Short-term rentals ‘must play by rules’

Christchurch moteliers are leaving the industry and more will follow if nothing is done about Airbnb-style accommodation, the hospitality industry warns.

Moteliers asked Christchurch City Council yesterday to regulate the home-share accommodation industry to ensure a level playing field. ‘‘We have to have these people paying their fair share,’’ Christchurch motel owner Bob Pringle said.

The number of Christchurch listings on home-share websites has ballooned in the past three years from 283 in June 2016 to 4229 in August. But they do not have to abide by the same rules as motels and do not pay commercial rates. Pringle said hotels and motels in the city needed to be looked after, otherwise people would exit the industry and some already had.

Under existing rules, property owners in most residential zones need a resource consent to rent out entire properties short-term but the rules are not monitored or enforced. The council has conservatively estimated about 1600 homes are listed on various home-share websites without the necessary consent.

The council decided yesterday to ask the public early next year how it should regulate the industry. Possible options ranged from allowing whole home listings everywhere to restrictions in some areas. Another option was to limit the number of days a home could be listed for. The council also wanted the Government to put a register in place.

Hospitality NZ Canterbury branch president Peter Morrison said businesses had to abide by a multitude of regulations, from building consents to health and safety and fire rules, but people renting out homes did not.

‘‘We have no issue with the odd family renting out a room ... we do however have an issue with fulltime Airbnb operators engaging in professional accommodation provision.’’

But Sue Harrison, co-owner of Christchurch Holiday Homes which manages 50 homes in Christchurch and Akaroa, said many of her customers did not want to stay in a motel or hotel – they wanted a home. The homes she managed had carbon monoxide detectors, fire blankets and fire extinguishers, and she wanted a register of home-share accommodation and a code of conduct created. Bookabach was also advocating for a registration scheme, code of conduct and an industry body to manage code compliance.

Christ church NZ has estimated that between June 2016 and June 2019 the percentage of guest nights taken up by Airbnb, Home Away and Bookabach guests rose from less than 1 per cent to about 27 per cent.