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Registration of Short-Term Rentals

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Rule status: Adopted

Agency: MOSE

Effective date: March 5, 2023

Proposed Rule Full Text
Proposed-Rules-Registration-and-Requirements-for-Short-Term-Rentals-with-certs.pdf

Adopted Rule Full Text
FINAL-RULES-GOVERNING-REGISTRATION-AND-REQUIREMENTS-FOR-SHORT-TERM-RENTALS.pdf

Adopted rule summary:

The Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement is adopting a rule to implement Local Law 18 for the year 2022, which requires short-term rental hosts to register with the City and prohibits booking services from processing transactions for unregistered listings.

Comments are now closed.

Online comments: 262

  • Denise

    This rule serves the rich. It supports the top percent that owns Hotels and entire rental buildings in NYC. Especially the portion of this rule where building owners can just decide to add their building onto a list that claims short term rentals can’t be allowed, even if it’s not a building that qualifies for rent stabilization. It will force a big chunk of the middle and lower middle class to leave NYC as we rely on the portion of our income that comes from short term rentals that we NEED to run in our own homes. I’m sure many are like me where we work hard to make our space comfortable for a guest, but really we don’t even want to rent out a portion of our home. But it’s the only way we can continue to afford living here. If you want to focus on something that supports housing issues in our city, enforce stronger and broader regulations on the never ending rent increases. Rent stabilize ALL apartment buildings. Our incomes are not growing fast enough to keep up with it. Living with a long term roommate is hardly an option because even half of the insanely high rent for a clean living space in this city is too much for the middle class to afford. The easiest way to stop people from airbnbing portions of their homes is to solve the crippling high cost to continue living here, after working hard and paying our taxes to be here for many years. Fix the insane rent, HOV fees, property taxes etc., and we won’t need to Airbnb. Force us to pay even more taxes/fees for the right to continue doing this, on top of threatening us with high fines etc… that’s the move if you’re trying to run hardworking middle class people out of this city. I suppose it just depends on what the real purpose of this new rule is. I for one know if this rules goes into place, I will need to move to a city that better supports the middle class. I grew up in NYC. I hope you will reconsider this rule.

    Comment added November 11, 2022 12:33am
  • Helen M

    I have been disabled for about 12 years now and renting out my bedroom on Airbnb has allowed me to stay in my rent stabilized home of 22 years. I can pay my rent, utilites and buy food. I am not eating out, taking vacations or living high, just making my ends meet. With these new registration requirement excuding rent stabilized apartments it would prevent me completely from being able to support myself and be independent.

    Staying in my home is extremely important as I have a friend in the building who helps me with daily tasks plus a friend who lives a block away who helps me a couple times a week. Being homeless and forced to live in a place without that support frightens me.

    Comment added November 16, 2022 12:06pm
  • Farhana Chowdhury

    Since i have been doing Airbnb I have been able to pay my mortgage and my children’s college funds. Doing Airbnb is not easy however it is a pleasure to make sure that my house is always clean. Neighborhood is safer because tourists from all over are coming just to sleep so they can go out and tour. It is unfair that we have to be so restricted in our own homes

    Comment added November 16, 2022 12:20pm
  • Tuan Le

    I echo Denise’s comments above. We are in the middle class, and living in NYC has become more and more expensive. With record high inflation, high utility bills, and increased property tax, hosting out home is a viable option.
    During the pandemic, I have accommodated medical professionals, including nurses, and doctors who served our community during the time of need.
    This new proposed bill will put our livelihood at risk and our chance to stay in this beautiful. Please reconsider.

    Comment added November 16, 2022 12:36pm
  • Alani Cahir

    Hello. I have been a landlord since 1999 and an AirBnb host since 2018. I prefer being a landlord and only list on AirBnb when I can’t find a long term roommate. During Covid, everyone left the city and if it weren’t for AirBnb I would have lost my house as no one in the city was looking for a room.

    AirBnb helps us keep our room occupied with a paying guest so that we can pay our mortgage, utility and other bills. Our guests visit local eateries and stores, use the subway, etc. They always ask where the best places to eat are. Without our guests, there would be no tourism in NYC and we couldn’t afford to keep our house. If I am unable to host when I can’t find a roommate I will probably have to sell my house.

    From what I have seen, medical professionals, interns and students are looking for short term housing not one year leases. Many international tourists are staying for a few weeks to a month as they have one month vacations every year. In addition, most tourists are looking for comfortable clean places to stay that gives them access to a kitchen. AirBnb solves both problems and encourages tourism. I do not think tourists will want to stay in hotels as they don’t provide kitchens for guests. A small non-functional mini fridge doesn’t work for tourists who want to be comfortable during their stay in NYC. Hotels are unappealing, dirty, small and should be transformed into either appropriate vacation rentals with kitchens/kitchenettes or homeless SRO’s. Having them empty is a waste of valuable real estate. And the hotels will stay empty until they provide working kitchens or kitchenettes for their guests. When I go for a vacation I am NOT staying in a place that has no kitchen as I have to cook my own food because I am on a special diet that is not available at any restaurant. Please reconsider allowing us small landlords and home owners to provide a valuable service and encourage tourism so that NYC can be revitalized. Use the hotels as SRO’s for the homeless and those that cannot afford normal housing.

    As a landlord, I carefully screen my tenants and if they don’t qualify both economically and psychologically I will not rent to them. My housing is medium income, non smoking and non vaping. My tenants must recycle and compost. I do not tolerate inconsiderate tenants. Tenants must be trained on proper tenant behavior if you want large scale acceptance of vouchers. Many insurance companies will not insure a building that has vouchered tenants.

    Also, AirBnb is NOT responsible for the huge rent increases. The developers and their luxury apts are causing the rent increases. They refuse to build realistic normal housing and only build luxury housing that no one can afford to rent. The real estate agents and brokers are also responsible for the huge rent increases as they continually encourage landlords to ask for more rent so that they can make a larger commission. Thank you for listening and please choose to encourage tourism in NYC by allowing small landlords and home owners to rent to tourists. Tourists and short term working professionals want kitchens as well as towels and bed linens!

    There is no need to do a short term registration as NYC already has a hotel business registration. Charging a fee to register defeats the purpose of enabling those with financial problems from being able to easily provide a room for guests or roommates. Only the more affluent can afford additional fees and those that need to be able to host in order to keep their homes would not be able to afford to pay the registration fee. Please allow small mom and pop landlords and home owners to do short term rentals without penalties and fees so that tourism is encouraged and so that short term workers and students can find a comfortable place to live.

    Feel free to charge the large scale AirBnb facilities and hotels fees as they are making lots of money but please don’t make the economically disadvantaged who are trying to retain their homes pay fees. If you want the hotels to be occupied by tourists then force the hotels to provide kitchens or kitchenettes.

    There is no cap on normal rentals so there should be no cap on short term rentals. As a small landlord and home owner we need every penny we can get from rental income in order to keep our homes. Unless you want all the mom and pop landlords to be bought out by developers building useless luxury housing, please allow us mom and pop landlords and home owners to do short and long term rentals without penalty and without additional taxes and regulations. No one wants to stay at a hotel that has no kitchens in the rooms so if you eliminate the mom and pop AirBnb rentals you are eliminating tourism in NYC. Tourists want to be comfortable. Hotels are not comfortable. Use the hotels for SRO low income and homeless housing and stop wasting valuable real estate. Thanks for listening and please reconsider. The hotel lobbyists are misleading you.

    Comment added November 16, 2022 12:45pm
  • Inna Volchek

    I am single mother with disabilities. My kids are students. My only way to afford a housing is to Airbnb one of the bedrooms while kids are in the dorm. Please don’t take it away. We created a clean , comfortable space for guest, we share local businesses that we love. It’s a win win for the city and for people like me who otherwise can’t afford to stay in NYC.

    Comment added November 16, 2022 10:05pm
  • Rachel H

    It is unfair and unwise to crack down on small homeowners, such as one- and two-family houses that the city previously promised to leave alone. Start by going after the mega hosts who have multiple properties- you will get the bad actors that way. The rest of us are trying to offset rising heating costs this winter on top of rising property taxes, electric and water. Many of us have a small extra space to rent out that is not taking any permanent housing off the market, it’s accessory space that we have available for temporary use – this rule about no locks on the doors is absurd, impractical, and unsafe. Leave the one- and two-family homes alone.

    Comment added November 17, 2022 7:51am
  • Mary Woodruff

    I would imagine a large part of the city’s effort is the result of pressure from hotel lobby. However – we are not in direct competition with hotels. My guests stay with me for days or weeks and they want to live in a neighborhood and they want to have access to a kitchen. They also want to stay out of the tourist areas and Manhattan.

    I understand another main reason the city is doing this is the housing shortage. My space is not taking housing off the market. I OWN my apartment and I have an extra bedroom. The guests live with me. It’s no different than having a roommate except this roommate doesn’t stay for a year at a time.

    The people who stay with me eat out in restaurants in my neighborhood and shop at the stores. It is great for the local economy.

    It’s a win-win situation for everyone.

    Comment added November 17, 2022 6:31pm
  • Lee Hart

    We have a 2 family home and rent our one bedroom apartment on airbnb. It has helped us pay our mortgage and helped get us out of debt from loosing work during Covid. We live in a small area in brooklyn with many families and mainly host grandparents coming to see their children and grandchildren. There are no hotels in our neighborhood and many of the guests who rent our apartment are elderly. They want to stay nearby in walking distance to their families. They support local businesses and bring them income as well. The new laws that are being proposed are so unfair to both the hosts and tourists. These families will not have a place to stay within walking distance at all now. We are fearful of having a long term tenant who may not pay rent and then we will loose our house if we loose the income from renting. We are not a large apartment building. We are a small two family home and when my elderly mother isn’t visiting and staying with us in the apartment , we should be able to rent it to other grandparents.

    Comment added November 17, 2022 11:25pm
  • Aron Watman

    We have a two family home in Brooklyn and had been hosting one of the two apartments on Air BnB since around 2014. I say had because recently we received a visit from the city who hit us with 5 separate violations.
    The violations allege that we are in violation of the occupancy use, which they say is not listed as transient, and the violations are the types of violations you would receive if you were running an illegal hotel (e.g. no fire alarm system, no fire suppression system, etc). We did not know we were doing anything wrong, as we were not in violation of the New York State Multiple Dwelling Law, as our home is a legal two family home. This came out of left field, with no warning, and we are now facing thousands of dollars in fines. Keep in mind we were paying taxes to the city on this income. It’s the kind of despicable, bureaucratic act that makes me want to move out of this once great city.

    Shutting down all short term rentals in NYC is a huge, short sided mistake.
    There is a genuine need for short terms stays that hotels can not provide. The area in which we live in Brooklyn there are simply no hotels. The guests we had been hosting are families coming to tour NYC, who need more space, a kitchen, washer and dryer, etc., things that a hotel can simply not provide. Our guests are people in town for weddings, often in Prospect Park or the Brooklyn Botanical gardens, or in for a funeral at Greenwood Cemetery. They are grandparents or other relatives of neighborhood residents, who are visiting to help with a new born baby or an ailing loved one, where those residents simply don’t have enough space in their own apartments to accommodate them. These are the types of people who are renting short term. These aren’t people coming to throw a party and disrupt the neighborhood. These are people who, simply put, have a need to stay in the area, and there is simply no other accommodations for them.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 9:03am
  • Davis Carter

    Besides this rules is only serving hotels industry , it’s against low income level people and tourism industry in general, in a big city like NY which attracts all levels of tourists, STR supporting the tourism in NY as it serves a low budget tourist , I started do STR after lost my job during Covid crisis, it is only way I could save my family for being homeless as we rise we have no other place to go , in addition to that during this inflation period going on l am not able to pay my mortgage , utilities , tax and my family expenses to survive as prices goes crazy up , which makes our situation worse and worse
    This rule will lead to huge separation in many families in town and my family one of them
    Please take into consideration low level families going to suffer from this rule

    Comment added November 18, 2022 9:18am
  • Jon

    Agreeing with others above on a few major points:
    Where are the regulations—in clear language, without loopholes and vagaries—that hosts are supposed to abide. I have scoured city sites and there is no clear explanation of what existing actual rules are that don’t include unclear language, what penalties or codes need to be abided etc. So many hosts think they are following the laws yet discover after a ridiculous and likely illegal raid by the city that they may be fined.

    Beyond that, the most crucial thing to understand is that short term stay residences continue to be in great demand in NYC because they fulfill a need that other options don’t. Period. You can’t put the genie back in the bottle. That should be your prime takeaway. They exist because there is demand. So partner with hosts to create clear rules, regulations and guidance.

    For many visitors to one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world Airbnb and others offer a superior experience to other options. They typically provide far more space than absurdly tiny hotel rooms, plus amenities like privacy, less noise, arguably less risk of bedbugs (which have always been a problem in NY), the ability to cook and store food, better proximity to family/friends—and all at a price that is a fraction of a hotel.

    As noted by others, in our neighborhood there are a half dozen hotels. And all but one has been taken over by the city in the past several years to house the homeless. So there simply isn’t a housing option within a few miles for people hoping to visit this area.

    We have hosted a 1 bedroom apt since 2016, have had hundreds of visitors and they all fall into three categories: thosevisiting family in the area, those coming to NY to work for short or long term (usually in the area), and then Europeans who stay for a couple weeks and are here to spend money locally. All of the above benefits New York.

    Eliminating short terms stays which these sorts of actions do, or regulating them thoughtlessly, will reduce availability and thus tourism, and in the process it will also destabilize homeowners who have come to rely on the income in an era when all utilities and taxes and mortgage rates have skyrocketed

    Instead, how about NY provide clear code and rental and tax rules that are consistent, work with hosts—heck, give them loans and grants to renovate or upgrade where needed— to help them be safe and legal providers of amenities in NYC, and enjoy the tax and income flow to the thousands of small and large businesses that are still suffering.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 9:47am
  • Deroy Peraza

    This entire effort has good intentions but is completely misguided in its approach due to politicking. The HTC (Hotels Trades Council) Union contributed millions of dollars and thousands of volunteers to Mayor Adams’s campaign to which he responded “You have been my first major union endorsement, I never forget my first. You are my love.” That’s nice and all, but the crusade against short term rental is not a binary good vs bad affair. It’s more nuanced than that.

    There has been no conclusive evidence that Airbnb’s increase long term rent prices, and in studies that have found they do, the increases are negligible. The argument that Airbnb removes affordable housing is nonsensical. The overwhelming majority of apartments and houses listed on Airbnb in NYC would never qualify as affordable housing. The city has been in bed with major developers who build luxury housing and minuscule amounts of actually affordable housing. Using Airbnb hosts as the fall guys for a situation of your own making is disingenuous at best.

    NYC is struggling to attract tourism again. For many visitors to the city, especially larger families, NYC hotels are not affordable and they’re concentrated in just a few areas of the city. Many visitors to the city don’t want to stay in midtown or downtown or Williamsburg. They want to stay near the family they’re visiting. Airbnb’s, which offer a far greater value and far greater flexibility than hotels enable an entirely different kind of traveler to NYC to visit. The amount of revenue that represents has not been considered in any of these equations.

    Most Airbnb operators are middle class families or individuals just trying to supplement income to be able to pay the already exorbitant mortgages and expenses that come with living in NYC. Large scale operators and bad actors are a minority but make the most noise. The current blanket approach sacrifices the majority instead of targeting the bad actors.

    Airbnb has a very thorough review system and a high standard for Superhosts. You already have all of Airbnb’s data, why not use that to inform who are bad actors who should be targeted?

    Instead of treating Airbnb hosts like criminals and sending your task force goons to threaten that we’re breaking laws that make no sense (you need sprinklers for rentals of less than 30 days, but no sprinklers for more than 30 days?! Do long term renters build some sort of tolerance to fire that short term renters don’t?), maybe an asset-based cooperative approach would yield more beneficial results for all. For example, the city just build tent cities to receive an influx of immigrants. Why not work with Airbnb hosts to contribute their homes for a few weeks a year to receive immigrants via Airbnb.org? We are an asset, and we are willing to be helpful contributors to our city. That can happen at scale if you actually approach the conversation with a spirit of compromise rather than one of shaming honest people just trying to make a living.

    This new registration law was signed almost a year ago as DiBlasio was leaving office. Other than a PR stunt by Mayor Adams in July to try to intimidate Airbnb hosts, there has been zero information about policies that are supposed to take effect Jan 1, 2023. This forum is the first place I’ve found and I have been searching far and wide, reaching out to elected officials, and contacting housing lawyers to try to get more information to no avail. It is now mid-November and we still have no idea what this is actually going to look like. That just shows that a.) the administration clearly doesn’t have its shit together and doesn’t have a clear plan and b.) they have no respect for the fact that this could affect the economy of thousands of families who depend on Airbnb income to make ends meet and c.) they have no respect for visitors who are depending on the Airbnb’s they’ve already booked for visits to the city next year.

    It’s clear that this whole thing has not been well thought out. Let’s actually work together and find a solution that benefits everyone and only targets the bad actors who are abusing the platform.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 10:09am
  • Alejandro

    This is absolutely horrible the fact it always just one person I have the power like the change the hotel to house people it’s unforgivable is ridiculous that you have to pass a law for whoever wants to host someone in thir own home. This law only favorites the rich and keeps the rest of the people submit it to protect only the 1% is another kind of slavery and submission of the community Hosting people in my home on Airbnb has saved my life and not get evicted and be on the street Passing this law will create a lot of harm in my economy and the life of a lot of people

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:31am
  • Sonia

    This is lobbied by the hotel industry as they do not want to lose their business and of course the politicians are heavily funded by the hotels and only think about themselves. Their promises are just to get votes but in reality what they say is completely different from their true agenda. They do not care about you or me they only care about themselves and for pleasing the billion dollar hotel industry that fills their pockets. Middle class New Yorkers need help paying their mortage with increasing real estate taxes and tenants not paying rent during COVID this is the only way landlords are able to meet mortgage payments and the city is trying to take this away from us.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:34am
  • Alyssa

    I am unable to work full-time due to health reasons and therefore my income is restricted. I’ve lived in my apartment 19 years and for the past several years with a disability, Airbnb’ing my apartment has helped me be able to pay rent. Without the option of Airbnb, I will not be able to pay my bills and live in my apartment. Please do not take this income support away from struggling New Yorkers.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:44am
  • JOHN SEITZ

    How is paying ridiculous property taxes, NY state taxes, and NY city taxes not enough? Despite being taxed more than almost any other Americans, you’re gonna tell me who I can and can’t let into the apartment that I own? I own the home, I followed your ridiculous rules, and I do my share to help this city. Keep your hands off my rights as a property owner! This rule is obviously the result of the hotel lobby paying off our morally and financially bankrupt politicians who will do anything for money. NYC residents: don’t be fools, your local representatives do not have your back, they are out for themselves!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:50am
  • Charles

    As a first time home buyer of a two family home in New York City, and someone with chronic health issues, being able to rent out one of the two the units short term, and the house when I am out of town for work is huge for me. This allows for me to pay my mortgage, pay my taxes, upkeep my property, and focus on my work and my health.

    These new laws benefit those who own the hotels, aren’t beneficial to the small guy (me), and are short sighted for a city that got smacked by COVID.

    Insane to think that I’ll have to consider selling my house now due to a change in law/won’t be able to keep up with my mortgage.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:53am
  • Ruver Fuentes

    I am 78 years old; I still pay my mortgage. I was a Secondary teacher, and my retirement it’s not enough to live. I need to work with Airbnb.
    I am always home, I live alone; Airbnb is a big help to me.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:54am
  • Moshe

    There is absolutely no reason for such harsh restrictions unless the City favors the hotel lobby groups.
    NYC needs additional space for short-term renters, and AirBnB does more than any hotel to block parties and unwanted guests (you need heavy ID and verification to get through)
    Restricting AirBnB is pure big government greed, squeezing the small guy on the back of the big ones

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:54am
  • Gabrielle

    This hurts only minority communities which cannot get a short term rental otherwise
    wealthy upper class with good credits can get in anywhere. AirBnB is literally the only solution for short term rentals for undocumented people or people with low scores without having to break the bank and go with an hotel.
    This law is a disgrace!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:57am
  • Andres R

    renting one of my rooms in Airbnb have been 1000% pleasure. it has give me the opportunity to have extra income in my household, I can pay for my bills and rent onetime. Im sure this law will affect multiples of families and the city where we grow up. consider this petition to all middle class families who keep this city alive Not the rich people and companies.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 11:58am
  • kelly j mcgehee

    I am renting out my home in order to be able to care for my mother’s mounting health care costs. She has dementia and needs a constant companion. I do not know what we would do without this extra income. My brother and I have come to depend on this extra income tremendously.

    I believe airbnb also helps our city in other ways. The folks that come to my house to visit their families nearby, or to visit our city when they might not be able to if they had to cram into expensive hotels also helps our city businesses as well. It’s refreshing to see not just the super rich be able to visit and enjoy.

    Thanks

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:01pm
  • Aaron

    I am a free lance photographer and my work is sporadic and my income uneven I’ve lived in my apartment 10 years and rented out a room which has helped pay the ridiculous high rent . Airbnb’ing my apartment has helped me be able to pay rent. Without the option of Airbnb, I will not be able to pay my bills and live in my apartment. Please do not take this income support away from struggling New Yorkers. Thanks – Aaron

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:03pm
  • mondy julisse

    This rule is disgraceful it shows that the government cares nothing for the working class and only services big corporations because they are in their pockets. This rule should not be permitted to be use.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:04pm
  • Barrett sweger

    With unchecked corporations buying up all the property in the city, keeping buildings vacant and raising rents to insane levels, some people rely on this extra income to support themselves. It is a gift to be able to share this great city with guests from all over the world and give them a proper nyc stay and experience.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:06pm
  • Lovelynn

    I have a two family brownstone in Harlem. I Airbnb the one bedroom apartment on the garden floor and I live upstairs in the house.
    In addition to needing the Airbnb income to help cover my mortgage, I provide a valuable service to people in my neighborhood.
    More about my guests:
    My Airbnb provides a place for people coming to visit their adult children who attend City College or Columbia University and live in the area.
    Often, I host families with a family member who are coming to NYC for medical procedures/treatments at New York Presbyterian Hospital. There are no hotels up here. Being close to the hospital makes it easier for family members to travel between the apartment and the hospital and provide support to their patient.
    Many of these people are on special diets and need to make their own meals.

    I also host people coming to do work at The Schomberg and would like to be able to walk to and from work.
    My family lives out of state and often comes to visit. Airbnb allows me the option to use it for my own family to enjoy.
    I do not think that Airbnb is responsible for the housing shortage or higher rents.
    I think that these city rules are being influenced by the Hotel lobbyists.
    Punishing homeowners who are just trying to make their mortgages and higher heating and electrical costs doesn’t make sense. Many of us will end up in foreclosure and possibly ending up adding to the homeless population here.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:09pm
  • Beverley

    Airbnb is a life saver for nyc small landlords New York City does not respect small landlords. New York City expects the landlords to support tenants who do not pay their rent. New York City housing laws allow tenants to live in your apartment even if they do not pay rent and you are not allowed to evict them. Rent stabilization is a turn off for small landlords because you cannot afford to pay your mortgage when tenants do not pay their rent. As a small landlord you feel trapped because you have to pay your expenses and your mortgage and the courts allow the tenant to continue to live in your building without paying rent. As a result, allowing Airbnb short term rental allows small landlords to pay their bills and not have to pay an attorney to go to court for nonpayment of rent.

    Moreover, the low rents that rent stabilization permits does not give small landlords enough money to pay the rising taxes, utility and repair costs. It leaves small property owners in poverty.

