We manage the property. You live your life. Here's what that actually looks like, market by market.

Your property is the hardest-working asset you own. Whether it's earning what it should is a different question and for most self-managed hosts across Toronto, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Brampton, Oakville and Niagara-on-the-Lake, the honest answer is no. Not because the market's soft. Because managing a short-term rental properly means pricing it daily, marketing it, vetting every guest, protecting the property, and staying compliant across half a dozen different municipal bylaws. 

This is a full-time job that most property owners never signed up for.

Oakwood BnB runs that job for you. 

Which GTA markets are actually performing right now

The GTA isn't one market, it's a patchwork of very different rules and very different returns. 

Toronto, 180-night cap

The largest and busiest market in the region: 26,049 active short-term rental listings, a 68% average occupancy rate, a $142 average daily rate, and $91 RevPAR. Revenue is up 25.3% year-over-year even as nightly rates softened slightly which means that demand is outrunning the price. 

The catch: the City caps entire-home rentals at 180 nights a year, requires a $53.22 annual registration, and collects a 6% Municipal Accommodation Tax on every stay. 

Registration is also restricted to the operator's principal residence.

Source: AirDNA Toronto market data, July 2026; City of Toronto short-term rental bylaw.

Richmond Hill, No licensing restriction

One of the few municipalities left in the GTA with no short-term rental licensing requirement and no night cap that can be a real advantage for owners who want fewer regulatory hoops, while it lasts.

Vaughan, Licensed, principal residence

Licensing is required, along with a Municipal Accommodation Tax account, and rentals are restricted to the owner's principal residence.

Brampton, 180-day cap

Annual licensing, a 180-day cap, principal-residence-only, a 3-bedroom maximum for individual rentals, and mandatory commercial general liability insurance.

Oakville, Licensed & premium rates

Licensing required and restricted to principal residences proving to be a real barrier to entry that keeps supply tighter and rates stronger for owners who are properly set up.

Niagara-on-the-Lake, High barrier, high reward

Licensing runs $800 for a new application and $600 to renew, with fire and electrical safety inspections required across five recognized rental types. That barrier keeps out casual hosts entirely, which is exactly why the properties that clear it tend to command premium, boutique-market rates.

What full-service short term rental management actually means (airbnb property management explained)

The revenue engine: pricing that changes every day, not once a season

Your nightly rate should move with real demand is something you might have read in guidebooks and heard on youtube airbnb network training videos. When we move pricing by following what's happening in the city by tracking local events, monitoring seasonality, watching competitor pricing, following day-of-week patterns we can avoid being stuck on a fixed number for months. Set-and-forget pricing is one of the most common ways GTA hosts leave money on the table.

Scroll-stopping listings

Professional staging and photography aren't decoration when competing in a saturated market like Toronto's 26,000+ active listings, they're what determines whether a guest clicks your listing or the one next to it.

The bouncer and the butler

Strict guest vetting protects the property; round-the-clock response times protect the reviews. Both have to happen at once, every stay.

Asset protection, not just turnover

Hotel-grade cleaning and proactive maintenance between every stay is essential to treating the property like the six- and seven-figure asset it is, not just a listing to refill.

Zero-headache compliance

Registration, permits, insurance requirements, and Municipal Accommodation Tax remittance look different in every municipality above, Oakwood tracks and handles all of it, so owners aren't the ones finding out about a bylaw change after a fine shows up.

A direct line to the CEO & not a call center

Every property is a business partnership, not a listing number. Owners get a direct line to Oakwood's CEO, Ali Cheema and not a ticket queue, not a rotating support inbox. If something needs a decision, it gets one from the person actually accountable for the property's performance.

Want to know what your property should actually be earning?

Get your property's 2026 earning potential estimate in 30 seconds. Send us your airbnb listing link or photographs of your property on: info@oakwoodbnb.ca 

Frequently asked

1. What does full-service short-term rental management actually mean?

Dynamic daily pricing across every platform, professional staging and photography, 24/7 guest communication and vetting, hotel-grade turnovers and maintenance, and full compliance handling registration, permits, and tax remittance — so the owner never has to touch any of it.

2. Which GTA short-term rental markets are performing best in 2026?

Toronto leads on volume with 68% occupancy and a $142 ADR. Niagara-on-the-Lake and Oakville command premium rates thanks to licensing barriers that keep supply tight. Richmond Hill remains one of the only GTA municipalities with no short-term rental licensing requirement at all.

3. Do I need a license to run a short-term rental in the GTA?

In most municipalities, yes.

Toronto, Vaughan, Brampton, Mississauga and Oakville all require registration and, in most cases, restrict short-term rentals to the operator's principal residence. Richmond Hill is the exception. Rules vary block by block, which is exactly the kind of detail a management company should already be tracking.