The hidden cost of WA’s holiday homes in the middle of a housing crisis |
The hidden cost of WA’s holiday homes in the middle of a housing crisis
May 20, 2026 — 3:00am
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Western Australia is made for getting away: from the crystal-clear beaches of the Coral Coast to the red dirt of the Kimberley, the vineyards of Margaret River to the ancient gorges of the Pilbara.
On holidays, we’re spoiled for choice not only for destinations but for places to stay. Short-term rentals are booming. Many of us use them and enjoy them.
But what is our vast holiday accommodation choice doing to the long-term rental market?
With vacancy rates at record lows, rents soaring, and renters locked out of a place to live, we need to talk honestly about the link between our holidays and our housing - between the short-stay boom and the long-term rental crisis.
Shelter WA’s new report lays bare the scale of the problem.
Across WA we found more than 10,400 unhosted Airbnb listings compared with about 3700 private rental listings over the same period.
It means there’s about three unhosted short-stay rentals for every long-term rental. That ratio blows out to 15 to 1 in regional areas.
If just one in three unhosted Airbnbs were returned to the long-term market, we could double WA’s available long-term rental........