Airbnb

<html><body>
GUEST OBSERVER
One in three Queensland strata residents are concerned about apartment security from Airbnb guests, according to new research conducted by a leading Queensland body corporate company.
Archers the Strata Professionals investigated the attitudes of more than 550 Queensland unit owners and residents towards accommodation sharing services like Airbnb and Stayz, to determine how they impact unit owners in the sector.
Airbnb is an accommodation sharing service that allows property owners and residents to let their rooms or properties out to people seeking short-term lodgings. With more than 50,000 listings across Australia, the service continues to grow in popularity.
While the survey found more than 85 percent of participants were familiar with these services, many were unfazed by the platform, with 45 percent reporting they would welcome Airbnb within their complex.
Yet, despite the apparent support for such services, more than 30 percent of respondents acknowledged concerns over apartment security.
With Australia going through a widespread apartment boom, and more and more people choosing to live in strata complexes, we need to make sure that accommodation sharing services like Airbnb aren’t negatively impacting residents.
The research demonstrates some residents feel their safe, private apartment buildings are being infiltrated by a steady stream of unknown visitors, who stay for short periods of time.
Consequently, a number of strata residents are becoming uneasy about apartment security. As Queensland doesn’t have specific by-laws in place related to Airbnb and strata complexes, we encourage strata managers to work with residents to address any concerns they may have.
While Airbnb has been the topic of much controversy and debate in NSW, the heat is yet to reach Queensland. This is reflected in the research, which found almost 50 percent of Queensland strata residents would like Airbnb to be addressed by their body corporate. Developments in technology and the popularity of the sharing economy have surpassed current property legislation. 
Currently, the legislation states that, where a lot can lawfully be used for residential purposes, a bylaw cannot restrict the ‘type’ of residential use. 
Therefore, in Queensland, a body corporate doesn’t have much authority to regulate against the use of lots for private short-term letting. 
As such, we’re seeing the greatest impact in small schemes with permanent residents and no building manager. 
In those types of buildings, dealing with unplanned impacts such as increased noise, overuse of shared facilities, damage to common property and safety and security issues can be very time consuming for the volunteer committee members, and very expensive for body corporate as a whole.
Consequently, we encourage residents to work with their body corporate managers to address any concerns they may have about Airbnb, in order to find a solution to any potential issues.
 Last year, 455 Australians reported an incident of more than $1000 worth of damages from Airbnb guests. Greater education is definitely needed in this space, and we are committed to working with strata residents to mitigate their concerns.
Grant Mifsud is partner, Archers the Strata Professionals and can be contacted <a href="https://www.abcm.com.au" target="_blank">here</a>.
</body></html>

jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Queensland strata residents concerned about Airbnb security: Grant Mifsud

<html><body>
GUEST OBSERVER
Commercial short-stay companies like Airbnb will this year deprive the Victorian Government of more than $14 million in uncollected GST.
Airbnb, and similar operators, only collect GST on the 5 percent to 15 percent ‘service fee’, rather than the entire booking cost. This means the state misses out on up to 95 percent of the GST applicable under current legislation. But conversely – or perversely –, this year hosts will pick up an extra bill, with the Australian Tax Office signalling a tax crackdown on users of the app.
It’s hardly fair that Airbnb gets out of paying millions in GST, while mum and dad hosts who simply rent a room, are not only subject to income tax, but are actually being targeted by the tax office.
How on Earth can a person renting out a room in their house be considered to be running an income–producing business, while on the other hand the multinational rental company doesn’t have to pay its fair share?
Victorians are missing out on millions of dollars every year, while Airbnb’s profits continue to grow, and that’s where the focus should be.
Airbnb alone had 651,000 guests last year and grew at a rate of 116%. It’s only fair that legislation is updated to recognise the rise of this unregulated industry, so Airbnb pays its share, along with other overseas companies.
Airbnb admits other countries require the company to collect GST on the entire booking cost, so why isn’t it happening here?
The Federal Government should learn from those other countries and also require Airbnb to collect and pay its proper, fair share of GST in Australia, based on the booking fee, not just the service fee.
The industry also avoids commercial rates from being imposed by local Councils, by relying on their land use activity being classified as a residential activity.
Come on – Airbnb is not a residential activity, it’s a business activity, and a loud, disruptive, unregulated and unfair one at that.
A Parliamentary Committee examining the commercial short-stay industry has heard a range of submissions, calling for Airbnb, and similar overseas companies, to pay GST and other taxes.
The Committee has also made a series of recommendations to the Victorian Government, including that it:
• Considers that the current proposed legislation is unfair to residents and should be reworked. • Works with Victoria Police to examine safety issues in residential complexes with short-stay activity. • Works with Victoria Police to consider establishing protocols to manage violent and disruptive incidents. • Reviews the regulatory imbalance between the short-stay and traditional accommodation sectors. • Investigates costs and benefits of introducing a registration and compliance framework for commercialresidential short-stay accommodation (where properties are listed as short-stays for more than 90 days).
We Live Here is a growing movement of residents from across Victoria, dealing with significant detrimental impacts due to the rapid, unregulated rise of the commercial short stay industry.
The concerns relate to safety and security, higher maintenance costs due to increased wear and tear, and disruption through ‘party houses’.
We have been encouraged by the level of support we are receiving across the state, from people who share our concerns
Residents from more than 200 buildings have joined We Live Here, along with locals from suburbs, and towns, across the state.
Clearly, the government needs to act on these concerns and bring legislation into line for this massive industry. We need a solution which puts residents, businesses and the tourism industry on a level playing field.
Ensuring these giant overseas companies pay their fair share of tax on the millions they make in Victoria, is just one of many issues that require urgent attention, when it comes to the commercial short-stay industry.
Marshall Delves is from <a href="https://www.welivehere.net" target="_blank">We Live Here</a>.
</body></html>

