As mentioned in previous articles, Dublin and its surrounding areas has been struggling to accommodate every person who is willing and able to purchase a home. Demand has stayed at levels significantly higher than that of supply, causing people all over the area to rethink their current living situations.
Local authorities are looking for possible causes and solutions to this shortage. The first possible factor that the government has decided to more heavily regulate in hopes of amending their housing issue is Airbnb.
Starting July 1, Airbnb lenders will be faced with increased water, insurance and commercial rate charges. Additionally, in areas where there is a high demand for housing there may be a temporary ban on the ability to do short term let outs of a property.
In the future, landlords will be restricted to renting out their properties for only 90 days of the year and will still require the acquisition of commercial planning permission. Furthermore, the bookings will only be allowed to extend up to 2 weeks before termination of stay, and these weeks will be vulnerable to unnecessary charges from the government.
This rule also leaves 75pc of the year unavailable for people to bring in an income on the additional space in their home or whole rental property. Because there is such a low amount of time available, these places are likely to only be available during peak times of the year, leaving the space completely unused and costly outside of the 90 day allowance period.
Banning the use of secondary homes to be used as a form of rental property will not only decrease the amount of money flowing into the Irish economy, but will also decrease the amount of people that come into the city for tourism purposes.
As an avid traveller, my family and I have long since stayed in a hotel room. Airbnb’s provide much more space, privacy and homeyness that a hotel lacks, usually at a much more affordable price. Additionally, the amenities are usually much more accommodating to our habits.
By removing properties that could be used as a short term stay from the Dublin area, you are removing the opportunity for thousands of additional visitors to explore and spend money in your city.
Although the 5,762 Dublin Airbnb rentals are not accommodating people in the Dublin area full time, they provide a steady stream of tourism income into the Irish economy. In my opinion, the government did not look into these consequences when making their decisions to restrict Airbnb properties.
