Toronto has passed new rules for owners of property that rent out on home sharing platforms such as Airbnb. The rules will take effect July 1st 2018.
What’s New?
- The new rules will require short-term rental operators to register with the City as well as pay license fees of $50 per year as well as keep records of transactions.
- A property cannot be listed on Airbnb for short-term renting unless it is the home owner’s principal residence.
- Homeowners will be limited to offering their primary residence only – up to three rooms or the entire house.
- If you are offering up your entire house for short term rentals, you can only do it for a maximum of 180 days per calendar year.
- Perhaps most importantly, the new rules will ban secondary suites from being listed. Secondary suites are self-contained units mostly – basement suites with their own kitchen, bathroom and entrance.
Why is The City of Toronto Doing This?
The City of Toronto is enacting this regulation in response to a rental affordability crisis in the City – the vacancy rate in Toronto is dropping below two percent with many rents increasing. The hope of this regulation is to push more short term rental units for long term tenants.
Critics argue that The City of Toronto are also doing this in response to a strong hotel lobby which is losing income to Airbnb and other home sharing platforms.
Why Home Sharing Owners Are Upset
- By banning a secondary suite from being rented out home sharing property owners are losing flexibility as previously they could rent out when they wanted to.
- Some homeowners have said that short term rentals bring in more rents than traditional long term renting which is now at risk.
- A criticism; if a long-term tenant leases a secondary suite they can technically rent out the suite on Airbnb and be in compliance with the new rules; subject to them being allowed to sub-lease by their landlord.
Humberview Insurance Brokers ltd Provides landlord insurance including Airbnb Home Insurance, car insurance and home insurance across Ontario. Our goal with our online blog is to provide relevant information to insurance consumers.
This information is for general purposes only and should not be relied upon as advice. For up to date and relevant information please contact your local municipality or home sharing platform. We do not provide in any way a guarantee or warranty for the accuracy of this information.
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