Airbnb calls for tourist bed tax, rejects council regulation

Tuesday, 25 September 2018

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Homestay heavyweight Airbnb is throwing its support behind a bed tax proposal as it fights attempts to regulate short-term accommodation in residential areas.

Brent Thomas, Airbnb's regional manager of public policy for Australasia, is in Queenstown to oppose regulations proposed by the Queenstown Lakes District Council.

The rules will dictate the number of nights homes can be rented to short-term visitors, the number of people who can stay and will require frequent hosts to have resource consent.

Airbnb is the largest booking agent in the residential visitor accommodation sector and in 2017 accounted for 148,000 guest nights in the Queenstown Lakes District.

Mayor Jim Boult said the council introduced the rules to prevent large tracts of residential neighbourhoods becoming commercial accommodation operations. There was also a concern the increase in short-term visitor accommodation in homes had led to a decrease in long term rental options for workers.

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Brent Thomas, Airbnb regional manager of public policy for Australia, New Zealand, India and South East Asia.

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New Queenstown Lakes rules will dictate the number of nights homes can be rented to short-term visitors, the number of people who can stay and will require frequent hosts to have resource consent.

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Airbnb is the largest booking agent in the residential visitor accommodation sector and in 2017 accounted for 148,000 guest nights in the Queenstown Lakes District. It has about 2500 listings in the area.

Thomas told council appointed commissioners there was a better way to achieve the council's goals, including a bed tax.

'They could then use that money from us and other accommodation providers to build infrastructure and worker accommodation.'

The company would administer the tax, he said.

'We do it in 500 other places overseas … it makes it more efficient for council.'

Many New Zealand councils support a form of bed tax to help fund local infrastructure, but it has met resistance from the tourism sector.

Council's cannot introduce local taxes without central government approval.

Thomas said Airbnb had met with Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis to discuss the issue. Boult is also continuing to advocate for a bed tax.

'We think it's a fair way for the whole industry to contribute,' Thomas said.

Overall, he believed the council's proposal would make it more difficult and more costly for locals to share their own homes, reduce the supply of accommodation, which would raise prices for travellers, and give travellers fewer accommodation options.

Commissioners considering the proposal were concerned Airbnb was not offering an alternative solution for council to implement.

Thomas said that was because the rules that already governed residential areas and applied to homeowners and visitors were sufficient.

'We think the use of that home on Airbnb … is fundamentally the same activity and shouldn't need permission. We don't think there should be additional red tape and burdens placed on people.

'We do welcome regulation and we do welcome discussion with the council about some fair, progressive rules.'

His suggestions included a data sharing agreement that would debunk the idea that long term rental options were being lost to the visitor accommodation market.

The council's argument was based on incorrect data, he said.

'In fact, about two-thirds [of Airbnb hosts] are people sharing their own homes.'

He also suggested a code of conduct to ensure neighbourhood amenity was maintained. A similar plan was due to be implemented in New South Wales and would involve all homestay suppliers co-operating on a two-strikes policy. Hosts, guests or operators could be blacklisted for five years if they broke rules governing noise or parking.

Commissioner Calum Macleod said one woman had spoken of a home in a residential area next to three flats that had begun operating as a defacto hotel business with buses regularly arriving.

'Her residential amenity is gone … that's a recurring theme in Queenstown Lakes. For every ratepayer there's 32 tourists. That's insane,' he said.

Hearing committee chairman Denis Nugent told Thomas the system in New Zealand was different to Australia.

'All the things you've described are things state governments can do in Australia, but local governments can't do here and central government don't seem interested in.'