China-Singapore Jingwei, July 16th (Niu Chaoge Zhao Jiaran) "Recently, I often read videos of long-term hotel rentals. It is said that long-term hotel rentals are cheaper than renting a house!" Recently, long-term rentals in hotels seem to have become a new trend for young people.

In their eyes, long-term rental hotels have become synonymous with convenience, peace of mind, and high cost performance.

Today's young people prefer to stay in a hotel rather than rent a house?

　　Ji Xiaoxiao, who works in Chengdu, has experience in long-term rental hotels for two months. In August 2021, she chose a long-term rental hotel after comparing the cost-effectiveness of long-term rental hotels, apartments, and rental agencies.

　　According to Ji Xiaoxiao, the long-term rental price of the hotel is 2,000 yuan per month, and the monthly rent of an apartment not far from the hotel is 2,300 yuan. Although the apartment is about 4 square meters larger than the hotel, it is not expensive. Less, not only commercial water and electricity, but also 10% of the property fee every month.

For ordinary housing provided by the intermediary, under roughly the same conditions, the rent is 1,850 yuan/month, but you have to deposit one and pay three, and take care of water, electricity, gas, broadband and other expenses.

　　"My work often requires working overtime at home on weekends, because the area of ​​the hotel room is relatively small.

I wake up on weekends and go to the hotel lobby to work. At this time, I can let the cleaning staff come into the room to clean, and go back after work to see the neat bed, The newly replenished mineral water at the head of the bed and the creased towel in the bathroom make the whole person feel comfortable and feel very efficient. After

staying for a long time, the membership level will gradually increase. In the second month, I will go there on weekend mornings There will also be free breakfast and coffee when working in the lobby." Ji Xiaoxiao said.

　　Although Ji Xiaoxiao chose to leave the hotel two months later because he wanted to raise a cat, he still misses the convenience and peace of mind of long-term rentals.

　　"If it weren't for my sister (pet nickname), I would really be reluctant to leave the hotel. It is convenient and worry-free. There are 'nanny', 'security', and free coffee and breakfast. It's a pity that we can't keep pets." Ji Xiao said with a smile .

　　Zhang Yuan, a post-90s generation who has worked in Shenzhen for five years, has been renting a hotel for two years.

In his view, hotels not only better meet the requirements of life, but also have more advantages in price.

　　Zhang Yuan said that when he first came to Shenzhen, he rented with two colleagues. The average monthly rent was 3,200 yuan per person, and it took about 15 minutes to take a taxi to the company at his own expense.

Later, because one of them moved out, he began to find a place to live again, and happened to hear about the long-term rental hotel from his colleagues.

He said that one of the factors that impresses him in long-term rental hotels is the convenience of room types.

"For the sake of privacy, I hope that I can live in a single room this time, and the requirements for the living environment are relatively simple.

One bed and one bathroom are basically enough, and rental houses generally have kitchens and living rooms. For me, There is no use.

"

　　In addition, Zhang Yuan found that it was more cost-effective when searching for hotels, and the monthly rent in the same location was about 20% lower than that of ordinary rentals.

"At present, the hotel I rent is less than 3,000 yuan per month. It takes 20 minutes to walk to the company, and the minimum monthly rent for a one-bedroom in the same area is 3,500 yuan. Relatively speaking, the cost-effectiveness between the distance to the company and the price is my more concerned."

　　On July 1, Zhang Ju, who was going to practice in Beijing, moved out of the school and booked a standard hotel room near Sanlitun for two months at a price of 4,599 yuan/month.

"There are also 3999 yuan/month rooms, but either no windows or corridor windows (the corridor outside the window), the 4599 yuan/month room I chose has normal windows. Because it is a standard room, I am going to find someone to share it with. , about 2,300 yuan per person per month." Zhang Ju told Sino-Singapore Jingwei.

　　Long-term rental hotels are indeed the best solution for Zhang Ju. After all, under the conditions of the same location in the same period, the cheapest room in the same location in Ziru APP is 5491 yuan/month, and the monthly service fee is charged 10% of the rent.

The cheapest house in the same location is 5,500 yuan per month, and there is no gas, TV and broadband in the room.

　　On social platforms, many netizens said that the biggest reason for choosing long-term rental hotels is cost-effectiveness, "spending the least money and doing the most things."

Some netizens said that they came to Shanghai alone for an internship but were deceived by renting a house, and then decided to rent a hotel for a long time.

