Airbnbs are primed to take over Miami, which is already facing a housing crunch

Over 10,000 units are currently in pre-construction for buildings with relaxed rental policies. They likely will be used as short-term rentals.

• A Florida real-estate firm forecasts that 31 pre-construction condo buildings in the Miami region are ripe for Airbnbs.
• That amounts to over 10,335 units or more than 50% of projected construction, ISG Group found. 
• Rising population and home prices are already squeezing Miami real estate.

A wave of new condo developments tailor-made for Airbnb and similar rental sites is set to wash over the Miami region.

So many, in fact, that they outnumber the amount of traditional rentals tagged for development over the same time.

More than 50% of total condos in the pre-construction phase across Miami-Dade County and nearby Broward County, totaling 10,335 units, are geared toward short-term rentals, a first-quarter report from real-estate firm ISG World found.

These units may not be exclusively advertised for short-term stays, CEO of ISG World Craig Studnicky told Business Insider but were grouped by little to no rental restrictions for future owners.

That means these units could, and very likely may, be used for Airbnb and similar purposes, Studnicky explained.

"We've had a development industry that is adding more short-term rentals to South Florida inventory," Studnicky told BI. "And that's not what we need."

Florida has continued to experience a major population boom and was the fastest-growing state between 2021 and 2022, with 417,000 new residents. Housing prices, in tandem, skyrocketed. The median sales price for a home in Miami hit $600,000 in March 2024, nearly double the median price of $335,000 in March 2020, according to Redfin.

It's rocked affordability in Miami, where there is currently a $1.5 billion gap to provide adequate, affordable housing for the entirety of Miami-Dade County, according to a study by the nonprofit Miami Homes for All. Altogether, the county is missing over 90,000 affordable units for renters making less than $75,000 a year, the study concluded.

Developers in the Miami region should focus on creating more traditional rentals to alleviate pressure in the market, Studnicky believes.

The ISG World report states more than 10,000 traditional rental units for Miami-Dade and Broward counties are scheduled in pre-construction, a process that will take many years to complete. In the past 10 years, Studnicky estimates a much more robust 20,000 traditional rental units were built in Miami.

"That's the number that we need just to accommodate the population gains," he told Business Insider.