    In contrast, my experience with Airbnb renters has been uplifting. They have spoken about how Airbnb allows them to visit New York City because it’s cheaper to rent an Airbnb short term rental as opposed to a hotel. Consequently, New York City receives more visitors who spend money in New York City with smaller vendors than rich hotel owners. I am also able to pay my bills.
    Ultimately, I think it’s a win-win for New York City as small landlords are able to pay their mortgage and nyc property Taxes plus airbnb renters spend their money in New York City and also pay sales tax.
    Until NYC remove rent stabilization and allow small landlords to evict tenants who do not pay rent, Airbnb is a life or death need for small landlords.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:12pm
  • vanessa pacini

    Since i have been doing Airbnb I have been able to pay my kid school. Even if Airbnb give me more work, it allows me to be able to take care of my usual expenses. It will be so unfair that we have to be so restricted in our own homes, specially when we work for it.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:12pm
  • Johanna i Laboy

    Why not give us a chance to get ahead.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:16pm
  • Kennedy

    This is wrong on so many levels. Just leave us alone already. I travel a lot for work and host my place when I’m out of town. NYC is an expensive city and with now inflation rising, every little bit helps. There is no reason for this new law except to help the rich. Can you just leave us alone already. The city offers us nothing. The country offers us nothing anymore. And every time we find a way to make ends meet, y’all always there to push us down. This is wrong and I hope you guys can reconsider. If this happens, I won’t be able to afford my apartment. Leave short term rentals alone. Leave us alone already. Ugh!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:20pm
  • Martin Glenn

    As many have stated here already, who are the rules really meant to help? Tourists cannot afford the city’s hotels, hence why Airbnb has become so popular here for tourists who are not rich. Even family members coming to visit other family here in Brooklyn/Queens etc. Many of us are just normal, hard working families, trying to supplement our incomes so we can pay our mortgages, but at the same time, being great ambassadors for this city and welcoming folks from all around the world, who can afford our prices, because they cannot afford hotels. Implementing these rules, just to hurt the very citizens of this city, makes no sense at all.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:20pm
  • Rebecca

    I have owned my condo on the UWS for 22 years. During this time, my salary has gone up only incrementally as I work for a non-profit in the arts. However, my HOA fees have DOUBLED and continue to rise. I love my home and my neighborhood, but I could not afford to stay here if it were not for my ability to supplement my income by renting 2-3x a year on Airbnb. I am not “getting rich” by doing this. I am not depriving hotels of income. I am not taking affordable rentals off the market, as I own my home. If this resource is taken away from me by City legislation, I will be forced to leave the city I’ve called home for 30 years. Clearly, there are ways to differentiate between a homeowner who occasionally rents their home to tourists, and a “bad actor” who rents multiple units in a building for 300+ days a year. Why the city won’t allow homeowners (or even renters) to rent for up to 28-45 days a year is beyond me. There are solutions other than a total ban. Please realize this law benefits only big business and really hurts the middle class.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:24pm
  • Paul

    With the cost of living in NYC getting higher and higher, especially in Brooklyn, the hosting of our space keeps the lights on… literally.
    Short term rental is the only option for my wife and I, because we are PRESENT. We are not an LLC or a investment property developer. We can ideally maintain our appliances and keep the space in pristine condition. Which is what we do for our guests and ourselves. It is our entertaining space and our guest suite when we are not hosting Air BnB guests. As a generational property, over 100 years here in Brooklyn, we are trying our hardest to hold on, and Air BnB hosting has afforded us that opportunity.
    How NYC can create a department, come in and start determining HOW we use our home is authoritarian and reprehensible. We own our home. We pay WAY more property taxes, than most areas, especially considering the lack of infrastructure value. Pay federal and city taxes on the actual income that our home can generate through short term rental. And you still want more?!? You should be ashamed of yourselves to even consider this display of overeach.
    Stop making it harder for home owners to survive in the city we pay for.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:26pm
  • lucien

    14 years ago I have created a cultural non-for-profit organization that brings to NYC hundreds of artists and professionals every year. My arts space have been honored with many prestigious awards, and recently I personally as been honored by the French government in recognition of my significant contributions to the arts, literature, or the propagation of these fields between American and France. My airbnb is part of my non-for-profit helping me to raise money for the artistic program and offering a housing to artists visiting NYC. I do not receive individually any incomes from the airbnb. A new legislation will seriously harm my artistic engagement and will certainly stop this important cultural exchange between NYC and the rest of the world. Please re-consider your position. Thank you

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:28pm
  • Rita

    Airbnb is not a profit for the lower and middle class it just helps pay the bills when the cost of living here has gone crazy here. I had to take a pay cut during Covid to keep my job and have never gained that income back. I would consider myself middle class and I Airbnb a room in my home after having a child to pay for childcare. I work full time in the city , keep a clean home and look after my family and Airbnb helps me pay for childcare as I get no help or handouts from the government. It’s not easy cash it’s another job in my life but it helps pay the bills at the end of the month; I have no other choice. Within the last 2 years I have had over 12 middle class friend couples/families with decent jobs leave this city due to rent increases and the cost of living as our city just doesn’t support families; this is my way of supporting my family.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:30pm
  • Anonymous

    I was laid off from my job during the pandemic. Airbnb Hosting my 2nd bedroom allowed me to make ends meet and pay my rent. Now, with inflation and rising rent costs, this is necessary income for me. Hosting also allows me to support local businesses while welcoming international tourists to Brooklyn. If I cannot host, I might lose my home. This law only benefits the wealthy.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:31pm
  • Thais Silva

    This is absolutely unfair. Im single mother with 2 kids. And i use airnb to help my income .
    Unbelievable what the city is doing , for the reach hotels chains.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:40pm
  • Benjamin

    Rent has been going up since COVID and I won’t be able to afford to live in my apartment without renting out the extra bedroom on Airbnb.
    I have lived here for 10 years and enjoy hosting people from all different places and showing them around the neighborhood.
    Some of these rules are clearly designed to prevent people from setting up illegal hotels, but prohibiting locks on individual doors (I have one on my bedroom door for safety) is unreasonable. Requiring hosts to allow guests in all spaces in the apartment is unreasonable as well. I have an office and a bedroom that I cannot share with guests.
    These rules seem designed without people like me in mind and if my listing is removed I will have to leave my apartment of 10 years.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:41pm
  • Shell

    I am a full time student going to pharmacy school and i have a son. Having my airbnb helps me to pay for his day care while pursuing my dream.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:42pm
  • Heights Meditation Yoga

    As an senior citizen, Airbnb is how I make my life in NYC tolerable. The rules are already so stringent. Please stop — let us rent our spare rooms!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:43pm
  • Shell

    i am a full time student who is pursuing her dreams on becoming a pharmacist. Having my airbnb unit helps me to pay my bills and to be able to have my son in daycare.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:44pm
  • Tony

    This is absolutely outrageous. This is a direct attack on middle income homeowners struggling to survive in this city. It is absolutely disgusting that these authoritarian policies continue to be pushed by Democratic administrations. How do expect people to survive that have been financially devastated from the botched response to the pandemic which sent us into poverty, where our only string of hope is to make a moderate income from OUR own properties?? You have already rendered most small landlords and homeowners financially crippled with a moratorium that allowed tenants to occupy their homes for years without paying a dime in rent. This is nothing more than this mayor doing the bidding of the hotel industry that ‘donates’ to his coffers, while demanding a monopoly on short term stays where they can charge exorbitant amounts of money. Do NOT do this, or you will go down as the biggest mistake in NYC history.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:44pm
  • Andrew A

    This law is absolutely ridiculous and it will absolutely financially ruin me. As someone that has to be based in New York for their work but also required to travel for days to weeks at a time, it is the only way I can afford to live. As a host with over 100 reviews and a 4.98 star rating, the MAJORITY (not all) of us here on airbnb are very professional, keep our listings safe, clean, and provide clear instructions to each and every one of our guests. When I am not using my apartment that I PAY for, I should be able to rent it out to other individuals that are screened by both airbnb AND myself. There is a ton of students, interns, tourist, and workers that are need of clean and affordable places in all different areas of the city that are near where they need to go. Hotel prices are upwards of $400+min a night for a 200 sq foot room and there is not many hotels in certain areas of the city. My recent guest that I got to know was a college student that needed to come from across the country to compete in a financial policy competition that was on a tight budget (could only afford half of what I was listing my place for while I was away, $100/night) I spoke with both him and his parents and was so impressed by this young college student I gave him and his mother the apartment for $100/night. Without my place there was no was they would have been able to afford to come to compete and guess what? Michael took him 1st place, sent me a picture, and could not stop thanking me for making this trip possible. This city has gotten out of hand with the amount of laws and restrictions it places on lower/middle class citizens trying to make a few extra dollars just to make ends meet. In the end, we all know this about hotel lobbyist digging deep in their pockets to pay off you politicians to get what they want. New York city is suppose to be a place where people come to grow and prosper and NYC continues to try and make every effort to make that possibility become a reality for middle class. If you are saying it is “taking away housing” absolute NONSENSE the most unused and wasted space in the city is taken up by overpriced LUXURY and high-end apartments that are completely EMPTY. Go look at Water line square occupancy rates!!!! Lower/middle class do your research and show your support at this hearing. This is NOT ok.

    Recommendation: And if you are SO worried about “safety” as a primary concern and it isn’t about you protecting the hotels, then make rules that make airbnb safer. Require fire extinguishers in each apartment (I already do this in mine) NOT to mention that only about 20% of my guests even use the oven/stove. Require safety information to be provided to each guest though airbnb that they need to read and consent too. However, let’s be honest…its not about safety, it’s not about making more housing available, its BS.

    I will be seeing you at the hearing and I hope my other airbnb hosts will do their homework, write your letters, show up to the hearing, and stand up for our community as we need it to survive in New York!!

    All the best,
    Andrew

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:47pm
  • Pet

    I have also been let down and off w COVID and this is very important side of income for time being and trying to pay taxes on time and do everything I need to pay off my debt- this isn’t the right solution to keep the city alive and support hotel lobbying who aren’t the competition for this kind of hosting as Airbnb. It’s not communism that we should dictate what people should do or not. Is anyone dictate what hotel can or can’t do or how much they charge?!? So please this is very very important to millions of people all over the globe so till anything else is done don’t take this chance for people to stay at their places and we can’t afford to have more homeless out on the street, more debts, loans not paid, mortgages not paid etc. be reasonable and understandable and know that half of the people aren’t doing this because they like it but because they have to!!!! And they create community, support local businesses and much more. Hotels don’t do that trust me! So this is something which needs to be handle very very delicately because many lives are in danger!!!!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:48pm
  • Robert

    So any buildings’ owners are able to opt into putting their buildings on a “prohibited building list” which would bar any Airbnb service? Let me get this straight, owners have no requirements to follow to add their building onto this prohibition list, but airbnb hosts have to pay to register their listing and we have a laundry list of requirements to follow. What’s to stop ALL building owners from just deciding to put their building on the prohibited building list? The potential for abuse here should be evident. Either this is the end of airbnb in NYC, or owners will now be negotiating with hosts to get a cut of the $$ to keep their building off the list.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:55pm
  • David Dunne

    AirBnb is a win win for:

    1. Visitors to NYC – families with 6-8 attendees who come here for events such as weddings, reunions, funerals, Broadway, fashion events are just a few examples of groups I have hosted who want to experience living in the city, not visiting a hotel where they cannot spread out and enjoy the comforts of a home, with all of its amenities, kitchen, washer dryer, garden etc. There is not a single hotel in NY that can even come close to providing what my home can when it is otherwise not being used by me, and my sons who are away at college.

    2. Movie & TV making – as we all know, making TV and film projects in NY is a big business. I get requests all the time for use as a set in Brownstone Brooklyn, and for actors and crew who do not want to spend time away from their homes in hotels.

    3. Musicians – I have a regular flow of top musicians who travel with their young families and want to only stay in a home rather than hotels. This year I have hosted major artists on multiple occasions, in total for seven weeks. Most artists will come to NY and play 1-4 nights, making short term stays of up to a week ideal for them.

    4. The economy of NY – these large groups could not otherwise afford to visit. But when they do, they eat in the city’s restaurants, ride in its taxies, go to broadway shows, concerts and spend their hard earned money in our city. This supports tens of thousands of jobs.

    5. Hosts and Super Hosts – like many hosts, this is my primary home, but when my sons are away for 8+ months a year at college it is highly underutilized and extremely expensive to maintain. AirBnb helps me to maintain my family’s home for the moments they are here, and utilize it fully when they are not. This cost offset has been the difference between staying in NY or leaving. Stays of up to a week are great because I can pick the times when my home can be available and when I need to have it for my family.

    6. Absuers – as others have stated, AirBnb has enough data that abusers can be identified and made to close down.

    7. The Hotel Lobby – it is clear the hotel lobby groups have spent millions to crush AirBnb and VRBO. VRBO already gave up and pulled out of NY. To be clear, AirBnb supports guest and hosts and has been a very transparent partner to the cities it operates in. 100% of the benefit of their bing here flows to the citizens of our city from the pockets of our amazing guests. This is a win win for all and has no impact on who stays in hotels. The Hotel of NY and their lobbyists could not find a single property in their portfolio that even comes close to what I and many other hosts provide. I say this as someone who has lived in NY for 30 years and frequently have family and friends who come to NY Shinzo stay in hotels, when that is the right solution.

    8. Fair Representation- My rights as a citizen and resident is to be able to afford life in NY, something that has never been easy for a great many New Yorkers. I voted for a Mayor who would help NY rise from the ashes of the disastrous DeBlasio. Please listen to the thousands of hosts and guests, and not the highly paid lobbyists from the Global Hotel groups who would be so happy to crush us.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 12:57pm
  • Troy

    I’m not clear how as a homeowner and airbnb host my short term rental negatively impacts NYC local government or my neighborhood as a whole. What is clear is the lobbyist for the hotel industry including their union representatives have an obvious agenda in this matter and would benefit greatly from the passing of such draconian laws for the middle and lower class host. It’s not hard to tell when we see the hotel union banners prominently displayed on the mayor’s campaign page and ads spread throughout. Please understand that the members of these unions are the same individuals that make up the working class, short term rental host, who use airbnb as a way to survive and maintain the ever growing cost of living, so in essence you’re hurting the very people who support and keep big business in business. The revenues made from my space goes directly to paying my mortgage and without it my family would be facing a devastating hardship. I ask that you please reconsider your position in this matter.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:01pm
  • Kathleen R

    I was disabled early on my career-with a house with room to spare. AirBnB has allowed me to stay in my home, in Brooklyn and cover the cost of mortgage and upkeep, as well as increased medical expenditure.
    I LIVE here and am present during ALL the hosting stays.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:06pm
  • Jonathan Morris

    This is a special interest that only benefits the hospitality industry. For the average citizen being able to rent out their own place for a bit during the year shouldn’t be an issue.

    We are all for stopping individuals doing this at scale with multiple properties.

    But, please. Most cities have reasonable revaluations and this proposal is clear pandering to special interests.

    I will remember this for donations and voting.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:12pm
  • Chyanne

    Hi I’ve been an Airbnb host for almost 4 years. In 2018, my father was at risk of losing our family home from all the bank fraud popular during the housing market crash. His no interest loan term expired and his mortgage payment was tripling. The house was in complete disrepair, and my father on disability couldn’t deal with it any longer especially the mortgage payment. I was able to buy the house from my father and do a gift of equity to fully gut renovate our family home. Airbnb has allowed me to help pay back the 400k it cost to renovate our home, has allowed my father to have a place to lay his head with no worries, a place for my family and friends to spend the holidays. Most of all I helped beautify the neighborhood I grew up in and fortunate enough to not be one of the casualties of another black family losing a home due to gentrification and developers praying on the vulnerable . Airbnb changed my life and I can also stay home and raise my children. The city is doing not only black host a disservice to finally benefit from the changes in their community but themselves the opportunity to collect additional revenue from families all over the world that want to stay in affordable homes in the greatest city in the world. I truly hope I don’t become another black person that is forced to sell like many of my neighbors. I hope the city actually abides by their words that “they aren’t worried about the little guy” (Klossner in therealdeal article). If equity and equality is important to this city, they need to take into account of the black host providing a safe place for people all over the world.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:22pm
  • Harry

    This is ridiculous how the city is trying to pass this law while other states don’t have It ! This law will allow rich and people with properties to benefit for! My job is contract work and sometimes
    I spent months without work , if It wouldn’t because if Airbnb I would have being homeless! The city should focus on how hotels and owner of buildings are manipulating this and lobbying to make It for their benefits! And for us middle class that are trying to make It and be able to have money to send out kids to school are suffering! Renting a room or a floor in your house shouldn’t be monitored by the government or the city !!!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:22pm
  • Caroline

    We also own a two family house in Brooklyn and just like many have already commented, the people staying with us aren’t taking away from the hotel business. They want to be in the neighborhood near their families and there aren’t any hotels around.
    We also rely on this income to support the mortgage, and increasing utilities and maintenance costs. We don’t want a permanent resident living in our house for the fear of not getting paid rent or misfit so we’re not taking away housing as we wouldn’t be renting out the units that we also use for visiting family.
    Please let the one and two family house owners do what they wish with their space and go after the people who have 50+ listings who are causing the problems you’re trying to solve.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:24pm
  • MarieM

    We have a two family and we rent out our second apartment . This has allowed us to pay the mortgage and our child’s tuition. In Uncertain times such as the pandemic we were still able to rent our apartment with out the risk of having a tenant that stays without paying rent. There are small hotels around us that are occupied by homeless. Our neighborhood has become less safe and having tourists stay with us from all over the world supports our local businesses here in brooklyn. This is not an apartment that we will ever rent in a long term lease as we often need it for visiting family. We are not competing with hotels. If these laws change the neighborhoods within this city will change and businesses will continue to shut down. I will also be unable to make my mortgage payments without working more and therefore will need to hire someone else to ” raise” my child. Airbnb supports our family. We might as well sell and leave to another state if this occurs.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:33pm
  • Eric S.

    This is deeply concerning. It seems that this rule is one sided, they work against the average person trying to work harder to combat inflation, rising rent and mortgage payments, and the rising cost of living in general. For a lot of people this is the only way they are affording rent and keeping themselves afloat financially, especially during this time of economic uncertainty. You are doing a great injustice and great deal of harm to the American public that are doing what they can persevere during such times and survive financially. There has been little progress made for the average person to earn a side income without continuous roadblocks and we will all remember this in the voting booths and do whatever it takes to ensure our pursuit of happiness and the right to free enterprise is protected.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:34pm
  • MarieM

    We have a two family and we rent out our second apartment . This has allowed us to pay the mortgage and our child’s tuition. In Uncertain times such as the pandemic we were still able to rent our apartment with out the risk of having a tenant that stays without paying rent. There are small hotels around us that are occupied by homeless. Our neighborhood has become less safe and having tourists stay with us from all over the world supports our local businesses here in brooklyn. This is not an apartment that we will ever rent in a long term lease as we often need it for visiting family. We are not competing with hotels. If these laws change the neighborhoods within this city will change and businesses will continue to shut down. I will also be unable to make my mortgage payments without working more and therefore will need to hire someone else to ” raise” my child. Airbnb supports our family. We might as well sell and leave to another state if this occurs.
    This is an attack on the middle class and especially after the ridiculous pandemic response that catapulted millions into poverty. Good job…..

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:35pm
  • Lubaina Choudhury

    This is a rule meant to serve the rich, white and privileged, and meant to undermine the ability of those of us who are trying to make ends meet in every way possible, aka the colored minority.
    This rule will take away many people’s ability to pay their bills in an economy where the price of everything is rising astronomically.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:35pm
  • Meredith Donald

    I have been an Airbnb host since the pandemic and it has allowed us to keep our apartment despite the fact that we are now traveling a lot for work. We primarily host people visiting their families, people coming for work or tourists wanting to visit the city. All of these types of tenants support the city, and participate in the local economy of our neighborhood. They are not taking away income from landlords or hotel, and a lot of times they are staying at our place because the hotels are booked! Or they are trying to find an apartment to rent long term. Not being able to Airbnb would mean we couldn’t afford to live in Brooklyn anymore. As someone who used to work in the real estate industry I believe many people who Airbnb their apartments allows them to pay the rent on time and stay as current tenants. I fully support not approving these new laws

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:43pm
  • Sarah Oakes

    This feels corrupt, like the Mayor’s Office is advocating for the Hotel Industry instead of the people of NYC. As long as short term rentals are safe (egress, etc), these new laws will hurt not only NYers trying to make ends meet, but also the millions of tourists that rely on 1-2 week Airbnb stays. As a traveler I have enjoyed staying in Airbnb rentals around the world, and it is so much nicer to stay in someone’s home in a local neighborhood with a kitchen than a hotel in “downtown”. These tourists bring huge amounts of $$ to NYC, and if their only option is to stay in hotels for short term stays, they will begin going to other cities instead of NYC. As a homeowner of a 2-family building, we were able to offset the cost of our new roof and solar panel installation in 2018 and 2019 via Airbnb rentals. We met dozens of wonderful travelers, and enjoyed opening our home and sharing our favorite local restaurants and shops. These new laws can NOT be allowed to pass, and Mayor Adams should be ashamed of himself for allowing it to get this far. Stop this law, and reverse so that short-term rentals are legal, as long as they are safe.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:46pm
  • Michael

    I’m an artist living and working in the city and occasional rentals enable me to continue to live and create my work. It’s shameful and disappointing to see our elected officials making such a cowardly appeasement to big business interest and ignore the very residents of the city they are suppose to be supporting. You will no longer have my vote!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:46pm
  • Alan Siege

    I have read nearly all of the comments that have been posted so far, and all I can say is I share many of the feelings that have been expressed by people who are long-time hosts on Airbnb and rent space in their own homes. I am not getting rich on this revenue; rather it directly helps me and my family pay essential bills that would otherwise be difficult to pay. I am not running some kind of illegal hotel, not at all. My house had all the necessary requirements to make sure that all of my guests are safe, and will be well taken care of.

    As many people have said, people in my situation who are renting space in their own homes are not the ones the city should be targeting. People or even people presenting themselves as businesses, and have created truly fake unsafe “hotels”, they are the ones who should be targeted and fined as much as possible.

    As to the argument that I am taking housing off the market, I would respond by saying, that many of the people who stay with me use their time here for very valuable personal reasons. And none of them would have ever rented the space for no longer than three weeks at best.

    And there is a very powerful argument, is that these people who come and stay, bring significant revenue to both my neighborhood come into the city itself. Revenue that would not be received were it mot for the space I rent on Airbnb.

    There is no reason why the spaces that are rented through Airbnb should be considered competition from hotels. We do not serve the same people, and if anything, we make it possible for more people to visit and spend money in New York City then they would be able to if they stayed at hotels.

    Just because we are not an organized lobby, it does not mean that our perspective is any less important then the people from the hotel industry.

    Perhaps the final thing that needs to be said, and it is a very real politic comment, is that all of us with Airbnb rentals in our homes, our voters. And yes, we will remember those who voted against our valid needs.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:47pm
  • Erika

    So many comments above could not be more true or thorough.

    I am a homeowner who lost my job during the pandemic. My assets are bound up in my house and I have very little cash flow. Being able to occasionally Airbnb my home has enabled me to make my mortgage payments, pay my insurance and property taxes.

    Like many others, my home is not going to contribute helpfully to the “housing shortage” because I live there with my husband and our young daughter. It isn’t an empty space, but rather our home. It’s not a property that is being withheld from the rental market. I put “housing shortage” in quotes because there doesn’t seem to be a shortage of units, but a shortage of AFFORDABLE units. in my neighborhood there are at least 6 new constructions within a 10 block radius. There are many vacant apartments here, yet they remain out of reach for most working class people and families.

    I too have hosted nurses, students doing internships at the UN, international families, families gathering for holidays, grandparents coming to meet new grandchildren etc. As others have mentioned, I am extremely selective about who I host. This is partially because I want to ensure my home is cared for, but also out of respect for my neighbors. We all know and like each other on the block, and I would never want their lives to be disrupted by parties etc.

    I do not want to be required to rent for 30+ Days because of squatters rights. I think it’s wonderful to have protections in place for tenants, especially because there are many unscrupulous landlords. However, for the mom and pop landlord, the benefits seem very skewed. A friend of mine rented her downstairs unit to what turned out to be professional squatters. On day 31 they stopped paying rent. She called the police, they could do nothing. Housing court was frozen from the pandemic. She had to pay tons in legal fees and ultimately had to buy them out to leave. The owner of the home had to PAY the crooks that were extorting her to leave the home that she owns and occupies. They squatted for six months, and because of the lost income on that unit she was forced to sell her home. So, no; I do not want to be REQUIRED to rent for more than 30days. I am also not comfortable having unknown guests in my home while we are there. I have a young daughter and it just doesn’t feel safe. For our family it has been a blessing to be able to do a week here or there. It’s made all the difference.

    Small homes or apartments in outer boroughs do not compete with hotels in Times Square. There are tourists that want that type of experience, and then there are tourists who maybe can’t afford the $400+ per night for a small space. There are families traveling with children who need to prepare meals and can’t afford to eat out 3x day plus snacks. If hotels are struggling I’d bet most of the reason is the economy in general. There are nearly 8 billion people on the planet. Meanwhile there are 10,500 airbnbs in NYC. That really doesn’t seem statistically significant at all. Folks that do come and Airbnb are also still powering NYC economy – they are eating in restaurants, shopping at grocery stores, taking the subway, buying souvenirs and participating in tourism. They’re spending, their spending is being taxed, and I am also happily paying income tax to the city for revenue. Airbnb visitors or tourists are definitely still bringing money to the city.

    I understand that there are some large Airbnb operations that are maybe not doing everything above board, and I understand that as something grows it might need to adapt or be regulated. It’s just tough for small families and small homeowners to be caught up in issues that might be relevant to a different type of landlord. Im not opposed to paying the city a dedicated tax (this is something that can be added onto the Airbnb booking price). For me, as an individual living in my home with tight finances, the most important aspect is being able to continue to do short term bookings when I am away. If I go to spend Thanksgiving or Easter week with my elderly mother, that is an opportunity for another family to celebrate the holiday together in New York. They’re bringing money to the city and they are enabling me to keep my home. I’m petrified of professional squatters, so I will not be able to do long term rentals. Eliminating the short term rental option will eliminate the income I need to keep my home.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:53pm
  • Royer

    Hi,
    These new rules are bad for us, bad for new-yorkers hosts, bad for the economy, bad for tourism, and bad for the whole people of New York.
    And at my advice is bad for hotel economy too.
    A lot of people can’t afford a $300 room hôtel for 2. The strength of NY is also the interest of Young people, artists, family from all over the USA and the worlds. Il you continue to make impossible this tourism in NY, at leat the NY attractivity should be dead.
    It’s a political choice for the city to say, “we don’t want affordable tourism, just rich people for the luxury hôtels”. Continue to accept to sell the city to Middle East billionaires, to Russian oligarchs who let empty buildings in Midtown, continue to fight affordable tourism through short rental, and this beautiful city and vibrant city should be dead in ten years. With more than 80% of occupancy rate (Pwc sats) , the hotel industry can’t develop NY tourism . If the hotel industry is $22B, don’t forget the Tourism industry is $120B (https://esd.ny.gov/sites/default/files/NYC-2019-NYS-Tourism-Economic-Impact.pdf)
    Guesses in our apartment do business with our small business around us, eat at the restaurants of our neighbors… It’s not just a fight to advantage the big hotel company that pays for your election campaign.
    As a European, I could live here with the complement of my short rental apartment. I pay taxes, create businesses and jobs in NY …. I’m proud to be part of NY.
    I understand is important for you to say thank you to the industry who pay the elections campaigns, bu the New-York and newyorkers future is more important.
    You have to decide the most important as a mayor.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 1:55pm
  • Mel

    I agree with all the homeowners here. United we stand. This is outrageous! This pandemic, along with many other issues this City has, is a contribution to where we are at today. Many, if not all, are utilizing these funds to get by and pay our monthly bills. Wages are not increasing to keep up with inflation. The fact that other states are not enforcing this, is a BIG SHAME ON YOU NYC.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:01pm
  • Ibi A

    As an immigrant, and a single lady in the city, Airbnb has helped with added income which I could never afford. Someone with constant health Issue. These laws will be hurting my means of livelihood, we are in no competition with big industry such as hotels and resorts

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:06pm
  • Laura

    The airbnb platform is not a one size fits all. It serves different purposes for different users.

