Florida, California, and Texas collectively represented 32.5% of all 2025 Airbnb market searches by investors, according to new data from real estate technology platform Chalet. The findings underscore the Sun Belt region's enduring appeal for short-term rental property investments, while also revealing that investor interest remains broadly distributed across numerous markets rather than concentrated in a few major cities.
The data indicates that regional vacation markets experienced higher engagement rates for property investments compared to major urban centers. This suggests investors are looking beyond traditional metropolitan areas to identify opportunities in destinations that cater specifically to vacation travelers. The platform's analysis tools, available at https://www.GetChalet.com, provide free Airbnb market analytics and interactive performance data that support this type of market evaluation.
Despite the concentration of searches in the three leading states, no single market dominated investor attention in 2025. Even the most-searched individual market accounted for only approximately 1.8% of total searches, indicating a highly fragmented landscape where investors are exploring diverse opportunities across the country. This widespread distribution of interest reflects both the maturation of the short-term rental market and investors' efforts to identify emerging opportunities beyond established hotspots.
The implications of this data are significant for both current and prospective short-term rental property owners. The continued focus on Sun Belt states suggests these regions maintain strong fundamentals for vacation rental performance, likely driven by factors such as climate, tourism infrastructure, and year-round appeal. However, the distributed nature of searches indicates that investors are conducting thorough market research across multiple locations before making decisions, emphasizing the importance of data-driven analysis in this competitive sector.
For the broader short-term rental industry, these patterns suggest that while certain regions maintain structural advantages, opportunities exist across diverse markets. The data also highlights the evolving nature of investor behavior, with tools like Chalet's ROI calculators and performance data becoming increasingly important for informed decision-making. As the platform plans to introduce an AI Copilot in 2026 to support more efficient data interpretation and market trends comparisons, the emphasis on analytical approaches to short-term rental investment appears likely to intensify.
