The city of Vancouver is moving forward in its quest to research how short-term rentals are affecting the housing market.
A motion was passed by council Wednesday to look into strengthening regulation on the market.
People spoke at council about their fears of AirBnB making it “unsafe” in some of their buildings.
A concerned father also spoke council, saying he’s worried about his daughters’ safety.
Max Mestinsek explained his daughter feels unsafe after realizing multiple people were coming in and out of her building because of short-term rentals.
“She realized that there were lots of strangers, young strangers in the hallways and either making comments to her or whatever and she just felt uncomfortable.”
But one speaker came out to defend the popular rental site, saying without it, she wouldn’t be able to afford her rent.
Emily Plommer said she’s in favour of regulation, but says it’s difficult for hosts speak up and defend their actions.
“Hosts are scared about coming out and talking about their experiences because all of the stories that you hear about are really negative.”
Councillor George Affleck said the challenge will be to regulate in a way that reflects this new sharing economy but that also makes everyone happy.
Staff will report back their findings as soon as feasible and report back to council.
Councillor Geoff Meggs said this motion is not an opportunity for taxation policy.
He said the protection of rental stock in the city should be the first priority.
Originally published on CKNW.com.