|
|
Post by High Priestess on Dec 1, 2016 15:39:52 GMT
Airbnb introduces 90 day cap for London hosts -- 60 day cap for AMsterdam hosts to be monitored too Many cities have short term rental regulations which include a cap (often, it's 90 days) on the number of nights a host can rent out an entire apartment/entire home. However, this, like any other part of the city's STR law, is up to the city to enforce. However many municipalities have been frustrated with the number of hosts who violate this part of the law in particular, as regards regulations on entire homes. The concern is with entire homes more so than private rooms because of the concern over housing, and with "removing units from the rental market", a business move by hosts which generally requires renting out the place more than a certain number of nights a year (studies have been done to calculate how many nights a host would have to rent a place, to make short term rentals at least as profitable as long term ones...90 days doesn't allow STR to be profitable). So now in London, where there has been controversy over hosts not following this law, Airbnb will set up software that prevents hosts from renting more than 90 nights a year on entire units. While this can help solve the problem and diminish the controversy, it blurs the line between government and business and so sets up some problematic precedent in that regard. Apparently a similar approach will be taken in Amsterdam, where the limit is 60 days. www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/dec/01/airbnb-introduces-90-day-a-year-limit-for-london-hostswww.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2016-12-01/airbnb-agrees-to-limit-private-rentals-in-amsterdamfortune.com/2016/12/01/airbnb-rental-limits-amsterdam-london/ |
|
|
|
Post by cc on Dec 1, 2016 16:41:47 GMT
We have only unruly guests--and other hosts--to blame for the dissatisfaction with Airbnb worldwide. Hosts should've endeavored to make sure the way they ran their business wasn't a problem to their neighbors and community. No one knows anything at all about the house where I live, and my landlord at my very busy 2nd house never knew I ran 200 people through there--and nobody else knew it either, because I chose a house with a very private doorway and kept on top of tenant behavior. I didn't go into this with the attitude of hey, I can make some money here, so everyone else can just deal with whatever.
|
|
|
|
Post by High Priestess on Dec 1, 2016 17:27:10 GMT
We have only unruly guests--and other hosts--to blame for the dissatisfaction with Airbnb worldwide. Hosts should've endeavored to make sure the way they ran their business wasn't a problem to their neighbors and community. No one knows anything at all about the house where I live, and my landlord at my very busy 2nd house never knew I ran 200 people through there--and nobody else knew it either, because I chose a house with a very private doorway and kept on top of tenant behavior. I didn't go into this with the attitude of hey, I can make some money here, so everyone else can just deal with whatever. I agree completely with you CC!! I've said this myself many times -- in fact I even wrote a blog about it. globalhostingblogs.com/2015/12/05/how-one-person-creates-short-term-rental-regulations-for-a-whole-city/It's always a few bad apples who ruin a thing for everyone else. This happens in so many areas of life. Sadly, there are apparently a large number of people who either cannot or will not look ahead, and give some thought to the consequences of their present-day actions -- both on themselves, and on others. Many people are approaching Airbnb renting in a solely self-centered and opportunistic way, simply seeking to enrich themselves and regardless of the annoyance or problems created for their neighbors. It boggles my mind how anyone can imagine that they could get very far engaging in a controversial business which is being heavily restricted in so many areas, all the while causing grief to their next door neighbors. Gosh, they are all but walking about with a big sign pasted to their heinie, saying "Please shut me down!" |
|
|
|
Post by lambada on Dec 1, 2016 17:34:44 GMT
We have only unruly guests--and other hosts--to blame for the dissatisfaction with Airbnb worldwide. Hosts should've endeavored to make sure the way they ran their business wasn't a problem to their neighbors and community. No one knows anything at all about the house where I live, and my landlord at my very busy 2nd house never knew I ran 200 people through there--and nobody else knew it either, because I chose a house with a very private doorway and kept on top of tenant behavior. I didn't go into this with the attitude of hey, I can make some money here, so everyone else can just deal with whatever. I have to respectfully disagree, CC. Yes, guests and hosts do have some responsibility on this, but the fault is mostly on Airbnb, in my opinion. Why? Because it insists on having Instant Book, the anti-discrimination policy that was not well thought through, Superhost(age) programs etc. Airbnb keeps using all the politically correct terms, but we all know they are doing all this to just increase their business growth/income. They are going more and more towards booking.com where hosts have no longer control over their homes and guests could pretty much do anything as they please. And when it first started, it used to hold the damage deposit, which I believe did help in keeping guests' behavior at bay, knowing that there is a chance they'd lose the $$S. They have also been recruiting hosts left right and center, without as much as having a short video tutorial introduction on what is the basic requirements to be a host. The same thing with guests. I'm not saying that Airbnb is responsible to educate us, but since it is so much easier to have a listing up on Airbnb (no annual subscription fee), it's only fair to at least show a little guidance. |
|
|
|
Post by cc on Dec 1, 2016 18:25:10 GMT
😆😆😆 Deborah!
|
|
|
|
Post by cc on Dec 1, 2016 18:27:28 GMT
I hear you, Lambada. I'm shocked at how Airbnb apparently did not anticipate all this, and have a plan!
|
|
|
|
Post by helgaparis on Dec 1, 2016 18:39:35 GMT
I think guest behaviour is only part of the problem. Most of it is caused by greed. People are running disguised hotels on multi property profiles. It takes lits of apartments out of the housing market in zones of high demand.
It's the local law and the platforms have the possibility to enforce it, so it's a good idea they do. As long as they don't do it, landlords will just ignore the law.
Cross-platform is another question.
Do you take bets that in 3 years all platforms will cross-check addresses ?
No? Maybe a declaration first, that the listing is not on other platforms or on the following platforms (=reduce the 90 days to 60 or 45)?
Renting rooms not destined for long term occupation is less of a problem, it only reduces hotel income, it does not create homelessness.
|
|
|
|
Post by cc on Dec 1, 2016 19:04:06 GMT
I think we as hosts ought to be concerned about any housing crunch we're causing. I wonder how all this will end up.
|
|
|
|
Post by Maria Lurdes (Milu) on Dec 2, 2016 3:32:06 GMT
I'm looking at this from another angle. This is the first time that I know of (or that I've paid attention to) that Airbnb is implementing a system change to force compliance with a regulation. Could this be Pandora's Box? Is the next step to do a system change to enforce the NY "one host, one listing"? There's so much talk about Airbnb complying, but it's such a big financial impact to the company to start cleaning house. It's one thing to shut down listings here and there to scare hosts into self-compliance, it's another thing to systematically wipe out a swath of listings which are profit generators for your business. I guess Airbnb is going to have to find new revenue streams as this model winds down. I'm not sure the "experiences" will be it, maybe they can sell Inspirational Posters?
|
|
|
|
Post by High Priestess on Dec 2, 2016 3:45:15 GMT
That's right Maria, this is a new thing for Airbnb, to enforce compliance with a regional regulation. So it's happening in London and Amsterdam, and they are alsoo in talks with the City of San Francisco about doing something similar in that city. I do agree it's a Pandora's box...the term I use is "precedent" which is a legal term and I think that's an appropriate term to use since legal issues are involved and precedent could be set, by Airbnb agreeing to help cities enforce their laws, which, once Airbnb starts to do, could be hard to back out of that direction. And it could very well end up being that just about every city on earth starts expecting Airbnb to enforce their particular municipal regulations. So Pandora's box could be an understatement for what happens with the precedent being set of Airbnb caving into these demands.  |
|
|
|
Post by High Priestess on Dec 2, 2016 15:24:47 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by High Priestess on Dec 5, 2016 16:54:15 GMT
|
|
