5 ms·

Tangential to the topic, but does AirBnB operate under any regulations? When I was in Seattle, my apartment building ended up adding an explicit clause in the l

Tangential to the topic, but does AirBnB operate under any regulations? When I was in Seattle, my apartment building ended up adding an explicit clause in the lease saying you couldn’t rent a property and turn it around into an AirBnB or any kind of room share for temporary or short term stays. The legal framework wasn’t there (this is 2016 I’m describing), and so I wonder why go public now. Get a more solid footing and then lobby for regulation to drown out other start ups?

jfk13 7y ago
Perhaps people are keen to cash in before regulation catches up with them more widely?
- blueadept111 7y ago
  I live in Vancouver (BC) and over here Airbnb worked with city to create and enforce regulation for short term rentals (ie, requiring a license to operate and then actually policing and enforcing the regulations). I think its working out well an expect to see this model being applied in other cities as well.
  - jfk13 7y ago
    Though perhaps it's not always working perfectly... https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2019/09/18/airbnb-condo-breaking-rules-river-district-vancouver/ https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2019/09/18/airbnb-condo-b...
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tempsy 7y ago
A lot of cities explicitly ban short term AirBnBs of less than 30 days, unless you as the owner are staying there as well. HOAs can be more strict on top of whatever existing city regulations exist.
- greenyoda 7y ago
  NYC, one of Airbnb's biggest markets, has been cracking down hard on illegal short-term rentals. Bloomberg has an article today about it: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21015849 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21015849
gamblor956 7y ago
AirBnBs are generally subject to hoteling regulations in every market that has them. AirBnB, as the booking agent for the hosts, doesn't get to ignore the regulations just because the host is liable for any violations. Because they're acting as an agent for the hosts, they're also bound by those regulations. (AirBnB has claimed they are just a "platform" for connecting hosts and guests. But they handle too much of the transaction for both sides to just be a "platform"--they also handle payment, refunds, customer service, etc. Also, there's generally no such thing as a "platform" exception with respect to hoteling laws.)
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dannyw 7y ago
Pretty much every county I stayed in the US taxed Airbnb, somewhat substantially and possibly even above the prevailing rates for hotels. There are counties who derive 1/3 of their revenues from Airbnb taxes. Probably won't be banning them.
- The_rationalist 7y ago
  Wut, 1/3 seems extremely Hyperbolic, isn't it? Otherwise I agree
  - Eric_WVGG 7y ago
    There are many towns in the Rocky Mountains whose populations are around 600 people and whose primary industry is tourism. 1/3 doesn't sound high for places like that at all. https://www.outsideonline.com/2198726/did-airbnb-kill-mountain-town https://www.outsideonline.com/2198726/did-airbnb-kill-mounta...
zdragnar 7y ago
A very touristy city near me offers a fixed number of permits to property owners to offer short-term rentals out of their non-primary residences homes, and somewhat recently increased the number of permits they hand out. Some places are banning operations like airbnb, and others are embracing them with the aim of controlling the downsides. Apartment owners in general don't like to allow subletting or renting because it makes things like liability and property insurance claims tricky if anything should go wrong, and people tend to like neighbors more than they do strangers walking around outside their door.

jfk13 7y ago

Perhaps people are keen to cash in before regulation catches up with them more widely?

blueadept111 7y ago
I live in Vancouver (BC) and over here Airbnb worked with city to create and enforce regulation for short term rentals (ie, requiring a license to operate and then actually policing and enforcing the regulations). I think its working out well an expect to see this model being applied in other cities as well.
- jfk13 7y ago
  Though perhaps it's not always working perfectly... https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2019/09/18/airbnb-condo-breaking-rules-river-district-vancouver/ https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/2019/09/18/airbnb-condo-b...

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tempsy 7y ago

A lot of cities explicitly ban short term AirBnBs of less than 30 days, unless you as the owner are staying there as well. HOAs can be more strict on top of whatever existing city regulations exist.

greenyoda 7y ago
NYC, one of Airbnb's biggest markets, has been cracking down hard on illegal short-term rentals. Bloomberg has an article today about it: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21015849 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21015849

gamblor956 7y ago

AirBnBs are generally subject to hoteling regulations in every market that has them. AirBnB, as the booking agent for the hosts, doesn't get to ignore the regulations just because the host is liable for any violations. Because they're acting as an agent for the hosts, they're also bound by those regulations. (AirBnB has claimed they are just a "platform" for connecting hosts and guests. But they handle too much of the transaction for both sides to just be a "platform"--they also handle payment, refunds, customer service, etc. Also, there's generally no such thing as a "platform" exception with respect to hoteling laws.)

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dannyw 7y ago

Pretty much every county I stayed in the US taxed Airbnb, somewhat substantially and possibly even above the prevailing rates for hotels. There are counties who derive 1/3 of their revenues from Airbnb taxes. Probably won't be banning them.

The_rationalist 7y ago
Wut, 1/3 seems extremely Hyperbolic, isn't it? Otherwise I agree
- Eric_WVGG 7y ago
  There are many towns in the Rocky Mountains whose populations are around 600 people and whose primary industry is tourism. 1/3 doesn't sound high for places like that at all. https://www.outsideonline.com/2198726/did-airbnb-kill-mountain-town https://www.outsideonline.com/2198726/did-airbnb-kill-mounta...

zdragnar 7y ago

A very touristy city near me offers a fixed number of permits to property owners to offer short-term rentals out of their non-primary residences homes, and somewhat recently increased the number of permits they hand out. Some places are banning operations like airbnb, and others are embracing them with the aim of controlling the downsides. Apartment owners in general don't like to allow subletting or renting because it makes things like liability and property insurance claims tricky if anything should go wrong, and people tend to like neighbors more than they do strangers walking around outside their door.