The EU this week proposed rules requiring Airbnb and similar companies to share with authorities the identity of hosts renting houses and apartments to tourists.
It is hoped that this data will give mainland cities an idea of how much real estate is being used for tourism – rather than housing – at a time of housing shortages. Identifying when and where property is illegally rented out to visitors contrary to zoning is another goal.
EU lawmakers also say short-term rental companies, which advertise homes and handle payments between hosts and guests, should disclose to public authorities once a month the number of guests staying at individual properties. and the number of nights they stayed.
The system by which companies transmit this information to agencies should be automatic, according to a proposal [PDF] released on Monday. The rules would also require hosts to register their properties as rental homes for tourists.
Upon registration, owners would receive a unique official registration number. This system would also allow authorities to identify and crack down on unauthorized listings – homes that are not allowed to be rented to visitors due to local regulations.
“The short-term accommodation rental industry has been boosted by the platform economy but has not developed with sufficient transparency,” said Margrethe Vestager, EU executive vice-president for a fit Europe. in the digital age, said in a report.
“With this proposal, we make it easier for hosts and platforms, large or small, to contribute to greater transparency in the sector. These sector-specific rules will complement the general rules of the Digital Services Act, which establish a set of obligations and liability requirements for platforms operating in the EU.”
The decision to regulate the short-term rental market comes as major European tourist destinations such as Paris and Barcelona suffer from a lack of accommodation for people who want to live there. Although Airbnb properties attract and boost tourism, long-term residents struggle to find affordable accommodations, as available accommodations are only offered to tourists and visitors.
The European Commission hopes that the proposed rules, if adopted, will regulate the rental market and provide more data to inform tourism and housing policies in the future. Building more houses and fighting NIMBYism would probably help too – but what do we know?
Lawmakers say the rules must pass because companies are unlikely to hand over private data voluntarily. “It is possible to limit EU action to promoting voluntary industry action and certain accompanying measures. ‘industry to change the status quo,’ the document says.
The proposal still needs to be discussed and voted on by the European Parliament and the European Council. If the rules are adopted, Member States will have two years to develop the platforms needed to exchange the data.
“These proposals provide a framework for Airbnb to expand our collaborations with governments and make it easier for ordinary Europeans to share their homes and follow the rules,” Georgina Browes, Airbnb’s head of European public policy, said in a statement. shared with Reuters. ®
Comments are closed.