1731 replies to this topic

[dasmo]

It's a problem in every desirable city right now and they are coming under attack.

"Overall the data is a big step toward meeting the company's pledge of transparency. But viewed carefully, the numbers tell a different story than the one put forward by Airbnb. Over the last year, hosts renting out multiple units for long periods of time still represent a significant portion of Airbnb’s income in New York, potentially taking housing stock off the market."

 

http://www.theverge....-illegal-hotels

 

I like the service, the product and the tech. I don't like what it is doing to our city. So...something needs to give. Everyone here wants to regulate the pot shops but AirBnB? Nope...too close to home....

[lanforod]

I bet a large percentage of those are not net new short term rentals but are actually people switching from VRBO or HomeAway, or doubling up by posting on both (if that is permitted).

[Mike K.]

I say it should be a level playing field.

The hypocrisy of going after AirBnB while pot shops continue to operate unchallenged and sanctioned pop-up food trucks are appearing at desirable locations is outrageous.

[dasmo]

I say it should be a level playing field.

The hypocrisy of going after AirBnB while pot shops continue to operate unchallenged and sanctioned pop-up food trucks are appearing at desirable locations is outrageous.

Exactly....Just declare our region lawless so we are all on a level playing field. I want to take some free land that I can build whatever I want on it, maybe start a business selling whatever I want to whomever I want as well. Everyone for themselves. I Will need a sawed off shotgun on my thigh though....

Edited by dasmo, 08 June 2016 - 10:30 PM.

[Jason-L]

I wonder how profitable AirBnB would be if it was regulated and treated as part of the hotel industry, and had to pay the taxes and fees associated with that?

[jklymak]

Look at it this way. If there is demand for lodging then someone will build the lodging. Whether it is scattered among 20 condo towers or it is one purpose built tower doesn't really matter. As VHF says it probably helps build more units to have have buildings partially bought by folks hoping to run hotels rooms.

In the end this boom will stop. There is only so much of a market for full sized condo vacation properties. The existing hotels weren't meeting that need, hence Airbnb. If this boom helps build a few more buildings in town, it seems like a good thing.

[Sparky]

Meanwhile, the City of Victoria has just blessed a food truck operating for $100/day on Douglas at Yates, arguably the busiest intersection in the CRD, and a move that impacts brick and mortar businesses paying huge municipal taxes.

That is a slippery slope. Are they planning on using up a parking spot or two as well? If I was the fatburger guy I would be more than a little choked.

[LeoVictoria]

Pot shops only affect a few neighbours. A crazy rental market due partially to Airbnb affects a large proportion of the population. Makes sense to focus there

[dasmo]

"In Paris, officials are making door-to-door raids to fine illegal rentals.

Quebec is planning to require homeowners to pay the same taxes and follow the same rules as hotels.

In Santa Monica, city officials recently designated a budget of $410,000 in their first year of running a department to specifically patrol short-term rentals.

In February, San Francisco brought in a new law requiring that hosts must be permanent residents who register in-person with the city. It also restricted entire-unit rentals to 90 days a year."

http://www.vancouver...2378/story.html

[dasmo]

Pot shops only affect a few neighbours. A crazy rental market due partially to Airbnb affects a large proportion of the population. Makes sense to focus there

Also Pot is on a path to legalization as per recent announcements and has societal benefits. The explosion of short term rentals is on a path to criminalization and is fueling foreign speculation and misappropriation of a necessary resource for our population.

[Mike K.]

This is all such hypocritical nonsense no matter how much yarn we spin.

"On the path to..." means zilch if it's not actually legal, as far as the City of Victoria should be concerned. Instead we're turning a blind eye to one industry while clamping down on another. This is setting us up for a costly legal battle that I would rather avoid.

[tedward]

Food trucks are an AirBnB and Uber of the restaurant business. Anyone who doesn't see them as such has their blinders on.

 

 

The hypocrisy of going after AirBnB while pot shops continue to operate unchallenged and sanctioned pop-up food trucks are appearing at desirable locations is outrageous.

 

Let me get this straight, you are saying food trucks are the same as both AirBnB and Uber?  Even though food trucks are regulated by health and safety codes, require business licences, and are limited in where and when they operate? And now you are saying that they cannot regulate AirBnB and Uber because they are regulating food trucks?!?!

 

It seems to me that applying long-standing regulations to AirBnB and discussing changes to the same is a reasonable action to take. If people are operating businesses then they need to operate in accordance with the applicable regulations.

 

As for pot shops, same basic idea except that they are moving very slowly to both create a regulatory regime and enforce what rules they have. You almost have a point there except that the Supreme Court of Canada decisions regarding pot shops means that it is not really possible to create an effective regulatory regime until federal law and regulations are updated to comply with the court's decision. Unless public safety is at risk I see no reason to rush to get the city involved in costly court challenges likely to result from premature regulation.