    It is absolutely good for some regulation to be put into place to avoid whole apartments being taken off the market for full-time renters. Before the pandemic hit, one apartment in my building was rented out to someone who wasn’t living in it. Instead, he held the lease, and ran it as an airbnb. He didn’t know the neighbors (three tenants who had been living here for over 10 years); just used it as a business venture. His guests used the large backyard for loud parties and there was no one for us to complain to. If there were problems in the apartment, the guests would reach out to neighbors since the host was off-site.

    It was only due to the pandemic that it was all shut down. The person could no longer afford the lease since he had no guests. He gave up the apartment, thankfully.

    Separate from that: I have been living in my apartment for over 15 years. For all of these years, I have shared the space with roommates. I chose to have short-term roommates for the last several years. This enabled me to share the space but maintain control of my own home. Most roommates were grad students, people traveling abroad to study English or work an internship, people checking out NYC prior to committing to a full move here. Sometimes I would receive people who were going through a break-up, and had to move out of their shared home with their significant other. They needed a temporary place before they could commit to something larger.

    I had used Craigslist for years. But that site is so overwhelmed by questionable characters. I found that listing my shared space via airbnb was a much more effective way to find roommates, rather than Craigslist. Airbnb allows users to verify identities, see a history of reviews (from both the host and guest side), and there is insurance involved. Sometimes, even if I used Craigslist as the initial ad to find the roommate, I could send interested parties my Airbnb link, so they could see the reviews and gain a sense of trust. I would ask the same from them. As a potential new roommate, it is helpful to see how the opposite person has been in the homes of others: are they considerate and communicative, etc?

    In sum: yes: some regulation is necessary. But please don’t overlook the fact that Airbnb serves multiple purposes. Regulate the bad actors. Allow the good actors to continue benefit from the platform. Those who run illegal hotels should be stopped. Those who are literally sharing their home should be supported.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:06pm
  • Jack Edwards

    My landlord raised my rent by just over 47% this fall. I tried to find another place to live far less but as a result of increased rates I didn’t have the income even with a guarantor to be accepted to a new home 15% above my previous rent. I am shocked how tough the requirements have gotten to apply for a new apartment in this city. I don’t want to Airbnb my home it’s my only option, for most of us it’s our only option. I live in my home and rent it to other Airbnb guests while there, but as a result of my rent increase I’ve also been forced to Airbnb my entire place and live in other Airbnb’s in mid Long Island for the days the place is booked. I can’t afford any other short term housing and most certainly can’t afford a hotel. Airbnb is a solution to afford these rent increases which should have never happened to begin with. Put a cap on these landlords. 47.5% increase is ridiculous.
    I’m a starving artist that’s giving back to other artists, thus fostering art and creative culture in our city…something we all know has suffered as a result of Covid. Have you heard of the Creatives Rebuild New York Fund, a fund created to help retain and build back art culture that was lost as a result of the pandemic? Well we are doing something similar on our own dollar and barely scraping by. The city should get low level and see how these policies are impacting so many people that are the fabric of New York City. Take this as an example of Airbnb solving for us New Yorkers. We are solving a problem at the source of fashion, at the lowest level, The city should too be solving their problems at the source. If a landlord raises their rent by 47.5% what do you think will happen?
    1. You lose a valuable New Yorker.
    2. The tenant lists their space short term to stay.
    Is it the landlords fault? No, because no cap is in place for them to follow. Is it the cities fault for not making policies at the source? Perhaps it is.
    This law if past will result in an inefficient game of whack a mole wasting valuable resources playing a game that never ends. Consider solving at the source not solving at the top.

    Additionally Quoting Deroy Peraza below….Please listen. His words sum up our situation:

    “This entire effort has good intentions but is completely misguided in its approach due to politicking. The HTC (Hotels Trades Council) Union contributed millions of dollars and thousands of volunteers to Mayor Adams’s campaign to which he responded “You have been my first major union endorsement, I never forget my first. You are my love.” That’s nice and all, but the crusade against short term rental is not a binary good vs bad affair. It’s more nuanced than that.

    There has been no conclusive evidence that Airbnb’s increase long term rent prices, and in studies that have found they do, the increases are negligible. The argument that Airbnb removes affordable housing is nonsensical. The overwhelming majority of apartments and houses listed on Airbnb in NYC would never qualify as affordable housing. The city has been in bed with major developers who build luxury housing and minuscule amounts of actually affordable housing. Using Airbnb hosts as the fall guys for a situation of your own making is disingenuous at best.

    NYC is struggling to attract tourism again. For many visitors to the city, especially larger families, NYC hotels are not affordable and they’re concentrated in just a few areas of the city. Many visitors to the city don’t want to stay in midtown or downtown or Williamsburg. They want to stay near the family they’re visiting. Airbnb’s, which offer a far greater value and far greater flexibility than hotels enable an entirely different kind of traveler to NYC to visit. The amount of revenue that represents has not been considered in any of these equations.

    Most Airbnb operators are middle class families or individuals just trying to supplement income to be able to pay the already exorbitant mortgages and expenses that come with living in NYC. Large scale operators and bad actors are a minority but make the most noise. The current blanket approach sacrifices the majority instead of targeting the bad actors.

    Airbnb has a very thorough review system and a high standard for Superhosts. You already have all of Airbnb’s data, why not use that to inform who are bad actors who should be targeted?

    Instead of treating Airbnb hosts like criminals and sending your task force goons to threaten that we’re breaking laws that make no sense (you need sprinklers for rentals of less than 30 days, but no sprinklers for more than 30 days?! Do long term renters build some sort of tolerance to fire that short term renters don’t?), maybe an asset-based cooperative approach would yield more beneficial results for all. For example, the city just build tent cities to receive an influx of immigrants. Why not work with Airbnb hosts to contribute their homes for a few weeks a year to receive immigrants via Airbnb.org? We are an asset, and we are willing to be helpful contributors to our city. That can happen at scale if you actually approach the conversation with a spirit of compromise rather than one of shaming honest people just trying to make a living.

    This new registration law was signed almost a year ago as DiBlasio was leaving office. Other than a PR stunt by Mayor Adams in July to try to intimidate Airbnb hosts, there has been zero information about policies that are supposed to take effect Jan 1, 2023. This forum is the first place I’ve found and I have been searching far and wide, reaching out to elected officials, and contacting housing lawyers to try to get more information to no avail. It is now mid-November and we still have no idea what this is actually going to look like. That just shows that a.) the administration clearly doesn’t have its shit together and doesn’t have a clear plan and b.) they have no respect for the fact that this could affect the economy of thousands of families who depend on Airbnb income to make ends meet and c.) they have no respect for visitors who are depending on the Airbnb’s they’ve already booked for visits to the city next year.

    It’s clear that this whole thing has not been well thought out. Let’s actually work together and find a solution that benefits everyone and only targets the bad actors who are abusing the platform.”

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:11pm
  • Cynthia A

    Why is NYC politicians trying to stop home owners who pay their property taxes and constituents who vote as well use their home on the Airbnb platform ? Why are you giving us a hard time? We are trying to survive and support our family in the most honest way. Through Airbnb I was able to keep my home from going into foreclosure. Pay my children college tuition plus buy food and pay my utilities on time. While NYC politicians is busy trying to stop small home owners from using this Airbnb platform. NYC politicians are being hypocrites. They are allowing these hotels to house homeless ppl in single rooms for twice the cost of living as well. Most of the hotels that are in NYC are housing homeless ppl. Why no one has question this? But the city wants to come after small property owners who pay their taxes! . Most of the hotels who rent to the homeless have these poor people living in their small hotel room for years and NYC has not found them anywhere to live. But they want to harass the low and middle class by preventing them to use their own home to rent or share their homes through Airbnb. Airbnb is not the cause of skyrocketing rents. It’s the government who allows the rezoning of neighborhoods and gentrification to happen in these neighborhoods. Please leave us little guys alone. Airbnb is not hurting anyone nor the neighborhoods. Please stop being unfair. The rich are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:15pm
  • guirlaine

    I think that the tourism industry will be greatly affected by these new rules since most people come to visit for a week or two and not 30 days. The price of hotels are astronomical and middle class and the average person will not be able to afford those high prices.This rule reflect a special interest only to benefit the Hospitality Industry. New York is not just for the rich but also for us , hard working and tax paying individuals, and we also deserve a chance to live and prosper here and not watch the special interest groups destroy us.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:26pm
  • J

    How unfair and unconstitutional this all seems. To tell homeowners who they can and cannot have for the desired amount of time a guest wants to stay is absolutely ridiculous. Especially in a single/two family home. This clearly seems like city officials are just favoring the hotel industry who have had a monopoly in NYC for a century. Times are changing and evolving in our world. And with increasing struggles of inflation and insane costs in NYC, Airbnb has been a way for homeowners to get by. Now you all want to take it away, to favor an industry who has profited exponentially over the years from tourism! There are a ton of tourists who rather stay in a hotel. There are others though that would rather seek accommodations that’s comfortable for them which is an Airbnb. This is not a step in the right direction. This is a step to PROFIT THE ALREADY HAVES AND PUNISH THE HAVE NOTS. If unfair legislation gets passed I believe there will be significant economic collateral damage that will occur in our city. The guests who come here don’t just stay inside the home. They go out and spend money in the communities in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island. Creating an economic ecosystem to help small business’ and influencing diverse cultures coming and living together even for a short period of time.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:35pm
  • N.B

    This is so one-sided . I used airbnb to make ends meet . It’s just to be able to afford my mortgage.This will destroy families.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:39pm
  • Simon Hotchkin

    The legislation is a disgrace. The city want to eliminate anyone being able to responsibly earn a little bit of extra income from a house they own. God forbid someone make a little extra money renting out ONE property in NYC! Is this New York or North Korea? Meanwhile people are raped and murdered on the subway but the clowns in NYC government are focused on this drafting this 20+ page law on airbnb rentals.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:40pm
  • Fernando Carrillo

    I am a single father of three wonderful kids. One in college, one in high school, and one in elementary school. I am also a service disabled United States Army Veteran.
    Since becoming a host and listing my apartment on AirBnB three years ago, I have been able to efficiently manage my time for all of my kid’s needs and provide for my family as I am also the caretaker for my elderly parents and my autistic younger brother who lives with them.
    These restrictions will severely impact and hurt the livelihoods of many in similar situations such as myself.
    I sincerely enjoy hosting visitors from all around the world as they enjoy out beautiful city. I have especially enjoyed the privilege of hosting traveling nurses and medical staff throughout the pandemic, which actually helped me keep my family afloat when everything shut down.
    Do not take this away from us working families.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:46pm
  • Al

    I am an attorney specializing in regulatory and administrative law. Attempting to decipher this dense, convoluted and labyrinthian rule makes my head spin. I cannot imagine how difficult it is for laypeople like the small-time one and two family homeowners represented in these comments to make sense of this antiquated, burdensome and vague regulation. The rule claims to allow exceptions so that short term rentals will still exist in NYC but after hours of parsing the text of the law and combing through the various court decisions interpreting it thus far, it is clear that this rule will effectively abolish short term rental solutions in the City. I do not need to re-hash the effective and common sense arguments articulated already about the benefits and flexibility that services like AirBnb provide for one and two family homeowners, but I will simply summarize by saying that, if enacted, this rule conscripts individual homeowners into solving an affordable housing problem that the City created by handing out obscene tax breaks to luxury developers whose mega-towers sit vacant. So the City’s solution is to force families to open their own homes to long-term renters who are effectively excused from having to pay rent by overly-permissive tenant protection laws, a ridiculous solution that will do nothing to solve the affordable housing crisis and perpetuate hardship on families who use these services to pay their bills and mortgages as the cost of living skyrockets. Worse still, this draconian scheme could easily be fixed by allowing a carve out for one and two family homes who register with the City and prove they provide a safe, clean and healthy space for short term rentals – which can easily be determined through a host’s public rating and reviews on their rental page. I urge the City to reconsider this rule by providing an exception for the good actors while still allowing it to prosecute major offenders who are truly harming legal hotel operations and exacerbating the City’s housing crisis by renting out large amounts of units that are dirty, unsafe and could otherwise be used to provide affordable housing in high-density areas. The City’s attempt to crack down on these types of units is noble but sweeping one and two family homes under the umbrella of this punitive measure is completely inappropriate, ineffective and offensive to the rights of homeowners in NYC.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:55pm
  • Lara Gerin

    AirB&b has been helping us to be able to live in a good space and without it we will definitely wont be able to afford the high prices that has been happening lately. We live in the space, and we dont want to share our space with anyone long therm, we do not want room mates. We are always present and deal with our guest all the time, that is one of the reasons we always have good reviews and we really enjoy the company of guest. We’ve been bery lucky in that regards. I do hope this rules wont affect many of us that really depend on that help with high NY rents. It is really unfair to us.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 2:55pm
  • Xavier

    A guest I recently had left a hidden message in the room she rented out in my single family home. She wanted me to see it after she checked out but it was hidden in a cubbie inside the room. I would like to share it. It was even titled “May Love”. “Hi, thank you! This room was my sanctuary these 3.5 weeks. I felt peace, a form of liberation, and stress free. This room was a blessing! As I danced, laughed, cried, meditated & worked on improving myself I enjoyed being here, and Brooklyn I FELL IN LOVE! The city & N.Y. just beyond. Thanks again -Naomy”
    Is this not the most N.Y. thing you ever read. Knowing that a person enjoyed the space/Brooklyn so much even to the point that it helped her mentally and spiritually is worth everything. You have to understand that this is promoting a beautiful community. Too often are the bad news of publicity of Airbnb is displayed. They refuse to show you stories like this. Aibnb is making it possible for people of many ethnicities to understand eachother and be at peace with one another even if these people are living amongst eachother just for 3.5 weeks. This is what New York city is about

    Comment added November 18, 2022 3:00pm
  • Daniel A

    This is an overreach of government. Home owners should be able to rent out rooms in their homes for short term stays. It’s been a 100’s of years old fundamental right. Let’s not overcomplicate govt more with endless registration processes that have negligible differences, interrupts the natural economics of the market. Bringing outside visitors into NYC with their foreign money is far better for the economy than saving a few dollars internally. The room will sit mostly empty without ability for short term, as I dont want to live with someone permanently.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 3:01pm
  • Nat Rockett

    This rule is designed to protect the hotel union at the expense of small business people. The union has made it impossible to make money running a hotel in NYC which is why so many of the still shuttered hotels are union hotels. Protecting housing stock from misuse by bad actors is an excellent goal that all legitimate hosts support. Protecting the union from their own mistakes/greed by punishing small businesses makes NYC weaker, less interesting and ultimately poorer as union hotels are not sustainable businesses in most cases.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 3:17pm
  • Tar Meta

    Airbnb allows good citizens of NYC to earn a little more money to pay for everyday expenses. In this inflationary environment this extra money is the difference between making ends meet and not. Also Guests who come to our Airbnb always ask for local tips. We guide them to local restaurants and eateries and dry cleaners etc so that helps local businesses grow. It is good for all on NYC not just the expensive touristy places where only large companies can build hotels. Airbnb is good for NYC and it’s citizens and local businesses.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 3:21pm
  • Sean B

    This is really unfair to everyone that’s a host. This is a source of income for people the honest way to pay bills and make it through. Please take a second chance and let us rent our rooms out on the platforms. Everyone benefits from it.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 3:36pm
  • Athena

    Rather than tackling the big developers and property management companies that actually are responsible for much of our city’s housing crisis, the city is choosing to come down on average people who, like me, rent out a single space to make ends meet. We rent out a portion of our house on Airbnb, and this money is vital to making our mortgage payment every month. To those who say we should put our unit on the market: what happens when our tenants stop paying rent? What if something happens and we need them to leave? Evictions can take years, if they’re even successful, and the procedure is so onerous that there’s little one can do if a tenant damages the space or stops paying rent. Airbnb provides us with the security that the City doesn’t. Airbnb provides insurance for damage and ensures payment actually happens (notwithstanding some wrongdoing on the part of the landlord). We are not wealthy powerful people with money to spare; we need every cent that we earn to make our mortgage. Until the City starts protecting people like us, Airbnb provides a vital income stream without the unfair risks and lack of legal recourse that mom-and-pop landlords cannot endure.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 3:46pm
  • Elvira

    I echo Tuan Le’s comments above. We are in the middle class, and living in NYC has become more and more expensive. With record high inflation, high utility bills, and increased property tax, hosting out home is a viable option.
    During the pandemic, I have accommodated medical professionals, including nurses, and doctors who served our community during the time of need.
    This new proposed bill will put our livelihood at risk and our chance to stay in this beautiful. Please reconsider.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 3:48pm
  • AB

    This regulation falsely assumes that by outlawing Airbnb, you’ll be able to get more (affordable) rental units on the market. I’ve got news for you: a lot of people use Airbnb precisely because their space is not available for a long-term tenant. We have a house where we rent out space on Airbnb when we’re out of town or when family is not in town, staying with us. When they are, the dates are blocked and the space is unavailable. So the calendar has our place available only some of the time. If you outlaw Airbnb, you just make it impossible for us to pay our bills; what you won’t get is an apartment available with a long-term lease to solve the city’s problems. Scapegoating the housing crisis on Airbnb will not only cause direct and immediate harm for thousands of families in New York City; it won’t even result in the automatic freeing up of rental units that you’re predicting. A lot of people are like us, using it only at particular times because the unit or space is not always available. Clearly the regulation has been drafted without a proper assessment and consideration of how and why many New Yorkers use Airbnb, and what this legislation will actually achieve beyond hardship for thousands who depend on it.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 4:04pm
  • Kristina Kozak

    I have been hosting since 2012. It’s unrealistic to expect tourists with several family members visiting NYC for a week or two to book into hotels. How is that great for tourism in NYC? It’s not cost effective. Hotels are expensive. Tourists have more money to spend at restaurants, bars, shops, museums etc. I have guests coming in for weddings, graduations, families cheering on their NYC marathon runners!! Rethink the proposed rules. Weed out the bad apples in the Big Apple and work with hosts who want to operate STR.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 4:08pm
  • Curtis and Robert P

    My husband and I own a townhouse in Brooklyn, where we live in the lower, two-bedroom unit and rent the upper, two-bedroom unit on Airbnb. We write to share that we find it extremely important to be able to rent our second unit on a short-term basis.

    First, the ability to rent our upper-unit on a short-term basis provides us the needed supplementary income both to start a family (our second bedroom will be a nursery) and pay our mortgage. Without this ability, we would be forced to make very difficult economic choices that would likely decrease the time we can spend with our future family.

    Renting our second unit to a long-term tenant unfortunately is not an option. We both are employed, and as we welcome a baby to the world, we will rely on our families to visit for periods of times — sometimes planned visits, sometimes on short notice; sometimes quick visits, sometimes longer.
    Financially, it makes the most sense for our families to stay in our upper unit rather than in hotels. In our situation, we are not “taking housing off the market,” as critics of short-term rentals claim; without the ability to rent our second unit on a short-term basis, our upper unit would have to remain vacant in order to accommodate our family’s frequent visits. Only when they are not in town will we rent that unit on Airbnb or similar platforms. To be clear — there is no scenario in which we are able to rent our upstairs to a long-term tenant. As such, this legislation acts in a purely putative, anti-family manner.

    We respectfully urge the City to continue a measured, reasonable approach to short-term housing laws, taking into consideration situations like ours, continued exemptions and simplified regulatory pathways, for single and two-family homes, and not to react in a knee-jerk fashion with blanket restrictions. In particular, the requirement that hosts be present in the rented unit ignores the reality of situations like ours and renders short-term rentals entirely unworkable. Thank you for your time and consideration.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 4:39pm
  • Judy T

    I am a single woman trying to survive in NYC. I must say; without renting my space on airbnb I will not be able to pay my mortgage and bills. I live in Brooklyn and it is insanely expensive to live. Having a home in NYC was a struggle to obtain and keeping it is even more of a struggle. I Heavily rely on the income from hosting. I ask that we continue to STR because must of us who rent our space relies on this income. It is very unfair that this is being proposed.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 4:49pm
  • Sky

    I am a young woman and artist-I moved to NYC when I was 18 and have been living in my space for the past 11 years. Airbnb has made it so much easier and safer to find roommates in a city where it would have been near impossible to live without roommates as an artist in their early career. Pre Airbnb I often found roommates on Craigslist and it is an option that comes with significantly more personal risk than Airbnb.

    I will continue to sublet my apartment (legally) and find roommates (legally) exactly as I am right now if this law passes. I just won’t do it on Airbnb.

    And I (a young, single woman) will take on more stress and personal risk- both financially and to my physical well being.

    Sounds familiar huh?

    Comment added November 18, 2022 5:10pm
  • Natalia Mantini

    all the comments have the same denominator: landlords are abusive, the city let them be with no issues, and the only way for us to stay in our homes (as I live in my apt for 13 years now) is to sacrifice, our lives, our properties, our belongings, our privacy, OUR SAFETY, and rent any spare space we have to be able to pay bills and rent. My landlord, after covid, where he got money from federal and state help to pay rent, LOTS OF MONEY, so they did not loose a penny during the pandemic!!, they already advised me they are raising my rent from $1800 to $2500. That is a $700 increase because after the pandemic I am supposed to have become a millionaire? How do you think I can survive, if not renting my bedroom on airbnb??? Like others said: IF YOU ARE TRYING TO UPDATE REGULATIONS ON RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS, YOU NEED TO TACKLE THE LANDLORD GREEDINESS PROBLEM, NOT THE TENANTS WAY TO AVOID STARVATION AND EVICTION for non-payment!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 5:32pm
  • Angela

    Short-term rental is a win win for NY.
    We host families that can’t find a place to stay because of money and amount of people. Hotels don’t host 6 family members unless they rent 3 rooms which is ridiculous pricy per night. One night paid at a hotel is like 4 days or a week on Airbnb. Tourists won’t be attracted anymore to NY because of all the regulations and ridiculous rules that are been imposed.
    Help NY, Help the Community, Help Us! Stop pleasing the big guys. New York will become the less visited city in the world instead of the most famous City In the world.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 6:03pm
  • Merle O. Cann

    The first words that came to my mind, then through my mouth were, “Oh my God”! As a widow and senior citizen, I am compelled to use the extra room in my house in order that I could keep up with my mortgage and the already exorbitant cost of living.
    I also look forward to meeting persons who contribute to my excitement in life, as we engage in healthy, educational conversations.
    I am offering a rewarding service to people who need it.
    Please do not deprive me of being a blessing to anyone who needs it. As I do this whole-heartedly, contributing honestly to society.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 6:25pm
  • Mika

    Inflation has hit many of us very hard.

    Not proud to admit it but I’ve spent nights sleeping in my car and renting my place on AirBNB to make ends meet. I tried signing up to drive for Uber, but regulations in New York City were too stringent. It’s my house, and I do what I need to do. I truly don’t see who this regulation is helping.

    I understand it’s not a one sided issue, but the timing of this proposal is horrible. So many people are just trying to survive. Stop making it even harder for them to. At least not now.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 6:45pm
  • Jody R

    I have a single family home with a portion of the house suitable to rent short term on Airbnb. As a single mom with 3 kids, being able to rent this part of our house has enabled me to keep up with my mortgage payments every month. Rules that may curb or limit my ability to rent a part of my own home make no sense. Please do not implement this rule.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 6:55pm
  • C. GRAZIANO

    I’m a divorced woman in the lower-middle income bracket and I own my condo. I’m able to keep owning my condo because of Airbnb. I have the blessing of my neighbors because I’m a responsible host as MOST hosts are. We are not trying to scam the system but work within it. I own my condo. I should be able to do what I want in it. NYC continues to be an incredibly expensive city to live in and the extra income this provides allows me to keep living in the city I’ve called home for 15 years. To continue to pay my taxes; to spend money locally and bring others to the city who do the sand and who may not otherwise have the opportunity because the cost of a hotel is astronomical. I don’t understand why you can’t look to other cities who allow this and make money doing it with special taxes. This is only harming law-abiding, tax paying citizens of the city.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 7:03pm
  • Philip Nethersdorf

    These rules are reminiscent of a police state. Why should I not be able to rent out my property when and how I see fit if I am doing it in a responsible manner? I am not a large hotel operator with 50+ listings which is who the city should be focusing on (among a lot of other things!!). We know this is all about making the hotels more money and punishing the small guys.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 7:27pm
  • Erica M.

    I rent a 2 bedroom apartment in Brooklyn, and up until last year, have always shared this space with a roommate. In 2021, I decided to begin renting the 2nd bedroom out as a shared space on AirBnB after a horrible roommate situation left me uncomfortable with sharing my lease with another stranger long-term. Hosting on AirBnB has allowed me to continue living in this apartment in a 2 family home where I know and adore the landlords (who live on the other floor) rather than be priced out of the abundance of exorbitantly priced studios in the new buildings going up. The amount of land being bought up and priced up by developers is what is causing the shortage of available affordable housing in my neighborhood, not those of us home sharing in order to pay our rents or mortgages.

    As a Brooklyn native, I have shared so many of my favorite local businesses and experiences with my guests, most of which they would not have found if they stayed in a hotel. Many said that being guided by a local to these was the best part of their stay. Many guests also state that staying with a local provides an additional level of safety and comfort for them. Renting on AirBnB also makes an NYC trip more affordable – my guests have full access to my kitchen, and many cook 2 meals a day here in order to splurge on a dinner, show, or other attraction.

    One final point I should make is that a fair amount of my guests have been those looking to move into this or a nearby neighborhood, and specifically choose to stay with a local to get a feel for apartment size, rents, commutes, safety etc. They are experiencing my neighborhood in a way they simply could not if they stayed in a hotel, and in this way, access to an AirBnB stay actually brings more people into housing here.

