REGULATION IN PRACTICE

SELECTED INTERNATIONAL CITIES

San Francisco Officials

in San Francisco's Office of ShortTerm Rentals addressed what they determined to be a housing crisis through "common sense regulations." After San Francisco established a registration system to keep track of home-renting, the number of listings on Airbnb dropped almost in half virtually overnight (from 10,000 to 5,500).34 Under the regulations, Airbnb was required to delist all homeowners who did not register with the city. The registration requirement was part of a broader package of regulations that limited home-renting to permanent residences, with a 90-day rental cap for whole homes35 .

The regulations apply to all home-renting platforms. Prior to the regulations coming into force, Airbnb and HomeAway had jointly sued San Francisco to vacate the law. A U.S. district judge ruled that the city was within its rights to regulate the industry.

New York City/State

The New York State Multiple Dwelling Law makes it illegal to offer short-term accommodation in any building that has three or more units unless the owner is present during the guest's stay.36 34 digitaltrends.com/business/san-francisco-airbnb- listings/ 35 shorttermrentals.sfgov.org/about 36 www1.nyc.gov/assets/buildings/pdf/MultipleDwellingLaw.pdf New York

State imposes a penalty of $1,000 for the advertising of illegal listings that is in violation of the multiple dwelling law. Airbnb notes that it collects and remits county bed taxes on behalf of hosts in 20 counties across New York State.

Airbnb also indicates that it has voluntarily implemented a "One Host, One Home" program for entire-home listings in New York City. As a result, hosts cannot act as commercial operators with multiple units.

New York City's Office of Special Enforcement tracks down violations of the law based on general inspections and in response to complaints.37 The enforcement team numbered 48 by the end of 2017.38 An organization named Share Better (comprising hotel and affordable housing advocates) have hired private investigators to expose illegal short-term accommodation offerings and report their findings to the city for follow up.

New Orleans

Starting April 1, 2017 New Orleans39 required that hosts register with the City. Airbnb facilitated a process where a separate registration with an annual fee is required for each property. Rental platforms must delist properties that are not in the city's database.