Loading...
Loading...
STR Market Report
California • Short-Term Rental Market
38%
Entire-home, active listings
Occupancy Rate
~11 nights booked per month on average
$282
Median, entire-home
Avg Nightly Rate
Typical price per night charged by whole-home hosts in this market
1,171
Had a review in past 12 mo
Active Listings
Whole-home Airbnbs with at least 1 recent guest review — active supply
$3,215
~11 booked nights / month
Est. Monthly Revenue
Directional gross booking revenue estimate before fees, expenses, and seasonality shifts
Licensed
Permit required — manageable for most operators with proper compliance
Regulatory Risk
Higher-risk setup due to weaker demand, pricing constraints, or regulation. Underwrite conservatively.
2 nights
Typical host minimum
Median Min Stay
Most common minimum booking length. Short = weekenders welcome. Long (7+ nights) = weekly guests only.
39%
Hosts with 5+ listings
Pro Host Rate
Significant investor presence — you'll compete with experienced multi-property operators
1.5/mo
Median reviews per month
Booking Velocity
How quickly typical listings earn new reviews — a proxy for how often properties get booked. Higher = stronger demand.
Peak demand June–August; shoulder spring/fall; lower winter occupancy
santa-cruz-county-ca is an emerging short-term rental market with growing demand from tourism, business travel, and outdoor recreation. Detailed editorial content coming soon.
Premium Pricing Pocket
Unincorporated Areas
Avg nightly rate: $1,614
Highest Occupancy Pocket
City of Scotts Valley
Avg occupancy: 56.1%
Best Balanced Opportunity
Unincorporated Areas
Healthy mix of demand, pricing, and listing depth
Ranked by active listing count (Inside Airbnb data).
Markets in Americas with similar investment-score profiles:
Takeaway: entire home apt dominates this market snapshot.
Takeaway: the highest concentration of listings sits in the $201–300 nightly range.
Takeaway: most listings cluster around 0–10% occupancy.
| Neighbourhood | Listings ↓ | Avg Price | Occupancy | Avg Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unincorporated Areas | 979 | $1,614 | 38.8% | — |
| City of Santa Cruz | 429 | $344 | 47.3% | — |
| City of Capitola | 282 | $362 | 43.7% | — |
| City of Scotts Valley | 27 | $174 | 56.1% | — |
| City of Watsonville | 25 | $226 | 10.4% | — |
Source: Inside Airbnb. Click column headers to sort.
Analytics derived from Inside Airbnb public datasets. Data reflects the snapshot date above. Not financial advice.
Want verified, real-time data?
Our estimates are a starting point — these tools give you neighborhood-level occupancy, revenue projections, and comp analysis from live Airbnb data.
Real-time occupancy, ADR, and RevPAR by neighborhood. The industry standard for STR market research.
View Santa Cruz County data on AirDNA →Combines Airbnb data with traditional rental comps. Great for comparing STR vs long-term rental ROI.
Try Mashvisor →Affiliate disclosure: STR Specialist may earn a commission if you subscribe via these links. We only recommend tools we trust.
Score formula: Occupancy (max 45 pts) + ADR (max 30 pts) + Regulatory environment (up to 25 pts). Max score: 100.
Moderate market — Santa Cruz County has decent fundamentals but some limitations. Worth investigating further before committing capital.
Get personalized advice on market entry, property selection, and STR strategy from an experienced STR host.