    While I do understand arguments against STRs elsewhere in the country, and the idea of people buying 20+ properties to list rather than renting as LTRs, I simply do not believe that this is the case for most of us in NYC. We are more the grassroots home shared that AirBnB originally was designed to be, with mutual benefits for guests and hosts. There are predators in the housing market here, but it’s the developers, not the AirBnB hosts. Sadly, the hotel industry and real estate developers have money to funnel to the government that those of us renting a room or a floor in our houses will never have.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 8:10pm
  • abi doukhan

    with the rents as they are in nyc, it is impossible for me, as a single-income worker to afford rent as well as be able to save some money for emergencies. airbnb gave me the opportunity to put money aside for health emergencies, home improvement repairs, and extras for myself. i think nyc should focus on making homes rent-stabilized as well as lower rents–it is not normal that 2/3 of one’s salary goes into rent!! i don’t know why the city, with all the rampant injustices going on with gentrification, evictions, the purchase of billionaire real estate by shady political actors, homelessness, etc has chosen to target honest people who want to share their homes with tourists in order to make ends meet!! this sounds like pressure has been put on ny government by corporations such as hotel chains and that doesn’t feel right to me!!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 8:13pm
  • James Farrell

    Airbnb has allowed my family to survive the pandemic, recent inflation, and the incredibly high cost of living in New York City.

    We welcome guests to our home from all over the world, and their visits enrich our neighborhood, and make it safer. They help support local businesses, and those businesses in turn pay NYC taxes.

    As we are on the cusp of a recession, now is not the time to make living in NYC more onerous for low-middle class homeowners.

    These new regulations are a transparent pay off to the hotel lobby, and will do nothing to address housing affordability, homelessness or the high cost of rent in NYC.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 8:19pm
  • ROXANNE B

    In these uncertain economic times for the middle class population who are hardworking folks trying to make end meet without government assistance, the Airbnb opportunity allows us to keep income in to help keep up with rising costs and just about everything. Heating and electric bills are skyrocketing as well as taxes are increasing. It is quite expensive to run a home especially with a large mortgage payment attached. I am asking that the Airbnb platform remains as is which is an honest income stream and provides an affordable stay for visiting guests. This proposed change will financially hurt many of us. The wealthy of this city have many options available and the middle class needs to hold on to this income source. It’s important to keep honest people here in the city and not take opportunities away from us. I am stating my disagreement to the proposed plan. People should have options as to where they would like to stay especially if there are accommodations like a full kitchen where they can cook their own meal as if they were home.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 9:31pm
  • Leonarda Jonie

    I am a native New Yorker who has taken work that requires me to travel due to having lost my job during th pandemic. I use Airbnb to rent my apartment when I am out of town and it helps me be able to afford living in the city. Without this I would have been priced out of the city a long time ago.

    Comment added November 18, 2022 10:01pm
  • AJ

    Reminder to the city governance: renting a small extra apartment or two is not a tool of the rich – no one is making millions off of this. Those people in a position to use airbnb are trying to make ends meet! Pay off a mortgage, student debt, etc. After many years of paying off student debt, I was so lucky to be able to pull funds together w my husband, happen upon a rare opportunity to buy a place together — BUT we could only afford the mortgage by renting our space out w short term rentals. After all this, it would be DEVASTATING to our entire financial/business plan and ability to keep up with mortgage payments. Please refocus your energy on big real estate developers and rental companies, not the individual home owners that are simply trying to survive!

    Comment added November 18, 2022 10:30pm
  • Francesca Kress

    I own a brownstone on the upset west side which is a two apartment building and have been doing Airbnb rental successfully when I am visiting family out of town, a daughter and grandchildren in India and a daughter in Buffalo. Airbnb allows me to live in my brownstone most of the time, have my whole family with me a great deal of the time and pay my taxes, income and property, without having to try to have short term furnished rentals through real estate agents and all the complications that implies. I never have complaints from neighbors, never have damage to my property and even better, my home is occupied and taken care of by paying guests , even to the extent of taking care of my pets. If I couldn’t do Airbnb, I would have to rent to high income renters and surely would not be reducing the number of middle and low income rentals available on the market. I would have to rent one apartment for 8-10,000 dollars a month just to help me pay for my occupancy. We own a brownstone and are a retired couple who would struggle to keep our property without income from Airbnb.
    We maintain super host status on Airbnb and provide a wonderful space for tourists and business travelers who want an alternative to hotels. All of our 300 guests would have had to stay in hotels. Restricting Airbnb would only serve the interests of the hotel lobby and harm the thousands of middle class home owners who, like us, need the extra income to keep their increasingly expensive homes. FYI, my husband and I have lived in NYC for 65 years and educated our children and grandchildren in NYC’s wonderful private and public schools. Please let us continue to maintain our wonderful and much cherished lifestyle for which we are truly grateful.

    Comment added November 19, 2022 12:40am
  • Andrew

    Airbnb has been an incredible experience from day 1.
    I only do it for a couple weeks every year but that extra revenue makes all the difference.
    The money I make goes towards other businesses in NY, weather it is used for. Home improvements or extra cash to spend when I come back.

    My guests are always so happy to enjoy a different experience.

    I cannot think of a better situation where everybody wins.

    This has to stay!

    Comment added November 19, 2022 1:56am
  • Cenk Evirgen

    Whenever I travel I stay in an airbnb and I never want to stay in an airbnb with the host. I rent the entire space for myself either for leisure or work travels. Same thing applies when I rent my apartment. Whenever I’m traveling i want to be able to rent out my apartment and make 100% taxable additional income. People don’t like staying in hotels and this law will drop NYC visitors and hurt all economy

    Comment added November 19, 2022 2:26am
  • M + S

    Good morning. Airbnb and short term rentals have been a saving grace for me. I literally had no choice when I started. I rented a 4 bedroom apartment with friends and when their life changed they left the apartment and me with paying the entire rent myself. I put 2 rooms on airbnb and my life hasn’t been the same since. I’ve been able to pay rent plus put extra change in my pockets to afford the new york lifestyle. I’ve met really interesting people from across the globe. Shared experiences, ideas and lifestyles. This app has allowed me to meet people i otherwise would never know.

    I agree there have been some bad players in the industry, and rather then put in laws that would affect the majority of us, lets focus on those bad players.

    I’m forever grateful for the opportunity airbnb has provided. And wish the city would find a way to work with airbnb rather than devlop regulations that essentially would drive out the company and those that rely on the service they provide us.

    Comment added November 19, 2022 8:23am
  • Ingrid D.

    My story and sentiments are no different from the others. NYC is one of the most expensive cities in the world to live in. It is highly competitive for jobs and we pay some of the highest taxes in the country.

    Why are laws being enacted that will stop lower and middle class families from not only surviving, but also thriving? Most of us have full-time jobs and this is additional income, that we can control and maintain without leaving our homes. How does the city expect us to replace this income?

    Stop taking money from hotel lobbyists! Start actually putting policies in place that help the average New Yorker and not just the rich.

    I lost my job in 2017 and could not get the same level and economic stability back for five years. Being able to rent an apartment in my two family home, kept us afloat. Now although I’m working again, the income from Airbnb helps us maintain and get out of the debt we incurred.

    The city is worried about homelessness? Why institute laws that will cause more homelessness? Find the bad players and weed them out and leave the simple renters and homeowners alone.

    What do you lawmakers want for your own families? You want to thrive and not just survive. Being able to have a short term rental actually brings additional income into neighborhoods that otherwise would never see tourists.

    Enacting these laws will start a domino effect of catastrophic proportions. Loss tourists revenue, mortgage defaults, dilapidated buildings, among a few.

    If the city wants to continue to lose residents to other cities and states this is the way to do it. Focus on the other problems plaguing our city, and leave us alone.

    Comment added November 19, 2022 10:17am
  • LiVi

    Not only we support our family of four with renting our room out (occasionally- when kids are not present) but we also meeting new friends and community members. Not everyone is able to pay hotel prices. Most of the time we have students, interns, teachers and medical professionals who for obvious reasons do not have the income to pay the expensive hotel bills. This law will hurt the minimum community vibe left in this city! It will hurt us, families with young children, and ultimately the city!

    Comment added November 19, 2022 11:10am
  • X

    Unfortunately I don’t think this administration cares about what any of us have to say. I’ve been doing some research and see that the hotel and Hotel trades council made an extremely large donation to get this administration into office. They want a return on their investment and this is how they’re getting it. Just another example of people pushing money for something they want to go their way. At a time where things are worse than they have been in this city for years. They will get rid of Airbnb so the hotel industry can continue to be a monopoly in NYC. The hotel industry will again be able to name their price for tourists. As tourists struggle to find places to stay because the average rate per night will be so high because of the overflow of people trying to find a room. This is the hotel lobbyist way of keeping the old money for them. Shameful

    Comment added November 19, 2022 11:38am
  • Gaile

    As a retiree, Short term rental is vital for me to safely live and keep my Brooklyn brownstone. Without it, I won’t be able to pay my mortgage and keep up with the repairs that a 19th century brownstone requires.   New York City has been good to me. I endured the good and bad that came with living in New York for decades. Please face the truth that we need Short Term Rental to stay in our homes SAFELY. We need short term rental to continue to be relevant in this city that is slowly forgetting about the pioneers that stayed in NY during the bad times. The Hotel Industry and short term rental home owners can co-exist. I understand some regulation is necessary for Rent controlled and Rent Stabilized buildings; however, different regulations are needed for private homes. The strictness of these new rules will make short term rental not doable for private homeowners – It will result in foreclosures, poorly maintained buildings and unhappy people ( which means more crime and possible suicides) More private developers preying on Private Home Owners to buy  their house cheaply.

    Short Term Rental gives people the opportunity to fulfil their financial obligations  and at the same time BUILD THE LOCAL COMMUNITY!  Because another unforeseen benefit of the Short Term Rental industry is it brings more tourists to the outer boroughs, expanding the wealth to local small businesses! Thus, Short Term Rental also creates happier businesses!!

    Also, Short Term rental will pay their share of taxes!  Thus increasing income for the State. Short Term Rentals are safe because listing platforms are vetting the potential guests thoroughly. 

    Again, the hotel industry can co-exist with  private home owners Short Term Rental!

    Another concern – Politically these restrictions can also have negative consequences too. Many I have spoken with feel that these restrictions can lead to other restrictions.  Thus, Many New Yorker private home owners may turn to another political party that has their interests first.

    These proposed Short Term Rental restrictions will be a major mistake for NYC!

     

    Comment added November 19, 2022 11:58am
  • Gaile

    As a retiree, Short term rental is vital for me to keep my Brooklyn brownstone. Without it, I won’t be able to pay my mortgage and keep up with the repairs that a 19th century brownstone requires.   New York City has been good to me. I endured the good and bad that came with living in New York for decades. Please face the truth that we need Short Term Rental to stay in our homes SAFELY. We need short term rental to continue to be relevant in this city that is slowly forgetting about the pioneers that stayed in NY during the bad times. The Hotel Industry and short term rental home owners can co-exist. I understand some regulation is necessary for Rent controlled and Rent Stabilized buildings; however, different regulations are needed for private homes. The strictness of these new rules will make short term rental not doable for private homeowners – It will result in foreclosures, poorly maintained buildings and unhappy people ( which means more crime and possible suicides) More private developers preying on Private Home Owners to buy  their house cheaply.

    Short Term Rental gives people the opportunity to fulfil their financial obligations  and at the same time BUILD THE LOCAL COMMUNITY!  Because another unforeseen benefit of the Short Term Rental industry is it brings more tourists to the outer boroughs, expanding the wealth to local small businesses! Thus, Short Term Rental also creates happier businesses!!

    Also, Short Term rental will pay their share of taxes!  Thus increasing income for the State. Short Term Rentals are safe because listing platforms are vetting the potential guests thoroughly. 

    Again, the hotel industry can co-exist with  private home owners Short Term Rental!
    Another concern – Politically these restrictions can also have negative consequences too. Many I have spoken with feel that these restrictions can lead to other restrictions.  Thus, Many New Yorker private home owners may turn to another political party that has their interests first.

    These proposed Short Term Rental restrictions will be a major mistake for NYC!

     

    Comment added November 19, 2022 12:04pm
  • Kareem Fahmy

    I’m a freelance theatre artist and have no stable monthly income. Being able to rent my home on Airbnb has allowed me to continue my artistic practice and contribute to the artistic life of New York City. I rent my home when I’m traveling for out-of-town work projects, and in doing so I’m allowing families to have an entire apartment to stay in, as opposed to an exorbitantly expensive hotel room. It’s vital that Airbnb be allowed to exist in this city as it serves both New Yorkers and the tourists that want to visit our fair city. The hotel industry has made it prohibitively expensive for families to visit NYC. Don’t mess it up for tourists by cracking down on Airbnb. We beg you!

    Comment added November 19, 2022 12:10pm
  • Jermaine

    Why such a strict law that only allows a ROOM rental? Cities such as Denver & Atlanta allow at least a primary homeowner to rent a mother in law unit or 2 unit in the home. Even California cities, allows certain days anywhere from 3 months to 6 months.

    Can anyone explain what’s the difference between allowing a 30 night rental versus a 14 night? Logically can anyone in the special enforcement office and politician explain?

    Where will people stay when they need to renovate their own home? Have a fire? Visiting family in areas hotels aren’t around? Or Just need space to get away? During the lockdowns, I rented to traveling nurses and 1199SEIU union workers. This was a partnership through the city so they can separate themselves from family members with Covid. I rented to refugees! Now NYC is saying to all of us, we appreciated you through the bad times but now we don’t need you. Used and abused to be told I’m 2 months our livelihoods will change drastically.

    Nyc is not thinking of the whole picture, just a complete negative outlook towards Airbnb and host. Why not allow a certain amount of permits in neighborhoods so it’s properly regulated and monitored. I ask again why such a harsh tone to people just trying to survive in this city?

    Comment added November 19, 2022 8:08pm
  • Kosta B

    This is all subsidized by the Hotel’s lobby, they want to kill small business. Another example of single 1% people bribing politicians with a lot of money to promote their agenda. There is need for more reasonable accommodation not for greedier representative and politicians. There is room for everyone not just for the top Hoteliers Billionaires and their puppets Everybody can make a living, shame on the politicians and representatives of the Hotels lobby’s

    Comment added November 19, 2022 8:19pm
  • Juan

    understand another main reason the city is doing this is the housing shortage. My space is not taking housing off the market. I OWN my apartment and I have an extra bedroom. The guests live with me. It’s no different than having a roommate except this roommate doesn’t stay for a year at a time.

    The people who stay with me eat out in restaurants in my neighborhood and shop at the stores. It is great for the local economy.

    Comment added November 20, 2022 5:25am
  • Hatim

    I am a musician/artist and founder and director of a Brooklyn-based non-profit. I own an apartment in Brooklyn and my partner (also an artist) lives in Port Jervis. We’ve been alternating between Port Jervis and Brooklyn – when we’re in Port Jervis, we rent out my apartment in Brooklyn. As artists we are constantly working (10 hours a day) but most of that time worked is unpaid (time spent creating new work, practicing, applying for grants, looking for new performance opportunities, running my non-profit which does not yet have the funds to pay for my salary, etc.). So, Airbnb income has not just been supplemental income – it’s income that we rely on, without which we can’t pay all our bills. If I am no longer able to Airbnb my apartment, I’ll have to sell the apartment and move in with my partner in Port Jervis. But my work, my friends, family, and my non-profit are all based in Brooklyn. So moving out of the city will also reduce the income from our work as artists, and add costs to every time we have to come into the city for work (transportation, housing, etc.).

    This is my home. I own it, pay a mortgage on it, pay property taxes, and I pay all my taxes from Airbnb income. Why punish me and reward the big hotel interests?

    Comment added November 20, 2022 1:12pm
  • Mike Harp

    I have been hosting my home in Bedford Stuyvesant on Airbnb for 4-6 weeks a year since 2015 to help supplement my family’s income and make it financially possible to visit family members who live across the US and abroad during key holidays.

    Periodically renting our home on Airbnb does not impact the housing shortage, but it does bring the positive effect of families traveling internationally to Bed Stuy and investing in our local economy. I take great pride in actively promoting local businesses to our Airbnb guests, so they can also experience the thriving neighborhood and community I love versus only visiting the tourist locations in Manhattan.

    The proposed legislation is a major overreach of the government controlling how I use the home that I own and pay taxes on. In addition, the legislation risks creating safety issues by not allowing the separation of living spaces or having locked doors for short-term stays. The requirement of stays of 30 days or more also increases the risk of squatter laws being used opportunistically against homeowners and feels not very well thought out.

    The combination of the two requirements listed above will dramatically prohibit homeowners like me from supplementing my family’s income in one of the most expensive cities in the world and make it cost-prohibitive to visit our family members abroad during the holidays.

    Rather than penalizing law-abiding homeowners like myself and making it harder for families to survive in NYC, the City and State government should go after the illegal hotel operators abusing Airbnb and other rental platforms by having multiple listings on offer, none of which are primary residents. Go after the real bad actors, not hard-working New Yorkers using Airbnb to help make ends meet in this city.

    Thanks for your consideration.
    Mike Harp

    Comment added November 20, 2022 6:33pm
  • Scott Rankin

    This is bad policy that will hurt the city of New York. My neighborhood has become more vibrant over the past 15 years as short term rentals have allowed visitors to stay at an apartment in our area, shopping in local restaurants, stores, coffee shops, bars, etc. These visitors are discovering a part of New York they’d never had encountered before, and the economic benefits to our community have been tremendous. Families can come and stay together without having to book several hotel rooms. They are frequently visiting friends and relatives who live in my neighborhood, and there are no hotel options nearby. This rule benefits nobody other than large hotel chains. There is plenty of tourism demand to go around for hotels and apartments alike. This is not good for the City of New York.

    Comment added November 21, 2022 8:46am
  • Wanda Jameson

    Airbnb has helped me keep my children clothed and fed in West Harlem.

    The proposed legislation feels discriminatory and a clear attack on the lower and middle class.

    I speak for dozens of friends, neighbors, and fellow hosts who rely on hosting to keep roofs over their heads. New York City is anything but affordable.

    Comment added November 21, 2022 9:23am
  • James Sicilian

    Mr. Mayor, homeownership has always been out of reach for us and now we get to have a little piece of the American Dream. Please don’t take that away from us and from the people.

    Comment added November 21, 2022 1:08pm
  • Michael Chapman

    We rent out a portion of our home and have had lovely experiences with our guests over the years. I don’t see why the city has to come in and harass people simply being nice renting out a portion of their home to people that would like a washer/dryer and kitchen to use. Hotels are ridiculous and have hideous art and furnishings. I mean are we in NYC or Texas? We have culture here and we can show people that visit that New Yorkers are nice friendly people just like anywhere in the world. I think the city should concentrate their efforts on making the Transit system work. Cutting down on noise pollution, the homeless, the horrible state of our city streets, and mostly the CORRUPTION IN THE CITY! Everywhere you go businesses are closing. There was a restaurant by me that has been here 60 years. Baby Bos, and it just closed because they wanted to raise their rent $5000/month more! This is absurd. It’s like they want everyone to move out of the greatest city in the world. We pay our taxes and report everything, I think that is sufficient. Lets not make this the movie Brazil where you get charged for sneezing!

    Comment added November 21, 2022 3:07pm
  • Alejandro D. P

    I am extremely grateful for Airbnb. It has helped me save and make more independent decisions. I also feel like I am helping my neighborhood by promoting places and more. I have hosted many people in the medical field that came for trainings and during the pandemic.

    Comment added November 21, 2022 7:17pm
  • Denise Hurlburt

    NYC is a renters city. Why? It’s because the wealthy and corporate companies want to keep all the money for themselves and not allow the little guy, like me, to earn a few extra dollars. Ever since joining the Airbnb community back in 2011, I’ve liked the idea of traveling like a local and being able to stay in a nice place, minus the extremely high price that hotels charge. Staying as a guest is what made me want to open my home to be a host. Since I began hosting, I have always lived in the apartment in my 2 bedroom apartment, with my dog.
    Hosting has allowed me to be able to afford living in NYC because it helps me pay my rent! This income is an immense help to me!! Being able to host has allowed me to NOT deal with having to live with a full time roommate, which has proven to be problematic.
    I have always paid my taxes on my Airbnb. I’ve done everything legit and enjoy being a host. There is no reason to take this away from good citizens who are just trying to do what they can to pay for life in an overly priced city of greed.

    Comment added November 21, 2022 8:30pm
  • Eduardo

    Doing AirBnB in my apartment, either a room, or the whole apartment when I am not in town, has helped me to live in Chelsea. It has also helped to bring business to our lovely neighborhood as it reactivates after the pandemic. Not being able to do AirBnB anymore, while keeping the high rent I pay, would force me to move out. Businesses will indirectly be affected as well, as not only locals, but also tourists will not be staying around (there are pretty much no hotels in Chelsea, and the ones there do not offer the service they charge for).

    Comment added November 22, 2022 1:18am
  • John Bajana

    Airbnb has helped me survive the pandemic, it has helped me with rent hikes in nyc and has given my mental health the best remedy.
    with focusing less on income to pay rent, airbnb has provided me alternative options for income considering my main career has not provided me substantial salaries to survive in nyc alone. I am not married, i had to embark on a relationship and have my partner move in just to offset the rent pricing. with out airbnb i will not be able to survive and live in the beautiful world of NY. Please understand that the rental laws and property laws of tourism should not hinder the responsible actions of my work by providing places for visitors to stay while they contribute to the economy of new york city. i pay taxes, i pay fees, i pay rent. I should be able to house whom ever I choose, as long as I play by “REASONABLE” rules and not restrictions of long term bookings. How do I get to live in my home then ? I can’t afford to travel and leave every-time i need a long term booking. I do not work remote like half the city does. please do not change the airbnb laws, i will no longer be able to be a true new yorker.

    Comment added November 22, 2022 1:24pm
  • Kyoko Uchiki

    This rule is kicking out  the middle class or lower class people like me. This is for the rich people, not for us. I had been living in NYC for 17 years. But I have to leave NYC because I am a college student during this pandemic. I can be a college student because my rent could be shared. But this new rule force me to decide that I have to stop being a college student and leave NYC. This rule will make my life plan broken.  I believe the same people like me will be damaged.

    Also, this rule takes away the opportunity from us to find a good roommate. For example, we can find a roommate safely through Airbnb because they have security checks. But regular online bulletin boards do not have security checks. It means it is going to be dangerous to find a roommate, and it is also not safe for the city.

    I strongly ask you to reconsider this rule.

    Comment added November 22, 2022 6:33pm
  • Farouk C.

    Dear City of NY Officials,

    Like most of the people above, I consider myself part of the middle class and working people of New York City. A middle class that is shrinking and will soon become inexistant.

    My salary is between 60-70 K gross per year. I don’t live in a fancy area such as the Upper East Side or Upper West Side. The area where I live, a studio or a 1 Bedroom apartment ranges from $2200 to $3000 per Month. I live in all year long in my apartment and able to host guests through Airbnb. Thanks to Airbnb and renting to guests, I am able to cover 35 to 45% of my total monthly rent. To be clear, I don’t make profit out of renting the bedroom. It helps me cover some basic needs such as electricity, internet and groceries. With the money left, I really live like a normal person, I do use public transportation, only go out to a restaurant or order food delivery twice a month. So nothing fancy or extraordinary.
    Please you should better regulate poeple who use the system and have multiple listings and therefore remove a big chunk on apartments in the market. You should ask yourselves which people did elect you and which people you are serving. It is common sense. Please stop taking sides of Hotels, corporations and greedy landlords or developers. You are really making NYC and most its working class suffer. Prices are up everywhere because of inflation. Food groceries are up, utility bills are up, airplane tickets are up, gas is up, medication is up and cost of healthcare as well. We really struggle to make ends meet. Thank you for taking the time to read this message.

    Best,
    Farouk C.

    Comment added November 22, 2022 6:55pm
  • Silvia T

    Listing the first floor apartment of my two family home in Astoria with Airbnb has helped me pay my mortgage, my son’s college and study abroad while I was a permanent public school teacher. Now, as a retired educator living on my pension, I depend on the wonderful tourists that visit our vibrant city and safe neighborhoods to continue affording my mortgage thus allowing me to keep my home safe, secure, clean and up to date with the necessary repairs as needed. Why is it that it’s so impossible to allow the middle class to maintain their socio-economic status? Why are there so many obstacles for members of the middle class to make ends meet? Hosting is not an easy task, however it brings me satisfaction to see how people from all over the world visit our city and spend money in our local businesses. Why do you have to take that away? Please reflect on this oppressive measures that will hurt many of us that depend on that extra income to afford living expenses which are very high in this city. —

    Comment added November 22, 2022 7:27pm
  • Silvia T

    Dear Mayor Adams,
    I still remember how invested you were in becoming a mayor. You needed our votes to make your dream come true. Now, it seems that you don’t need the middle and working class anymore. You got what you wanted. After reading all the endless requirements proposed in the laws you want to implement on impeding basically that short term rentals continue in NYC, I would like to ask you , what is the purpose of these proposed regulations? What and who does this law favor? Please think about for a moment the struggles we have just endured with the pandemic, think for a moment how short term rentals help the people that voted for you make ends meet, think for a moment how many retirees like myself depend on the extra income to continue making our monthly mortgage payments, think for a moment how you’re going to hurt entire families that count on these rentals to put food on the table, think for a moment all those students that need and must complete their education and need the funds from short term rentals… please politicians have a heart before you make decisions that only hurt others and do not serve any purpose. The middle working class must prevail to have a sane society.

    Comment added November 22, 2022 8:00pm
  • Natasha Maj

    – Hosting on Airbnb in my own home has provided jobs for my two sons which saves the city so much in unemployment money. They manage the Airbnb short-term rental. 

