Accommodation has never been cheaper when visiting New York. This hasn’t changed, but finding accommodation or even looking for alternatives to hotels has become more complicated. Because the new legislation invert the model Airbnb and other platforms Like Vrbo or Booking.com. While it’s not the first city in the United States or the world to try to put an end to tourist accommodation, with 63 million visitors and tourists expected this year and one of the hottest real estate markets in the world, how? The case continues special expectation.
After overcoming several judicial challenges, on September 5, Local Law 18 went into effect, a regulation approved in 2022 that strengthens and expands municipal and state regulations and laws that already exist but have not been fully implemented. These Banning landlords or tenants from renting a house or apartment for less than 30 days if they do not meet certain conditions: guests must be present during their stay, no more than two guests, and have unrestricted access to the entire house, which may not be available in an older rental property.
What the new law does is to establish and strictly enforce new registration requirements. and establishes Fines will be imposed on both those who fulfill the conditions and continue to rent, and the platforms. accepting offers from someone who has not received approval and an official registration number from the mayor’s Special Compliance Office, where the complex bureaucratic process is slow. As of October 9, the city is almost 4,800 applications (for payment of $145), reviewed 1,700, with approximately 60% returned for data review or corrections, and only approved 481.
Although a period of time was given until December 1 before starting the sentence, the effect of the law was seen immediately. Almost 85% of offers disappeared from Airbnb between August and October It’s a project focused on the platform’s impact on housing communities, according to data from Inside Airbnb. If you could choose from 22,437 options in the summer, there were only 3,227 options left for this month.
‘Let’s go back underground’
The mayor’s calculations some predicted 11,000 Airbnb listings were illegal. However, this does not mean that the houses and apartments that have evaporated from that and other platforms have disappeared from the market.
Ads that limit or outright bypass legality are proliferating and moving to sites like Facebook Marketplace or Houfy, a platform similar to Airbnb. The limits of connecting supply and demand Abandonment of economic arrangements between the parties.
WhatsApp groups old and new are full of requests to save the way of renting through contacts of acquaintances or acquaintances of acquaintances, which is always an alternative when looking for accommodation in New York.
Craigslist is also experiencing a resurgence; that big digital marketplace where it’s OK to work with a heavy dose of intuition and caution, but also where New York magic is often produced. And on a simply designed online bulletin board this week, you could find, say, an apartment in Midtown for $150 a night, plus $75 for cleaning. Whoever published the ad offers 15% discount for those who want more than 30 days but he admits: “I’m not really looking for long-term stays.”
Supporters and opponents
Bill 18 has the support of those who feel it is necessary to put an end to a market that has contributed to rising rent prices in the city ($400 a year, according to a study by the Economic Policy Institute), gentrification and worsening living conditions. What activist Michael McKee describes as “a housing crisis in a city” desert in terms of available and accessible housing”.
These advocates of the law oppose Airbnb’s friendlier image. Tool to break the hotel monopoly It helps individuals earn extra income. They are also supported by studies showing that more and more of the platform’s offerings are concentrated on a small number of “professional hosts” who own multiple properties and act as “mini-hotel companies”.
Among the opponents of the law is, of course, Airbnb. The company, which made 85 million dollars, 1 percent of its annual profit, in New York in 2022, evaluates the regulations as follows:veto in practiceand global policy director Theo Yedinsky said: “The city is sending a clear message to the millions of potential visitors who will visit now.” fewer accommodation options “They are not welcome when they visit New York.”
Also in the law Objection from landlords and tenants Those who rent their houses or flats on a daily basis, those who accuse the municipal council of submitting to the state Pressure from the hotel lobby. The average price of a room in New York this month was $502; This is 8% more than a year ago.
450 of these single-family and two-unit homeowners have gathered at RHOAR (Restoring Homeownership and Homeownership Rights) and have already met with the mayor seeking an exception; It’s something Eric Adams’ spokesman suggested the mayor would support. Parliament approves the law. The lobbying group highlights that a quarter of its members earn less than $75,000 a year and half come from a racial minority, but one of its supporters owns a five-million-dollar ‘brownstone’ in Midtown and was already fined in 2019. Renting his house for $2,000 a night doesn’t exactly help his cause.