COMMUNITY FEEDBACK SESSION The Home-Sharing Industry in Boston

COMMUNITY FEEDBACK SESSION on the Home-Sharing Industry AGENDA 1.Brief background on the home-sharing industry 2.Public comment on the home-sharing industry

The goal of this meeting The City of Boston has been contacted by various home- sharing industry stakeholders and neighborhood representatives In response, we’ve been gathering information about the home-sharing industry This meeting is part of our effort to hear from all interested parties before we determine the role the City may play with this industry

What is home-sharing? Home-sharing is most commonly defined as property rentals fewer than 30 days in length Increasingly these are facilitated through internet-based platforms such as Airbnb, HomeAway, and FlipKey Facilitating platforms provide an interface similar to online hotel reservations, but the lodging is provided by individuals, rather than hotels

How big is home-sharing? In the past 5 years, facilitating platforms have increased the ease of offering and securing home-sharing arrangements, driving a proliferation of short-term rentals within Boston As of August, 2014: – Boston had ~2,000 home-sharing listings – Boston listed units from ~1,200 hosts – ~40,000 visitors used home-sharing options in Boston per year – ~80% of hosts rented out their primary residence

Where is home-sharing happening? As Airbnb’s data shows, there are listings throughout Boston, but they are most prevalent in the downtown core: Source:

What are other cities doing domestically? CityRegulationsTaxed Scheme Portland, OR Allowed by any Portland resident in a single family home, apartment, or condo Requires hosting resident to have a City permit, which requires landlord notification Does not allow more than 25% of units in one building to be short-term-rental permitted Hosts paying an 11.5% tax (6% city lodging and 5.5% county) San Francisco, CA Allowed by any SF resident Requires all hosts to register with the City Limits the rental of entire homes to 90 days per year; allows shared spaces, ie, part of a home, to be shared 365 days per year Requires each listing to carry $500,000 in liability insurance Establishes guidelines for enforcement by the Planning Department Taxed as hotels New York, NY Allowed for those who live in a 1 or 2 family home If dwelling is a multiple home building (3+ families), then only allowed if listing is a shared space Not allowed in rent-stabilized units Not currently taxed

What are other cities doing internationally? CityRegulationsTaxed Scheme Amsterdam, Netherlands Allowed only by those registered by the City as a primary resident in the particular abode (host is registered as living at address) Allowed up to 60 days per year, before the host is eligible for investigation; allows up to 4 guests at a time Homes must meet all fire and safety rules Authorities may restrict home-sharing based on prior poor behavior Violators risk fines, a bill for back-taxes, or the loss of their home All applicable taxes – income and tourist – must be paid Paris, France (Applies nationwide) Allowed in primary residences; host must live there at least 8 months per year No authorization or registration required If in secondary and other residences, subject to local law Tourist taxes are due; platforms can remit taxes on behalf of hosts Hamburg, Germany People who occasionally host do not need permission / registration if: 50% of host’s property is rented 100% of the time or; 100% of host’s property is rented 50% of the time Beyond 50% limits, host needs a permit Tourist taxes are due (unless guest is staying for business travel)

We want to hear from you To help us hear from all stakeholders: – Please keep comments relevant, concise (~90 seconds), and civil – Two microphones – one for comments in favor of home- sharing, one for comments against. We will alternate speakers – If you are neither for nor against, please go to either microphone Comments in favor of home-sharingComments opposed to home-sharing

Additional comments? Contact Eleanor Joseph at or (617)