Airbnb management company targets long-term Vancouver rentals

A companythat provides management services for short-term property rentals is targeting long-term rental providers, raising concern from cityofficials about Vancouver's rental housing stock.

bnbcare offers property management and cleaning services for more than 75 vacation and short-term rentals in Metro Vancouver.

The company says it searches forlong-term rental property listings on Craigslist and contacts the owners, offering themmore income by listing their propertyas ashort-term rental instead.

BnbCarespokesperson Igor Kostin said the company looks for homeownerswho might be out oftown for a few months and are looking to rent out their place while they're away.

"That's where we jump in andmake our offer," Kostin said.

In an emailobtained by CBC News, the company offered a property owner 20 per cent more income and saidit can sign a one-year lease with fixed rent throughout the term.

Taking out housing stock 'negative overall'

Coun. Geoff Meggs said that kind of activity is exactly what the city is hoping to crack down on.

The city recently released data thatshows up to 5,000 active short-term rentals in the city with 85 per cent of those on Airbnb. The data also showstwo-thirds of the listings are for entire houses, condos or apartments.

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Vancouver's rental vacancy rate is 0.6 per cent, andMeggs saidthe idea that management companies could be making thatproblem worse is troubling.

"I think that if we see people mobilizing their space and taking it out of the stock that's available to the City of Vancouver, that's negative overall,"Meggssaid.

On Wednesday the city launched an online survey to gather feedback on short-term rentals.

Meggs said he hopesthere will be enforceable rules in placeby December todeal with consumer protection and public safety issues, whileprotecting Vancouver's rental stock.