Recently, the Province has brought in sweeping new Short Term Rental regulations via the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act. Effective May 1, 2024 the aforementioned Act will severely restrict under what circumstances properties can be offered for short-term stays.
Heralded as a way to bring much needed long term rental accommodation back into the market, the rules will include as follows:
- Principal Residence requirement. This term states that only units that are a “hosts” principal residence may be offered on platforms such as Airbnb, VRBO or any other platform that offers short term rentals. For clarity, a principal residence is defined as the “residence an individual lives in for a longer period during a calendar year than any other place. (Gov of BC website) Interestingly, the host need not be the owner. So for example, a 2 bedroom laneway home where the owners live in the main house, the tenants would be able to rent out the 2nd bedroom for short term rentals but the owner would not.
- Business License requirement. In most cases, hosts will need to have a business license issued through their local municipality and display that license on any advertising they may do. If they do not display the required license platforms will be required to remove listings.
- Data sharing requirements. Much of the enforcement of the new rules is possible due to platforms agreeing to share data on hosts with local municipalities. While the province will share this information with local government bodies, it will not be available to the public.
- Penalties. Think you can slide by the requirements. Well if you get caught, the fine has increased from $2,000 to $50,000 under the Offence Act and in Regional Districts, Municipalities and Island Trusts, daily fines can range from $1,000 to $3,000 per day.
Since the announcement there have been numerous stories on social media talking about people who have recently purchased units in buildings specifically zoned and constructed for the short term rental market. Kelowna is one such municipality. However, it seems the province is not interested at this point in making exceptions and these folks may have to come up with a new plan for their property.
While we all know that short term rentals have historically been a great money maker, even in Vancouver it is hard to imagine a suite that would exceed the possible potential fines that will most certainly be levied if caught. Of course there are some exemptions, but they are few and far between. We suggest that before you put your suite on the market for short term rentals, that you review the regulations thoroughly. Full information can be found on the Province of BC website.
If you are interested in talking to us about putting your short term unit into a long term rental give us a call. While it may not be what you had planned, we can certainly help you make that transition as smoothly and profitable as possible.