‘There is a clear winner’: Airbnb rep says new BC rules will only raise hotel prices

Nathan Rotman says Airbnb can appreciate that British Columbia premier David Eby is looking for ways to fix the province’s housing market.

But as you might expect, the regional lead for Airbnb in Canada claims BC’s new short-term rental (STR) regulations, which went into effect on May 1, are missing the mark.

“We don’t think this legislation is going to have the impact that he thinks it will have on the housing market,” he told NowMedia video host in a recent interview. “What we’re seeing in places like Kelowna is that it’s hurting tourism this summer.”

While Rotman says it’s too early to do a proper data analysis of the new STR rules in BC, it’s a story the company has already seen play out elsewhere.

He says data from Vancouver, Toronto and New York City has shown consistent increases in rent prices over multiple years since STRs were regulated.

Rotman also points to a Statistics Canada report released this summer, which found that restricting STRs has a miniscule affect on the availability of long-term housing and does not help affordability.

The biggest result of restrictions against STRs, he says, is an increase in hotel prices.

Rotman reports that New York hotel prices have increased 8% since the STR rules came into effect and were reportedly up around 20% during the holidays in 2023.

“There is a clear winner,” he noted. “When you reduce supply, you can raise your prices, and that’s what the hotel industry seems to be focused on.”

According to Rotman, the BC Hotel Association (BCHA) has funded two studies in the past year about the impact of STRs on housing affordability.

“Twice in a row they’ve had the same results and we’re not surprised by this,” he said. “No matter where we are in the world, we see the hotel industry always trying to find ways to limit its competition.”

While that competition can exist in some areas, Rotman says Airbnb and other STR platforms can fill a big void left by the hotel industry and give people much-needed accommodation options.

Some people are looking for a place to stay in the suburbs when they’re travelling to see family, while others are looking for a spot to stay on vacation with a large group.

“We are not saying that there should be no regulation by any stretch of the imagination, we believe we should be working collaboratively with municipalities,” Rotman said. “But there should be a made-in-Kelowna approach, there should be a made-in-Kamloops approach, there should be a made-in-Vancouver approach.”

BC’s “one-size-fits-all” system “isn’t a right approach,” he adds, and he points to our neighbours in Alberta as having a better system.

Major cities like Edmonton and Calgary have local rules meant to support the needs of those individual cities, Rotman explains, while the same is true for tourist destinations like Canmore.

While BC does have exceptions for resort communities like Whistler or Big White, Rotman believes that approach is needed on a bigger scale across the province.

In his interview with Csek, Rotman attempted to clear up some misconceptions about Airbnb that have been a part of the narrative behind STR restrictions.

He says 85-90% of BC hosts have just one unit on the platform in BC and it’s not accurate to say there are a lot of people running several units to compete against hotels.

As for who is primarily using Airbnb during their travels, Rotman claims it’s utilized by a lot of families who are too big to fit in a single hotel room.

He also reports that over a million guests who stayed in a BC Airbnb in 2023 were British Columbians travelling within their own province.

That means a ban on this type of accommodation prevents people from spending money in their own province and contributing to BC’s economic growth, Rotman notes.

With a pivotal provincial election less than a month away, Airbnb will be monitoring the results that could have a significant impact on the company’s future business in BC.

In an interview earlier this month, Eby told NowMedia that the BC NDP would not be lifting STR restrictions, but he is open to discussing concerns brought up by specific municipalities like Kelowna.

In turn, Rotman says that Airbnb simply hopes Eby and Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon listen to British Columbians on the campaign trail when they talk about the impact of the regulations on their communities.