An impressive increase in the number of homes rented by tourists in Athens via the Airbnb platform has been recorded over the past three years.

During this time, there are over 6,500 active house listings on the platform for short-term rentals in 43 areas of the city.It is worth noting that 58% of managers lease more than one house to tourists.

Athens was the fastest growing city in terms of the percentile rise in house registrations for hiring on the Airbnb platform in 2016, up 112% year-over-year.More specifically, in 2015 there were 3,291 short-term leases which more than doubled to 6,973 in 2016 and this year exceeded 11,000 (11,188 to be specific).

This strong growth rate is also evident in the trend in overnight stays during September 2017, with their number reaching 81,300 this year, compared with 42,800 nights in September 2016 and 18,600 nights in the same month in 2015.

The occupancy rate of homes in September was 79% this year, 70% last September and 67% in 2015.The average daily rental price of these houses ranges from 44 to 53 euros.

The sharp increase in rents in central Athens has rendered them inaccessible to residents of Athens.For example, renting an apartment in central Koukaki area near the Acropolis is now more expensive than the fashionable Kolonaki district while a monthly rental around 1,000 euros is required for the rental of a house of 80 to 100 sq.m. in central nieghbourhoods close a metro station, such as Ilisia and Ambelokipi.