The City of Vancouver is seeking public input on how it should regulate short-term rentals within its jurisdiction.
On Sunday, the city announced that it will conduct a public opinion survey to assess the pros and cons of short-term rentals such as those available through the web service AirBnb, as well as solicit feedback on what sort of rules should govern such services.
The survey will go live on Wednesday, and was announced alongside a third-party analysis of short-term rentals in Vancouver, commissioned by the city.
The analysis found more than 5,000 short-term rentals in the city, some 85 per cent of which are listed through AirBnb. The rest are listed through other services, including Homeaway and Flipkey.
Fully three-quarters of short-term rentals are entire homes, condos, or apartments that could otherwise provide housing for long-term residents of the city.
Some 31 per cent of the short-term rentals available in Vancouver are downtown. Other neighbourhoods with a large number of such rentals include Mount Pleasant/Renfrew (15 per cent), Kitsilano/Point Grey (14 per cent), and East Hastings (14 per cent).
Vancouver’s rental vacancy rate has been below 1 per cent for several years. At 0.6 per cent, it is one of the lowest in Canada.
The city says it sees the value short-term rentals can provide to residents and visitors, but is concerned about the effect short-term rentals could have on the affordability and availability of long-term rental properties.
The survey on short-term rentals will be available at vancouver.ca/short-term-rentals starting July 20.
