The Highland Group: Economy Extended-Stay, Short-Term Rental Sectors Fare Well

ATLANTA—According to The Highland Group, economy extended-stay hotels’ average occupancy was 73.8% in May. While this was down 5.3% compared to May 2019, it is 40 percentage points higher than the 33.1% STR reported for the overall hotel industry. Economy extended-stay hotel RevPAR was down 11.4% over the same period compared to more than 70% for the overall hotel industry. 

RevPAR for economy extended-stay hotels in May was $32.30, while occupancy was 72.8% and ADR came in at $44.64.

“Economy extended-stay hotels had the highest absolute RevPAR and the lowest rate of RevPAR decline of any hotel industry segment [in May],” said Mark Skinner, partner at The Highland Group. 

The Highland Group also found that, by almost all performance metrics, COVID-19 is impacting the short-term rental sector less than the overall hotel industry. Year-to-date through April compared to the same period in 2019, short-term rental demand and revenues declined 15% and 22%, respectively. The corresponding declines for the overall hotel industry were 32% and 35%, according to STR. In 20 of the 50 largest markets, short-term rental demand increased year-to-date through April.

“Focusing on longer-term guests and minimal physical contact with renters are key factors resulting in relatively strong performance for the short-term rental sector,” said Skinner.