The City of Vancouver says most short-term rentals in the city, listed on sites like Airbnb, Vrbo and Flipkey, are whole homes – and it wants your input on what to do about it.
In a release, the City of Vancouver says it has commissioned analysis of data on short-term rental accommodations in the city from a third-party consulting company.
See also
So far, over the past year, the City says, analysis has shown up to 5,000 short-term rental listings are active in Vancouver.
Some 75% of all those listings are whole houses and apartments, bolstering the idea that the number of short-term rentals in the city is reducing much-needed long-term rental stock.
“With Vancouver’s rental vacancy rates at 0.6%, one of the lowest in Canada,” reads the release, “the City is concerned about the potential impact short-term rentals could have on the affordability and availability of long-term rental properties.”
The highest concentration of short-term rentals were Downtown, with 31% of listings located in that neighbourhood.
Mount Pleasant/Renfrew (15%), Kitsilano/Point Grey (14%) and East Hastings (14%) were also popular spots for short-term rentals.
Most short-term rentals are Airbnb
The third-party company, which has not been named, is looking at 10 different platforms which offer short-term rentals in Vancouver.
So far, it has found that 85% of short-term rental listings are rented through Airbnb.
Meanwhile, the City says, Airbnb has released figures showing the number of listings in Vancouver has doubled every year for the past three years.
Currently, zoning regulations do not allow short-term rentals. Renting property for fewer than 30 days is only allowed in a licensed bed and breakfast.
However, these City rules are rarely enforced and some strata are now resorting to banning short-term rentals in their own bylaws to address the issue.
Have your say
The City of Vancouver is looking for public feedback on the pros and cons of short-term rentals, and how they could be regulated in the future.
To tell the City what you think, fill in the survey which will go live on Wednesday, July 20 at vancouver.ca/short-term-rentals.