Eve is here. AirBnB is truly a class war issue. In cities with chronically tight rental markets, such as New York City and San Francisco, some investors buy apartments with the sole purpose of renting them out on a short-term basis, reducing the supply available to residents. . Some AirBnB landlords claim they need the additional income to continue using the property as their primary residence. AirBnB is gathering as many of this type of lender as possible to look good in the final stages of hotel regulation, just as big banks gather regional banks to lobby for breaks that benefit the big boys. It seems like it is. Too.
Some may argue that homeowners should have the right to do with their property as they see fit. But that’s the wrong view. Living in a community and enjoying its services (police and fire protection, garbage collection, the ability to enroll children in public schools, and the open enjoyment of zoning regulations designed to preserve local property values) It also comes with obligations. We will abide by the community’s position regarding temporary items. The last community I lived in had a complete ban on renting for less than 30 days. Other rules included a ban on cutting down trees over a certain size without hiring a professional arborist and extensive business permit requirements.
As the article points out, one of the voters opposing the re-liberalization of AirBnB rules in New York City are hotel workers (and apparently owners). In other parts of the U.S., AirBnB rentals are becoming less popular due to high cleaning fees. But New York City is a city with chronically high hotel prices, so AirBnB still seems competitive.
Samantha Maldonado is a senior reporter at THE CITY, covering climate, resilience, housing and development. Published by THE CITY on December 9, 2024
On December 9, 2024, pro- and anti-Airbnb demonstrators clashed in City Hall Park after a bill was introduced in the City Council that would make it easier for some homeowners to offer short-term rentals. Credit: Samantha Maldonado/THE CITY
On Monday, rival factions over proposed deregulation of Airbnb and other short-term rental platforms will face off in City Hall Park, leading to a live debate outside City Council headquarters that will ultimately force them to choose sides. .
On the one hand, the newly launched Non-Tourist Tenants Association, made up of groups such as the Crown Heights Tenants Association, Tenants PAC, Make the Road New York, and the Hotel and Gaming Industry Council; ”There was a coalition. They came to protest a City Council bill filed last month that would allow owners of single- and two-family homes to use their properties as short-term rentals.
Meanwhile, homeowners, many former Airbnb hosts, held signs supporting the bill. They said short-term rentals allowed them to cover the increasing costs of maintaining the property and gave them power and stability.
The chants that began with tenants and union demonstrators echoed through a call-and-response exchange between the opposing sides.
Tenant rights advocates and hotel union members rally in City Hall Park on December 9, 2024, to protest a bill that would make it easier for some homeowners to use short-term rentals like Airbnb. Credit: Samantha Maldonado/THE CITY
“Housing is a human right!” tenants and hotel groups chanted.
“We agree with you!” A shout came from the other side.
“People over profits!” shouted tenants and union members.
“Aren’t we humans?” the homeowner responded.
Members of each side engaged in argumentative confrontations with the other side.
“Things are a little tough right now,” Whitney Hu, director of civic engagement for Churches United for Fair Housing, told the crowd after engaging in heated one-on-one conversations with homeowners. “We’re all angry and frustrated. Those in power don’t see our pain. They don’t see our sadness. I don’t see people making really, really difficult decisions.”
“I can agree with that,” said Moe Oliver, a Bedford-Stuyvesant homeowner who was speaking with Hu. He said he paid his bills by Airbnbing his home after losing his job due to the pandemic.
“At the end of the day, what we want, and I think we can all agree on, is New York City, where we get up in the morning, where we pay our bills, where we take our kids to school. It’s New York City where you can pay your bills. You pay your rent on time, you pay your mortgage on time,” Hu said. “We’re fighting people who have money.”
Tweets across the crowd revealed differences in who participants gave their money to: companies like Airbnb or hotel lobbies.
Reconfirm limits
Starting in 2023, New York City Local Law 18 prohibits property owners from renting out their entire home or apartment to guests for less than 30 days. After registering with the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement, you can only rent up to two guests to share the same space, including an additional bedroom.
A study commissioned by Airbnb found that the new law eliminated thousands of short-term rentals in each borough, reducing them by 92%.
Sunset Park homeowner Gia Sharp held a rally at City Hall Park on Dec. 9, 2024, in support of allowing short-term rentals like Airbnb. Credit: Samantha Maldonado/THE CITY
Rep. Farrah Lewis’ bill, introduction. 1107 allows single- and duplex homes to be rented for less than 30 days and increases the number of guests allowed from two to four adults plus children. According to the bill, a principal resident would not be required to be present during a guest’s stay and would be able to rent the space for the holidays, but would still have to register with the city. Hosts may also install internal locks to restrict guest access to certain rooms, closets, and drawers.
For many people, short-term rental income has become a critical source of funding to cover rising mortgage costs,” Louis (D-Brooklyn) said at a City Council meeting in November. “Homeowners pursuing the American Dream are held back by policies that treat them like commercial enterprises.”
Airbnb, which has spent more than $1 million on local lobbying efforts this year, said the 2023 law did little to alleviate New York City’s housing crisis or rental costs and encouraged soaring hotel prices. .
“This bill is an overly restrictive, short-term bill that failed to lower rents in New York City last year, only to make hotel rates exorbitant for travelers,” Nathan Rothman, director of policy at Airbnb, said in a statement. “It aims to amend rental laws.” . “It’s time to fix broken laws that don’t help housing and line the hotel industry’s pockets at everyone else’s expense.”
Vijay Dandapani, president and CEO of the New York City Hotel Association, said in an email that claims that short-term rental laws have increased hotel rates are “a fabrication actively promoted by Airbnb. ” He said inflation-adjusted hotel prices would not recover to 2019 levels until September, and government measures to allow more hostels to be built could provide more affordable options for tourists. He added that there is.
Tenants and hotel associations said the Airbnb ban would increase the inventory of housing on the rental market for long-term tenants in New York, which is essential given the city’s housing shortage. Restrictions on short-term rentals were seen as a boon for competing hotels.
Meanwhile, many homeowners said they crave the flexibility and income that comes with renting additional apartments in rowhouses. They were able to entertain their families and visitors, but the ban cut off their source of income.
Of course, some property owners still advertise stays of less than 30 days on websites like Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace.
And indeed, some former Airbnb hosts have turned their former short-term rental properties into long-term housing for local residents. Streeteasy had a number of apartments listed with descriptions that either used to be Airbnbs, or that the owners planned to do so.
Gia Sharp, a consultant and co-founder of the organization Restoring Homeowner Autonomy and Rights (RHOAR), said she was forced to buy a duplex in Sunset Park in response to a law banning short-term stays. The hotel has switched to accepting long-term guests (those who stay for more than 30 days). -Terms have come into effect.
She liked short-term stays, so she was able to rent an additional unit when family from out of town wasn’t staying, and the additional income could cover upkeep costs.
Mr Sharp said he was open to talks about amendments to the bill, which would require properties to be owned in order to accommodate short-term visitors and would prevent companies from buying up homes to rent out to tourists. .
“Local Law 18 is good for the majority, but it goes too far,” Sharp said. “I think tenant rights are perfectly valid and we’re all on the same side. We want affordable housing, but we’re at odds with each other and it’s a divide-and-conquer But we all understand what this bill actually does, which is really help homeowners and New Yorkers. I want to be able to do that.”
But Darius Khalil Gordon, executive director of the Metropolitan Housing Council, a tenant group, said he opposes any legislation that could open the door to predatory activity.
“Airbnb and companies like Airbnb will actually use this as a disguise for single-family and duplex homes,” he said. That’s right, it just makes a profit. ”
