Airbnb appears set to score a big win in New South Wales after a government inquiry reportedly gave the company the thumbs up.
The Sigad Sharafresults of a government investigation into the regulation of short-term accommodation in New South Wales were leaked to Fairfax Media Sunday. The inquiry is said to recommend home owners who rent out their homes on Airbnb not face council fines as they currently do in some districts.
SEE ALSO: How Airbnb is glad-handing its way to legality in AustraliaThe details of the recommendations will be available once the report is tabled in state parliament, but it appears the Airbnb business model will not be subject to heavy regulation. The rules around short term stays currently vary in different council areas, and some hosts have been threatened with heavy fines for renting out rooms.
Despite operating in a legal grey zone, Airbnb says there are 15,000 listings in greater Sydney and more than 33,000 across NSW.
"This report is about giving certainty. Not everyone is a winner, but we have tried to get the balance right for consumers, home owners and the wider community," Mark Coure, chairman of parliament's environment and planning committee, told the publication. "Most houses are breaking the law. We want to see a standard applied across the state."
Owner's corporations will apparently not be allowed to ban residents from renting out homes on Airbnb, if the NSW government takes up the recommendations, and hosts offering their principal place of residence won't need to jump through hoops.
However those with investment properties on Airbnb won't enjoy a complete free for all, and may need to seek council approval.
In a statement, Airbnb Australia country manager Sam McDonagh welcomed the news. "It's is a massive step in the right direction and we applaud Mark Coure and the Committee members for showing they're serious about embracing home sharing, and growing the visitor economy," he said.
A spokesperson for Airbnb said the company had not yet seen the full report.
Responding to news reports about the inquiry, Tourism Accommodation Australia (TAA) said it appeared the government had ignored overseas examples where "the unfettered growth of unregulated short term accommodation" made housing less affordable -- a criticism levelled at the company in cities like New York.
"We are not against genuine 'sharing' whereby a resident shares out their house or apartment, but we are fully opposed to any relaxation of regulations that will allow non-resident commercial property investors...to rent out full apartments or houses," TAA CEO Carol Giuseppi said in a statement.
"Research shows that 37% of Airbnb listings in Sydney are available 365 days a year, and being operated as a fully commercial property business, while InsideAirbnb estimated that 61% of Sydney listings were for full houses or apartments, involving no 'sharing'."
Airbnb has an in-house policy team as well as professional private lobbyists helping it get its way politically in Australia. Much like Uber, it has chosen to ask for forgiveness (or friendly regulation) as it rolls out across the country, rather than beg for permission.
It is fighting for beneficial regulations at the state and local council level across the country, and has regularly encouraged hosts to contact their political representatives on behalf of Airbnb -- a tactic it used in NSW.
The company has also worked with the South Australian state government to allow Airbnb hosts to operate in the state without commercial development approval.
NSW Parliament has been contacted byMashable for comment.
Topics Airbnb
'The Last of Us' Season 2, episode 3's opening credits has a heartbreaking change
'Wordle' today: Get the answer, hints for June 30
How a college meme group regained control after a hacker took it hostage
Turns out podcasts pair very well with 'Mario Kart'
Best Apple deal: Save $60 on the Apple Watch SE
'Wordle' today: Get the answer, hints for July 2
Airbnb permanently bans parties after testing the policy when COVID began
Most streamed movies this week (July 2) are rather strange
Waitin’ on the Student Debt Jubilee
Podcasters unite for reproductive rights
One of Android's Easter Eggs is a Flappy Bird
Check out this beautiful sky penis the Marines drew over California
Will Ferrell had time to canvas for the midterms. What's your excuse?
Man loses data for entire city's population after night out drinking
FreeSync 2 Explained
Meghan Markle just beat Prince Harry at 'welly
Nothing Phone 1 will have a mid
Will Ferrell had time to canvas for the midterms. What's your excuse?
The Made in America iPhone: How much would it cost?
Big money and legal battles are no match for #MeToo
Best earbuds deal: Save $80 on the Bose QuietComfort Ultra EarbudsWhy are TikTok comments suddenly full of religious messages?NYT Strands hints, answers for March 6YouTube bans certain types of gambling content'Starve Acre's disturbing ending, explainedPuroAir HEPA Air Purifier deal: 25% off at AmazonNYT mini crossword answers for March 5, 2025Breville Barista Express deal: 27% off at AmazonNew scam involves fake BianLian ransomware notesBest robot vacuum deal: Save $300 on the roborock Qrevo EdgeThe 'Trump take egg' meme is an absurdly layered jokeAn AI program helps the formerly incarcerated turn to a life of codeHarmful AI character chatbots are proliferating, spurred by online communitiesBest MacBook deal: Get $50 off the new M4 MacBook Pro as a paid My Best Buy memberBest smartphone deal: Get the Samsung Galaxy S25+ for $120 offYouTube bans certain types of gambling contentScore the new iPads at a discount when you preorder at WalmartFoldable iPhone predictions: Big display, big priceBest earbuds deal: Save $80 on the Bose QuietComfort Ultra EarbudsNYT Strands hints, answers for March 7 Apple is getting fined again for screwing up iPhone batteries Vladimir Putin HATES this meme so much Russia banned it Here’s Jared Kushner ready for a yacht party in Iraq Australian authorities used phone location tracking to retrace steps of couple with coronavirus Trump hasn't taken credit for Amazon's 30,000 new jobs ... yet Here's how Super Mega Rich person Jeff Bezos is paying for his outer space dreams 5 things you should know about the Black News Channel A girl snuck a horse into her parent's bathroom for some selfies, of course The 'Will Now Have Stories' meme is here to bash Facebook Comedian tweets the perfect response to news story about his own death Taika Waititi dodges union question with rant about Apple keyboards Michael Caine says he voted for Brexit *gasp Huawei sues Verizon for allegedly using patents without permission Mitsubishi's LED skylights are perfect for the subterranean apocalypse Apple Watches outselling Swiss timepieces? It's complicated. Bill Gates might not be buying a $644 million yacht after all (UPDATE) Taco Squirrel managed to drag a hardshell taco up a tree Liberals trolled Trump with 'President Bannon' and it totally worked Mac Pro with 1.5TB of RAM tackles Google Chrome and its insatiable lust for memory New York City just took a major step toward equal pay
2.4543s , 8224.859375 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【Sigad Sharaf】,Wisdom Convergence Information Network