Airbnb demand in Indianapolis (eastside)

[Jaron Walling]

Looking for advice from locals experienced in STR. I want provide a great Indianapolis experience for guests interested in outdoor activities, but I'd like to know demand for the neighborhood. My property is a remodeled, 2-1 bungalow, located in Irvington. I'm seeing drastically different rental rates for comparable properties.

How many nights are you booked per month?

Do you see any increase or decrease during different times of the year?

Besides good pictures and fancy decor what makes a rental stand out? 

[Mihir Bhimaraju]

Originally posted by @Jaron Walling:

Any lndianapolis locals have experience with STR properties?

I've hosted airbnb in franklin township for a little over 2 years. The occupancy rates I've seen vary with the time of the year. For ex, Mar- Sept is the peak travel season and bookings died down during the winter months unless there's a major event taking place.  Typical booking was about 30%. I've had more bookings when I first got started as not many hosts were in my area. But over the last few months, I've seen hosts rent out rooms for as low as 15-30 bucks a night to get more bookings. 

I'd recommend checking your competition (on the airbnb map) and see if the price makes sense. You can also view their booking calendars ( if you sign in as a traveler and not a host) and that will give you an idea of how many days they're booked in a month.