    – We kept our home open to the essential workers of the city workers who were coming from out of NY state during COVID when most if not all hotels closed their doors.

    – Sharing my home with others has been an amazing integration tool for my family who are immigrants from a different country, and also a good tool for Americans who don’t get to meet with internationals to meet with locals.

    – Being able to open my home to other have saved women and women who want to escape abusive relationships by providing short-term rental to them. That way they don’t have to stay in those abusive relationships just because they don’t have a place to go and because the process of finding a long-term rental is not easy to qualify for. It saves people from being exposed to criminal acts or homelessness.

    – I find that tourists want to spend time with locals. Hosting as a short-term rental enables people to travel here and spend money in the city because Airbnb rooms are so much more affordable than hotels.

    – By hosting short-term, I am able to make money to help my dependents who are two disabled brothers and my old and sick mother. We live in the same place that we host but in two units which is why I am renting short-term.

    – Being able to rent short-term serves a human purpose on many levels. It enables me to have a place for my siblings and their families to come and visit me from other states or else I won’t be able to see them. They surely couldn’t afford hotels.

    – If tourists couldn’t find Airbnb rentals, they simply won’t come to NYC since hotels are so expensive- resulting in no tourism money to spend.

    – Tourists should certainly be exposed to the cultures of the melting pot of NYC since hosts are coming from all nationalities, religions, sexual orientations, colors, social statuses (single mothers, single fathers) are all hosts!

    – Additionally, through renting on Airbnb as short-term rental, I am able to afford welcoming friends who are facing hardships in their lives since I could space-wise afford to house them.

    – Renting short-term has allowed me to be flexible when renovating my home in between hosts.

    What I want to know is the reasons behind the proposed regulations anyway? It’s my home and I want to do what it takes to make it fit my own needs as a hard-working single mother with dependents. I pay my bills and my taxes to the cent. I am willing to register, but I don’t want to abide by what I should rent or how many rooms I could share with others.

    Comment added November 22, 2022 8:03pm
  • Karin Balda

    I feel it’s unfair and unconstitutional to enforce new guidelines to renters in NYC. It’s an invasion of our privacy.

    As a single mother, artist here in Manhattan; Airbnb has been a blessing. I’ve paid back rent, my bills and on slow months Airbnb has kept me worry free. As an economically disadvantaged New Yorker who is trying to retain to keep my NYC apt… Airbnb has really been helpful.

    Hotels have outrageous fees for those that can afford them and they are the ones who should have more taxation and share information publicly. I also believe that the tourism industry will be greatly affected by these new rules since most people come to visit for a week or two and not 30 days. Most I find to be young adults that would rather stay in someone’s home to save money while they get to your NYC.
    The price of hotels are astronomical and middle class and the average person will not be able to afford those high prices, especially young adults. This rule reflect a special interest only to benefit the Hospitality Industry. New York is not just for the rich; it’s for the hard earnest working individuals / artist like myself. We also deserve a chance to live a prosper yet humble life here and not watch the special interest of the hospitality groups take over.
    It’s a sacrifice we tenants are willing to do to help pay our bills and not only help us but serve those traveling in from all over the world on a budget. Airbnb does help our economy in all realms. I want to repeat, it’s unfortunate that these new guidelines are being enforced upon us. It’s unfair and unconstitutional!

    Comment added November 22, 2022 9:47pm
  • Patricia Duben

    Airbnb is a blessing for me and for New York City. It Keeps the city even more multicultural!
    Bringing tourists from around the world specifically young people.

    For me is a blessing, is part of my living it help so much to cover the cost of living .

    Is not fair, it’s unfortunate that these new guidelines are being enforced upon us. It’s unfair and unconstitutional, please I ask you to reconsider this rule.

    Comment added November 23, 2022 10:55am
  • Femi

    Shutting down all short term rentals in NYC is a huge, short sided mistake.
There is a genuine need for short terms stays that hotels can not provide. There is absolutely no reason for such harsh restrictions unless the City favors the hotel lobby groups. If it’s your property you should be able to do as you please. There’s no need for this at all.

    Comment added November 23, 2022 12:38pm
  • Joe

    This is just another way NYC Keeps there foot on the neck of middle class just trying to pay their bills. Once again in the same breathe taking millions of dollars of donations from lobbyist from the hotel industry. This law benefits no one but over priced hotels that are getting smaller and smaller and more expensive.

    Comment added November 23, 2022 12:47pm
  • Austin Allan

    I lost my job during the pandemic and renting out my home has been the only way I have been able to make money this year. All of our guests have been respectful, we have had zero complaints about anyone. This law creates an unnecessary hurdle for me to continue to be able to rent on Airbnb and I will likely lose my income if it goes into effect as planned.

    Comment added November 23, 2022 1:51pm
  • Yerddy M Lanfranco

    Dear Representatives, I hereby would love to provide my opinion in regards to this proposed law which is meant to limit the people in need of additional income to make a living in New York. This law is not helping the average New Yorker nor the poor, is meant to allow hotels to continue to make more and more money while the average New Yorker can’t afford basic services. It’s unfortunate that’s this proposed law is disguised as helping the poor and the people of New York when in fact is a trap for pushing us all further into poverty. I wish the councilman and councilwomen would think more about the people of New York than about the businesses sponsoring these types of proposals. I make a living renting my unit in New York and without it I would not afford to continue to be a New Yorker and might be forced to move elsewhere in the country. Airbnb is only helping New Yorkers thrive and make additional income and help not provided by the government or employers.

    Comment added November 23, 2022 2:47pm
  • Edith Larrea

    I am a single mother of two children, having to Airbnb my apartment in NYC is the only way that I can sustain myself in these difficult times that we are facing. Court system is delayed, I am not getting child support. I believe there are many of us who don’t want to do this but unfortunately forced to.
    Please allow us to continue feeding our families by not restricting us from this.
    Thank you

    Comment added November 23, 2022 2:51pm
  • Lionel

    Interesting to see how Airbnb has mobilized its vast army of largely astroturf clients to oppose rules that are geared towards fair housing. Airbnb is directly responsible for illegal hotels that negatively affect rental prices for homes and take out housing stock. Worse, this synthesized attack on hotels ignores the fact that hotel workers are almost all lower middle-class workers who were hugely negatively affected by Covid with their jobs lost due to the pandemic. About time the outrageous claims stirred by Airbnb are shown up for what they are. When you buy or rent a home it is meant to be a home NOT a hotel

    Comment added November 25, 2022 6:54am
  • Tom Cayler

    Interesting that A’r is flooding this comment line . . .
    When all LL18/22 does is require A’r and its “hosts” to comply with existing State and City Laws.
    At a 2015 City Council hearing, Chris Lehane, the then direct of global for A’r was asked by Jumaane Williams if A’r would comply w/ the State and City laws?
    He refused!
    https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/politics/2015/10/30/city-council-considers-penalties-for-airbnb

    LL18/22 does not change or amend the State Multiple Dwelling Law that requires “hosts” to be the primary resident and on-premise.
    It has not changed the rules RE: Rent Stabilization, nor the City’s Housing Maintenance Code.
    It does not change the zoning that governs one and two family houses.
    There is not a single residential lease in NYC that allows unlimited STRs in apartment buildings.
    Yet all these A’r “Hosts” claim they must be allowed to break the existing laws in order to remain in NYC.
    A’r has been asked by the City for years to comply w/ our laws.
    They’ve refused.
    In fact, LL18/22 will protect legal homesharing in NYC by registering legal hosts.
    It will also protect our tourist who will know who is a legal host, and who is not.
    But A’r and it’s “hosts” want to continue to operate illegally because it is far more profitable.
    Tom Cayler
    West Side Neighborhood Alliance
    Illegal Hotel Committee
    Been Fightin’ Illegal Hotels since ’04

    Comment attachment
    City-Council-Members-Clash-with-Airbnb-Officials-at-Hearing.pdf
    Comment added November 25, 2022 8:57am
  • Al

    Enough with the fake grandmother’s and single mother household down in their luck and they can’t go on living without being able to AirBnB. These are either fakes or truly stupid people.

    You are not affected by the rules in this city of you love on the penises that you are renting out. Rent shirt teen under 30 days and limit your rentals to 2 persona at a time. Hate to be that guy but wake up and smell the bullshit.

    AirBnB in my building I’ve lived in lawfully for 28 years in Hell’s Kitchen is being run like a hotel with 6 units actively booking multiple short term each week. Do the math. That’s a minimum of 12 different strangers ranging from rave college parties on the weekends to entire families and their pets moving in for one to two weeks.

    We are not safe in our building. Theft is rampant. Filth in our halls and our quality of life is a shit hole!

    It’s taken out landlord 2 years to go through the process of evicting these bad players that rent units for the specific purpose of AirBnB. And they live outside of New York.

    Educate yourself to the rules. Nothing is being taken away from you as long as you AirBnB legally.

    Talking to you Gramma and you single mother. You’re being fired by AirBnB.

    STOP THE ILLEGAL USE OF AIR BNB IN THIS CITY

    440 West 47th Street Apartment 1I and 4F and fighting eviction for the past two years.

    I’m sick of it. And the guests who come into this building are not met hospitabley. Tension is high and someone is going to get hurt and it will be on AirBnB, the hosts and the City of New York.

    Yes I’m pissed off!

    Comment added November 25, 2022 10:29am
  • Juan M

    I recently have become a victim of the of the so called “investigations” by this office. I live in MY own home with a few extra rooms which sometimes through the assistance of Airbnb make available to friends, friends of friends and why not occasional individuals in need of a place to stay. I LIVE in this house and I CO OWN with my mother and sister. We use the extra income to avoid foreclosure and as I lost my job in the prior to pandemic and during my fruitless pursuit to attain another position. THIS house does not violate the multiple dwelling law and yet inspectors coerced one of my guest with threats to gain unlawful entry into property, and upon entry proceeded to issue a volley of unfunded violations including the untruthful assertion that i don’t live on the property despite my room door, eventually upon their initial departure only to return they proceeded to this time knock only for me to answer personally and I still received this barrage. I will be fighting in court and I will win but now you have wasted my time, money and patience with the slander of having to argue this in court. This proposed legislation will affect many of us who like myself unemployed barely making ends meet to pay mortgage the city has turned it back on. LANDOWNERS fight for your rights the city does not care for us… they weren’t there during the pandemic and they are not there for us now.

    Comment added November 25, 2022 10:44pm
  • Nancy Sheran

    I agree with the requirement that short-term rentals should be registered. They should also be required to have certain standards of habitability. I am not against short-term rentals, when a room(s) are being rented out in someone’s apartment or house that they are living in most of the time. This is already in effect legally. I am opposed to warehousing vacant apartments, and renting apartments on airbnb that should be rented with yearly leases during our housing crisis in NYC.

    Comment added November 26, 2022 3:29pm
  • William Gomez

    Let Airbnb help middle class New Yorkers. It is the only way we can pay high mortgages due to the high property cost. Hight taxes due to the economic situation in the city, state and the country. By limiting the usage of your own property, the local government is limiting the minimal freedom our constitution gives us and it is going against the fundamentals of capitalism in the United States, bad policies that are only limiting great middle class new Yorkers trying to live up the challenges that this unsustainable inflation is causing and at the end this are the consequences of bad policies and bad administrations.

    Comment added November 26, 2022 9:35pm
  • Helen M

    Two things can be true at once. There are many people who only rent out a bedroom in the apartment they live to make end meets, making sure they do not disturb neighbors, and there are bad actors running de-facto party hotels with no oversight.

    Airbnbs that are disturbing their neighbors should be closed down, but to also close down the finanical struggling new yorkers renting a bedroom to stay in their homes seem like overreach. No one invites Strangers into their home and host them if they don’t need the money. You do lose privacy but the trade-off of paying your bils & rent on time is worth it. When I host, I am forced to constrain my activities as to not disturb my guest and am always on guard for anything that will bother my neighbors.

    I am a disabled women who rents her bedroom so she can stay in her home of 25 years. I vent my guests, and am always here to make sure my neighbors are not disturbed. My guests stay with me because they cannot afford hotels, and are usually women traveling alone. I provide advise on restaurants and local places to visit in neighborhoods outside of Midtown. I have sent peope to 125th street for soul food & shopping, to Coney Island for an afternoon at the beach and Arthur Avenue for a real Little Italy experience.

    If an Airbnb Host is causing a disturbance & are bad neighbors, then shut them down. But please let those that use Airbnb to fill a vital financial need and do our best to be good neighbors operate. We can pay local taxes via Airbnb. But reading the requirements, there is no way a normal apartment will meet the regulations the Hotel lobby is making the city enforce. This regulations by design will close 99% of the airbnbs, causing many hosts like myself into a financial crisis.

    What plan do you have for the hosts who will now not be able to pay their bills and will end up homeless, like myself?

    Comment added November 26, 2022 9:56pm
  • Kat L

    With inflation, the rising costs of apartments and cost of living being able to airbnb out my apartment is the only way I can stay in manhattan. This new law would mean I have to leave.

    Comment added November 27, 2022 5:01pm
  • Neil Nagar

    This is unfair to them homeowners in NYC. City of New York is creating a law that puts homeowners at jeopardy in the interest of protecting hotel owners

    Comment added November 27, 2022 5:31pm
  • Derek Todd Rosen

    This is unfair — do not change the law! We just want to survive.

    Comment added November 27, 2022 6:15pm
  • Jon

    My partner and I are working freelance artists. In a city that cannot keep rent at an affordable level and does not provide safety nets for artists or freelancers, our ability to Airbnb one room in our apartment has allowed us to live sn independent life.

    Changing these rules and creating bureaucratic red tape is going to harm those of us just trying to be responsible tenants who pay our rent on time. It will hurt tourists who want authentic New York City experiences and people who come to New York for short term work reasons.

    Please reconsider the effects a policy like this would have on the ability of regular New Yorkers to survive in this city

    Comment added November 28, 2022 6:17pm
  • Elvina

    I don’t have a Air BnB but I have used them in the past and support them. Especially here in the city as some need it financially.
    Besides, NYC hotels are widely being use to house migrants and homeless! Where else are tourists (who actually support the economy) going to stay?
    I say NO to this proposal!

    Comment added November 28, 2022 6:49pm
  • Ilan R

    I am a homeowner in NYC and rent out my spare rooms on Airbnb and other short term rental sites. These rooms are part of my home and would not be part of general rental stock in NY. If short term rentals were to become burdensome or illegal, the rooms would just become my guest room and home office again.

    The guests who stay in my home appreciate that they are staying somewhere with all the creature comforts of home. They like having kitchen access and other amenities not available in hotels. They enjoy being close to the friends and family they are visiting in NY, rather than being stuck in midtown or hells kitchen hotels. Our neighbors appreciate the extra business this brings to their stores, cafes and restaurants.

    Personally, I rely on the income from my property to help offset the high property taxes assessed here in NYC.

    Homeownership in NYC is difficult enough to make economically viable as it is. Please do not try to restrict how I use my home. As long as I am not burdening others or putting guests at risk, I should be able to use my home as I see fit.

    Comment added November 28, 2022 9:25pm
  • Joseph Desler Costa

    I am an artist and adjunct university professor, so needless to say my income from these activities alone makes affording life in NYC difficult if not impossible. Airbnb is a lifeline for my family and I. We are fortunate to own a single family home in Brooklyn and we rent a portion of it out on Airbnb. The supplemental income is what allows us to stay in the city and afford a modest life and pay bills for myself, wife and young child. I understand housing is unaffordable in the city, but banning and making it nearly impossible via red tape rules for single family home owners and lower family units is not the answer. Is the hotel lobby more important than the small family? I agree to regulate the large unit buildings but banning small homes is intrusive and infringes on my rights as a home owner and tax paying citizen. Please don’t approve these new rules!

    Comment added November 29, 2022 8:38am
  • E.L.

    Since Air B n B has come to NYC, my building has turned from a home to a hotel. Tenants run illegal Air B n B’s out of their units while they live elsewhere.
    And those of us that live here? Safety has been replaced by daily unease. Every time I go to the lobby, laundry, or overflowing garbage room, I am aware of the strangers in my home, letting other strangers in. The “host” does not need to make this a safe space.
    When colleges banned parties on campus, Air B n B “hosts” started renting their apartments to college kids expressly to hold the parties that had been banned for public health reasons. I have heard drunk revelers on our stoop yelling “Covid party!” at 2:00 am – and these drunk revelers are Air B n B “guests”.
    Our quality of life has disintegrated. I’ve had arguments with combative “guests” about smoking in the hallway, hollering and shrieking at 1:00 am, and refusing to wear face masks in the elevator during a pandemic. They treat our home like their hotel. Their disrespect is chronic. And this reality is the chronic and constant anxiety that we, who do live here, deal with every single day. I want my home back.

    Comment added November 29, 2022 11:06am
  • Sam H

    With our current financial climate worldwide, everyday people need all the help they can get. NYC is GROUND ZERO for entrepreneurship and inventiveness. Homeowners should have the freedom to do what they want with THEIR PROPERTY. Putting arbitrary rules for what you can and cannot do with your property does nothing but serve the Hotel industry. The hotel industry and their lobbyists have been doing everything they can to try and flip the narrative to ban an industry they see as disruptive.

    Not only does Airbnb bring in much needed income to homeowners in one of the country’s most expensive cities, it brings in tourism dollars to many of our vital and vibrant neighborhoods. This allows for our cultural hotspots to thrive i.e. Restaurants, Bars, Local Retailers, etc. Airbnb brings travelers and their disposable income to areas which they may never have visited otherwise. Most hotels are in expensive corporate areas of the city. Again, only serving corporate interests, not small neighborhood businesses and everyday people.

    If there was no market for this type of accommodation, it would die out. If people disliked it, they wouldn’t use it. Let the free market decide. We live in the greatest city in the most free country in the world. Let homeowners use their properties, which they have spent their hard earned money on, however they see fit. With an impending recession looming, everyday homeowners and local businesses NEED this tourism revenue. Let New Yorkers excel in what they are best at, inventiveness, resourcefulness and entrepreneurship.

    Comment added November 29, 2022 9:27pm
  • Jenine Hansel

    I agree that large properties need stricter guidelines for short term rentals – but lumping single family and 2 family homes into that group doesn’t make any sense. Renting out these rooms/units on AirBnB allows it for low/middle income individuals/homeowners to actually survive in this city. Majority of us are struggling if you’re not the Uber rich. It seems that city makes it harder and harder for the little guy while propping up billionaires and their corporations while we suffer.

    I say at least allow for single/2 family homes less strict guidelines perhaps were people can actually afford to eat and live.

    Comment added November 29, 2022 9:45pm
  • Asaf Y

    I have been paying my medical debt due to my autoimmune condition from renting my other unit in 2 family house. With this law, I am not able to afford to pay my bills and cost of living in this beautiful city.
    Short term rentals help people to visit NY who are families, students, low budget travelers, artists etc. When you bring this unfair law, these people who wants to visit NY, can’t make it. They contribute to our local economy, as well as middle class, like us. Staying in an apartment during their visit gives them an experience of living as a newyorker like they saw in Seinfeld, Friends, How I met your Mother etc. People are losing their jobs already and many of them will this year. Please reconsider this.

    Comment added November 30, 2022 2:51am
  • Anonymous

    Do these public comments do anything? Literally 99% of them are against the rules as they are proposed. Shouldn’t that indicate that these proposals are not what the people want? Can we affect any change via this hearing?
    My confusion is that doesn’t the NY state multiple dwelling act make it illegal to rent out a full apartment short term in a building with 3 units and above? What more needs to be covered? This covers all of Manhattan and most of Brooklyn. There aren’t even hotels in areas with 1-2 family homes.

    The specifics in the proposal don’t even make sense, how is it not ok to have locks on doors even in a shared space?

    These provisions seem targeted towards small hosts, like people in 1-2 family homes and even people trying to share a room in an apartment they live in.

    It would be easy to target the few large corporate abusers of hosting, while leaving people hosting one location or share alone. I know for a fact that locations in the outer boroughs bring tourists and business to the area. Also the Airbnb listing I know employs 2 local people part time to manage and clean the place. It’s a fruitful small business that helps the neighborhood economically in a space that would otherwise be empty.

    In short this law reeks of the hotel lobby’s outsized influence. There is already the multiple dwellings act that covers almost every major concern already. Why is this legislation necessary? There are way more unrented rent controlled apartments off the market than Airbnb units available. Let’s bring that dead stock back into the market and build more affordable housing and leave small landlords and people trying to share their apartments alone please.

    Comment added November 30, 2022 11:26pm
  • James

    I am writing to express my strong support. A registration system, prohibited building list, and verification are all crucial in maintaining quality of life in New York. This should be enacted quickly and in full.

    Comment added December 1, 2022 10:58am
  • Frank L.

    New York City just topped the list and became number 1 of the most expensive city in the world to live in. And this new regulation will put even more people in the streets and won’t really solve the shortage of rent stabilized or housing mark of NYC since rent prices are already skyrocketing. I know so many of my friends that had to deal with a 30% increase in their monthly rent thanks to greedy landlords. You will have on your conscience so many working families, middle class and low income people on your hands but hey you don’t care since you are serving the hotel industry and a Mayor Eric Adams that is already a landlord of 2-3 properties in Brooklyn. Thank you for always thinking and enacting laws that will mostly profit the wealthy and rich and saying that these laws will help the housing market and middle class and working families of NYC. What a shame, you won’t get our votes. Crime is increasing, everywhere, public transportation is going down, cost of living is going up thanks to inflation and you want to handicap and remove a source of revenue of many people. Instead you should go after operators that have many listings, greedy landlords and hotels and hospitality sector. Do you really think that people will still visit NYC with a hotel room averaging $250 to $350. We are helping tourists enjoy the city at a reasonable price point, we show them and provide recommendation about neighborhood shops and proximity shopping. We are helping so many people around us by rent out a room while still living on the property or apartment. Guest do love having access to a kitchen, cooking their own meals, shopping from supermarkets, enjoying restaurant and landmark places nearby.

    New York City is not only about visiting midtown which is dirty and expensive as well as wealthy neighborhoods. It’s about being close the the local people living and really experiencing the real New York so that maybe one day they will decide to move here.

    Comment added December 1, 2022 10:24pm
  • JML

    With regard to new section 21-09, it is unclear whether Mitchell-Lama co-ops and NYCHA buildings will automatically be added to the prohibited buildings list or whether each development needs to make a request. Residents of Mitchell-Lama co-ops and NYCHA buildings are not allowed to rent out their apartments so these apartments should be added to the prohibited buildings list automatically.

    Otherwise, I support this rule and think more needs to be done to prohibit illegal short-term rentals. Not only do short-term rentals hurt the normal apartment rental market, it also makes it unsafe for residents, with strangers coming and going in the building, who have no interest or regard for the building or its residents. Not to mention the beg bugs they may be bringing into the building.

    Comment added December 1, 2022 10:46pm
  • BL

    This legislation’s primary intention is to serve NYC’s hotel lobbyists. Anyone who is dense enough to believe that affordable housing is of any tangible concern to this administration should wake up to reality. This intentionally ambiguous, overly strict legislation solely helps hotels by squashing the healthy competition that STRs bring. It’s not a coincidence that Mayor Adams took major campaign contributions from hotel lobbyists. They are looking to cash-in on their investment, as do any other lobbies.

    There are bad actors in the STR space, as there are with any other industry. If the intention was to target them, then single-family and 2-family households wouldn’t be lumped into the same category as large apartment complexes and rent-regulated buildings. Many homeowners in NYC rely on the income from short-term rentals to offset the egregiously high property taxes that the city imposes. Putting con artists that illegally sublet apartments in the same category as homeowners that rent out their homes or a portion of their homes is disingenuous, at best.

    If this administration has any intention on actually coming to a reasonable middle-ground on this issue, they will leave homeowners out of this. The restrictions that they plan to impose make any sort of short-term rental a complete impossibility. It’s blatantly obvious that the intention is not to regulate the industry, but to demolish it entirely.

    This legislation needs to be scrapped, and replaced with a more logical and comprehensive one that actually allows proper hosts to continue to run their legitimate businesses, which in turn can pump millions of dollars of tax revenue into the city annually. They can focus on actually targeting the bad actors, while allowing properly run STRs to continue on. It would be a win-win situation. The only explanation on why they wouldn’t go that route is to appease their donors/lobbyists.

    Comment added December 1, 2022 11:27pm
  • SN

    This is a rule that penalizes middle class New Yorkers who are just trying to own a house and manage property maintenance in extreme weather and the increasing economic hardships which existed before the pandemic but continue to worsen as we emerge into a stage of high interest rates and inflation. While some rich landlords do take advantage of short term rentals, and some hosts do not provide hazard-free conditions for guests, the system of reviews that booking agents offer ensure a good degree of crowd-sourced self-regulation. The broad and blanket scope of this rule will make enforcement a major and expensive challenge and raise cases of right to privacy. Overall, this issue is one that will change my voting because it will adversely affect New Yorkers just seeking to get buy and give a huge break to the already booming hotel industry.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 10:29am
  • Jeff Johnson

    When I travel to NY, I strongly prefer Airbnbs to hotels. Whether staying with a family or renting an entire space, I appreciate having access to the kitchen, laundry and other comforts of staying in a home rather than a hotel. They let me travel and live like a local.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 12:15pm
  • Lola

    New York City already has all the information of Airbnb hosts when it required that all listings information be handed over. So this registration system serves no purpose other than to discourage people from hosting.

    Hosting is a way for New Yorkers to earn an income. Going forth with these new rules will prevent many people who are hosting to no longer host and not earn income.

    As for blaming the low vacancy rate on Airbnb hosting this is simply preposterous, and clearly the city is trying to get out of solving a housing issue by trying to use Airbnb Host thing as a scapegoat.

