The Impact of Professional Hosts on Airbnb Performance: Neighborhood Dynamics, Market Sensitivity, and Seasonal Trends

The short-term rental market has experienced a significant growth in the past years, by increasing its market share in the accommodation sector. Professional hosts are playing an increasingly dominant role, by perfecting skills to successfully outperform the market. The thesis revolves around the study of the differences between professional and non-professional hosts, with a particular focus on neighborhood location, seasonal market fluctuations, seasonal trends and economic segment of the listings. By employing a dataset of Airbnb listings from the city of Turin spanning across 7 years, we examine whether professional hosts are able to achieve higher RevPAN (Revenue per Available Night) and how this benefit differs across the factors previously mentioned. According to our research, professional hosts consistently outperform non-professional hosts in popular tourist destinations, which are mainly located in the city center, because of their proficiency in pricing optimization. Additionally, they are seen to exhibit a greater revenue gap during peak demand months and higher-end listings, benefiting from their ability to maximize the effect of price positioning and dynamic pricing strategies. However, they are seen to be more sensible in less attractive areas where the power of these strategies is weaker, and they are also found to be more negatively impacted during unexpected market downturns, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings imply that whereas professional hosting improves performance in ideal circumstances, it also puts hosts at higher risk in times of less demand. For researchers, policymakers, and Airbnb hosts looking to comprehend the changing dynamics of the short-term rental business, this study offers insightful information.