Big Apple Airbnb rules: New York City enforces new rules for short-term rentals

If you’re looking to get away to New York City with plans to use Airbnb for your lodging, you will want to make sure that your plans don’t hit a roadblock.

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New York City officials have started enforcing rules concerning short-term rentals, CNN reported.

While the focus has been on Airbnb, that is not the only company targeted. Any platform that offers short-term rentals comes under the regulations, including VRBO and Booking.com, along with Airbnb, according to New York City’s Office of Special Enforcement.

The popularity of such sites has, according to the city officials, increased rents and made New York City’s housing shortage worse, The New York Times reported.

Property owners must register the sites they’re listing with the city. When the application is approved, they will get an official registration number that will allow the rentals to proceed.

One of the most notable rules states, “short-term rentals are only permitted if the host is staying in the same unit or apartment as the guests, and there are no more than two guests staying with the host.”

The rules also prohibit the applications from being approved if the properties are “rent-regulated units.”

Airbnb said that the rules will hurt tourism and the local economy, calling it a “de facto ban,” CNN and the Times reported.

“New York City’s new short-term rental rules are a blow to its tourism economy and the thousands of New Yorkers and small businesses in the outer boroughs who rely on home sharing and tourism dollars to help make ends meet. The city is sending a clear message to millions of potential visitors who will now have fewer accommodation options when they visit New York City: you are not welcome,” Airbnb’s global polity director, Theo Yedinsky told CNN in a statement.

Airbnb along with some hosts filed a lawsuit to block the enforcement of the law, but were dismissed last month.

Of the more than 3,200 applications filed, only about 800 were reviewed and about half of those were returned with requests for more information or corrections. Overall, 260 were approved for registration, CNN reported.

If a host does not get approval, the listings are to be removed from the rental platforms, the Times reported. It will be the responsibility of Airbnb and the like to confirm that a host has registered and that the application has been approved. If it is found that the rental is not registered, the hosts can be fined up to $5,000 for repeated violations while the platforms themselves face fines of up to $1,500.