Airbnb sues New York City over short-term rental restrictions – 6/1/2023 – Market

Airbnb filed a lawsuit against New York City on Thursday over a new law it called a “de facto ban” against short-term rentals, which will take effect in July, which the company says which will limit the number of people who can offer rental accommodation in the city.

City councils across the United States are increasingly introducing ordinances to regulate short-term rentals, which in some cases will require hosts to obtain permits and pay registration fees or limit the number of short-term rentals in business districts.

The company’s New York State Supreme Court filing says the New York City Council, through legislation passed in 2022, has effectively implemented “its most extreme and oppressive regulatory scheme to date, which functions as a ban in fact against short-term rents in New York”.

Airbnb, in a letter to hosts, stated that “the present action was only taken after exhausting all available options for a sensible resolution with the city”.

According to the document, the law will make it more difficult for hosts to do business, requiring them to register with the Office of Special Oversight (OSE) of the City of New York and make sure they comply with “the complex web of regulations” regarding zoning, multiple housing law, housing maintenance code and building code.

Application reviews by the OSE will ensure that “only an insignificant number of hosts are granted registration,” Airbnb said in the document.

OSE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.