VANCOUVER—A Vancouver data analyst expects at least half of the city’s current Airbnb listings to disappear between today and tomorrow because of a City of Vancouver deadline over valid business licences.
Jens von Bergmann, the founder of MountainMath Software, compared Airbnb listing data with the City of Vancouver’s public database of business licences.
He found that of 4,700 active listings, 2,432 did not have a valid business licence.
According to a memorandum of understanding between the City of Vancouver and Airbnb, the short-term rental platform has agreed to delete all listings that do not have a licence number after today.
Airbnb has also committed to share the names and contact information of its “hosts” with the city so bylaw officers can enforce new bylaws intended to both allow and regulate short-term rentals.
“It’s half the listings, so that’s a lot of potential revenue Airbnb’s losing,” said von Bergmann.
The new rules adopted by the city this spring require people who post properties for less than 30 days on Airbnb or other sites like Vacation Rental by Owner to have a city business licence.
The property must also be the primary residence of the person posting it — renters are supposed to have permission from the property owner, and condo owners need to make sure short-term rentals are allowed.
After Aug. 31, Airbnb users who are violating the city’s bylaw could face a $1,000 fine.
Properties being rented out for 30 days or more are considered long-term rentals, and are not required to have a business licence.
That’s because the intent of the new rules is to safeguard Vancouver’s long-term rental housing stock, and the city considers rentals of over 30 days to be long-term.
StarMetro obtained an email sent from Airbnb to a “host” on Aug. 31 that shows the company has begun deleting listings that do not have a Vancouver business licence.
The company says it has been in close contact with people who post properties on the platform to urge them to sign up.
“Hosts in Vancouver are earning an average of $153 CAD per night on Airbnb,” reads an Aug. 15 email sent to a user.
“If you would like to continue hosting in the future, please go through the simple online registration process.”
Von Bergmann said he found many examples of multiple Airbnb property listings with the same business licence number – not allowed under the new city rules – and invalid numbers.
Another question is whether all the properties are actually the user’s primary residence.
But the city won’t be able to meaningfully enforce its own rules, von Bergmann said, until Airbnb fulfils another MOU promise: To share user contact information with city officials.
Users who do not display a valid business licence will be deleted, without exception, said Lindsey Scully, an Airbnb spokesperson.
However, that does not include users who claim an exemption from the rules, such as listing a property for over 30 days.
Those exemption claims are also something the city will have to investigate, von Bergmann said.
“There are listings that claim to (be exempt) that in their text, but I think what counts here is what’s set in the Airbnb calendar,” von Bergmann said.
“If that’s not set for 30 days, I question how serious people are.”
City of Vancouver communications staff declined to comment for this story, but said the city will be providing “a status and enforcement update” next week.
