Hamptons owners find more competition for renters

Vacation homeowners in the Hamptons and NYC-area getaway communities are facing an increasingly competitive marketplace when it comes to renting out their homes, according to the New York Times, as new listings websites bring more prospective landlords to the market. A National Association of Realtors survey recently found that 22 percent of all vacation homeowners in the U.S. plan to rent out their homes, and that huge figure is being reflected in the growing number of listings on sites like HomeAway.com.

In the last four years the number of rental listings in the Hamptons rose to 750 from 270, in the Catskills the number increased to 520 from 304 and in Jersey Shore it jumped to 2,200 from 700. About 73 percent of these listings come from typical homeowners and not property management companies.

The increased competition is placing downward pressure on pricing, enriching the listing websites and making owners even more sensitive to online reviews on sites like Yelp.com. It’s also eradicating an agent’s main selling point.

“Real estate agents who want to sell you a house will tell you that you can make money off it,” said one vacation homeowner. “Well, I did 20 years ago, but I don’t anymore.” [NYT]