000","big_number_icon":false,"big_number_wide":"yes","featured_chart":{"ID":90353,"id":90353,"title":"CityCentre","filename":"CityCentre.png","filesize":119130,"url":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre.png","link":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/2025\/04\/10\/sleep-tight-growing-airbnb-listings-in-cape-town\/citycentre\/","alt":"","author":"2","description":"","caption":"","name":"citycentre","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":90348,"date":"2025-04-10 08:12:05","modified":"2025-04-10 08:12:05","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":810,"height":810,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre-400x400.png","medium-width":400,"medium-height":400,"medium_large":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre-768x768.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":768,"large":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre.png","large-width":810,"large-height":810,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre.png","1536x1536-width":810,"1536x1536-height":810,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/CityCentre.png","2048x2048-width":810,"2048x2048-height":810}},"flourish_chart_id":"","flourish_sub_title":"","flourish_chart_width":"medium","is_newsletter_post":"Yes","post_style":"bc","show_on_front":"Yes","link_through":"Yes","chart_url":"","background_colour":"#0089AA","text_colour":"#FFFFFF"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90348","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=90348"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90348\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":90360,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90348\/revisions\/90360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=90348"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=90348"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=90348"},{"taxonomy":"newsletter-post","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newsletter-post?post=90348"},{"taxonomy":"site","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/outliereditor.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/site?post=90348"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}