Guests Willing to Pay More for Smart Home Rental Properties
A recent survey from Smart Home vendor August Home shows that advances in Smart Home technology is playing a role in where travelers decide to stay during business trips and vacations, specifically in the Airbnb-type short-term rental market.
In the survey, short-term rentals are viewed as a superior experience to hotels, and innovations in the Smart Home is one of the reasons why. Of those surveyed, 60% of respondents say they would pay more for a short-term rental with a Smart Home feature, such as smart locks, doorbell cameras, Smart TVs, streaming media and Smart Home security systems. Travelers also indicate they believe Smart Home features will be a big part of rentals in the future.
One of the key concerns in the survey is the loss of property keys. Both hosts and guests expressed concern over losing property keys, something that a smart lock would help with. Of the hosts surveyed, 45% say their rental property is more secure with smart locks, and it makes for an easier time when it comes to checking out of the property—no keys to return.
Short-term rentals are primarily used by those that vacation, 75% of those surveyed say, but it is on the rise for business travelers, with 23% saying they use short-term rentals over hotels. Those guests surveyed say they believe short-term rentals are better because the hosts try harder to make the experience better versus the staff in a hotel.
While having one Smart Home feature is appealing to the guests surveyed, with 90% saying they would desire features, a Smart TV, specifically, is the most desired feature, with 93% saying they would want one in their rental. Those surveyed also expressed interest in Smart Home security systems at 91%. Among those surveyed, 87% say they would want a video-enabled doorbell camera, 86% want smart locks and 86% want streaming media.
Source: electronic360.globalspec.com