Saturday, November 26, 2016

The AirBnB situation in Queens

From the Times Ledger:

The confrontation between Airbnb and New York City continues to fester, as hosts who list rentals await the possible enforcement of a law banning the advertisement of short-term rentals within the five boroughs.

There are 3,657 Airbnb active listings in Queens as of Nov. 1, according to a report released from Airbnb, including listings for entire homes, as well as private rooms or shared spaces.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo approved legislation in late October barring hosts from advertising units for less than 30 days if those hosts are not in the building with the guests. The fees can range as high as $7,500, and Airbnb subsequently sued Mayor Bill de Blasio, state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and the city of New York to overturn the instilled ban. The bill pertains to whole homes and apartments in buildings with three or more units.

The rental of units for less than 30 days in multi-unit buildings has been illegal since 2010, but the city intends to enforce a ban on publicizing the rentals.

The average Airbnb unit in Queens is available for 136 nights per year, according to an Inside Airbnb analysis of the number of reviews left by renters. About 39 percent of the Queens listings are from hosts with multiple listings of units, according to the data, and the site cautions that it is possible they are “running a business without a license and not paying taxes, and if they are renting out an entire home or apartment and aren’t present, are probably doing so illegally.”

5 comments:

Joe Moretti said...

The title of this Times Ledger article is "Airbnb faces enforcement of new law in Queens". I am totally shocked, you mean Queens enforces laws!

Anonymous said...

None of this legislation will deter people from renting via AirBnB, and as long as there's a market for it, people will keep listing property there. I have many friends from out of town that love Abnb. Even after I warn them that it's illegal, they don't care, and say it doesn't matter to them, it's the property owner that's doing the wrong thing.

If my neighbor was running one of these, I guarandamntee you I would be reporting them. I check regularly to see if there are any close by me.

Phil Wong said...

With all the hotels being converted into homeless shelters, where else could tourists go for a place to stay??

kapimap said...

A segment of hotels, like fairfield inn , residence inn, could really shut down air bnb if placed in the right parts of queens. Mini apartments with kitchenette.

Matter of fact, the city should work with a hotel company, and create these type of hotels for emergency needs. Near a transit hub, strictly short term.

Why doesent the city use air bnb to book rooms for their clients?

Anonymous said...

>If my neighbor was running one of these, I guarandamntee you I would be reporting them. I check regularly to see if there are any close by me.

Snitches deserve stitches.