The eyes of the travel world will be on New York during the first week of September, but it won’t be for the city’s Broadway shows or U.S. Open Tennis Championships.
The focus instead will be on enforcement of new short-term rental rules that have already prompted thousands of Airbnb hosts to drop their listings. In a lawsuit challenging the rules, Airbnb called them “extreme and oppressive” and a de facto ban against short-term rentals. But after a judge dismissed that lawsuit and another filed by three hosts earlier this month, the city announced it would move forward with enforcement Sept. 5.
While New York is far from the first city to crack down on short-term rentals, its high profile and the extent of its regulations could make it a model for others to follow, industry observers said.
Airbnb declined to comment. Previously, the company has emphasized its cooperation with local governments, noting that regulations are in place in 80% of its top 200 markets around the world. It has also cited its efforts to engage with New York to advocate for clear and effective rules that target illegal hotel operators while allowing city residents to continue sharing their homes.
The now-dismissed lawsuit made clear that Airbnb believes New York City has gone too far. Besides registering with the city, short-term rental hosts will be barred from renting out an entire apartment or home and must be present during their guests’ stays. Fines for hosts who violate the rules range up to $5,000, depending on the violation.
The law holds booking platforms accountable too. They could face penalties of up to $1,500 for processing payments from unregistered hosts.
Murray Cox, founder of InsideAirbnb, an activist group that uses data to highlight what it calls illegal rentals and the dangers of gentrification in neighborhoods where absentee owners buy up properties to rent online, said he was pleased by the ruling and the city’s plan for action.
“We know that short-term rentals, and Airbnb in particular, have numerous negative impacts on residential communities, in particular, making less rental housing available and increasing the cost of housing in neighborhoods with high concentrations, and other quality of life issues like constant parties next door, parking issues and strangers with keys to your apartment building coming and going day and night,” Cox told PhocusWire. “Restrictions on short-term rentals, and smart regulations like NYC's all help to reduce these negative impacts.”
Will new rules hurt Airbnb’s NYC listings?
New York City is the latest in a long line of local governments in the United States and around the world to institute regulations on short-term rentals. Other high-profile examples include New Orleans, which adopted new regulations in March requiring that licensees live on the property they list. In June, Dallas banned short-term rentals in neighborhoods with single-family homes.
In Malaysia, the island of Penang announced this month a ban on unlicensed Airbnb and Booking.com homestays. The new regulations mean only a few categories of commercial properties, such as serviced apartments, will be allowed to continue hosting people, the West Australian reported.
And in Europe, so many communities have adopted varying restrictions that the European Union announced plans late last year to develop uniform procedures for regulation and data collection of short-term rentals, a move Airbnb said it welcomed.
Read the full article at https://www.phocuswire.com/Airbnb-New-York-City-short-term-rental-rules-travel
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