Airbnb or a traditional long-term rental? The numbers in Cuenca
You own an apartment in Cuenca and you are deciding what to do with it: rent it out by the month, as usual, or put it on short-stay rental. The short answer is that it depends on the apartment, and that the difference between a well-managed place and a badly managed one is bigger than the difference between the two models.
Here are the numbers for Cuenca so you can decide for yourself, with data rather than enthusiasm.
What a well-managed apartment bills
From our sampling of 1,000 active listings in Cuenca, the average nightly rate runs from 30.60 dollars in Yanuncay to 51.54 in Remigio Crespo, with the city average around 41 dollars. In the Historic Centre, Remigio Crespo and the Turi area, rates sit above that average.
An established listing — more than thirty reviews, a good rating, a well-managed calendar — sustains between 40 and 50% occupancy, that is, between 12 and 15 nights a month.
With those two figures, an apartment in a mid-to-high rate area bills in the order of 600 to 750 dollars gross per month, and one in the most expensive areas can go beyond 800.
The fair comparison: net against net
Almost every comparison out there cheats without meaning to: it deducts the costs of short-stay rental and does not deduct those of the monthly rental. That is not a comparison.
Short-stay rental takes between 30 and 40% of the gross: platform commission, cleaning between stays, utilities, internet and replacements. Let us work with 35%.
The monthly rental does not arrive whole either. There are empty months between tenants, corrective maintenance and the time you spend searching and screening. On a conservative estimate, between 10 and 15% of the annual gross. Let us work with 12%.
And there is something that appears in neither column: with short-stay rental the apartment is still yours. You can block dates, use it whenever you want and take it back without waiting for a contract to expire. With a tenant on a two-year lease, you cannot.
How many nights you need to fill
This is the calculation that matters: how many nights a month you have to fill to beat what the rental would already give you, once the costs on both sides are deducted.
| If your monthly rent is… | Rate 30 USD | Rate 41 USD | Rate 50 USD |
|---|---|---|---|
| 350 USD | 16 nights · 53 % | 12 nights · 39 % | 10 nights · 32 % |
| 500 USD | 23 nights · 75 % | 17 nights · 55 % | 14 nights · 45 % |
| 650 USD | 29 nights · 98 % | 22 nights · 72 % | 18 nights · 59 % |
| 800 USD | not worth it | 26 nights · 88 % | 22 nights · 72 % |
Nights needed per month to beat the rental, deducting 35 % of costs from short-stay rental and 12 % from the monthly rental. An established listing in Cuenca fills between 12 and 15 nights: the figures in green are within reach.
Put that next to reality: an established listing fills between 40 and 50%. Anything in the table below that 50% is a case where short-stay rental wins, and with room to spare.
Look at the right-hand column: with a rate of 50 dollars — the level in Cuenca's higher-priced areas — even an apartment that would rent for 650 a month lands in favourable territory. And in the 350 and 500 brackets, which cover most of the one and two-bedroom apartments in the city, the numbers work comfortably.
What makes an apartment a good candidate
Looking at the listings that rank at the top of each area, the profile repeats itself:
- One or two bedrooms. Small apartments perform far better per square metre on short-stay rental than on a long-term lease.
- An area with demand: the Historic Centre, Remigio Crespo, El Vergel, near Turi or the Tomebamba river.
- A moderate market rent. The lower what a permanent tenant would pay you, the sooner the line is crossed.
- That you can furnish it properly. Between 3,000 and 8,000 dollars depending on size, and it is an investment that also raises the value of the rental if you ever go back.
- That the building bylaws allow it. It takes ten minutes to check and it avoids the most expensive nasty surprise.
If your apartment ticks three or more of those five points, the numbers in the table work in your favour.
What separates a listing that works from one that does not
Here is the part almost nobody looks at when running the numbers, and it is the one that moves the result most. Between two identical apartments, in the same building, the difference in annual income can be double. It is not the property: it is the management.
- The photos. It is the first and only thing the guest sees before deciding. A cover shot in natural light changes the listing's click-through rate.
- Dynamic pricing. Charging the same on a Tuesday in May as on a Friday in November leaves money on the table every week.
- Fast replies. Platforms reward hosts who answer within minutes in their ranking, and penalise those who take hours.
- The listing in English. A good share of demand in Cuenca is foreign. A listing only in Spanish rules itself out of it.
- Recent reviews. Not just many: from the last few months. That depends on cleaning and on service, not on the apartment.
None of those five points depends on having a better property. They all depend on how it is managed, and they are all the difference between staying at 30% occupancy and reaching 50%.
When the monthly rental is the better fit
For the sake of honesty, and so you do not spend money furnishing a place that does not need it: if your apartment is large, sits in a residential area with no tourist appeal, or its market rent comfortably exceeds 700 dollars, the monthly rental is usually the sensible option. Also if you prefer flat income and zero management.
Knowing that before you invest is worth as much as the other answer.
How to find out in your case
Do the calculation in two minutes. Find three or four listings similar to yours in your area and note their rate. Multiply it by 0.65 to strip out costs. Divide by that the rent a permanent tenant would pay you, already reduced by 12%. The result is the nights you need to fill each month.
If it comes out below 15, your apartment is a candidate and the conversation is worth having.
And before putting any property up for short-stay rental it is worth being clear about what the law requires in Cuenca: the Tourism Registry, the LUAF licence and the guest register, and the tax side in taxes on an Airbnb in Ecuador.
The figures in this article are reference estimates for planning, not an income projection. We are not financial advisers.
Frequently asked questions
Do you make more with Airbnb than with a long-term rental in Cuenca?
In one and two-bedroom apartments in areas with tourist demand, yes: filling between 10 and 15 nights a month is enough to beat the rental, and an established listing fills between 12 and 15. In large apartments, or in areas with no tourist appeal, the monthly rental usually performs better.
How much does it cost to furnish an apartment for short-stay rental in Cuenca?
Between 3,000 and 8,000 dollars depending on size and standard, counting furniture, kitchenware, linen, television, internet and cooking equipment. It is an investment that also raises the property value for a furnished long-term rental if you ever decide to go back.
What occupancy is realistic in Cuenca?
Between 40 and 50% on an established listing, with more than thirty reviews and a good rating. A new listing starts below that and takes a few months to reach that band: the ramp-up curve is worth factoring into your numbers.
Can I still use my apartment if I put it on short-stay rental?
Yes, and it is one of the advantages over a traditional rental. You can block whatever dates you want in the calendar and use it when you need it, without waiting for a contract to expire or negotiating with a tenant.
