City's Airbnb rules would limit rentals to primary homes

The City of Ottawa wants to restrictAirbnband other short-term property rentals to primary residences, a constraint that's already been imposed and swiftly challenged in Toronto.

A proposed bylaw outlined in a reportposted online Tuesday would require anyone wanting to rent out a homeon Airbnb or similar platformsto be "natural persons" who can provide proof it's their primary residence and notan investment property. That proof could includea lease or deed, according to the proposed bylaw.

• Neighbours remain skeptical about Airbnb's pledge to clamp down on party houses

Renters would also have to apply for a short-term rental permit that could be revoked due to bad behaviour. A two-year permit would cost $100.

City staff also recommendestablishing a special unit to enforce the bylaw.

Condo boards and landlords would be able to exclude properties from the city's registry by providing a letter signed by officers of the corporation, a notarized copy of the condominium declaration prohibiting short-term rentals and a list ofaddresses within the condominium.

'Unnecessarily onerous'

Property owners would only be allowed to rent out one home at a time, but cottages or vacation homes outside the urban boundary would be exempt from thatrule.

Hotels, motels and bed and breakfasts that use short-term rental platforms to fill vacancies would also be exempt from the primary residence rule.

In a statement,Airbnb public policy director Alex Daggwarnedthe bylaw would "reduce the amount of accommodations available and place unnecessarily onerous requirements on hosts."

"These recommendations will only serve to punish the thousands of responsible Ottawa hosts who use Airbnb as a means to support their families," Dagg said.

'Party house provisions'

When the City of Toronto imposed similar restrictions on short-term rentals, it was immediately appealed to the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal. That appeal has led to months of hearings, but no date has been set for a decision.

Under Ottawa's proposed bylaw, a permit could be revoked if there's evidence ofcriminal activity, unpaid fees or penalties, a serious incident endangering public safety or health, or "egregious or repeated public nuisances" a clause referred to as the "party house provisions."

A recent shooting at an Airbnb in Nepean heightened concerns about the safetyof short-term rentals inresidential neighbourhoods.

Airbnbtook steps to clamp down onparty housesfollowing a Halloween night shooting in California that left five people dead.

The Ottawa staff report proposes increasing the municipal accommodation tax from fourto 4.25 per cent to cover the costs of setting up the new regime, if the existing tax rateproves insufficient. The tax would become mandatory for all short-term rental platforms in the city.

Airbnb remitted $1.1 million to the city in the first year it voluntarily collected the so-calledhotel tax.

The staff report said establishing and enforcing the bylawwould cost $908,000 in its first year and $834,00 in subsequent years.