    These new rules should not go through.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 12:24pm
  • Carter Johnson

    Several of my retired family members rely on short term rentals as their main source of income. It was during lockdown that this income source became necessary as they are all at risk for the coronavirus. Without this source of income, I fear their lives will be greatly uprooted. Short-term income is not only a source of income for my family, but also a way for them to stay safe.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 1:39pm
  • Timur Kocak

    The proposed changes to Title 43 will have the effect of rendering the vast majority Airbnb short-term rentals illegal. This will eliminate income on which New York City Airbnb hosts depend as well as diminish the options of visitors to our city. Families with children coming to NYC who are unable to afford a hotel suite or multiple rooms will be discouraged from visiting on cost alone, which will in turn hit businesses and vendors here, from Broadway theaters to restaurants to shops.

    There is no safety or competence concern that these rule changes address, as Airbnb takes care to have hosts vouch for conditions and amenities and the platform operates on reliable feedback from both hosts and guests. The only interest who might benefit are hotels. I have heard of low occupancy rates blamed on platforms like Airbnb, and frankly, I don’t believe it. Within a two-block radius of my home in the Hudson Square neighborhood in Manhattan, no fewer than three twelve-story and taller hotels have been built in the last decade. This leads me to believe that the motivation behind the proposed tightening of the rules on short-term rentals is not as it appears. Rather, I would suggest Airbnb hosts are to be punished for reckless over-development of new hotels and an unsupported increase in the number of available rooms.

    Likewise, the argument has been made that Airbnb serves to reduce the number of affordable apartments. Housing deficiency is a real problem in our city as well as in the country at large. Again, I will point to recent development of luxury apartment buildings in the past ten years in my direct vicinity. In the same two-block radius around me, four new high-rise luxury apartment buildings have gone up in that period. Of course, I have no way of ascertaining the occupancy rate of these buildings, but I can report that there are very few lights in windows.

    I beg the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement to give visitors to NYC options, by allowing Airbnb to continue as a valuable, and vital element of what is called the “hospitality industry” in our city. The well-funded hotel lobby will grouse, no doubt, but things change in New York City, as they have always done. Airbnb and other short-term rental platforms have done a lot of good for our city. Most notably: income for tax-paying New Yorkers of modest means and expanded accessibility for visitors. Please allow us to continue to help our city thrive!

    Comment added December 2, 2022 1:51pm
  • Anna

    As a home owner, I am speaking out against Local Law 18. This law, if passed, will cause great harm and financial hardships to many New Yorkers, like me who are dependent on the extra income to meet the rising costs of living. Home owners, should have the right to share their home and use it as the investment is meant to be. Income is not keeping up with the cost of living increases.

    Otherwise many people, like us, will no longer be able to afford to buy homes. It is the only way for the majority of people to afford home ownership, especially here in New York City. Home ownership is an investment that many Americans rely upon for finical security, and is one of the best ways to make sure you can afford to retire and not be reliant on public services. My husband and I have our life savings tied up in our home. We have lived here for over 25 years and are now in our fifties. If we are not permitted to utilize our home as a source of income we cannot afford to live in New York. Our salaries are not enough on their own. And we will not have paid off our home and will not have enough to retire. If we sell now we will loose the means to take care of our future.

    Local Law 18 won’t solve the housing crises, it will make it worse. This law only serves the rich hotel companies and the politicians who take their money. If adopted it will further exaggerate the housing crisis by making home ownership unattainable to most New Yorkers.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 1:57pm
  • Tiffany

    My story is along the same lines as all the others, but I won’t add too much here.
    I lost my job 4 years ago, am a single mother of two teens and while I freelance, I cannot make it without income I make via Airbnb short-term rentals. The kids would then go to their father and I would need to move to a studio. As it stands now, I move away during the times I do not have my children just to make ends meet.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 2:45pm
  • Anon

    Airbnb listings are contributing to the housing crisis in NYC. By allowing AirBnB to continue to hoard these apartments, you are taking homes away from *real* New Yorkers. Renting out a room to help offset costs, fine. Renting out entire apartments, not really great or beneficial to those who call NYC home.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 2:45pm
  • Morris M. Podolsky

    I am writing to express my support for the swift enactment of a rule proposed by the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement (OSE) regarding the registration of short-term rentals.
    Until the enactment of Local Law 18 of 2022, it was too difficult for the City to determine whether short-term rentals were operating legally and safely. The result of this was that it was challenging to hold those persons who actually listed those short-term rentals accountable when they listed a unit illegally or without consent of the property owner.
    OSE’s proposed rule is critical to ensuring that the City has the ability to properly enforce short-term rentals to keep buildings and neighborhoods safe and healthy. Specifically, I strongly support the following aspects of the Local Law and proposed rule:
    The creation of a registration system to monitor short-term rentals in buildings. This is a smart policy decision that makes it easy to know who the responsible ‘host’ is for any short-term rental, and where illegal activity is occurring.
    The development of a prohibited buildings list for building owners to make clear to the City and listing platforms that short-term listings are prohibited. This will ensure that owners and tenants do not have to struggle against short-term visitors who, in some instances, have negatively impacted the quality of life of the long-term residents due to unwanted traffic, noise, and building security concerns.
    A requirement that short-term listing services verify that listings on their site are not located in a prohibited building. Listing services like Airbnb and VRBO must ensure that they offer safe and legal products for consumers.
    Thank you for considering these views.
    Morris M. Podolsky
    465 West End Avenue Apt. 4A
    New York, NY 10024

    Comment added December 2, 2022 2:46pm
  • Lorraine

    I am very much in favor of this proposed law. As a member of my Coop Board, I have a responsibility for the safety my building’s residents. Not allowing short-term rentals ensures that strangers will not be coming and going at frequent intervals, distressing residents who see unknown people entering the premises. Security is a huge issue in New York City, and this proposed law will help ensure people’s safety.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:04pm
  • Gayla Merrick

    I am 78 year old owner of a two family house in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. I rent out one apartment on Airbnb which allows me to pay my mortgage and make necessary repairs. I am an Airbnb Superhost and my listing has a very high level of guest satisfaction.

    My guests are young people and families from around the world. They need the amenities I provide such as a full kitchen and cannot afford a Manhattan hotel. If they could not rent an AirBnB apartment they would not visit
    NYC.

    These guests spend a lot of money in the neighborhood at stores/restaurants and have helped the area recuperate quickly from the effects of Covid. In addition, they go to Manhattan tourist spots and museums and attend Broadway shows. When my guests leave they have a lifelong affection for NYC.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:12pm
  • Lilly

    It’s about time something is done about Airbnb. I’ve been living on the Lower East Side of Manhattan for five years, and I would like to stay here for a good while longer than that. But Airbnb is making that look more and more impossible. It’s taking apartments off the market and driving up rent in New York. Last time my lease was about to expire and I looked into other options, rent was the highest it’s ever been in the city. Most one bedrooms were something like $3,000 a month. Who can afford that? Meanwhile, there’s like… a hundred Airbnbs in my neighborhood? It’s craziness.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:24pm
  • MikeJ

    I’m grateful to the city for working on legislation to regulate short-term rentals, which have been a huge issue for New Yorkers for a long time. I read a report from the Comptroller’s office from 2018 that said nearly 10% of the rental rate increases in recent years were due to Airbnbs, and I’d bet it’s even worse 4 years later, after covid. That’s unacceptable. Putting strong rules in place to regulate Airbnbs is an easy way to protect native New Yorkers, and work towards making the city more financially accessible. And anyway, I don’t want to live in a neighborhood full of weekend rental units that either sit empty and weigh down local businesses, or else are occupied by tourists always on the way in or out.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:28pm
  • Alexander Michel

    Airbnbs should have to register and follow the rules, so the citizens and the City are aware of what’s going on in these Airbnbs. I’ve lived in Queens all my life. I feel safe there, I know my neighbors, it’s a family oriented community, and I’m concerned about Airbnbs bringing people we don’t know into the neighborhood, people who may not respect us longtime residents, people who are doing God knows what in totally unregulated rentals. My street has changed and I know why. It’s a safety issue for me and my family and all of our neighbors. Please regulate Airbnb.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:30pm
  • Amada Maria

    I used to live at 2901 Grand Concourse. I was happy there and settled in my apartment, and then my landlord started renting out units as Airbnbs. The guests were having loud parties and all these strangers were coming in and out of my building at night. I couldn’t sleep because of the noise, and it was so hard to get up and go to work in the mornings, I was so exhausted. And some of the Airbnb guests broke the door to my building, which left me and all the permanent residents in a really unsafe situation. I had to move. Even though I was perfectly happy there before the Airbnbs started. The move was expensive and disrupted my life, and could have been avoided if this law was being strictly enforced at the time. IT’S TIME TO PUT REGULATIONS ON AIRBNB! Longtime residents of New York are suffering. 30 years in the Bronx and I’ve seen it happen with my own eyes!

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:32pm
  • Grace Tidwell

    When short-term rentals go unchecked by the city, they drive rent prices up and exacerbate houselessness. As a young New Yorker, it’s very concerning to me to see the extent to which Airbnb, Vrbo, Homeshare, etc are being freely allowed eat away at housing supply and cause rent to skyrocket. Without regulation, the damage these platforms do to our city will snowball. Restricting the ability of real estate sharks to take advantage of homesharing sites is a good first step in the right direction.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:49pm
  • Sarah Fox

    We need AirB&B registration NOW! It’s ridiculous to me to think that the city doesnt currently have a registry of short term rentals in place! How can any restrictions be effectively made without a registry? AirB&Bs are playing a big part in our affordable housing crisis and need to be reasonably regulated.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:57pm
  • Angelo

    I’m a student at John Jay, and I have friends who are trying to move into their first apartments, but there’s so few places on the market and they’re all so expensive. And then you look on AirBnb, and there’s hundreds and hundreds of rentals in every part of New York. How does that make any sense? I grew up in New York, my life is here, and when I move into my own place, I want it to be here. But it’s starting to look like that might not be possible for me, unless some regulations are put on Airbnb and all these apartments get taken out of the hands of wealthy landlords and corporations and put back on the market for New Yorkers like me to live in.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 4:58pm
  • Clara G

    I’ve lived in the Lower East Side my whole life. My building is small and quiet, and I’ve always known my neighbors. But not too long ago, I believe at least one unit in my building was converted into an AirBNB. All of a sudden I began seeing strangers constantly coming and going with their suitcases. The building that I call home became a rotating door of unfamiliar faces, each one making noise, partying, and disrupting a quiet, family environment. Not to mention, it made many people in my building feel less safe to know that any given day a new group of strangers could have access to the building.

    I’m concerned what homesharing platforms like AirBNB are doing to buildings and communities like mine all across the city. I’m not opposed to people who want to use these platforms in good faith to make ends meet, but I believe we desperately need this kind of regulation to ensure that peaceful communities aren’t upended by landlords trying to make a quick buck by turning family units into party pads for tourists.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 5:01pm
  • Robert Ng

    There’s a homeless crisis in NYC right now!

    It’s causing many other problems like crime to rise. What we need to do is make sure housing is affordable for NEW YORKERS first.

    With Airbnb you lose housing a lot of the time to people who just want to make money. Then what? It’s harder for people to get homes and that makes all of our issues worse. I have neighbors with kids that I want to grow up and have HOUSES one day, not AIRBNBs.

    We need these rules now for this issue or else everything can get a lot worse.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 5:05pm
  • Susan

    I live in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, and I’m scared of what Air BNB is doing to New York, and neighborhoods like mine. I know that people are buying up whole buildings and turning them into Air BNBS. It’s already happening in a lot of places in the city, and I can’t imagine it happening in my neighborhood: not knowing my neighbors, having strangers come in and out all the time, disturbing the peace. I don’t want a hotel operating where houses are supposed to be. And then having the profits from those rentals go to someone outside of the community, who I’ll never meet. It’s scary to think about. The city needs strong regulations against Air BNB, or I worry that we won’t be able to recognize our city in ten or twenty years.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 5:10pm
  • Altagracia Marizan

    I’d like to share my story. I’ve lived in New York for 25 years, and in Middle Village for 5 years. I live with my husband, our two young kids, and my mother-in-law who is 97. When we all moved to Middle Village, we did so because it was a peaceful neighborhood for a happy family. But now, 3 floors of my building are rented out on Airbnb and it’s been a nightmare.

    There is almost constant noise that prevents everybody from sleeping. There will be banging around or booming music until 3am and I don’t feel comfortable knocking on the door to ask them to stop, because I have no idea who these people are or what they’re doing in there. It feels very unsafe. Having disrespectful strangers coming in and out of where my family rests at night. Sometimes, people from these Airbnbs will smoke in the hallways or in a way where my unit smells like smoke and it’s disrespectful and disgusting.

    I cannot express enough how much these Airbnb listings have impacted my life and my family’s lives for the worse. And I am certain that these Airbnbs are listed illegally, which is why I strongly want regulations to pass that would enable the city to remove illegal listings. Illegal Airbnb units can cause serious harm to families, and it’s time for the city to act to reduce that harm. Thank you.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 5:47pm
  • Jhovana

    Pass this ruling and what is next? You have to register every roommate you have , or every person that stays the night?

    Comment added December 2, 2022 6:00pm
  • Maurizio Citrolo

    I would like to thank the Mayor’s office for their work on this legislation, which I believe responds fairly to the serious issue of illegal short-term rentals in our city. A registration system for these rental units is a necessity, so the city will be able to better understand the issue at hand. To me, it seems as though this law will have the effect of accommodating short-term rentals listed in good faith by individuals, while stopping people from abusing the housing market through rental platforms like Airbnb. I stand in support of these restrictions, as I believe they will protect our city’s homes and affordable housing.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 6:14pm
  • Onilda Mendez

    I’m happy about this law and I think it should be passed. Airbnb has no right to buy up properties in Melrose, and turn them into places to stay and not places to live. There are hotels for tourists to come and enjoy New York. But the apartments in my building, the apartments on my block, are for people to live in. I’m happy I got to grow up and build my life in this place, and I want that for the children coming up now. But if a bunch of airbnb started up in my building, my rent, everyone’s rent is gonna go up. I might get pushed out of this place I’ve lived all my life.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 6:17pm
  • Alejandro Dipp Paz

    I agree some listing need to be checked and some need to go. I also think some prices need to be regulated and that’s starting with the rents! It’s extremely frustrating to read so many people hating on responsable super hosts. We make sure people have a good experience and go out spending money on businesses all around the city.These rules should only be applied to people that don’t respect the building, neighbors. I don’t understand why I should have someone controlling who’s staying or not at my place, mainly if I am there as well. These rulings are only great for monopolies. Hotels, building owners, the very top. I don’t understand what’s so wrong about saving some money and not having to work extra jobs to have a nice life. We also pay fees, taxes and contribute to the area and tourism! Many people can’t afford the hotels and otherwise wouldn’t visit at all. Everything is more expensive and having this extra help is a very serious matter for so many. Why would you take that from responsible hosts? We help in so many ways.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 7:08pm
  • juliette campbell

    airbnb has enabled me to stay in my home during very challenging financial times, by sharing it with visitors who also support the new york city economy. almost every time guests stay with me, they tell me that they would not be able to afford to come to new york city if they had to pay the cost of a hotel. i have guests who are tourists, but also guests who are coming to visit their first grandchild, coming to a funeral, visiting their grown children, or coming to work remotely for a couple of weeks. i truly do not understand why new york city would want to penalize new yorkers who are making the city accessible and affordable to visitors, and sharing our home as we see fit.

    airbnb is a home sharing platform, and i believe that it’s our right to share our home if we choose to. so many new yorkers have lost their jobs, and many of us are not making enough since covid hit us so hard. my business has not come back to where it was before covid, and i am simply trying to make ends meet. in my opinion the city is overreaching it’s power here, and it seems to be about money and control.

    most people who do airbnb in their homes need to do it in order to survive. i don’t know how i could continue to live in nyc without being able to share my home on airbnb. making ends meet in a city bent on luxury with more and more restrictions and regulations is challenging. i think there is a misconception that rents are higher because of airbnb, when it’s the luxury rentals and greed of developers causing prices to soar without an end in sight. if there are people who are renting out apartments they are not living in, and causing distress to other tenants, then they are completely abusing what airbnb is about. they should be fined, not those of us actually sharing our homes.

    the city should consider stabilizing more, if not all apartments, instead of letting the rental market climb unregulated. the city should support new yorkers instead of supporting the hotel lobby and luxury apartment developers. we who share their homes on airbnb cannot afford fines and more fees, we are already paying hefty taxes to the city. i hope the city will put new yorkers who need to share their homes before the desires of rich and complaints of the misinformed. thank you.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 7:35pm
  • Jason

    First of all, it is completely unconstitutional what this administration is trying to do! I don’t even know how a law like this can be passed. especially with all the hacking that is going on in all the big corporations, I feel super unsafe with my information being with an administration that really doesn’t even care about us, the people. We all know this is to help the hotel lobbies. That’s in plain sight and everyone can see that.

    Secondly, I spent my whole life saving money to be able to afford the home and with that came all the expenses to keep the home. The money that I make no longer can keep up with the increasing prices in my taxes, groceries, and everything else.

    I am so against this law that is looking to be passed! I can’t believe me or Adams would side with the major corporations then with the New Yorkers that actually trusted him and voted for him. Shame on you!

    Comment added December 2, 2022 8:35pm
  • Lica

    This is horrible law. It will affect small business like mine. I read NY City has about 37 thousand short term rentals – it brings a huge amount of income to the City – and if these laws are implemented people still will need to rent their rooms in order to survive because it is hard to get other forms for supplemental income in order to afford to pay mortgage and other living expenses. And it will not solve the housing affordability either. The city should maybe charge a small percentage fee – Mexico City charges 3 per cent of every booking and this fee should be used towards building more affordable housing. I will not be able to afford my bills without being able to rent through Airbnb and renting directly would be a lot more dangerous situation for me and the society in general. Why not copy the model from Mexico City – it is a win/win situation for everyone.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 8:53pm
  • Yuan

    Airbnb has given me a sense of purpose in my retirement – hosting visitors from other parts of the country and around the world keeps me connected with the broader society. Airbnb has enabled me to pay my housing and basic grocery expenses, which gives me a sense of empowerment that I can rely on myself financially no matter what age I am in and I can still contribute to the state and city tax even though I’m growing old. I LOVE New York and Airbnb gives me the opportunity to keep staying in the greatest city of the entire world!! Making it harder for Airbnb host does not help working class hosts like me who rely on the business Airbnb to cover basic living expenses. This is not the New York City I know!

    Comment added December 2, 2022 9:43pm
  • Amy

    I completely agree with Denise! This rule serves the rich. I’ve been an Airbnb host since 2017 and it has helped me keeping up with the high costs associated with living in New York. My family would not be able to stay in New York if it weren’t for Airbnb. The real issue here is how we keep the building owners from ridiculously increasing their rents every year – they are the rich and they are the ones who singlehandedly make New York unaffordable – NOT Airbnb hosting by ordinary, hard-working New Yorkers. In fact, Airbnb enables more budget tourists to visit the city and contribute to the revenue of NYC. This rule does not make sense for everyday people and simply a result of hoteliers lobbying tactics.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 9:49pm
  • Azy

    I am on disability and renting part of my home pays my mortgage and allows me to stay in my home.

    Comment added December 2, 2022 10:36pm
  • Faisal Adenuga

    This policy is nothing but an attempt of Eric Adams to grovel to the beck and call of the HTC. I am a college student who host on Airbnb to help my disabled mother and pay for my tuition. With this new law it looks like I will be forced to drop out and lose out on my education to attend to my mother and the home. I hope the Adams administration burns in hell knowing they only serve rich and not the people who truly keep this city alive.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 2:28am
  • samantha lowe

    It has to be better for the tourist economy to have Airbnb as an option in NYC. Most people can’t afford to stay in a hotel for a week. I feel this will restrict the growth of the local economy and keep many tourist away.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 7:41am
  • Carol Roseth

    Short term rentals provide a safe place for visiting young guest from other countries and states. As well as providing the hosts with learning about other cultures, meeting people they would never have the opportunity to meet and help with their travels.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 9:58am
  • Philip Nethersdorf

    This rule is a disgrace. I should be allowed to responsibly rent my home. I am not a landlord with 100 units running a hotel. I should not have to submit all this paperwork as if I am in a police state to be able to run my business–my airbnb. We know what this is all about: protecting big money hotels and squashing little people like myself.
    Oh, and this proposed law is RACIST: many low income people and newly arrived individuals to NYC cannot get leases and depend on airbnb for short term rentals.
    My advice to the city is to regulate this another way not in a one blank solution for every host and focus on people getting murdered, knifed and raped on the subway literally everyday.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 10:47am
  • Hum Hug

    This is horrible and unfair law.
    There is a nice model arrange in Mexico City to be inspired.
    Thanks to airbnb Revenue from real estate is now finally for everyone and not only for the rich. If I am in vacation or need to rent my place for some days to pay some of the high rent we are force to pay in NY, it should be an opportunity not a restriction. The hotel are super expensive for this reason in NY and it is becoming prohibitive already, can’t imagine of this law pass

    Comment added December 3, 2022 10:55am
  • AIB

    I am opposed to these new regulations. I don’t understand why NYC is attacking homeowners in a city where homeownership is the lowest in the country. Airbnb has, for many years, been a viable option for homeowners to be able to afford the continuous annual rising costs of utilities, maintenance, repairs, mortgage fees and property taxes. The contributions of using Airbnb has also been directly beneficial to the NYC tourism industry. Have any city officials run the numbers? NYC is winning with Airbnb. Wouldn’t it be best for NYC to support homeowners’ efforts to do short term rentals, then to make it more difficult for us? Make it make sense.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 12:19pm
  • frank rodriguez

    I am a husband and father of 3 NYC born boys. I have been using the Airbnb app to supplement my income as a TLC driver. It helps pay our morgage and bills,It would be completely catastrophic in these times of economic uncertainty following the pandemic to loose my main source of income thanks to this unjust rules that are in the works, unfortunately if this rule takes effect, I will be forced to seek help from the city in order to be able to feed my family and keep our home. please put a pause on these new rules and sit with the families that are hosting guests in their homes and hopefully come to an agreement that would allow us to continue operating without causing any harm to the many families that will be impacted by this change. thanks and I wish and pray that there could be better terms soon.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 1:02pm
  • Nathan Rotman

    Please find attached a comment submitted on behalf of Airbnb, Inc., in response to the Office of Special Enforcement’s proposed rules relating to short-term rentals, set for public hearing on December 5, 2022.

    Comment attachment
    2022.12.03-Airbnb-Comment-on-Proposed-Rules.pdf
    Comment added December 3, 2022 3:10pm
  • Tara H

    I live in a medium sized building for over 20 years where we know most of our neighbors or at least recognize them. Short term rentals are not allowed. That said – sometimes we see strangers coming in with suitcases. I don’t know anyone in my building who is in favor of short term rentals although obviously some people are doing it – against our building rules which we all know and agree to when we move in.

    I think this rule is important to pass. Other buildings are free to allow short term rentals. This rule seems to only prevent short term rentals happening in buildings where it is already not allowed. This is not preventing other buildings from doing what they want. This is helping enforce rules that already exist

    Comment added December 3, 2022 4:32pm
  • Tony Tang

    This is unfair law

    Comment added December 3, 2022 4:43pm
  • A

    I think that proposed law is unreasonable and hurts low-middle class homeowners. I have 3 family members that are disabled in my household and I live paycheck to paycheck as a minimum wage worker. I have a two family home, where I live in one unit & airbnb my other unit. It has help my family be able to pay mortgage, taxes, and survive with rising inflation. We barely get by month to month between basic needs (water, electric, gas). The law would just make the system worse. I understand that there is few bad actors but why should the good hosts & people following the rules suffer for it?

    I believed that 2-3 families homes SHOULD not be affected by this. Manhattan is a different story but outer boroughs (like Brooklyn, Staten Island, Queens, & Bronx) should not have to deal with this.

    The law should only apply to Manhattan and 4+ homes.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 8:09pm
  • Emily Soler

    I’ve seen New York go through a lot of changes during my time here, and this most recent period has been especially distressing. I’m seeing native New Yorkers get pushed out of their homes and neighborhoods, in every borough. A big part of that is Airbnb, which makes it possible for wealthy people to take homes off the market and turn them into illegal hotels. These illegal hotels don’t create good jobs, their profits don’t get infused back into the neighborhood. They’re an exploitation of our homes, our buildings, our blocks, and it’s past time for that to stop. If the city puts serious regulations on Airbnb, then thousands and thousands of homes will return to the market. Please put these regulations in place to revitalize our city.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 8:15pm
  • Braulio Bello

    I’ve been in the Bronx for six years. I was able to find an affordable place to live and build a home here, and I want to see other people able to do that too. But if so many apartments are being taken off the market to become airbnbs like they are now, and rents go up, apartments are harder to find, then people aren’t going to be able to find a place like I did. People need homes. Regulate Airbnb and bring these homes back to the market!

    Comment added December 3, 2022 8:16pm
  • Wun Chow

    I am deeply concerned about the cost of living in New York City right now. I own a home in Elmhurst, where I have lived for fifteen years. I am not sure that I would be able to afford my current home today in large part because of AirBNB. Homes in my area that should be owned by families are continuously being bought up for the purpose of being used as short-term AirBNB rentals, and it’s creating a housing market that is not viable for the long-term. I have friends who are starting their own families and are in the market to buy their first homes but can’t afford anything in their current neighborhood. I’m concerned my children will not be able to afford a house when they are older due to the depletion of the housing stock.

    The more that AirBNB goes unchecked and people are allowed to buy up property in order to rent them out as AirBNBs, the more that I worry that young New Yorkers will not be able to have a stable living situation in the future like I do now. I’d like to thank the city for taking action against rampant abuse of the AirBNB platform. Rules like this are very important for the future of our city, thank you.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 8:17pm
  • Ciaran Dillon-Davidson

    If you’re hoping to sign a lease for an apartment in my neighborhood, you’re basically out of luck unless you want to get in a bidding war. I saw in the Financial Times just a few months ago that this is the worst time in history to try to get an apartment in New York City. But if you’re looking to stay in an apartment in my neighborhood for just a night, and you have $300 dollars, you have plenty of options on Airbnb or Vrbo or whatever! It’s ridiculous.

