1731 replies to this topic

[Szeven]

Quebec and Airbnb reached an agreement today where short term rentals automatically collect and remit a 3.5% lodging tax. Seems reasonable.

 

http://www.cbc.ca/ne...l-tax-1.4266355

[Mattjvd]

^^ Indeed it does, what is our current municiple hotel tax? 2%? Seems reasonable to extend that to Airbnb.

[spanky123]

Local hoteliers don't want the compeititon. The 2% hotel tax was just an excuse.

[lanforod]

They need to give their heads a shake. Even though it's mostly not legal, the competition is already here.

[Mike K.]

This October I'll be staying in an "apartment hotel" in downtown Vancouver (or near Granville Island ...I forget). Anyways, this place is more or less like an AirBnB (the unit is a small one-bedroom suite with somewhat full kitchen, etc.).

[lanforod]

So your place here is going on Airbnb? How much did you make off it when you were in Reno?

[Mike K.]

I'll be there for only one night, Inspector Lanforod.

[lanforod]

hah, made it sound like you'd be there for the whole month, thats all.

[Mike K.]

Oh yeah, I see what you mean

[todd]

Helps' landlord is no longer advertising her suite on AirBnB.

 

Procrastination, missed my chance to stay a night at the palace  . 

[VicHockeyFan]

If you haven’t jumped on the AirBnB wagon yet, it may be too late.

 

Victoria council is discussing a bylaw amendment tonight that would ban new short-term rentals (STRs) across the city, a move that aims to prevent absentee property owners from renting out their space on a short-term basis and open up the long-term rental market.

 

The proposed changes would limit short-term rentals to one or two bedrooms within an already occupied, self-contained home, allowing homeowners to supplement their income while preventing new units from becoming STRs. City bylaws currently allow zones for “transient accommodation” – hotels, motels and bed and breakfasts, in most cases – but the amendment would remove vacation rentals from the list of available uses for that land, most of which are located downtown.

 

But if you’re hoping for a quick fix to the rental accommodation shortage, changes may be a long way off.

The bylaw will only apply to new uses, not existing ones. Those currently legally operating short-term rentals will be allowed to continue because of the legal non-conforming use provision in B.C.’s Local Government Act.

 

http://www.vicnews.c...t-term-rentals/

Edited by VicHockeyFan, 07 September 2017 - 08:52 PM.

[todd]

Back when I had an STR they called it something different.

[lanforod]

Back when I had an STR they called it something different.

 

That's by the hour, not the night. Or is it per 15 minutes?

Edited by lanforod, 08 September 2017 - 07:48 AM.

[VicHockeyFan]

Boooooring.  Meanwhile in the Island's largest City (Saanich), they do not bother with this kind of meddling crap.  Nor do they have a homelessness issue.  Or a single food bank or soup kitchen.  Or musical stairwells or artists in residence.

Edited by VicHockeyFan, 08 September 2017 - 08:08 AM.

[Mike K.]

Get ready for a fast and furious run-up in values for transient-zoned condos within the City of Victoria.

 

What the outcome of this ridiculous move will do is further erode affordability and create a class of residences that comes with a premium. I can't say this decision is anything but a golden ticket for owners of those residences and one that will have absolutely zero effect on the housing market.

 

If anything, it might even make some condominium developments significantly riskier propositions and could (potentially) lead to a cancellation of projects. Wonderful news, hey?

[VicHockeyFan]

This move will have zero impact.  The City has no way to track which are grandfathered and which are not.  If strata councils (collectively, the owners, the one with real money in the game) have an issue, deal with it in-house.  As they do now.

 

This is a nothing-burger.

 

How many other jurisdictions did city council look at when coming up with this "solution"?  Zero.  Lame.  Waste of time.

Edited by VicHockeyFan, 08 September 2017 - 08:24 AM.

[spanky123]

Cause and effect. The CoV starts meddling in tourism and then by extension assumes ownership for any failings. Hotel numbers are down despite a rise in visitors so the obvious issue must be AirBnB and not that people are bypassing Victoria and going to other parts of the Island right? The CoV can't accept the later since doing so would then cast negatively back on themselves and their own policies towards downtown. The result then is to take meaningless action to try and appease stakeholders while hoping that the problem fixes itself.

[VicHockeyFan]

Cause and effect. The CoV starts meddling in tourism and then by extension assumes ownership for any failings. Hotel numbers are down despite a rise in visitors so the obvious issue must be AirBnB and not that people are bypassing Victoria and going to other parts of the Island right? The CoV can't accept the later since doing so would then cast negatively back on themselves and their own policies towards downtown. The result then is to take meaningless action to try and appease stakeholders while hoping that the problem fixes itself.

 

That sums it up.

[tedward]

Boooooring.  Meanwhile in the Island's largest City (Saanich), they do not bother with this kind of meddling crap.  Nor do they have a homelessness issue.  Or a single food bank or soup kitchen.  Or musical stairwells or artists in residence.

 

LOL, what a ridiculous premise! It has nothing to do with Saanich municipal governance. 

 

Saanich is a suburb of Victoria and has no "downtown". Homelessness is primarily an urban phenomenon. Visible homeless, highly correlated with mental illness and/or addictions, congregate where the people and money are concentrated: downtown.

[VicHockeyFan]

LOL, what a ridiculous premise! It has nothing to do with Saanich municipal governance. 

 

Saanich is a suburb of Victoria and has no "downtown". Homelessness is primarily an urban phenomenon. Visible homeless, highly correlated with mental illness and/or addictions, congregate where the people and money are concentrated: downtown.

 

Where people and money are?  Saanich has more people, and more wealthy people.  What it does not have is free handouts.