Seeking Long-Term Solutions for Short-Term Rentals (NON-MEMBERS)

Friday, July 15, 2016 at 07:15 AM

Progress has certainly been made toward creating regulations on short-term rentals in Los Angeles.  Today, the City Planning Commission reviewed a draft ordinance.

Overall, the ordinance does a great job of addressing some big areas of concern.  Unfortunately, today the Commission made some changes that significantly weakens the draft before them.

 First, they raised the cap on the number of days a host can rent their primary residence from the 120 that was proposed, to 180.  120 were already problematic.  But, a cap of 180, half of the year, essentially legalizes hotels in residential neighborhoods.  This cap is a big worry for neighborhoods that have been heavily impacted--with noise, parking, and public safety issues--due to short-term rentals.

This will dramatically weaken the ordinance and provide little, if no, relief to residents all over the city.

Additionally, a cap this large will significantly economically incentivize short-term rentals over long-term rentals, further impacting the housing market.

The Commission also decided to include a provision for vacation homes to allow short-term rentals up to 15 days.  While this may not sound like a lot, allowing vacation rentals will open the door to continued abuse and lead to the loss of more rental housing.

KNF plans on fighting hard in coming weeks to educate the City Council about our concerns.  The ordinance will soon come to the City Council for review.  We will need you again, so keep an eye out for updates and calls to action.

Another City. Another Study. Same finding. Airbnb and short-term rentals are taking housing units off the market and making it ever harder for people to find a place to live.

This time, the story is Seattle, "But the result is the same.  “1,003 of these units — 36 percent — were listed by hosts who did not reside there. These are properties, according to the study, that could be housing local renters rather than Airbnb vacationers.

The reason property owners opt for Airbnb instead of a long-term tenant is simple: It’s more lucrative.”

How do we hold platforms accountable?  We hear this question a lot. How can we make sure they do what they say they will? 

San Francisco is trying to do it. Last week the Board of Supervisors passed new rules that make short-term rental platforms responsible for enforcing the city’s laws.

As expected, the platforms are looking for ways around the new laws. Without holding the platforms accountable, no new ordinance will be effective. We are doing everything we can to make sure that LA gets it right.

We have been watching the short-term rental battle in San Francisco. Enforcement has been a challenge and the platforms, like Airbnb, have been less than cooperative.  In response, just this week, the Board of Supervisors adopted tougher rules. 

The new rules require short-term rental websites to post registration numbers on listings or email the number and name of the host to the City.  San Francisco is demanding cooperation and we hope they get it.

Los Angeles should learn from San Francisco's example.  An ordinance that does not require cooperation and accountability of the platforms will not work.  We hope to see similar requirements in our final ordinance once it passes.

The crux of the debate about short-term rentals is this: What is more important? Protecting affordable housing and neighborhoods, or protecting the profits of home-sharing platforms?

As regulatory proposals continue to arise in cities all of the nation and world, Airbnb and the other platforms are coming up with absurd reasons to fight them—all in an effort to make more money at the expense of communities.

It is happening in L.A. and this GeekWire story describes what is happening in Seattle.  A Councilmember sums it up nicely. “There are an estimated four to five thousand Seattle homes, whether that’s a condo or an apartment unit or a private residence, that are being offered on these rental platforms today…Airbnb tells us that since 2009, their volume of users has doubled each year, so we know that this a large, growing sector and it is clearly providing economic benefits to hosts. We don’t want to interfere with that, but we do want to regulate commercial enterprises that are converting large numbers of Seattle homes to short-term rentals.”

Platform accountability.  Transparency.  In order for any new short-term rental ordinance to work in any city, these provisions are essential.  We know first-hand the impacts short-term rentals are having on communities here in Los Angeles, but the problem is not unique to us. Airbnb and other platforms are wreaking havoc in cities all over the world.

A recent study about Miami shows the major similarities.

We must ensure platform accountability in any Los Angeles ordinance. Without it, efforts to regain our communities and protect affordable housing will fail.

JOIN US ON JUNE 23 to make sure platform accountability is included in the new ordinance. Location and details TBD.

We have said it before and will say it again.  Los Angeles can learn crucial lessons about short-term rentals from other cities. 

In San Francisco, enforcement is a big problem. Why?  Because the platforms are not cooperating!  As we move forward with the Los Angeles ordinance, enforcement is going to be our number one concern and priority.

Wow. What a showing! We asked our KNF supporters to show up to the Planning Department hearing today, and you all listened. Combined with our coalition allies, we turned out more than 300 people and we made sure the City heard us.

All of our speakers did a great job and our messages were delivered. Overall, we told the City that we support the draft ordinance. We shared some concerns about various pieces of the draft, including enforcement, but we encouraged them to keep the draft mostly in tact.

Airbnb, commercial hosts and other platforms also came out big. It is clear, that this is war for them. They do not like the draft ordinance and are fighting against platform accountability and against any type of cap on rental days.

The next several weeks and months are going be important and we will ask, again, that you make your voice heard. It is vital that the City stays committed to this ordinance and adopt regulation that protects our neighborhoods, preserves affordable housing and holds the platforms accountable.

Thank you to everyone that came on Saturday, everyone who wrote letters, and to all of our supporters. 

After reviewing the draft ordinance released by the Planning Department, we generally feel like they listened to our concerns. However, we remain concerned about enforcement. An ordinance is only as good as its ability to be enforced. San Francisco is having enforcement issues and is looking at steep fines for violations.

We also need to ensure that there is enough staff to do the work. We know that Santa Monica hired 3 full-time staff for short-term rentals. We can expect that Los Angeles will need many, many more.

Help shape LA's Home-Sharing Ordinance.

Please join us Saturday, May 21st at 10 am to make sure the City hears from real LA neighbors:

Deaton Auditorium
100 W 1st St
Los Angeles, CA 90012-4112