Toronto's Short Term Rental Demand Spike Crowds Out Patients
TORONTO, Oct. 26, 2022 /CNW/ - At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Toronto companies that manage short term rentals across the city were either downsizing or completely closing up shop. Those that survived the last 2 years are now experiencing a vigorous (albeit likely temporary) turnaround caused by a combination of factors:
- Post-COVID pent up demand for business and leisure travel
- Ease of travel restrictions and quarantine requirements for foreign nationals
- The opening up of the economy, and along with it, the resumption of corporate relocation plans to Toronto (Canada Goose and Snowflake Inc. are just two recent examples of companies announcing the opening of new offices in Toronto)
On the supply side, properties that were taken off the short term rental market during the pandemic due to lack of tenants are slow to come back (if at all). Understandably, their owners are feeling somewhat "once bitten, twice shy". In many cases, they've either been sold and occupied by the new owners, or have been rented on the long-term lease market.
While some believed this would help relieve the city's housing affordability issues, the opposite happened – unfurnished rents have dramatically increased in the past 6 months. Additionally, the sharp increase in furnished rental demand combined with the shortage of supply has created a perfect storm.
In Toronto, availability is low across the city, hotels and Airbnb rentals (the next closest thing) are full, and prices are skyrocketing. The chart below (provided by Sky View Suites – a company that manages short term rentals in Toronto), outlines average nightly prices (for minimum of 30-day stays) over the last few months ending September 2022.
While this is a welcome influx of revenue for all the furnished rental companies who managed to survive the pandemic, there are some unintended side effects for vulnerable populations like people coming to Toronto for medical reasons.
Patients needing life-saving treatments and surgeries (such as organ transplants and other complicated procedures) were ecstatic to finally see the wait lists caused by COVID whittled down, only to then find out that it is almost impossible for them to afford to relocate to Toronto for medical treatment.
Many of these patients are not from Toronto, and the prospect of uprooting their lives and leaving their jobs for several weeks or months, usually with no pay to move to downtown Toronto from $200+ per night is an insurmountable financial challenge. Sadly, some of them are choosing to forego life-saving treatments as a result, and find themselves wondering what good is "free" health care if you can't afford to live close enough to use it?
Luckily, there are government programs in place to help fund accommodations for some patients who qualify, and they have done well to recognize the increase in prices and adjust their budgets quickly. But not all patients are eligible for these programs – those who are not eligible and don't have the means are stuck waiting for hotel and furnished rental rates to come down.
There is, however, a silver lining in the accommodation industry as a result of COVID. A small charity start-up that provides patient accommodations, StayWell, has exploded in growth over the pandemic. Starting in 2017 and serving 58 room nights, StayWell has since served over 25,000 room nights.
"There is a tremendous amount of patient need for medical accommodation in Canada. We're proud of our growth but we still have a lot work to do. We look forward to the next few years in expanding our service to help Canadians across the country" – Sass Khazzam – CEO.
StayWell's mission is to provide access to accommodations for all Canadians, their caregivers and their families required to relocate for medical treatment.
SOURCE Sky View Suites Group Inc.
Abbey McCay, [email protected]
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