City council launching campaign to crack down on illegal Christchurch Airbnbs

Wednesday, 13 June 2018

The Christchurch City Council is figuring out how to crack down on those illegally using Airbnb.

A planned city council campaign to stop rule-breaking accommodation providers aims to have Christchurch ratepayers 'dob in' their neighbours.

Council staff are investigating how to monitor and enforce the requirements of providing short-term guest accommodation, as the popularity of Airbnb skyrockets in the city.

Councillor Anne Galloway wants Christchurch residents to know what is against the rules when it comes to short-term guest accommodation.

Accommodation sector representatives earlier questioned councillors about the rules for using residential properties to host short-term guests. Their questions stem from concerns formal providers face numerous requirements to operate.

As well as investigating how to monitor and enforce requirements, council staff are nutting out how to apply a business rate to properties used for informal short-term accommodation

Councillor Sara Templeton does not want to see the council 'hunting out' those using Airbnb reasonably, as the council nuts out ways to regulate accommodation providers.

* Christchurch targets one Airbnb operator, but hundreds may be illegal

* Call for regulation as Airbnb grows fast in Christchurch

* Kiwi homeowners earn hundreds of thousands of dollars renting out their houses on Airbnb**

Economic policy principal advisor Gavin Thomas told the council's Regulatory Performance Committee on Wednesday that a resource consent was needed to operate accommodation in a residential zone – 'which is where the owner isn't present and the whole unit is let out'.

'But you do not need resource consent to operate a bed and breakfast, which is where the owner is present and there are a number requirements that are met, including there being six or less visitors,' he said.

'We've been prepared to make that distinction that this is primarily about guest accommodation.'

Councillor Anne Galloway asked how neighbours of properties breaking the rules were 'aware of what their rights are' or what they could do if there was a problem.

She suggested neighbours could 'dob in' properties breaking the rules.

'They can become aware that this shouldn't be happening and therefore get in contact'.

Thomas said he understood an upcoming council communications campaign would 'make sure that people are aware that they have rights if they're in a residential zone'.

'One of the aims of the communication is to empower the community to self-police and also to empower the sector to self-police,' he said.

The council's communications programme aimed to raise awareness of the requirements for providing short-term accommodation. The committee will get the results of the campaign in November, when staff will also report on how the council can regulate the industry.

Thomas said a model used in Queenstown 'appears to be a very good one'.

'We'd like to have a closer look at [that],' he said.

The Queenstown Lakes District Council is proposing short-term guest accommodation providers could operate without resource consent if they offered stays for no more than 28 days per year, had no more than three lets per year and there were less than eight traffic movements per day with no heavy vehicles and buses.

'No minimum stay is imposed and it excludes the use of apartments. The business rate includes a targeted rate on businesses that funds Destination Queenstown, Arrowtown Tourism and Lake Wanaka Tourism.'

Councillor Sara Templeton said she did want to see the Christchurch council 'actively hunting out and penalising people who may be supplementing quite low incomes, or retirement'.