Holiday rental property occupancies continued to flag in the final quarter of 2011 as the summer’s disappointing weather took its toll, according to new research by accommodation website Stayz.
The Stayz Group Accommodation Index showed occupancies climbed 6% between October and December compared with the previous quarter, but remained low with a national average of 34%.
However, business development director Justin Butterworth claimed that property managers remained optimistic.
“Given that La Nina contributed to Australia’s third wettest year on record, many property managers were still content with the average occupancy and it’s encouraging to see that property owners do not envisage too much change in their economic and trading conditions over the next six months,” he said.
Western Australia generated the highest number of rentals for the quarter, 13% above the average national occupancy rate.
Meanwhile, online bookings were on the rise, now accounting for more than three quarters of all bookings, buoyed by the growing popularity of mobile internet.
