COVID-19 and short-term housing : economic and social impacts and implications

Abstract

The rapid spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) around the world since early 2020 has caused significant economic, social, psychological, and public health costs. The COVID-19 pandemic hit almost all economic sectors including the hospitality and tourism industry. This review paper examined the impacts of COVID-19 on short-term housing and the factors influencing these impacts. The existing literature reported generally negative effects of COVID-19 on the operating performance of the short-term accommodation industry. COVID-19 impacted on travellers’ perceptions, host-guest interactions and psychological well-being when choosing short-term accommodation. This review also provides implications for minimising the impacts of COVID-19 or similar future disruptive events on short-term accommodation operations and surviving the crisis in the short-term accommodation sector.