[Mike K.]

If we use your analogy I need to point out then that AirBnB rentals are also already regulated (again, using your analogy): building codes; building permits; insurance; fire codes. Many are also operating in transient zoning. There, regulated, right?

Food trucks disrupt the natural order of a brick and mortar business environment. They can appear anywhere, at any time, pay far less to operate, and take advantage of prime locations at prime times while providing a service that may be in demand which is not met by other retailers. That's the exact same principle upon which Uber and Airbnb operate.

Back to the pot shops, why can every other jurisdiction force the closure of an unregulated, illegally operating business (a pot dispensary) but Victoria can't? Why are we in a legal bind that does not apply to, say, Sidney or Esquimalt?

Regulate everybody or go home. I don't need my paid politicians cherry picking problems du jour any more than downtown needs a tent city. If they can't find enough to do maybe we need six councillors on the payroll instead of eight.

[Nparker]

...Regulate everybody or go home. I don't need my paid politicians cherry picking problems du jour any more than downtown needs a tent city...

This.

[VicHockeyFan]

Let me get this straight, you are saying food trucks are the same as both AirBnB and Uber?  Even though food trucks are regulated by health and safety codes, require business licences, and are limited in where and when they operate? And now you are saying that they cannot regulate AirBnB and Uber because they are regulating food trucks?!?!

 

The City is allowing food trucks to operate on City property (Centennial Square, Yates St.) and not charging market rates for the space.

[dasmo]

If we use your analogy I need to point out then that AirBnB rentals are also already regulated (again, using your analogy): building codes; building permits; insurance; fire codes. Many are also operating in transient zoning. There, regulated, right?
 

exactly, so now enforce the regulations and shut them down. Most downtown condos I believe are legal as C zoning allows transient I believe, but full houses or apartments zoned residential are not. Like I said earlier, it's gracious they are considering NOT doing that and instead implementing new tax regulations. 

Edited by dasmo, 09 June 2016 - 09:10 AM.

[spanky123]

Airbnb just passes the costs on to the user. Same with Uber on airport or other fees. The question then is how much value the consumer assigns to the product and how close to (or more than) other competitive prices they are willing to pay.

 

The tourism industry here keeps shooting itself in the foot. For the first few months they kept gloating on how much occupancy rates and prices were going up. People then say great airbnb is having no negative effect so then the industry acknowledges that there are 500 rooms out of the mix due to renovations in order to further their claim that airbnb needs to be regulated!

 

Easy enough to calculate exactly how many airbnb units there are on the market. You can go to their website, select and area and they will count them units for you! Problem with Victoria is that the counter only goes to 300 so you have to select sub-sections of the City and then add them together as there are far more than 300.

[rjag]

exactly, so now enforce the regulations and shut them down. Most downtown condos I believe are legal as C zoning allows transient I believe, but full houses or apartments zoned residential are not. Like I said earlier, it's gracious they are considering NOT doing that and instead implementing new tax regulations. 

 

As far as I know airbnb is not illegal......can you verify that? What regulations are they currently breaching? How many illegal suites are there in this City? Where's the enforcement? The law is not supposed to be selective...its black or its white. Pot is currently illegal. I don't care if it 'may' be legalized next month or next decade, that is no excuse to turn a blind eye. Its illegal until its not.

 

Until there is hard data actually linking airbnb or vrbo etc as a contributing factor to the lack of affordable housing or rentals etc then its simply distractive speculation. City Hall has to own a significant part of this with their looney restrictions on development height and density. The delays for long periods up to years a la Pandora /Mason St They ignore all the illegal suites even though they probably represent a higher hazard for tenants due to lack of this regulation that a whole bunch of folks here seem to crave.

 

This distraction game plays into their power and desire to respond to folks clamoring for 'government interference' as if that's the magic bullet.

 

Face it, housing stock is in a serious drought. This creates panic and drives prices up. Rich Chinese people don't buy $400k 1950's houses in Esquimalt or Oaklands...they're far more interested in the higher end of the scale....the boogeyman is that we live in a desirable part of the world....a safe haven, we are affordable compared to elsewhere and we are a city of immigrants and yet we aren't growing any faster than other places.

Edited by rjag, 09 June 2016 - 09:49 AM.

[dasmo]

It's the zoning. If it's residential, you need to be living there. renting a room is fine. Here is a map of Van's AirBnB listings, You don't think this has an affect on affordability? https://www.google.c...tsKBn_#map:id=3

 

[dasmo]

Perhaps Vibrant Victoria should request the data for Victoria? http://tomslee.net/r...data-for-a-city