BLACKSBURG — Town officials are worried about the effect so-called “football houses” are having on the local economy, and statistics on local short-term rentals show there may be a significant number of houses sitting empty much of the year.
In Montgomery County, there are 739 listed short-term rentals, mostly from companies like Airbnb and Vrbo, according to statistics from AirDNA, a service that collects data on local short-term rental markets.
The Roanoke area, including the city of Roanoke, Roanoke County and Salem, has 674 listed short-term rentals, despite having more than double the population of Montgomery County.
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“You drive around places like Midtown, and you see these multiple-million-dollar properties, and no one’s living there,” Blacksburg Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith said.
Data also suggests that the number of short-term rentals in Montgomery County has increased significantly in the last three years. At the peak of availability in 2021, there were 361 short term rentals available.
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During a recent Blacksburg Town Council meeting, Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith voiced frustration about the number of residences that sit empty for much of the year in Blacksburg.
“You drive around places like Midtown, and you see these multiple-million-dollar properties, and no one’s living there,” Hager-Smith said, referring to a neighborhood that has seen a large growth in residential development in the last three years.
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Hager-Smith
Many town officials refer to the homes that sit empty most of the year as “football houses,” residences that are only occupied during Virginia Tech home games and other special events. In college towns, the situation has become a major talking point.
Studies conducted by entities such as “Marketing Science,” an academic periodical dealing with economics, and the Economic Policy Institute suggest that short term rentals have a significant effect on local housing markets.
For Blacksburg, which has already been experiencing a housing shortage due to the rapid growth of Virginia Tech over the last 10 years, the large number of short-term rentals serves to exacerbate the existing problem, according to Councilman Liam Watson.
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Watson
“Airbnbs remove housing stock,” Watson said. “So, housing prices go up.”
Rental prices have been going up steadily in the New River Valley in recent years. In Montgomery County, according to the most recent available statistics from American Community survey, rental prices went increased by 17% between 2019 and 2022.
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This short term rental two blocks from downtown Blacksburg is billed as follows: “Location, Location, Location. If you are looking for an inviting alternative to a hotel room that is close to campus and all the action Virginia Tech has to offer look no further. A Great place for Game-day, Moss Center Events, graduation, a relaxing trip to visit your student or walking access to campus those in town for business or short term work.”
For some groups, such as graduate students, short term rentals can become the only option, as other housing can be hard to find.
Ranald Adams, the parliamentarian for the Virginia Tech Graduate Labor Union, said that a combination of factors, including town zoning, make housing particularly hard to find for graduate students.
A lot of undergrads are supported by their parents, who can buy a place for them,” Adams said. “For grad students, that’s not the case, and so some students, they spend weeks in Airbnbs or in hotels.”
Much of the area around downtown Blacksburg is zoned as R-4, meaning rules are in place to lower density. Many Homeowners Associations have a housing requirement of “family plus one unrelated person, or no more than two unrelated people.” If an undergraduate’s parents buy the property, they can get around rules that would typically restrict student access.
Adams also said that the high number of short-term rentals is a symptom of the wider housing shortage in Blacksburg.
“There’s so little housing, and Virginia Tech continues to grow its enrollment,” Adams said. “So, people use properties as Airbnbs to take advantage of the lack of housing.”
The popularity of Virginia Tech’s sports teams also contributes to the large number of short-term rentals in the area.
According to data from the ACC, in 2022, the average attendance for a Virginia Tech home game was 64,356.
“Unfortunately, the popularity of Virginia Tech’s athletics has served to contribute to the overall housing problem,” Adams said.
Coming Monday: Blacksburg Town Council is considering zoning changes to to increase housing options.