"The hotel is only 8 minutes away from the company. You don't need to worry about the cost of water and electricity grids. You can also buy some small decorations and furnishings. The disadvantage is that the price will be more expensive than the apartment, but in fact, if you don't share the rent, the price of a short-term rental apartment is not cheap."

　　Screenshot source: Xiaohongshu

　　In addition, high-end hotels are also launching long-term rental services. According to the long-term rental advertisements of five-star hotels released by tourism customization companies on social platforms, Beijing Zhaolong Hotel, Sofitel Hotel, Oriental Grand Hyatt Hotel, Marriott Executive Apartments and other four hotels cost only 700 yuan, 800 yuan, 900 yuan, and 700 yuan per day for long-term rentals for a month. After searching by Sino-Singapore Jingwei, it was found that on Meituan, the cheapest room types were priced at 889 yuan per day. , 878 yuan, 996 yuan, 991 yuan, based on this calculation, long-term rental is 78 yuan to 291 yuan cheaper than normal stay per night.

　　Screenshot source: Xiaohongshu

　　High-end hotels do not offer great discounts, while long-term renters consider more of the services the hotels can provide. Yang Huizi, who has stayed in high-end hotels for two consecutive months, told Sino-Singapore Jingwei.

　　"The hotel I stayed in was calculated based on the daily price. The price of 60 nights was 30,000 yuan, and the price of a two-month long-term lease was 26,000 yuan, which is about 66 yuan cheaper per day on average. I chose this hotel not for discounts, but because I stayed there before. After passing this hotel, the security guards are also very dedicated, and the check-in is very safe, so I want to continue to live in the new city." Yang Huizi said.

Practitioner: Long-term rental has become the key to increasing the occupancy rate under the epidemic

　　It is understood that under the epidemic, many hotels have vigorously promoted long-term rental business, and have also launched more discounts for long-term rental customers.

However, practitioners have mixed opinions on the long-term rental business. Some hotels regard long-term tenants as the most stable guests, and some practitioners say that they will be extra cautious in launching long-term rental services during the epidemic.

Can long-term rental services restore the hotel's dismal occupancy rate?

　　Lei Jing is a staff member of a budget hotel in Beijing.

He told Sino-Singapore Jingwei that under the epidemic, long-term rental services have become the key to increasing the occupancy rate.

　　"The occupancy rate was only 3% when the business was at its worst this year. After the promotion of long-term rental services, the occupancy rate on July 8 was 49%.

Although there are factors for the improvement of the epidemic, in terms of occupancy rate, long-term rental services have increased. About 10%. Although the long-term rental service is low in profit, at least some are profitable.

”

　　Niu Ping, a hotel manager in Xinjiang, told Sino-Singapore Jingwei that long-term rental housing is a long-standing room type in the hotel industry.

"Since I started working as a hotel in 2015, there have been long-term rentals. Customers are generally short-term migrant workers from other places. They generally take the season as a cycle. There are long-term rental customers one after another from the spring. Check out in the fall and few long-term rental customers in the winter.”

　　Niu Ping pointed out that long-term tenants are the hotel's most stable guests and the most stable source of income.

　　"Although the single-day room rate is cheaper, the advantage is that people stay in this room every day. We will give the long-term tenants a small gift such as a fruit plate and moon cakes during the New Year and festivals to make them feel at home. The young and long-term tenants will communicate with the staff when they leave the lease, because if there is still a rental demand in the later period, the staff can reserve a familiar room type in advance. From 2017 to 2019, a customer has been in the summer every summer. Come to the hotel for a long stay, and only live in the same room." Niu Ping said.

　　It is understood that a number of hotel companies have launched projects for long-term rentals. For example, Huazhu Club, an app under Huazhu Group, once launched discounts for consecutive stays, where guests who stay for 7 days or more can enjoy a discount of 25% off; App BTG Homeinn also launched a medium and long-term rental section.

　　Not only hotels have made plans for long-term rentals, but tourism platforms have also expanded the layout of long-term rentals.

It is understood that the Ctrip App has launched a monthly rental service. Consumers can filter long-term rental hotel services and compare long-term hotel rentals according to their needs.

　　Qunar data shows that in terms of location, the cities with the largest number of long-term rentals are Chongqing, Suzhou, Shanghai, etc., which are mainly concentrated in first-tier and new first-tier cities.

Liu Wenyi, the relevant person in charge of the Qunar hotel business, told Sino-Singapore Jingwei that the number of long-term rental properties has indeed increased after the epidemic.

On the one hand, this is due to the hotel’s choice of flexible operation, open source and efficiency enhancement, and on the other hand, it is also due to the increasing demand for telecommuting after the epidemic.

