Short-term renting platforms like Airbnb will be subject to tighter restrictions under new regulations put forward by Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien.
Sites like Airbnb have come under increasing scrutiny in recent years as many property owners have opted to use their services for short-term letting.
This has taken many properties off the long-term rental market and led to increased rents and more competition for housing in urban areas, according to Minister O’Brien.
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Ireland is not alone in seeking to curb the influence of sites like Airbnb on the rental market. Then Housing Minister in the UK Stuart Andrew voiced similar concerns earlier this summer.
“Holiday let sites like Airbnb have helped boost tourism across the country, but we need to make sure this doesn’t drive residents out of their communities,” he said.
The number of entire home/apartment listings on Airbnb in Ireland is 15,657 according to Inside Airbnb, while there are currently only 859 properties to rent on Daft.ie, Ireland’s biggest property rental site.
In Dublin, where the housing crisis is most serious, there are 5,358 entire homes available on Airbnb while there are just 380 advertised on Daft.
Under the proposed new rules, both the property owner and the online platform will receive fines if they advertise properties without the required planning permission.
The cabinet has approved the introduction of these stricter controls in an effort to bring more housing back onto the long-term rental market. The new rules are expected to be in place by the beginning of September.
Minster for Housing Darragh O’Brien has proposed an amendment to the Planning and Development Act 2000, which would restrict websites like Airbnb from advertising properties in ‘Rent Pressure Zones’ without the necessary planning permission.
“We know that significant numbers of properties have been withdrawn from the long-term rental market in recent years,” said Minister O’Brien.
This shift has negatively affected the availability of properties for rent, the Minister said.
“This trend has been made easier through the use of online platforms and has been particularly acute in urban areas of high housing demand,” he said.
“Through these new controls we are strengthening the regulations which are in place and ensuring that homes are used to the best effect in areas of acute housing need.”
“Government are acutely aware,” he said, “of the pressures on the rental market at present and we expect that these new and significant controls will help to ease that pressure.”
The new controls are planned to be in place for an initial period of six months, during which time the Department of Tourism will compile a new register of short-term letting properties.
The register is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
An AirBnB spokesperson said: "“Airbnb has long backed new rules for short-term rentals in Ireland. The government has already committed to implementing a single national register this year, and we encourage them to fast-track this solution rather than focusing on burdensome stop-gap measures. A single register will unlock the benefits of hosting for everyday families, and allow local authorities to protect housing and tackle property speculators that damage communities.”
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