    In the unregulated state that these short-term rental companies are currently enjoying, housing stock is depleted by a handful of wealthy landlords who have—in effect— become illegal hotel operators.

    I absolutely support the proposed local law that would regulate homesharing and ensure these platforms aren’t being taken advantage of by bad actors.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 8:18pm
  • Zhuo Hong Chen

    I’ve lived in Staten Island for 15 years. I’m terrified of what Airbnb can do to New York if there are not rules put in place. I’m not talking about renting out your basement or a room in your house. People have been doing that for as long as time, and it’s not a bad way to make extra money if you need it. I’m talking about moguls and rich people and landlords who choose to rent out apartments on websites like Airbnb instead of as longterm homes for people and families. It is obvious. Don’t buy up affordable housing and use it to turn huge profits for yourself. That is selfishness. New Yorkers need this housing, or we won’t be able to be New Yorkers anymore. I wonder what would Staten Island look like if grown up kids couldn’t afford to move into a house down the street from their family. What would it look like if the owners of our local restaurants get priced out of the neighborhood? It’s been happening all over New York for a long time, and it’s a tragedy, and right now we have a chance to stop it and protect our city, keep New Yorkers in New York, and keep this place a home for people. I’m asking for these rules get put in place. It is very important. Thank you.

    Comment added December 3, 2022 8:19pm
  • Catia R

    I have been doing airbnb for almost 3 years in my home and i have never had any problems with people staying with me, my hard working and from many others Airbnb hosts has helped bringing more money to NYC , since the tourists can have also a more affordable home , airbnb has helped millions of people making their dream come true visiting NYC, we as hosts pay taxes and work very hard to make sure our guests have the best time here, this way we can also can keep living in a very expensive City, please don’t make our lives harder now, a lot of people are moving out of NY because it is crazy expensive, and you should help us instead of trying to make us as enemies of this City, we generate jobs, generate more taxes for the City, and we work hard too, please respect us as a great resource for Tourists to visit the City, hotels are too expensive for a lot of people to get to know this City, please have a more positive outcome about it. We really appreciate your consideration and more support and not fines as we are doing something bad, not nice at all, we need to afford our homes to keep living here too! Best, Catia

    Comment added December 3, 2022 9:19pm
  • Charles Hall

    It is about time that the city crack down on illegal AirBnB listings. They drive up the cost of housing for residents and they compete unfairly with legitimate hotels. I don’t see why AirBnB doesn’t get charged with racketeering!

    Comment added December 4, 2022 12:22am
  • Dan Pinkel

    370 Riverside Tenants Corp.
    370 Riverside Drive
    New York, NY 10025

    RE: Support for OSE Proposed Rule to Enforce LL 18

    The Board of Directors of 370 Riverside Drive (a cooperative apartment corporation) is writing to express our support for the enactment of rules proposed by the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement (OSE) regarding the registration of short-term rentals.
    Our cooperative is the home of middle-class New Yorkers who value having a quiet and stable home environment. Our coop has a House Rule against short-term rentals of the apartments. OSE’s proposed rules would help us enforce ours.
    OSE’s proposed rules are critical to ensuring that the City can properly enforce short-term rental restrictions , keeping buildings and neighborhoods safe and healthy. We support the creation of a registration system.
    We especially favor the development of a list of “prohibited buildings” list so that building owners such as us can communicate to listing platforms that we prohibit short-term rentals. And we support the requirement that short-term rental listing services must verify that listings on their site are not located in a prohibited building.
    Thank you for considering our input.
    On behalf of the Board of Directors of 370 Riverside Tenants Corporation,

    Dan Pinkel
    President, Board of Directors

    Comment attachment
    Draft-Letter-LL18.dan_.final-221204.docx
    Comment added December 4, 2022 10:43am
  • Debbie

    On the surface, the goal in requiring registration of short-term rentals seems to be filled with good intentions — cracking down on illegal listings, addressing safety issues and increasing the number of affordable housing in the market. The intentions might have been good, but in reality the new requirements are extreme and harsh and have gone beyond the necessary. Instead, the new rules will negatively impact a large number of residents, businesses, and the tourism industry. Does the City of New York not recognize the magnitude of financial loss that will occur and the detrimental impact the new law will have on the city, its residents, and businesses.

    A majority of the homeowners and tenants who host short-term renters are middle-class residents who do so to supplement their income in order to pay their mortgages, rent, and/or living expenses. Without the supplemental income most would be unable to afford the high cost of living in New York City. As we all know, New York City is one of the most expensive cities to live in. Take away a vital source of income for many and you create a system which will leave a large number of individuals, especially middle-class families, homeless and/or losing their homes. Is the City prepared to deal with hundreds of families that will lose their homes, or renters that will become homeless?

    Should safety be a factor, absolutely, but not by implementing draconian rules. The rules should make sense and be realistically achievable. The new law should not require a homeowner, or tenant, to spend an excessive amount of money in order to comply to a series of unattainable rules. Are other residents required to follow the same playbook or are hosts the only ones who will feel the weight of the extreme demands from the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement? Is safety a factor for hosts? Yes, for a majority of hosts definitely. There are always “bad apples”, but most hosts are concerned for the safety of their renters. Don’t forget, if a customer is not happy about any aspect of the services they received, the host can lose all or partial payment. In addition, their rankings can be negatively impacted, or even de-listed by the platform.

    It is surprising that safety is listed as one of the driving forces behind this new law. How does prohibiting hosts from having locks on doors, while allowing guests complete access to the premises promote safety, especially when the host is required to stay on-site? Hotels and dorm rooms have locks for safety reasons. A majority of people have locks in their homes, even if it is only for their bathroom doors. This is a ridiculous and dangerous rule. The rule places people’s lives in danger, will the City take responsibility for any related assaults or deaths due to the hosts’ inability to install locks in their premises? How anyone can seriously include such rules is astonishing.

    As for increasing the number of available affordable housing, forcing many of the hosts to cease hosting guests will not provide an influx of affordable housing. A majority of the short-term rentals are not designated as low income housing, and therefore, owners/renters would price their rentals at a high market level in order to recoup their lost income. As low income housing is prohibited from operating short-term rentals OSE should be able to identify any violators by cross-checking the information provided by Airbnb against the data accessible through New York City agencies. This approach may require a little more work on the part of OSE, but it will allow them to focus their resources on true violators.

    I am not a host, but I am disappointed in the rules relating to short-term rentals. This Administration has not taken the time and effort to truly understand the short-term rental industry and its impact on New York City residents and businesses. Even with an influx of complaints, has the Administration taken the opportunity to reach across the aisle to speak to hosts. Were there any communications with actual local hosts to hear their perspective? How influential has the hotel industry been in the process and implementation of such extreme guidelines? Most people would agree, rules are necessary, but the underhanded way this Administration passed these laws is disappointing. I hope they go back to the drawing board and reach out to the people being directly impacted by these laws for their input and perspective.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 11:18am
  • Carlo Franco

    Airbnb rentals are not in direct competition with hotels and provide a type of lodging, amenities, and experience that hotels simply can’t provide. Like many others have said, many of the hotels that were in the neighborhood were turned into homeless shelters by the city – so where else will short-term renters stay? I was born in New York, own my own home and my guests come from all over the world and spend money in the neighborhood that supports the local economy. The city will be losing that income, including the taxes we already pay to the city on these rentals. Blaming Airbnb for housing shortages or high rents is completely ridiculous and short-sighted, and takes focus away from real issues that the city is either unable or unwilling to address. This will just force even more people to leave the city.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 11:25am
  • Martha Dorn

    This is about safety and being aware of who is coming and going from one’s building. I am writing to express my support for the swift enactment of a rule proposed by the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement (OSE) regarding the registration of short-term rentals.

    OSE’s proposed rule is critical to ensuring that the City has the ability to properly enforce short-term rentals to keep buildings and neighborhoods safe and healthy.

    The creation of a registration system to monitor short-term rentals in buildings. This is a smart policy decision that makes it easy to know who the responsible ‘host’ is for any short-term rental, and where illegal activity is occurring.

    The development of a prohibited buildings list for building owners to make clear to the City and listing platforms that short-term listings are prohibited. This will ensure that owners and tenants do not have to struggle against short-term visitors who, in some instances, have negatively impacted the quality of life of the long-term residents due to unwanted traffic, noise, and building security concerns.

    A requirement that short-term listing services verify that listings on their site are not located in a prohibited building. Listing services like Airbnb and VRBO must ensure that they offer safe and legal products for consumers.

    Thank you.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 11:50am
  • A

    Airbnb has been a GODSEND for me once my roommate moved out. I occasionally host to help with my rent, which continues to climb almost every year, while sadly, my salary as a freelancer doesn’t. I don’t take advantage of the system, and I believe this new rule will affect others like me who are just trying to stay afloat in a costly city. A city, might I add, that doesn’t have a infrastructure or laws that prevent absorbent hikes in rent by landlords. Please do not take away many’s lifelines!

    Comment added December 4, 2022 12:22pm
  • Franny

    In a city as costly as New York, Airbnb is a gift. As an artist, my income is not always steady but Airbnb adds a stability to my life. This is an absolute life line for many people, please consider how this will affect people’s lives.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 5:10pm
  • Gya Watson

    Airbnb has provided an invaluable stream of income that allows me to survive monetarily in NYC. I am a working independent contractor and self employed artist and it has been increasingly difficult to not only live in NYC but to flourish.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 6:29pm
  • Jo

    Renting out my apartment when I’m out of town to help family has allowed me to continue living in this city. Currently it is helping me survive while I’m unemployed. Being laid off has been detrimental to my mental and financial well being. It’s unrealistic for anyone to survive on unemployment in this city and pay rent or mortgage. Airbnb is my lifeline right now. Taking this away hurts a lot of people who are merely trying to survive.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 6:55pm
  • Simon Hotchkin

    Airbnb should be regulated for people that are renting out homes in rent controlled buildings, unsafe environments, etc. Leave little people alone that need to make some extra money or who want to make money running an investment property. Either version are completely fine. Focus on much worse problems in NYC than someone renting a home responsibly. Allow the free market to operate.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 8:04pm
  • Dan

    As a home owner in Brooklyn, I am asking that you not enact the proposal law as it is currently written. It will very significantly and negatively change things for both visitors to NYC and residents or home owners in NYC. I have been a home owner in Brooklyn since 2007 and it will very negatively impact me and my family. A family situation has us mostly unable to stay in our home for the past 5 years and I have needed help keeping up with my mortgage and Airbnb has made it possible to keep my home. It has also served as a home away from home for hundreds of domestic and international tourists that have spent money shopping and eating in my neighborhood supporting local businesses as well as businesses in greater NYC in general as a result of them being able to book short-term entire-home stays in my house. These are individuals, couples and families who want an entire place to themselves with a full kitchen, etc. and the feel of a home as opposed to a hotel. I have come to prefer staying in homes via Airbnb when I travel to cities for both work or vacation and I believe short-term travelers who want or need an entire unit or home for their trip plus home owners who need the income from being able to offer short-term stays in their home or a unit in their multi-family home will all be negatively impacted by this law going into effect—it will completely wipe out all bookings in my home.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 8:33pm
  • Jennifer M

    We live in a 2-family home. We live in one apartment and rent to full-time tenants in the other. On Airbnb, we list a spare room in our basement that has a private entrance and bathroom. It is not a space that could house a full-time tenant -no kitchen. The guest can come and go as they please and there is no need for them to access the rest of our house, so we lock the door connecting the room to our private space. We have a young child and have no intention of allowing guests into our private space. Our Airbnb guests love our space and being able to stay in a neighborhood that has a wide variety of restaurants and culture. There are very limited hotel options in our neighborhood, so Airbnb helps bring tourists to support our local economy. The income we receive from Airbnb helps offset costs of taxes and rising energy costs so that we may be able to rent out our second apartment at a lower cost to our full-time tenants. If the goal of these proposed rules is to crack down on large scale Airbnb hosts, then limit the number of listings allowed by a single user.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 9:34pm
  • Maria

    I tried to fax this comment in, but your fax line doesn’t work.

    The proposed short term rental regulation (Local Law 18) that would increase limitations on short term rentals is outrageous, unfair, and yet another assistance to hotel owners. It directly and negatively impacts homeowners who rely on Airbnb to pay for mortgages and taxes, and will limit availability of short term rentals that visitors to NYC enjoy.

    I own and live in a class C building. The building has 4 units. I live in one and rent my guest rooms, because of the building class limitation I would not be allowed to continue to rent part of my home to visitors.

    I rely on short term rental income to pay New York City property taxes. Currently, I have 3 tenants. Two of those tenants have been in the building for 20+ years. I cannot raise their rent because they are stabilized. Hence, they have been paying almost the same rent value since they moved in. Market rate for these apartments would be 6X what we are able to charge them in monthly rent. The rent my current tenants pay does not even cover building maintenance. However, rent board regulations prevent me from even matching rent to inflation. As such with each month that goes by, my property loses even more money as costs increase due to hyperinflation. The extra short term rental income is critical to make up this difference and make homeownership in NYC financial viable.

    In the past, I have contacted the city to request assistance in regards to my exorbitant property tax bill, I was told very rudely by Dept of Finance staff to “sell the property” if I could not afford the taxes. Since then, I have been relying on renting a portion of my apartment in order to offset these taxes.

    In short, if the city wants to limit our possibility to rent part of our own homes on Airbnb, VRBO, etc. the city should (1) reduce our property taxes to a similar value as those paid in other cities and (2) eliminate rent stabilization so we can charge rent at market value for our other units. If the city cannot satisfy these requirements, the regulators should keep their hands off the only way we can afford the taxes and pay for their salaries.

    Removing my spare rooms from the short term rental market would not add to the housing stock in NYC. My guest rooms would just remain empty. The only impact it would have is to reduce my income.

    The existing regulations are already sufficiently onerous and already limit short term rentals in ways that no other city does. The additional registration processes and limitations on building types do not benefit NY visitors, residents or businesses. They only benefit the hotel lobby, while infringing on my rights and freedoms as a homeowner.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 9:39pm
  • Rachel Colbert

    Dear NYC Council: These proposed regulations don’t seem to take into account that there are two very different types of listings on Airbnb. One, like mine, is by authentic single-owner/single-listing hosts, making ends meet by hosting travelers in their space. The second – and yes, there are many of these – is by landlords or other professionals with one or more properties who are in the business of renting out spaces to travelers. A single set of regulations for both is unjust! And does not solve the problems the Council is trying to solve: the lack of affordable housing and the degradation of neighborhoods into transient/tourist hubs.

    Please, craft some regulations with finer distinctions. Requiring us to share blueprints of our homes is unsafe, telling us what locks we can or can’t have on interior doors is invasive, and short-term rentals under 30 days should be allowed for us folks with single listings. Why should individuals with single listings have to go by the same rules as a business? It would be so easy to make two sets of rules! One for single-property listings, one for multiples.

    People have been renting out space in their homes, informally, for hundreds of years. It’s never been an issue. Instituting these regulations will just drive the short-term rental market further underground. You’ll never stop it completely. You’ll just make it less safe, and less fair – while at the same time driving out the last of the lower-and middle-income residents from the city.

    I agree, NYC has become a haven for the rich. If this is your concern, focus more on incentives to build middle-income housing instead of billionaire high-rise investment properties. Focus on stamping out folks who are converting properties and listing them in bulk. But your current approach means lots of folks will have to leave the city for good (those who gave the city its character) and all that will be left are the mass-market rentals.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 9:42pm
  • IR

    Amada Maria, I am sorry to hear you had a bad experience at 2901 Grand Concourse. That being said, your premise is flawed. Regulations already exist that make your experience illegal and something that you could have reported/gotten help with. The new regulations being discussed here would just make it impossible for legitimate hosts to continue to run short term rentals and earn income from their homes.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 9:47pm
  • Gia Briscoe

    How can you tell the people of this City, that OWN their homes, as in our case over 100 years, that pay exorbitant amounts of taxes … Who they can have stay IN their home. Or what they can and cannot DO in their home? What you’re proposing is over-reaching and authoritarian!
    My wife and I, along with many others you’ll here from today, are all desperately trying to hold on financially, just to stay in the city we’ve grown up in. And with the cost of living climbing higher & higher, it’s getting close to be impossible.
    The income we receive from short term rentals, which is NOT tax free by the way, is the only way we can keep living in our homes. These rules and regulations the OSE are imposing are designed to garner even more city control and revenue, than what we already comply with. It’s unrealistic and unfair.

    People that seek out short term rentals are looking for a very different experience in NYC that are just not found at a Hotel stay. Many of the guests that visit, want to experience our city like natives. In some instances, stay close to family and friends, while still having all the comforts of home.
    While the city takes over hotel rooms for the homeless community, people are still paying premium prices for tiny hotel rooms that could NEVER be kept as clean or as safe as we provide our guests, within our own residences.
    The people that CHOOSE to stay with us, are well protected, in a safe and pristine environment.
    These proposals, ridiculously suggest, that even the spaces that are shared have no locks or restricted access to private areas… when normally, Family members have locks on their doors within their own homes.
    So how is it realistic to have a guest or a host feel safe without such precautions. Don’t hotel rooms have locks on their room doors? This is completely senseless and ridiculous.

    Speaking to the concern of short term rentals contributing to the shortage of housing, the portion of our home we use to host, is a space that we do not choose to rent long term. We use it to host family and friends, as well as being our private entertainment area for watching TV and entertaining, etc.
    Instead of infringing on tax paying home owners, you should be focusing your efforts on the individuals and LLC’s that abuse the short term rental laws. Not small, individual hosts like my wife and I that actually depend on the income.
    We do not need the City micro managing and infringing on our lives.

    Short term rentals existed before you decided to create this Department.
    Why not go directly after fees? After all, getting more money from us… Isn’t that your goal?
    It’s evident that you’re trying to overwhelm anybody that would still want to try to do this legitimately, with requirements on every angle, along with hosts and hosting platforms such as Air BnB.

    After quite a bit of reading, and professional speculation, I’ve determined that not only is the city looking to collect some portion of revenue from hosts through application and registration fees that will be ongoing, but they clearly want to over burden the hosts and the websites with over the top reporting requirements, and appear to have an underlying agenda against such short-term rentals.
    Everything about legitimate short term rentals benefits the city and surrounding small businesses. You need to reconsider this ridiculous proposal. This city can’t even handle NYCHA issues and DOB violations that put families at risk every day, yet you still want to come after us….everyday New Yorkers that are not only doing something good and worthwhile for our city….
    Shame on you.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 10:00pm
  • Muhammad Siddiqi

    End the charade of this bill. This has nothing to do with safety. This has nothing to do with ensuring affordable housing for NYers. This is all about the power of the Hotel Trade Council union and the real estate industry to illegally curtail competition . A large portion of the NYC council, the previous mayor, and the current mayor have accepted significant sums of money from the hotel union. Follow the money and all of this will make sense. Each letter of this bill was crafted by the lawyers from the Hotel Trade Council to create a web of red tape so complex that no Airbnb hosts will be able to comply. With this bill, NYC government agents will now have the power to bankrupt hardworking homeowners with arbitrary fines and violations. NYC better keep the migrant tents up on Randall’s Island. Thousands of present-day tenants and homeowners will be forced into foreclosure and homelessness. Please reconsider before it’s too late.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 10:38pm
  • Lynn

    I’m an owner of a two family unit and these new regulations would significantly restrict the ability for me to afford my mortgage and raise a family.

    Since the pandemic, I’ve become a free-lancer and whenever money is tight, I stay at a friends place and rent the apartment I live in for a weekend or two a month to afford my mortgage. These new regulations would completely prohibit this income source. If I want to take some time off and leave the city for a week, I can only afford to do that while renting out my apartment (that I own) for the duration I’m gone. These regulations would prohibit me from doing this.

    I purchased a two family home in order to have a family in the coming years. That is only viable if I have the ability for my mom or family to be able to visit me and stay for periods of time. I will no longer have the ability for them to do that because my extra apartment can never be utilized for a short-term rental. A parent cannot stay in my extra apartment if it is forced to sit vacant when they are not there.

    I own my house yet the city is dictating such unreasonable usage of my own home. Small, multifamily homes have nothing to do with the illegal hotels the city claims to be trying to stop, yet the rules are written to deeply impact them. In looking at all the comments, it’s clear these rules impact low and middle income families struggling to get by. I can only surmise that these rules are a disguise for regulations to help the hotel lobby as they do not help working families.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 10:45pm
  • Decidel

    The city looking for ways to allow more home owners to loose their homes by banning short term rentals. Large corporations such as banks and hotels have everything to win while regular citizens are always financially vulnerable . Short term rental had been very helpful with paying my mortgage and utilities. Now the richest asked the city to stop it; I will depend on a tenant who only pay if they want in New York. Regardless if I loose my home the hotel industry and the banking one are winning because one owns the other. The bank will repossess what we already paid for and we will be on the street. I hope the city commissioner and the Mayor would see things in a upward and downward way.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 11:08pm
  • Rob

    Please don’t take away my main source of income right now. This will have a profound effect on people like me who rely on this to stay afloat.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 11:10pm
  • Joy Williams

    I am an Airbnb host and have read the comments from Airbnb regarding Registration of Short-Term Rentals and agree with their comments. I am opposed to these rules and have included my comments on why I believe them to be problematic below. For the most part, my comments are not duplicative to those of Airbnb.

    Comment attachment
    OSE-Testimony-12.22.pdf
    Comment added December 4, 2022 11:31pm
  • Scott B

    This is a smart rule. Living in a condo where many of the rent controlled apartments have become short term rentals. New people coming in every week creates a dangerous and unsafe environment.

    Comment added December 4, 2022 11:44pm
  • Bob Ramírez

    Currently traveling to New York to stay at an apartment from Booking.com in Harlem. The affordable hotel options near my family were limited. If Airbnb and Booking.com go away ill have to stop visiting NY as frequently.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 12:59am
  • Daniel

    This rule does a few things. First it puts the hotels and their unions above regular citizens. No special interest should be above normal hard working caring community members in NYC. We are the backbone of the city.
    Second the proposed rules assume that all STR citizens are guilty which is the making of a terrible piece of legislation.
    The so-called housing emergency has been going on for over 60 years (each year the mayor declares a housing emergency) which has allowed the city to make all sorts of rules (think the rules that the city implemented in the early days of COVID). That is just simply NOT TRUE that an emergency can last so long without the express desire of those in power. Yet these rules are a direct result of the so-called emergency rules.
    Lastly SRT has been a lifeline for me and countless others in paying our ever-increasing city burden (taxes, gas law, lead law, etc.) and mortgages. Please have the will to stop this now.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 8:51am
  • Marie

    – What do propose for people who wants to host more that 2 guests, as a business, in their own dwelling? (Ex: family with kids)
    – What about subletting your own apartment for less then 30 days more than once per year? You can rent up to 14 days but as a family we travel 3/4 times a year for work (academics), we would like to rent a bite more to help deflect the cost of renting another place.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 9:09am
  • Joe alvarez

    To whom it may concern.

    The short term rental helped me keep my home during the pandemic, especially with long term tenants not paying rent using the pandemic as a reason.
    This new law the city wants to enact only benifits the upper class.

    Doing str helps the economy with people from out of town, shopping putting money back in economy, also with nurses staying short term during the pandemic, that helped the hospitals.
    If STR are run correctly it can be very great thing for the city.

    People need a place to stay especially now that hotels are filled with homeless and immigrants from other countries.
    It also helps with fire victims with loss of there properties for short term rentals.
    The city makes it difficult for homeowners when tenants don’t want to leave for non payment of rent, it drags out for years. Putting the home owner at risk of losing property.

    Please reconsider the law against short term rentals .

    Sincerely tax paying homeowner trying to hold on to their property.

    Thank you

    Comment added December 5, 2022 9:15am
  • IR

    Scott B, If your building has illegal units or security issues that is already covered under existing laws and you should report the issues. The new rules being discussed here will not provide you with any further protection, they will only force homeowners who currently can rent legally to stop doing so as they change which building classes can be used. I don’t tell you what to with your home, please don’t tell me what to do with mine.

    Furthermore, how does “new people” create a “dangerous and unsafe environment”? NYC is full of new people who move to our city every day. What makes you think a short term guest is any less safe than a long term rental?

    Comment added December 5, 2022 9:21am
  • Michelle Bonfils

    Why not regulate Bed and Breakfast businesses? It would bring money to the city, make hosts and tourists happy?

    Comment added December 5, 2022 9:43am
  • Timothy Chancy

    I’ve lived in Brooklyn all my life. I’m very concerned about Airbnb’s effect on our city. Short term-rentals and these illegal hotels are driving up rent prices and taking affordable housing off the market. If buildings and houses in my neighborhood get bought up and turned into illegal hotels, it won’t be my neighborhood. I won’t recognize it.

    Houses and apartment buildings are meant to be homes for people, homes that we can stay in as long as we want to that our kids can come back to when they grow up. We have to put a stop to Airbnb’s takeover of New York. Or New York won’t be New York anymore. Long time residents will get pushed out, local business won’t be able to afford their rent. It’s devastating to think about. And there’s already so many forces at work, changing our neighborhoods, making New York completely unaffordable for regular people.

    We have a way of stopping some of that right in front of us. Put strong regulations on Airbnb, now. Protect our neighborhoods, protect New York—as a place to live and build your life, not as a place to visit for a weekend.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 10:00am
  • IR

    Timothy, Why are you focused on Airbnb? These regulations apply to all short term rental channels. Read the 200+ comments here by homeowners who wish to just rent out rooms in their own home, so that they can afford to continue living in them. Airbnb isn’t the reason on can no longer afford homes in NYC. Home ownership is unaffordable due to absurdly high property taxes and city regulations that limit how we can use our own homes, such as this rule.

