STR Analysis (Avg Rates vs Avg Occupancy)

[Joy Lee]

Hi there, I'm analyzing homes in the Shenandoah region for short-term rentals primarily using Airdna's Rentalizer tool. I'm curious what factors lead to homes in the same town having such widely varying average nightly rates and average occupancy rates with the same or a comparable number of bedrooms and bathrooms. For example, Home A in Front Royal has 4 br/ 3 ba with an average nightly rate of $409 and average occupancy rate of 61%, while Home B in Front Royal has 4 br/ 4 ba with average rates of $269 at 74%. What factors can lead to this variance?

Separately -- with the caveat that Airdna data is not perfect and that all of these numbers have to be considered holistically -- when you're analyzing homes, do you give more weight to a home that has a lower average nightly rate (under $250) with a higher occupancy rate (over 85%) or vice versa (higher average nightly rate of over $400 with a lower occupancy rate of under 50%)?

Thanks in advance for any insights!