Is Airbnb under threat in Europe as it is in New York?

The ban adopted at New York on the rental of entire properties on a short-term basis is certainly sounding the alarm bell for private rental platforms. In fact, many critics of this participative economy model accuse platforms like Airbnb of drying up the rental market.

In the United States, there's a lot of talk about the "Airbnb effect" on a destination. In other words, whena growing number of landlords are converting long-term tenancies that could house local residents into short-term rentals for visitors. This helps to reduce the often inadequate supply of accommodation.

According to a report by three academics from the University of Graz in Austria, published in the Journal of Housing Economics, flat owners are indeed being tempted to rent out their flats on platforms such as Airbnb. The study reveals that a weekly rent on Airbnb is almost double that of a long-term rental.. This difference is even more marked in the most sought-after districts and tourist areas.

New York City has put a figure on the Airbnb phenomenon through several surveys. According to a report by the New York City Comptroller's Office, " the increase in Airbnb supply cost New Yorkers a total of $616 million in extra rent in 2016" . In 2016, 8,058 housing units were withdrawn from the rental market, a figure that exceeded 13,000 in 2018. This would have increased the price of rent by around $470 in the same year.

Europe gives a serious turn of the screw

While property owners are free to rent out their property on a short-term basis, the intensification of the phenomenon and head-on competition with the hotel industry, which is subject to stricter constraints than Airbnb (staff salaries, safety standards, etc.), have accelerated the pace of change. the restrictions adopted by many towns in Europe. Amsterdam, Barcelona, Florence, London, Munich, Paris and Rome have already introduced limits to the expansion of short-term rentals.

European cities with the highest Airbnb supply are now the most inclined to take action. According to statistical data from the American website InsideAirbnb - data disputed by Airbnb itself - the European cities with the most rental units listed on the rental platform are London, Paris and Rome. More interesting, however, is the percentage of entire homes reserved for Airbnb by destination. Copenhagen is number one at 89.7% followed by Athens at 89.6% and Paris at 86%. Lhe average number of fully-let flats in European cities is estimated at between 70% and 75%.

European cities are therefore faced with a real distortion of the Airbnb model. At the outset, Airbnb was a new take on an existing concept: "home-stay accommodation". For a decade, it has largely fallen into the hands of estate agents specialising in short-term rentals or landlords who have become more professional. Hence this alarm bell.

The most restrictive cities are now Amsterdam and Barcelona. Since 2021, Barcelona has banned the rental of entire flats for less than 31 days. Amsterdam has just tightened its legislation, forcing landlords to rent out their accommodation for no more than 30 days a year.

Florence and Rome restricts - or even bans - Airbnb accommodation in its historic centre. A measure now adopted by Lisbon. Munich as Stuttgart limit the number of rental days to 60 and 70 respectively. However, they do not have to register with the authorities.

Vienna will also change the conditions for short-term rentals. In the historic centre, it was already possible to rent a flat for only three months a year. This measure will be extended to the whole city in July 2024. By comparison, Paris seems to offer more flexible conditions. At least for the annual period, currently set at 120 days.

Many towns would now like to the introduction of EU-wide regulation. A request that has yet to materialise.

* conversion of local currency into euros on 27/09/2023

(Information as at 27/09/23 Source of statistics: http://insideairbnb.com/explore)

Up to 120 days' rental in around 100 towns and cities in France

As of 1 January 2023, France has introduced regulations on furnished tourist accommodation. It includes a compulsory registration number and a maximum period of 120 days for principal residences. in a number of communes. The list of these is published by the National Union for the Promotion of Holiday Rentals (UNPLV).

This list includes most of France's major cities, as well as towns with a high level of tourist activity. Among the towns with more than 100,000 inhabitants that will escape this 120-day restriction (on 27 September 2023), we still find Angers, Besançon, Caen, Clermont-Ferrand, Dijon, Limoges, Metz, Mulhouse, Nancy, Orléans, Perpignan, Rennes, Rouen, Toulon and Tours.

But from new, stricter rules could finally be adopted Faced with a shortage of local flat rentals in most major cities.

In June, a handful of members of parliament and senators called for stricter controls on the letting of furnished tourist accommodation. of short duration. With a catalogue of seven measures for action at the following levels This is a "fiscal, regulatory and legislative" approach, as proposed by these elected representatives of the Republic.

Towards more discriminatory measures for short-term accommodation?

The measures called for include a reduction in the number of rental days to 90, more or less in line with the average for other European countries. Taxation would be reviewed with the abolition of tax allowances for seasonal lets to encourage long-term leasing.

In Paris, the new local urban development plan, presented last June, makes provision for theThe ban on new professional furnished tourist accommodation in residential buildings and in the tourism sector.

Faced with these new, tougher restrictions, the UNPV has reacted. It has launched a platform to gather testimonies from accommodation providers in order to bring them together around common proposals for a fairer revision of the rules governing the short-term tourist rental sector. The association is calling on the public authorities to acting without giving in to demagoguery.

" The vast majority of furnished lets (primary and secondary residences) are let for less than 120 days a year and generate a median annual income of €3,900 for hosts.. Furnished tourist accommodation benefits many households by providing a much-needed income supplement in a context of rising living costs, "says Dominique Debuire, President of the UNPV in a press release.

The Olympics will temporarily save Airbnb

However, the staging of the Olympic Games in Paris and several other French cities in 2024 risks contradicting the image of empathetic owners fighting for their survival. According to thehe insurance brokers' website Reassurez-moi, renting accommodation during the Games is already five times more expensive than at the same time in 2023. The average price of a night would thus reach 1,055 euros in the 12^e arrondissement for a family, compared with 205 euros this year.

Yet another stone in the garden of the short-term rental sector, which is under fire from parliamentarians. However, the neither the government nor Paris City Council can really go after Airbnb before the Olympics.. Not least because Paris is planning to host some of the world's largest sporting events during the Games. 15 million visitors... who will have to be accommodated. And "incidentally" because Airbnb is an official worldwide sponsor of the International Olympic Committee - but not of the COJO, the organising committee of the Olympic Games in France. In a conference given by the consultant Skift last week, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky indicated that he was expecting welcome half a million visitors during the three weeks of the Olympic Games in Paris. So Airbnb is not yet ready to retreat in France!