UPDATED Jan. 15, 5:45 p.m.: South Florida Airbnb hosts made $315 million in 2018 and took in a total of 1.47 million guests, according to Airbnb.
The short-term rental company announced on Tuesday that there are now more than 45,000 Floridian hosts who share their homes through Airbnb, each earning an average of $6,500 annually in supplemental income.
Miami-Dade County hosts on Airbnb made $204 million with 954,000 guests; Broward County made $80.3 million with 406,000 guests; and Palm Beach County made $30.6 million with 126,000 guests, according to Airbnb.
Overall, the tri-county area of South Florida made up 38 percent of the $810 million in income that Florida hosts made in 2018.
The company’s announcement comes shortly after it filed suit against Miami Beach over the city’s ordinance regulating short-term rental properties. The ordinance requires Airbnb and other short-term rental platforms to post listings for Miami Beach properties only if the listings include proof that the properties are registered with the city.
Airbnb said it is seeing a rise in demand at the same time hotels are seeing an increase in occupancy and growth.
The company has said it plans an initial public offering by late 2020. It has previously been valued at $31 billion. — Keith Larsen