Airbnb boosts property values in the UK as they are 'ideal' for renting out

The increasing popularity of the website could also threaten affordable accommodation for ordinary renters.

An estate agent in Tunbridge Wells in Kent has seen homes in desirable areas selling for £30,000 more because of the holiday let potential, which offers landlords more than £100 a week above conventional renting.

As many as 135,000 properties across England and Wales are now owned by so-called Airbnb landlords, according to a survey by the Residential Landlords Association.

It revealed a 57 per cent increase in the number of landlords who intend to bypass conventional letting agencies in favour of online sites such as Airbnb as a business model.

Seven per cent of all property owners who let now intend to use Airbnb and similar companies.

Fifty-five per cent said it was because they could get much higher rental yields through Airbnb, 36 per cent said it was because of Government changes to mortgage interest relief and 33 per cent said it was because of increasing Government regulation, such as buy-to-let clampdowns.

Critics said this makes a mockery of Government attempts to boost housing stocks by clamping down on buy-to-let rules.

RLA chairman Alan Ward said: “With ever growing demand for rented accommodation, the country cannot afford to face the potential loss of almost 135,000 homes to rent in the long term. This number will almost certainly grow with the phased introduction of the tax increases.

“We believe in a free market but the Government must consider the impact of its tax measures if landlords are moving property from long-term rental into the holiday market.”

David Cox, of the property consumer watchdog Arla, said yesterday: “These figures don’t surprise me. It is the unintended consequence of years of governments attacking private landlords.”

He added: “There is a growing disquiet over the use of agencies such as Airbnb.

“You don’t know who your neighbour is and there is the security risk – how many keys and access codes are being given out?”

Airbnb said: “A typical host welcomes guests for fewer than four nights a month.”