Ann Arbor Residents Earned $1.2 Million Through Leasing Their Homes This Football Season
ANN ARBOR (WWJ) -- Those who own homes in Ann Arbor are apparently raking it in on Airbnb during football season.
Nearly 700 people rent out homes or rooms in Ann Arbor, and the website says they've earned $1.2 million in supplemental income on Wolverine home game weekends.
The biggest weekend was Michigan-Michigan State on Oct. 7-8, bringing in $276,000 in rental income that weekend alone. Airbnb spokesman Ben Breit said this weekend was not only the largest weekend of the football season but also in the history of Airbnb's platform.
"Not only was it the biggest home football weekend but represented the largest surge of guests to Ann Arbor in the history of the Airbnb platforms," Breit said. "(That) includes every big weekend, every big game, the college commencement back in May."
The second highest weekend this season was when Minnesota came to town in early November.
This weekend's highly anticipated Michigan-Ohio State game will also bring in a large crowd of Airbnb users. The latest projections suggest 1,040 guests will take advantage of the service this upcoming weekend with an estimated $184,000 in supplemental income.
Of the nearly 700 Ann Arbor home owners who utilize the renting service, about 50 percent rent out simply an extra room in their homes.
Below is a game-by-game view of each weekend's statistics:
- Cincinnati (Sept. 9-10) -- 770 guests for $110,000
- Air Force (Sept. 16-17) -- 910 guests for $145,000
- Michigan State (Oct. 7-8) -- 1,400 guests for $276,000
- Rutgers (Oct. 28-29) -- 1,050 guests for $171,000
- Minnesota (Nov. 4-5) -- 1,270 guests for $223,000
- Ohio State (Nov. 24-25) -- 1,040 guests for $184,000
NOTE: Ohio State numbers are a projection