Buncombe County vacation rental occupancy drops 45% after Helene
Vacation-rental occupancy fell 45% in Buncombe County, squeezing tourism taxes, small hosts and service workers as Helene recovery continues.
Buncombe County’s vacation-rental market is still far below pre-Helene levels, and the 45% occupancy drop is more than a tourism headline. It threatens the tax base that helps fund county services, pressures small property owners and ripples through cleaners, maintenance crews and other jobs tied to the visitor economy.
The county’s tourism and housing reset has been uneven since Hurricane Helene. Explore Asheville reported that March 2025 hotel occupancy held at 64%, flat from 2024, while vacation-rental occupancy fell to 51%, down six points from 2024 and three points from 2019. Vacation-rental demand was down 28% year over year, and February 2025 listings were down 20% from the year before, showing that part of the decline came from fewer units available, not just softer demand.
That matters in Buncombe County because tourism is a major local industry, not a side business. Visitors spent $2.65 billion in the county in 2024, the travel and hospitality sector employed 18,377 people, and it generated about $116.5 million in state tax revenue and about $103 million in local taxes. Buncombe also accounted for 7.2% of North Carolina’s total visitor spending, which makes any prolonged short-term rental slump a statewide concern as well as a local one.
Local operators are already seeing the strain. Realtor Chip Craig, who manages about 200 rentals in the region, said reservations were down about 30% from the year before. JT Nicasio, co-founder of Host Haven, also said his team felt the storm’s aftereffects on the ground. The pressure extends beyond owners to the ecosystem around them, including the people who clean units, handle repairs and keep them ready for guests.
The bigger question for Buncombe is whether fewer short-term rentals are easing competition in the housing market or simply shifting the pain. Some residents may welcome any reduction in pressure on long-term rentals, but the county is also asking small hosts to absorb weaker bookings and, in some cases, decide whether to keep their properties or sell. That is happening while Buncombe’s Helene Recovery Plan moves forward with 114 projects focused on housing, infrastructure, natural resources, disaster preparedness and resilience.
There are signs of a rebound, but not a full one. Explore Asheville paused paid advertising the day after Helene and resumed it in November after Biltmore reopened, potable water returned and major highways and roads were cleared. Tourism Economics projected visitor spending would rise 3.5% in 2025 and 5.2% in 2026, and Buncombe tourism leaders later said room nights booked for July through December were up 38% compared with 2025. For now, though, the county’s recovery still runs through a tourism economy that is healing unevenly, one booking at a time.
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