By Tom Watson, moneymag.com.au
It's been a tough few years for Australians renters who have not only faced increasingly stiff competition for homes, but have had to stomach considerable price rises along the way.
Australia's capital cities have now notched the longest streak of continuous rental price growth on record according to the latest research from Domain, with rent on both houses and units now more than 30% higher than they were during COVID.
While there are signs that vacancy rates are finally beginning to rise at a national level, the pressure is by no means off renters - a fact which has prompted a flurry of ideas from governments and political parties aimed at boosting rental stock and easing affordability.
Capping rent increases, boosting housing supply and strengthening renter's rights more broadly are among the initiatives that have been floated, as has further regulating forms of short-stay accommodation like Airbnb.
In fact, some local and state governments around the country have already started to step in in order to ensure a greater balance between short-stay properties and longer rental housing - particularly in tourist hotspots.
How are councils regulating short stays?
In New South Wales, short-term rental accommodation is already capped at 180 days a year in a number of local council areas including Greater Sydney, Ballina and Byron Bay.
The Byron Shire Council has also sought to restrict the number of days that non-hosted, short-term accommodation can be rented out for even further from 180 to 90 days.
Elsewhere, Brisbane City Council is now charging homeowners who list an entire property on platforms like Airbnb and Stayz 50% more on their rates, while Warrnambool City Council in Victoria recently introduced a $400 annual fee for short-term accommodation providers.
Just last week, Hobart City Council became the latest local government to step in after voting to double the rates charged on short-stay accommodation in residential areas and on vacant residential land.
Read the full article by Tom, including a section on tourism trade-off at https://www.moneymag.com.au/could-airbnb-caps-boost-rental-supply
Editor's Note:
Do you have a view on the short term accommodation issue in Noosa? We would love to hear from you and are happy to post your contribution here anonymously. The more local stories we have the better. Please always cite sources whenever statistics are quoted. Email to: nnsnoosa1@gmail.com
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