Some of the EU’s major cities want more control over the continents short-term rental market, despite a fall in tourism.
The industry has witnessed a dramatic fall in business because of the coronavirus pandemic, but that hasn’t stopped local leaders from wanting to keep these numbers low, in order to improve the lives of local residents.
Mayors from Paris and Berlin are among some of these capitals that want to see change, which is aimed largely at online short-term rental platforms, such as Airbnb.
Prague’s mayor, Zdeněk Hřib, said earlier this year that property owners in the city centre would be banned from leasing out their flats, apart from when they officially lived there and were vacating it temporarily. Any tourist who wished to use Airbnb, for example, would be restricted to renting a single room from somebody still living in the property.
Femke Halsema, the Mayor of Amsterdam, has warned that the city will be “extremely cautious” when the time comes for tourism to be properly revived.
And a great deal of this is to try to mitigate the negative effects of tourism.
Housing Programme Manager for the City of Amsterdam
