Visualizing…Toronto: A Data Dive into Short-Term Rental Distribution in the City
Overview
This analysis examines the “Short Term Rentals Registration” dataset for the City of Toronto to provide a brief idea of short-term rentals in the city.
Dataset
Short-Term Rentals Registration dataset from the City of Toronto Open Data Portal (https://www.toronto.ca/community-people/housing-shelter/short-term-rentals/) accessed on March 24, 2024.
Definition
Short-Term Rentals: A short-term rental is all or part of a dwelling unit rented out for less than 28 consecutive days in exchange for payment. This includes bed and breakfasts (B&Bs) but excludes hotels and motels. It also excludes other accommodations where there is no payment.
Ward: 25 wards based on https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/data-research-maps/neighbourhoods-communities/ward-profiles/
Tool
Tableau Public
Findings
1. How many short-term rentals are registered in the City of Toronto? (by ward)
This treemap visualizes the distribution of short-term rentals across Toronto wards. The top three wards are Spadina-Fort York (2,143), Toronto Centre (652), and University-Rosedale (623). Conversely, Scarborough North (96), Scarborough-Guildwood (96), and Scarborough Centre (108) have the fewest registered rentals.
2. How many short-term rentals are registered in the City of Toronto? (by first 3 characters of the postal code)
This bar chart visualizes the distribution of short-term rentals across postal codes in Toronto. M5V (1314), M5J (412), and M6J (327) have the highest number of rentals, while M8X (4), M5C (4), and M4H (5) have the fewest.
3. What are the property types of short-term rentals?
Single/Semi-detached houses (3699) lead as the most popular short-term rental property type, with duplexes/triplexes/fourplexes (346) being the least common.
4. What are the property types in each ward of short-term rentals?
Condominiums dominate the top 2 wards, accounting for 82.73% and 53.99% of rentals respectively. In contrast, Single/Semi-detached houses are the most popular property type in all other wards.
Conclusion and Insights
This analysis has revealed some key insights into the distribution and characteristics of short-term rentals in Toronto. There’s a clear geographical disparity in the distribution of short-term rentals across Toronto. While single/semi-detached houses are the dominant property type overall, condos play a significant role in specific high-density wards.
Distribution
Short-term rentals are concentrated in specific areas of the city. Spadina-Fort York, Toronto Centre, and University-Rosedale have significantly more registered rentals compared to wards in Scarborough. Similarly, a small number of postal codes hold a large number of short-term rentals.
Property Types
Single/Semi-detached houses are the most popular property type for short-term rentals overall. However, condominiums dominate the top two wards, suggesting a preference for condos in these specific areas. This might be due to factors like proximity to tourist attractions or downtown amenities.
So, if you’re considering operating a new short-term rental, will you enter a blue ocean or a red ocean market?
Further Exploration
This analysis provides a starting point for further investigation. Here are some additional questions to consider if there are available data:
- Are there correlations between short-term rental density and factors like long-term rental vacancy rates or tourism data?
- What are the seasonal trends and price trends of short-term rental activity?
What is the “Visualizing…” series?
The “Visualizing…” series delves into Toronto’s (or the specific province’s) open data on a regular basis. These reports translate raw data into graphs and insights, helping us understand the city (or province) better. Feel free to share your feedback or suggestions with me.