Airbnb escapes tax time crackdown, but mum & dad hosts left with a bill: Marshall Delves

<html><body>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/83959/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
The Airbnb and empty house phenomena and their presumed links to housing and rental prices have attracted considerable media and political attention.
The ABC points to the “dark side” of Airbnb and its effect on long-term rental prices. Empty houses are being linked to higher housing prices and to foreign investment, most often Chinese investment. The Australian headlines that “China buyers raise ghost town fears”.
The Commonwealth and state governments are seeking to regulate the phenomena. It is questionable whether they should and even whether they understand the data and trends.
<h2>The Airbnb question</h2>
Airbnb involves renting an entire home, a room or a shared room. Short-term rental of an entire house or flat that is available all year is equivalent to reducing long-term rental options.
Airbnb poses a possible threat to rental affordability. The income Airbnb generates in areas of cities popular with tourists causes owners of rental properties to withdraw these from the long-term rental market. It also causes investors to acquire property and enter the Airbnb market, and to increase the cost of long-term rental. 
This may create a ripple effect as relatively high-income households are displaced to adjacent neighbourhoods. The scale of Airbnb impacts on rents, displacement of long-term renters and neighbourhood fragmentation has led cities such as Barcelona, New York and Amsterdam to attempt to ban, or strictly regulate, the extent and location of Airbnb. 
Should similar effects be anticipated in parts of Australian cities that are popular with tourists? Data on Airbnb accommodation in Melbourne and Sydney as of December 2016 are:
<ul>
<li>
Melbourne: 12,174 listings, of which 57% are for entire homes
</li>
<li>
Sydney: 24,078 listings, of which 61% are for entire homes.
</li>
</ul>
Reportedly, "The number of Airbnb properties potentially removed from Sydney’s permanent rental market with an average vacancy rate of around 3% amounts to approximately half of the available rental properties."
The scale of the Airbnb phenomenon is increasing. So, too, is the company’s influence, with its membership of the Committee for Sydney and its status as a source of Qantas Frequent Flyer points. 
Government may well have to consider regulating Airbnb. The question is whether Airbnb is best managed by state government, or metropolitan or local government. 
For example, the Victorian government has designated the Melbourne suburbs of Fitzroy and St Kilda for Airbnb development. Why should this be a state decision? Might the residents of already costly rental Fitzroy and St Kilda have their own views?
<h2>The empty housing question</h2>
On the night of the 2016 Census, 1,089,165 dwellings were empty – 11.2% of all Australian dwellings. It’s widely assumed that these empty dwellings, by not contributing to housing supply, increase house prices.
Supposing that this is the case and presuming that foreign investors contribute significantly to the empty house phenomenon, the Australian government’s 2017-18 budget introduced a levy on foreign investors who leave properties vacant for more than six months.
Not solely blaming foreign investors and also looking at domestic speculative investment, the State of Victoria has introduced a vacant residential property tax. This “is intended to encourage these owners to make their property available for purchase or rent … [but] will only apply to vacant properties located in the inner and middle suburbs of Melbourne”.
However, empty house data should be seen in context: over the previous 35 years, between 9.2% and 11.2% of houses were empty. Vacancy rates have changed little over this time. Almost two-thirds of empty dwellings on census night are holiday houses or dwellings where owners were absent. Among the capital cities, only in metropolitan Perth did the empty dwelling rate exceed 10%.
SGS Economics and Planning estimates about 110,000 of the vacant dwellings – 10.6% of the total – were available for short and long-term rental. This small proportion available for rent, amounting to 1.2% of Australia’s houses, would probably not attract media and political attention.
Nonetheless, foreign investment in housing is a global phenomenon that focuses on specific cities, such as Vancouver, New York, Miami, London, Paris, Auckland and Sydney. Blaming foreign investors for its 107,000 empty dwellings, the Parisian government “tripled the current 20% extrathat non-resident owners have to pay in council tax, or taxe d’habitation, to 60%”.
Vancouver imposed a 15% tax on foreign investment in housing. Following this, “the number of foreign buyers dropped by 80%. That helped dampen house-price inflation there but pushed up demand in nearby Victoria.”
<h2>What level of government should manage these issues?</h2>
It is unclear whether Sydney and Melbourne will come to have a level of empty dwellings that warrants federal and state attention. Should this be required, the question is which tier of government can best manage the phenomenon.
It is difficult to argue that taxes should be applied at federal and state levels because foreign investment, property speculation and Airbnb affect some cities and not others. They affect some suburbs and not others. 
For example, due in part to “a soft residential property market” and “lower land values”, tax revenue for Western Australia is in its third year of decline. The state government and Perth homeowners might welcome foreign investment and Airbnb to sustain tax revenue and house prices.
Would a metropolitan government, learning from metropolitan interventions elsewhere, not be better placed to manage the effects of Airbnb and empty houses?
Cities around the world are seeking to manage these phenomena and sharing experiences of how best to do this. In Australia, though, the Commonwealth and state governments presume to know best.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/richard-tomlinson-10016" target="_blank">Richard Tomlinson</a> is Professor of Urban Planning, University of Melbourne and author for <a href="https://theconversation.com/au" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>.
</body></html>

