Toronto's AirBnB regulations should be stricter: Coalition

Torontosun.com
June 18, 2017
By Shawn Jeffords

A coalition fighting for new regulations around short-term rental services like AirBnB says proposed city rules up for debate Monday could go further.

Thorben Wieditz, spokesman for the FairBnB coalition created by hotel workers unions, said while that group likes the proposed rules coming to Mayor John Tory’s powerful executive committee. But fines and more verification tools could help tighten up the rules, he said.

The regulations created by city staff would require hosts register and bar short-term rentals for anything other than a primary residence. A short-term rental is considered to be under 28 days, the report says.

If approved at committee, the regulations would go out for consultation and return later this year for approval at city council.

The FairBnB Coalition intends to ask the mayor and councillors to tighten up regulations.

“We need to make sure there is a significant disincentive for people to not abuse the system and not post illegal listings,” Wieditz said. “Fines should apply equally to platforms as well as hosts.”

Wieditz said the coalition would also like to see the proposed rules include a home sharing hosts prove the residence they’re renting is their primary residence. The city regulations, if adopted as-is, would only require “self-declaration”. That puts the onous on neighbours to report illegal home sharing, he said.

“Right now they talk about self-declaration and I don’t think it goes far enough,” he said. “It shouldn’t be a voluntary process. It should be a mandatory process.”

“We like the under-lying spirit of this proposal which is to protect Toronto’s rental housing market from commercial operators that abuse the short-term rental platforms like AirBnB,” he added.

According to the staff report, if the rules were implemented, some 3,200 units used as short-term rentals in 2016 would no longer be eligible because they aren’t primary residences. That would still leave approximately 7,600 properties ented on AirBnB that same year which could continue to operate.

Earlier this week, AirBnB public policy manager Alex Dagg said the company welcomed the move toward regulation in Toronto.

“The vast majority of Airbnb hosts in Toronto use home sharing to help pay the bills and afford to stay in their homes,” Dagg said. “Airbnb is transforming travel by allowing people to experience cities like a local and support neighbourhood businesses.”

Mayor Tory said this week that he’s happy to see staff bring forward a set of recommended regulations for the service. The city has to deal with emerging technologies, he said.

“We must rise to address the future and embrace it,” he said.