But on the whole, the number of long-term rentals and the number of orders accounted for a small proportion of the overall hotel.

At present, Qunar is planning the access of more long-term rental related products.

　　Previously, an article published by Ctrip's account showed that the number of

long-term hotel rental orders during the summer has increased significantly compared with usual

, and the reasons why guests choose long-term hotels are usually long-distance travel, remote job hunting or examinations, and medical treatment.

Research shows that more than 30% of long-term renters choose to stay for more than 30 days.

For hotels,

this income can be used as income guarantee during the off-season, and it can give the hotel room to optimize pricing during the peak season.

　　It is understood that the discounts provided by hotels for long-term rentals vary according to time and market conditions.

Sino-Singapore Jingwei recently contacted several hotels as consumers to inquire about long-term rentals. Many hotels in Beijing said that since the summer vacation has come, the next stay costs will be higher and higher, so they do not provide long-term rental price concessions for the time being.

　　It can be seen from the Ctrip App that, taking the economic double room of Super 8 Qianmen Tiantan Park East Gate as an example, if you choose to stay for one month, it will cost 7524 yuan, and the average daily price is 243 yuan, but if you only choose to stay for one day, the price is 162 yuan Yuan.

"Now the summer vacation is one price per day, and even the price at night is higher than that during the day, and the room is full almost every day. If you rent for a long time, you can only follow the price displayed on the Internet, and there is no preferential price." The store staff said.

The clerk of Beijing Home Inn Wanshou Road also told Sino-Singapore Jingwei that if you choose a long-term lease for more than half a month, you can only lock the house price during the check-in period and will not be affected by the floating house price.

Are long-term rentals a lifesaver for hotels?

　　Behind the long-term rental of hotels is the continuous off-season of the hotel industry since the epidemic.

According to the first quarterly report of 2022 released by Huazhu Group, during the reporting period, the average occupancy rate of Huazhuying hotels was 59.2%, a decrease of 7% compared with the same period of the previous year, and a decrease of 24.6% compared with the same period of 2019.

　　Some practitioners told Sino-Singapore Jingwei that during the epidemic, due to the decrease in the demand for inter-provincial business travel and the increase in the internal management costs of hotels, many hotels tried to open up the market in various ways in order to survive.

So, can expanding the long-term rental layout be a life-saving medicine for hotels?

　　Sino-Singapore Jingwei has learned through various interviews that

although long-term rental can bring stable revenue to the hotel, the profit is relatively low.

　　"The price of long-term rentals varies according to the rental period, room type, and low and peak seasons, and it is almost negotiable for one person. If a guest who can rent for 3 months comes in the off-season, the price can even be half of the normal occupancy. Costs and profits have also been reduced by more than half." Niu Ping said.

　　Yang Xue, a staff member of a high-end hotel in Shanghai, revealed to Sino-Singapore Jingwei that high-end hotels will be extra cautious about long-term rental business under the epidemic.

"Under the circumstance of uncontrollable epidemic situation, some customers will request long-term rent because the community they live in is quarantined, but these groups are considered high-risk groups. Once an epidemic occurs, businesses will be closed for rectification in a short period of time. On the list, it will increase the concerns of consumers when they check in. Therefore, our hotel will be extra cautious in long-term rental services and will not take risks for temporary revenue." Yang Xue said.

　　A senior industry insider, who did not want to be named, said that although high-end hotels also provide long-term rental services, they account for a relatively low proportion of the total number of rooms, usually in single digits. There are more long-term rental services.

Under the epidemic, hotels are considering long-term rentals or emergency cash flow, but in the long run, long-term rentals will not become the mainstream business of hotels.

　　Hu Jinghui, chief economist of Jinghui Think Tank, said that the hotel industry's march into the field of long-term rentals and long-term rental apartments has accelerated significantly, which is obviously related to the decline in the occupancy rate and occupancy rate of rooms affected by repeated epidemics.

Especially for budget hotels, it is also a reasonable move to seek transformation.

In the future, the biggest challenge for the hotel industry is how to effectively match long-term rentals and short-term rentals in terms of space and time, and improve the comprehensive rate of return. This is a problem of data calculation and resource allocation.

(For more reporting clues, please contact Zhao Jiaran, the author of this article: zhaojiaran@chinanews.com.cn) (China-Singapore Jingwei APP)

(At the request of the interviewee, Zhang Yuan, Ji Xiaoxiao, Zhang Ju, Yang Huizi, Niu Ping, Lei Jing and Yang Xue are all pseudonyms in the text)

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