Airbnb and empty houses: who’s responsible for managing the impacts on our cities?

<html><body><div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
GUEST OBSERVER
Planning on listing your property on Airbnb? Here are a few things to consider before you do. 
1. Location of your property and potential demographic of your guests
Guests usually plan to stay close to the centre of activity and culture they would like to experience. For example if your property is near a stadium, there’s a high chance your guests may be attending sports events. Think about the biggest demographic of sports attendees and ask yourself the extent of behaviour you would tolerate in your property. 
2. De-risk your home against bad apples
You can request a security deposit prior to the guest’s arrival. Be wary of Instant Bookings, as this does not give you the opportunity to review the guest before they book in their stay. As a final precaution, have your guests sign a contract before they arrive. This can clearly lay out the check-in and check-out dates and times, rules of conduct, deposit refund or any other concerns you may have. While it may put off some guests, those who have nothing to hide should have no problems with signing it. 
3. Make sure your home is safe for occupation
When leasing out your property, it is your property manager's role to ensure the safety of the premises are kept. If you're putting up an Airbnb listing, this responsibility falls on you. You'll need to check that the smoke alarms are working and that heaters (if any) have been serviced in the last 2 years. Make sure that all doors and locks work smoothly in the event that evacuation is necessary. 
While Airbnb does not conduct any routine inspections on the safety of your property, it's a simple favour you are doing your guest that may save their life. 
4. Check your home insurance coverage for accidents or damage
You’ll need to fully insure your home against the risk of irresponsible guests causing major damage, as seeking damage compensation from Airbnb is difficult. Read the fine print of Airbnb’s Host Guarantee, and don’t assume it will protect you fully. It also does not cover a refusal to vacate.
</div>
<div class="column">
5. Long term Airbnb stays could turn your guest into a legal tenant
According to Consumer Affairs Victoria, if your Airbnb guest resides in your property for more than 90 days, they legally gain the rights as a tenant. This means that in the unlikely event that they refuse to vacate after that period, you will need to follow the same eviction procedure through VCAT as a landlord would, costing you significant time and money. 
6. Airbnb income is taxable
Airbnb provides a good source of cash flow for owner occupiers who are still paying off their mortgage. Bear in mind that your Airbnb income is classified as a taxable gain, as the ATO will have your information on hand already. Depending on the length of time you’ve resided at your property, and the length of time you’ve hosted part of your property on Airbnb, you may be liable to pay a portion of capital gains tax. 
7. Your ratings and reviews are your “open for inspections” 
To maximise the occupancy rate of your property, it’s essential that you maintain a high rating by providing your guests with a great experience, so that they are happy to leave a positive review. We would recommend to maintain at least 4.5 stars to remain competitive. Keep your property clean and restocked after each stay. Be honest in your description of your listing, as you’ll be rated for accuracy. 
8. Guests look for a trustworthy host, not just a room
Beautiful photographs, a friendly host profile photo and personal statement will build trust immediately. When there’s nothing hide, there’s nothing to be afraid of. Remember that, while you are risking your property, your guests risk themselves. They are looking for someone credible whom they are comfortable staying with. 
For more information, <a href="https://secretagent.com.au/" target="_blank">click here</a>.
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div></body></html>

Must-knows for new Airbnb hosts: Secret Agent

<html><body>
Unruly NSW house guests will from today be subject to strict new short-term rental accommodation laws that could see them banned from securing accomodation again on booking platforms.

