Boston City Councilors Salvatore LaMattina and Frank Baker are planning to call for a hearing on the proliferation of absentee owners and investors listing multiple rentals or renting entire houses or buildings via Airbnb and other online services.
In a resolution expected to be introduced in council tomorrow, the councilors cite various concerns including a lack of affordable rental units, safety concerns for renter and other residents of complexes being rented out, and residents finding themselves stuck with an unending stream of strangers in their neighborhoods.
This isn't the first call for various manners of stricter regulation of rentals via Airbnb and similar companies. In July, state lawmakers introduced a bill that would have taxed Airbnb rentals like hotels—a proposal the nonprofit Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center suggested could raise over $30 million for the state and towns.
That proposal died in budget sessions this summer, though lawmakers expect to take the issue back up in early 2017.
A recent report by the Boston Globe suggested that many Airbnb rentals are in fact replacing traditional long-term rental units, and at high prices.
The resolution by LaMattina and Baker only calls for a hearing—and doesn't prescribe solutions or outline what a possible ordinance would look like.
But LaMattina told WGBH News that he does not want any potential city ordinance to target small-time homeowners, and is looking instead at investors using Airbnb to make quick profit by avoiding long-term rentals, as well as safety issues like fire inspections and security.
LaMattina says he has communicated with Airbnb and believes the city and the company could find common ground.
"But I'm not willing to work with investors who come and buy a property and rent via Airbnb," LaMattina said.