    How are short term room rentals impacting businesses? Do you think a small business is going to move into my guest room? On the contrary, NY has a glut of business space – and those businesses benefit from guests staying in our homes who then spend money with local shops, restaurants, etc.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 10:22am
  • Dave Summers

    The proposed rules need to differentiate individual homeowners from large scale commercial rental businesses with multiple listings, who have a much larger impact on NYC housing supply.

    Hosting short term rentals provides individual homeowners with supplemental income and brings visitors into communities with limited hotel options. We provide guests with recommendations for local restaurants and businesses. The supplemental income helps us pay our mortgage, allows us to spend money with local businesses and provides our housekeeping staff with additional income. We have also been able to make improvements to the building as a result of the supplemental income.

    Individual homeowners with a single listing in an owner-occupied building do not deserve to be lumped in with commercial landlords operating large scale rental business. The proposed restrictions on all short term rentals will have a disproportionate impact on individual homeowners compared to large scale commercial businesses who are much more egregious violators. Any restrictions on short term rentals must differentiate between these groups. Undermining the ability of individual homeowners to use our property to the best and highest use is an imbalanced infringement upon our rights.

    A government mandated cap would severely impact individual homeowners’ ability to meet financial obligations and continue to live in the city. It would also limit the income spent on local businesses and the revenue that guests bring in local communities. At a minimum, there must be a distinction between individual homeowners renting out a single unit in an owner-occupied building, versus large scale rental businesses renting out multiple units or entire buildings. These new measures are unfair and extremely unbalanced, and must differentiate between individual homeowners in owner-occupied listings and large scale rental enterprises.

    Thanks for your consideration.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 10:31am
  • John N

    One of the few rules NYC has put forth that I support. I chose to live in a multi family coop for a sense of community. Last thing I want it the traffic of short term rentals and safety issues that arise from them. We have seen what AirBnB has done to cities in Europe or even rural communities where their party investors price out normal people. I am for this proposed rule.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 10:56am
  • Richard Robbins

    I have seen first-hand the devastation that AirBnB has brought to buildings and neighborhoods — the owners of the building next door to me on the UWS tried to turn it into a hotel, significantly enlarge it to create more inventory (while claiming to DOB that the building was vacant), and forced out the long-term, rent-regulated tenants.

    There are significant negative impacts on neighbors when apartments in multiple dwelling buildings are illegally used as hotel rooms. Hence current NYC laws. However, AirBnB’s current anonymity makes it too easy for people to rent out their entire apartments on a nightly basis.

    It makes total sense that hosts should have to register with NYC so that current laws can be enforced by OSE.

    Many commenting here blame the new law on the “hotel lobby,” making it seem as though this was a talking point distributed by AirBnB’s government relations team, which appears to be extremely effective in rallying AirBnB hosts who clearly want to avoid any transparency. To be clear, I have no affiliation whatsoever with any hotel lobbyist, union, or other entity. I am writing solely as a concerned independent citizen who has seen the serious negative impacts caused by AirBnB.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 11:13am
  • Elysa Goldman

    I am writing to express my support for the swift enactment of a rule proposed by the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement (OSE) regarding the registration of short-term rentals.
    Until the enactment of Local Law 18 of 2022, it was too difficult for the City to determine whether short-term rentals were operating legally and safely. The result of this was that it was challenging to hold those persons who actually listed those short-term rentals accountable when they listed a unit illegally or without consent of the property owner.
    OSE’s proposed rule is critical to ensuring that the City has the ability to properly enforce short-term rentals to keep buildings and neighborhoods safe and healthy. Specifically, I strongly support the following aspects of the Local Law and proposed rule:
    The creation of a registration system to monitor short-term rentals in buildings. This is a smart policy decision that makes it easy to know who the responsible ‘host’ is for any short-term rental, and where illegal activity is occurring.
    The development of a prohibited buildings list for building owners to make clear to the City and listing platforms that short-term listings are prohibited. This will ensure that owners and tenants do not have to struggle against short-term visitors who, in some instances, have negatively impacted the quality of life of the long-term residents due to unwanted traffic, noise, and building security concerns.
    A requirement that short-term listing services verify that listings on their site are not located in a prohibited building. Listing services like Airbnb and VRBO must ensure that they offer safe and legal products for consumers.
    Thank you for considering these views.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 11:43am
  • Anderson Alleyne

    Please don’t make it impossible for small hard working home owners to rent out a portion of their home to supplement their income at times during the year.
    The rule requiring unrestricted access is unreasonable and is a safety risk for the host. This rule will make it extremely difficult if not impossible for small home owners to rent a portion of their home.

    I have no problem with registration, go after the bad actors who are illegally renting apartment buildings.

    I live in my home and depend on the flexibility of being able to rent out a portion of my home at certain times of the year. Please don’t make it impossible for me to do that.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 11:49am
  • Todd Griffin

    My wife and I bought our townhouse in Brooklyn in 2019. We live in the upper unit and Airbnb the garden-level apartment. We need the additional income to pay our mortgage and taxes.

    Could we rent out the garden-level apartment? Yes. However, we don’t want to rent it out. Shouldn’t that be our right as the owners of this building that we worked hard to buy?

    Frankly speaking, I was laid off in July. The money we make on Airbnb is needed. Renting it annually doesn’t help us financially in the way we need. We need to be able to rent out the apartment in our building on a short-term basis. In doing so, we also maintain our investment. The apartment gets maintained and cleaned after every guest.

    The city has benefitted from short-term rentals such as ours. We’re in a neighborhood where there aren’t other hotels. People are visiting their families that live nearby, they’re coming from other countries and spending money in a neighborhood where they may not otherwise even go to, getting a great experience in many cases and choosing to move to NYC.

    We’ve often hosted local families needing a place to stay while having work done on their own homes. This actually happened to my wife and I while we were buying our home. We needed short-term accommodation… a full apartment. Not for 30 days or a year but for an undetermined number of days or weeks.

    These new regulations will certainly hurt our family. But they’ll also hurt the city by taking away what’s clearly a need in the market – a full apartment available on a short-term basis. It’s a huge need out there.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 12:45pm
  • Joyce R

    I am an Airbnb host in Brooklyn and offer part of my home as a short-term rental. I am a single mother and a New York City public school teacher. Being an Airbnb hosts helps me pay my sizable rent and continue to afford to live in an increasingly unaffordable City on my middle-class salary. Without Airbnb I would likely have to move—and my landlord would then rent the apartment to someone who earns more money than I do.

    My Airbnb rental also offers a service to the community—for instance, the visitors I host are often neighbors’ family members. For example, often grandparents want to come from other parts of the country (or the world) to spend time with a new grandchild who lives in my neighborhood. Hotels are inconvenient—they are located near tourist attractions and far away, not near my part of Brooklyn and not walking distance from where the new baby lives. My guests then spend money at local businesses and I hire a local cleaning person to clean rooms when guests leave.

    I have reviewed Airbnb’s Comment on the Proposed Short-Term Rental Rules, dated December 3, 2022. I agree with those comments and want to share my concerns with the Proposed Rules.

    As a specific example, I agree with what Airbnb says about the impact that the Proposed Rules will have on hosts like me. I am a single mother and value my family’s privacy. I am worried about the invasive amount of personal information that the Proposed Rules require me to disclose about myself and others in my household to apply for and maintain a registration. I do not understand why my private home address—where I live with my minor child—should be public; that is specifically NOT information I share publicly on the Airbnb platform because of safety concerns. I also do not understand why the government needs to know who lives with me and why I need to update the government about my personal relationships if someone moves in with me (or moves out).

    If I decide to disclose all of that information to apply for a registration and do successfully register, I am concerned that a typo in your Office’s verification system or other mismatch with the information that Airbnb has on file could prevent Airbnb from verifying my listing with the City and therefore stop me from renting my home even if I have a valid registration. For example, I am worried that an inconsequential difference like listing my address on Airbnb as Ave instead of Avenue, or without a number symbol before the unit and including the symbol in my registration application could result in my listing not being verified. And if that happens pending bookings would presumably have to be canceled (or I would be made to pay a fine)—which would be very unfair to my guests who relied on me for a place to stay. Plus, my registration fee is nonrefundable so I will have paid that for nothing. I do not understand how, if at all, I will be able to check the information in your Office’s verification system and make any needed adjustments to avoid this problem.

    I am a tenant, and I do not own the home I live in. I do not understand how I am supposed to certify that I will comply (and, if I try to renew a registration, that I have complied) with the multiple, complex local laws identified in the Proposed Rules, in addition to unspecified “other” laws and rules. Some of those laws do not even apply to my home, so I do not understand why I have to certify that I understand them. I also find it onerous to try to create a diagram of my entire home (including portions where guests do not sleep)—I don’t have training in creating those diagrams and am worried that I would open myself up to a large fine for mistakes.

    Also, as a tenant, depending on the terms of my lease, I may have to renew my registration more regularly than every two years to make sure it is current and then be in limbo as I wait for your Office’s renewal, further increasing the burdens of these Proposed Rules.

    I am also concerned about finding a way to securely maintain records of every short-term rental that I host for seven years, especially because I offer my home as a short-term rental to help pay for my existing expenses. These are just a few of the many ways that the Proposed Rules would make offering a short-term rental much more difficult for me.

    I do not understand the basis for the Proposed Rules or what, if any, work your Office did to study short-term rentals in New York City before proposing these Rules. My Airbnb has been beneficial for me and my neighbors, as my guests support our local businesses, and I do not understand why the City is trying to restrict short-term rentals like mine. I am worried about the effects that these Proposed Rules will have on me, potentially making me unable to continue hosting through Airbnb, and requiring me to move, uprooting my life and my child’s life. I am also worried about the effects that these Proposed Rules will have on my guests, who stay with me to visit family because there are no hotels in my neighborhood and the dedicated worker who helps me to maintain my Airbnb, as I will not have a frequent need for cleaning services if I am not permitted to host my short-term rental.

    I encourage the Office of Special Enforcement to postpone action on these Proposed Rules, to talk to hosts, guests, booking services, local business owners, and workers in the tourism industry to better understand how short-term rentals benefit New Yorkers, and to revise the Proposed Rules in a way that accommodates these concerns and the others that have been expressed via comments.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 12:46pm
  • IR

    It is telling that our elected officials disappear from the hearing within seconds of giving their monologues full of FUD. They have no interest in hanging around to hear what their constituents have to say in response.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 1:18pm
  • Keren Kashi

    I am very disheartened by this rule. It clearly brings to light that our elected officials care only for the desires of lobbyists that pour money into the elected officials campaign, and likely line their pockets with more money during the elected officials time in office, in order to get the elected officials to ignore their constituents needs and desires and instead satisfy the desires of the lobbyists (such as the hotel lobbyist) who throw money around squashing the constituents and residents of this special city. This rule should not go into affect! All this rule will do is stifle and tie the hands of everyday working class New Yorkers making our financial lives that much harder while lining the pockets of elites, hotel chains, who are already well off. This rule will take money from us low and middle class New Yorkers and put that money into the pockets of the upper class. Us low and middle class New Yorkers already have such difficulties getting by financially, we can’t afford any more financial stress especially when that stress is being placed on us by the very politicians we elected. This rule is unfair to low and middle class New Yorkers and specifically caters to the upper class. Shame on our elected officials if they move forward with implementing this rule!

    Comment added December 5, 2022 2:24pm
  • Lauren

    Why would you waste valuable resources enforcing a law that is going to harm the everyday people who have a single unit or room to rent in their home rather than to going after the serial/corporate offenders? What are you gaining more than the love (and money) of the hotel lobby? Nothing. Who are you harming? Families, the working class, the elderly, long time NY residents who are trying their best to make ends meet in a city that is expensive and getting more expensive every day.

    We own a 2-family home in Brooklyn and occasionally rent it to folks visiting the city or family locally. These are tourists who want a kitchen and to experience New York’s boroughs like New Yorkers. There are no hotels around us. We are not taking the money out of their corporate mouths (God, forbid) or impeding their ability to set high prices.

    We send our occasional guests to our favorite local (non-corporate) restaurants, coffee shops, and stores that are largely minority owned and operated so they can spend their dollars there rather than the corporate giants in mid-town. These tourists frequent these local businesses and help sustain the diversity of restaurants and shops that are the lifeblood New York City. And, considering that the offices are still ~50% occupied, they are also helping local business make ends meet when the average commuter no longer commutes regularly. Why would you want to stop that?

    Nor are we are depriving the city of housing. We, like others, would not open our place up to full time renters. We need that space to live, work, and host family who visit to help with childcare so that city living is possible.

    And, like so many others, we own our home; we pay our taxes; we follow the rules. We purchased our home with the intention of being able to Airbnb to make ends meet. But the financial expectations of the little people like us do not matter.

    Regulation like this will drive families and others without means out of this city. It will hurt local business. It will benefit the big hotel (and food and store) chains and the real estate developers; it will suck the soul out of New York. If that is your goal, congratulations. If you think New Yorkers won’t notice what you are doing, you are wrong.

    Please do not go forward with these restrictions.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 3:17pm
  • Sarah B

    I am an Airbnb host and offer part of our home as a short-term rental. My husband and I are retirees on a fixed income. We have owned our brownstone house for 50 years. Being an Airbnb host helps me and my husband continue to afford to stay in the home we have lived in for decades. Without Airbnb hosting, I fear we would have to move out of New York City. I enjoy offering visitors to our City a more personal home-sharing experience than they would receive at a hotel. My guests often explain that my sharing my home is better for their family’s needs than a hotel would be. My guests may not visit New York City at all if their only accommodation option was a small hotel room. My Airbnb rentals also offers a service to the community—the visitors I host spend money at local businesses and local restaurants that we recommend.

    I have reviewed Airbnb’s Comment on the Proposed Short-Term Rental Rules, dated December 3, 2022. I agree with their comments and want to share my concerns with the Proposed Rules.

    As a specific example, I agree with Airbnb’s comment regarding the impact that the Proposed Rules will have on hosts like me. Preparing the extensive registration application and paying the non-refundable fee is onerous. I do not understand why this level of government intrusion is necessary for me to simply allow visitors using Airbnb to share my home while they visit our City.

    I am worried about the invasive amount of personal information that the Proposed Rules require me to disclose about myself and others in my household to apply for and maintain a registration. I do not understand why my private home address should be public; that is specifically NOT information I publicly share on the Airbnb platform because of safety concerns. I also do not understand why the government needs to know who lives with me and why I would need to update the government about my family if someone moves in with me (or moves out).

    If I decide to disclose all of that information to apply for a registration and do successfully register, I am concerned that a typo in your Office’s verification system or other mismatch with the information that Airbnb has on file could prevent Airbnb from verifying my listing and therefore stop me from renting my home even if I have a valid registration. For example, I am worried that an inconsequential difference like listing my address on “St” instead of “Street” could result in my listing not being verified. And if that happens pending bookings would presumably have to be canceled (or I would be made to pay a fine)—which would be very unfair to my guests who relied on me for a place to stay. Plus, my registration fee is nonrefundable so I will have paid that for nothing. I do not understand how, if at all, I will be able to check the information in your Office’s verification system and make any needed adjustments to avoid this problem.

    I do not understand how I am supposed to certify that I will comply (and, if I try to renew a registration, that I have complied) with the multiple, complex local laws identified in the Proposed Rules, in addition to unspecified “other” laws and rules. Some of those laws do not even apply to my home, so I do not understand why I have to certify that I understand them. I also find it onerous to create a diagram of my entire home (including portions where guests do not sleep).

    I am also concerned about finding a way to securely maintain records of every short-term rental that I host for seven years, especially because I offer my home as a short-term rental to help pay for my existing expenses. These are just a few of the many ways that the Proposed Rules would make offering a short-term rental much more difficult for me.

    I do not understand the basis for the Proposed Rules or what, if any, work your Office did to study short-term rentals in New York City before proposing these Rules. My Airbnb has been beneficial for me and the community, as my guests support our local businesses and the tourist economy, and I do not understand why the City is trying to restrict short-term rentals like mine. I am worried about the effects that these Proposed Rules will have on my guests.

    I encourage the Office of Special Enforcement to postpone action on these Proposed Rules, to talk to hosts, guests, booking services, local business owners, and workers in the tourism industry to better understand how short-term rentals benefit New Yorkers, and to revise the Proposed Rules in a way that accommodates these concerns and the others that have been expressed via comments.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 3:39pm
  • Suzette Sundae

    Who can afford to open a bed and breakfast or a small inn? One would have to first purchase a multi-million dollar building. Wealthy people have this privilege. The wealthy also have the option to live alone. Rich people are not forced to have roommates because they can afford to pay skyrocketing market prices for rentals. But folks like me? People without a secure career path, and those who didn’t have the privilege of obtaining a tertiary education? In this city, the working class are largely relegated to having roommates. As such, the least – the very least we should be afforded, is the dignity to decide how long we’re committed to living with them, without having to be added to some registry, like a sex offender. We deserve the ongoing security that renting with a platform like Airbnb affords us. What difference does it make if I opt to live with someone for a few days or weeks, as opposed to a few months? Why should it be ANY of my landlord’s business? Or the Mayor’s business ?? Why should I be forced to rent a room to someone for more than 30 days, or face being doxed by my city government? What if I find that after living with a roommate, I don’t like them? Or worse – what if they make me feel unsafe in my own home, or fail to uphold the terms of their rental, like paying rent and bills? Lastly, why must SRO’s offer sprinklers? Do residents somehow become less flammable at the 30-day mark?

    This proposition – as it is written in its sweeping scope, is a vastly overreaching, dictatorial proposition that threatens the vibrance of our communities, and sets a dangerous precedence for involving government oversight into the most intimate and sensitive of environments, THE VERY PLACES WE CALL HOME. This is FASCISM. My message to the Mayor’s Task Force: GET OUT OF MY BUILDING. GET OUT OF MY RELATIONSHIP WITH MY LANDLORD AND NEIGHBORS. GET OUT OF MY PRIVATE LIFE. GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOME.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 5:00pm
  • IR

    Please find attached a copy of an oped published today in BronxTimes about this matter

    Comment attachment
    Op-ed-_-Short-term-Airbnb-rentals-boost...sm-and-the-local-economy-–-Bronx-Times-copy.pdf
    Comment added December 5, 2022 5:01pm
  • Suzette Sundae

    (my last comment was posted incorrectly – I apologize. Here it is, in its entirety)
    My name is Suzette and I’ve been an Airbnb host (currently a “Superhost”) for nearly ten years. My comments are strictly with regard to GOOD actors – those of us who are already registered with a reputable and (already) regulated short-term booking company. I speak on behalf of those of us who have extensive, excellent reviews, and are in compliance with all local laws and regulations. We should be exempted from many stipulations in this new, horribly overreaching legislation.

    Prior to becoming a host, I owned and managed brick-and-mortar retail stores, for nearly 25 years. My last vintage store inhabited a 2k-sq ft space, replete with a dj booth, a performance stage, and a sewing room, where I performed custom tailoring for my customers. The store was home to art installations, rock shows, karaoke nights – it was wildly fun, unique, immersive, and creative. In a word, it was vibrant. Eventually, the neighborhood demographic changed and the bleach-soaked sponge of gentrification left us with another Starbucks. Or maybe a subway. Who cares? Not the out-of-town guests, who visit MY neighborhood.

    After closing my last store, I turned to Airbnb hosting in order to secure an apartment with enough space for another sewing studio. I worked really hard and found that I enjoy serving guests, in much the same way that I enjoyed providing products and services at my shops. The guests were happy. I was happy. The landlord was thrilled. To be clear, I’ve been hosting for ten years with exactly ZERO complaints from neighbors or landlords. Why? Because I did a lot of my own maintenance and upkeep and most importantly, was never a day late, making my rent payment, at market value.

    I have hosted a LOT of people of average means, who just want to visit family members in the neighborhood. I have hosted a cancer survivor, who need to be close to healthcare providers. She stayed for over a year, at a vastly discounted price.
    Who can afford to open a bed and breakfast or a small inn? One would have to first purchase a multi-million dollar building. Wealthy people have this privilege. The wealthy also have the option to live alone. Rich people are not forced to have roommates because they can afford to pay skyrocketing market prices for rentals. But folks like me? People without a secure career path, and those who didn’t have the privilege of obtaining a tertiary education? In this city, the working class are largely relegated to having roommates. As such, the least – the very least we should be afforded, is the dignity to decide how long we’re committed to living with them, without having to be added to some registry, like a sex offender. We deserve the ongoing security that renting with a platform like Airbnb affords us. What difference does it make if I opt to live with someone for a few days or weeks, as opposed to a few months? Why should it be ANY of my landlord’s business? Or the Mayor’s business ?? Why should I be forced to rent a room to someone for more than 30 days, or face being doxed by my city government? What if I find that after living with a roommate, I don’t like them? Or worse – what if they make me feel unsafe in my own home, or fail to uphold the terms of their rental, like paying rent and bills? Lastly, why must SRO’s offer sprinklers? Do residents somehow become less flammable at the 30-day mark?

    This proposition – as it is written in its sweeping scope, is a vastly overreaching, dictatorial proposition that threatens the vibrance of our communities, and sets a dangerous precedence for involving government oversight into the most intimate and sensitive of environments, THE VERY PLACES WE CALL HOME. This is FASCISM. My message to the Mayor’s Task Force: GET OUT OF MY BUILDING. GET OUT OF MY RELATIONSHIP WITH MY LANDLORD AND NEIGHBORS. GET OUT OF MY PRIVATE LIFE. GET THE HELL OUT OF MY HOME.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 5:02pm
  • IR

    Bloomberg coverage of today’s hearing including quotes from multiple hosts.

    Comment attachment
    NYC-Spars-With-Hosts-Over-New-Airbnb-Rental-Laws-ABNB-Bloomberg.pdf
    Comment added December 5, 2022 5:29pm
  • Kristopher

    The proposed legislation hurts both New York and New Yorkers. We should be making our city a more friendly place to visit, rather than placing restrictions on what those who live here can do in their own homes.

    We should absolutely not allow this legislation to proceed. The restrictions disproportionately affect minorities across the city who will lose an invaluable source of additional income.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 5:53pm
  • anonymous

    IR is doing the Lord’s work responding to so many comments and elucidating the law despite that not being his job. Can anyone please provide a link to today’s recording? It is absent despite Mr. Klossner stating the meeting recording would be available to all.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 6:14pm
  • IR

    Until about 4:30pm ET today the public hearing information on this website was incorrect. The link to webex returned an error due to a typo in the url.

    The fax number listed for submitting comments also does not function.

    This comment window should be extended with correct contact information, and a new hearing with a working link should be scheduled to allow for hosts, homeowners and the businesses that serve them time to provide commentary via correct and working information.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 6:17pm
  • Kate F

    Stop punishing homeowners. We lost our tenants during Covid because they decided to get a deal somewhere else. Our tenants were not forced to continue to pay rent they agreed to but we still had to pay our mortgage. Airbnb saved us. Now we have a full time tenant and Airbnb when she is away. This extra income allows us to continue to feed our children and pay for rising energy costs. Go after those who are abusing Airbnb not those who are taking away from affordable housing inventory.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 7:55pm
  • rk

    This legislation is an overstep. New Yorkers should have the right to use their property as they see fit. These rules disproportionately impact minorities and will negatively affect the tourism industry.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 10:02pm
  • Christine Fortis

    My daughter has a chronic condition. I can’t even imagine how I would manage to pay my daughters medical bills and put food on the table if we didn’t have the added income of this B&B. We’re in a recession, everything is more expensive and New Yorkers are struggling to pay taxes on their homes and/or rent. And while I understand some rules are important to keep the integrity of the bnb market safe for hosts and guests alike, making it too restrictive and impossible to comply only takes it away from so many New Yorkers who rely on it. It’s cruel and hurtful to so many. Only thinking about the benefits to big hotel corps and not the small businesses that need the revenues (not just the hosts but the local merchants in all parts of the city that benefit from local spending) is a very narrow-minded way of governing.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 10:32pm
  • IR

    Thrillist.com coverage of the hearing.

    Comment attachment
    New-Regulations-to-Affect-Thousands-of-NYC-Airbnbs-in-2023-Thrillist.pdf
    Comment added December 5, 2022 11:06pm
  • IR

    OpEd by Howard Husock

    “Short-term rental apps may seem like a new idea. But they’re best understood as a new version of an old one: taking in lodgers to help pay one’s rent or mortgage. Doing so has been a time-honored part of city life, albeit one that had been declining.

    A Census Bureau historical study found that, in 1930, there were some 3.8 million Americans classified as boarders or lodgers. As recently as 2000, 0.5 percent (or 1.5 million people) of the entire population were boarders. The Bureau counted only those living with families or single residents, not in rooming houses.

    Those taking in lodgers were typically either married couples or single women—often widows, inferred to be under financial pressure. We should think of Airbnb as an app that has revived this historic approach.”

    Comment attachment
    New-York-City-Goes-to-War-Against-Airbnb-_-American-Enterprise-Institute-AEI-copy.pdf
    Comment added December 5, 2022 11:12pm
  • AJ Barclay

    This rule contradicts existing law. Subletting is a tenant right in NYC. In order to sublet, tenants must advertise their space. Airbnb is one of several listing platforms / advertising channels like Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. Airbnb however is housing specific has a lot of safeguards that minimize scams and protect property (verification, insurance, payment processing). By require registration for anyone posting a place on Airbnb, NYC is preventing subletting.

    Comment added December 5, 2022 11:59pm
  • Alikiah Barclay

    NOT CONSISTENT with EXISTING LAW – I can post my place on Craigslist without registering, but to use a better, much safer marketplace, I have to register with the city and wait for approval. Not to mention my registration is immediately declined if my building has opted out. How can that be if my building is required BY NYC LAW to ALLOW TENANTS TO SUBLET!!

    Comment added December 6, 2022 12:02am