Richmond Hill considers regulating Airbnb, short-term rentals

Between 2016 and 2018, the number of Airbnb and other short-term rentals more than tripled in Richmond Hill

Yorkregion.com
March 26, 2019
Sheila Wang

The short-term rental trend has taken off in Richmond Hill, along with its problems.

Council decided to consider regulating the short-term rentals such as the home-sharing platform Airbnb, as an increasing number of complaints have arisen from this growing market.

Councillors voted unanimously to ask staff to examine the possibility of adopting a bylaw to license Airbnb and other short-term rental accommodations and bring back a report by Nov. 18, 2019.

Ward 6 Coun. Godwin Chan, who put forward the motion, said he has received complaints related to Airbnb including excessive noises, garbage on the streets and parking issues in the neighbourhoods.

“The important part is that there is a safety matter to be looked at because once you have the regulation, there will be opportunities for doing the proper inspection, having the licensing requirements and so on,” Chan said.

Ward 4 Coun. David West, who supported the motion, said he has received similar complaints in his ward.

West acknowledged that a number of Airbnb accommodations have been working in a compatible way with the community, but the ones throwing “wild parties” should be addressed. He suggested staff take a look at what other municipalities have been doing in terms of regulating the short-term rental market.

Chan cited in his motion a few Canadian municipalities -- including Richmond, Toronto, and Vancouver -- that have taken actions to regulate the market.

Vaughan has gone through public consultations on short-term rentals, he added.

Like Vaughan, Richmond Hill has seen its short-term rental market growing fast in recent years.

Between 2016 and 2018, the number of Airbnb and other short-term rentals more than tripled, according to data provided by airdna.co, a provider of short-term vacation rental data and analytics.

As of Mar. 21, Richmond Hill had 465 active listings for short-term rentals, and 97 per cent were on Airbnb.

City of Toronto passed restrictions in December 2017 on short-term rentals including a ban on nightly rentals of self-contained basement apartments and otherwise vacant condos.

Toronto hopes limiting such rentals to a host’s “primary residence” will stamp out so-called “ghost hotels,” which cater to visitors who come and go -- and sometimes annoy long-term neighbours with noisy parties.

The new rules that would have made a portion of Toronto’s rented out secondary suites illegal is currently left in limbo due to an appeal to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT).