It’s a question that comes up a lot. And it’s usually followed by: “Airbnb is the reason young people can’t buy.” But is that really true in Newcastle? From what I’ve seen so far in my research, the impact of STRs on house prices here is minimal. Here’s why: According to AirDNA and Airbtics, there are around 750–1,000 active STR properties in Newcastle. Compare that to the city’s 130,000+ homes - that’s less than 1%. Meanwhile, developers aren’t building anywhere near enough new houses to keep up with natural demographic changes in the city. Add in higher interest rates, strong student demand, and national inflation and you start to see the bigger picture. So yes, STRs play a role. But they’re not the main driver of the sharp price increases we’ve seen. Once I’ve finalised my research, I’d be happy to share the findings if you’re interested. Because housing affordability in Newcastle is a real issue - but if we blame the wrong things, we’ll never solve it. What do you think - are STRs unfairly blamed for house price rises?