Hosts or guests who commit two serious breaches of the code within two years will be banned for five years.

Platforms and letting agents will not be permitted to offer services to anyone, or any dwelling, that is listed on the exclusion register.

A strike will include any behaviour which unreasonably interferes with a neighbour’s quiet and peaceful enjoyment of their home.

Hosts’ obligations relate to holding an appropriate level of public liability insurance and providing neighbours and owners corporations with information such as the host’s contact details, and that they are bound by the Code of Conduct during their stay.

There will be changes to planning laws in mid-2021, including a new planning policy that applies consistent regulation of the use of premises for short-term rental accommodation across the whole state of NSW.

A short-term rental accommodation premises register is also under development for commencement in mid-2021.

Hosts must register their premises once that obligation is mandated by the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment and the register becomes available online.

Minister for Better Regulation Kevin Anderson said the new industry Code of Conduct provided clear obligations for hosts centred on minimum standards of good behaviour.

“If you are a house guest from hell behaving disgracefully in a holiday rental or a shady host trying to swindle an unsuspecting customer, under these changes you will face penalties, and could be banned from the industry for five years,” Mr Anderson said.

“These new laws are coming into effect at the perfect time as we now head into what is shaping up to be one of the biggest domestic tourism holiday seasons on record.

“While the tourism boom is fantastic news for local communities getting back on their feet following last summer’s bushfires and the unprecedented disruption of COVID-19, it also reinforces the need for increased protections against anti-social and disruptive behaviour.”

Anderson said a key feature of the new laws was the establishment of an exclusion register, which will introduce a ‘two strikes and you’re out’ policy. 

“We are introducing these laws as part of our broad reform of the sector. Together, they will ensure the minority of participants who are giving the sector a bad name are penalised or removed and the sector is improved for hosts, guests and communities,” Mr Anderson said.

The standards are enforceable, with powers available to the NSW Fair Trading Commissioner to take disciplinary action, including penalties and exclusion from the industry for repeat offenders.

All participants, including booking platforms, will be required to comply with the Code and with directions and requests from the Commissioner.

For a time apartment owners in New South Wales faced the prospect of having to pay compensation to their neighbours.

Prior to COVID 19, the short-term rental accommodation injected $2.1 billion plus annually into the economy.

The industry was estimated to be worth $31.3 billion nationally in 2016.

Sydney ranks as one of Airbnb’s top ten cities for most properties on the platform.

In June 2018 the NSW government put a 180-day cap on the number of days properties can be rented out by Airbnb in Sydney.

It also gave strata corporations the power to ban Airbnb in their buildings if 75 percent of owners seek the ban.

The latest rules arose from an options paper by the NSW government.
</body></html>

Hosts or guests who commit two serious breaches of the code within two years will be banned for five years.



jchancellor

Tougher short term Airbnb accomodation rules in NSW

<html><body>
Staying in an Airbnb in New South Wales has been declared an illegal act, Fairfax Media reported today.
But a spokesperson for the Minister for Better Regulation and Innovation Kevin Anderson said the reports that it is illegal to stay in short-term rental accommodation was incorrect. 
There is no ban on any kind of accommodation.
The NSW Government advice to prevent the spread of COVID-19 has been very clear.
As per the public health orders, people must stay home with the exception of a number of circumstances including work and to provide care.
The NSW Government acknowledges that in these circumstances the provision of short-term accommodation is often critical, particularly for our frontline health workers.
“It isn’t illegal for them to advertise the property but guests couldn’t get there without breaking the law,” one commentator advised.
 
</body></html>

jrobinson-rf4aSBido9

Airbnb not made illegal in NSW amid tighter COVID-19 regulations

<html><body>
The ad promises you earnings of up to $80,000 for the December-January period just by using Airbnb. 
There’s also a testimonial from Arnold Schwarzenegger and mention of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s sister Randy sharing with Jamie McIntyre tips about “"luxury living without luxury prices" on the website of <a href="https://www.21stcenturyservices.com.au/airbnb-consultancy-business/" target="_blank">21st Century Education</a>. 
All these tips from McIntyre, only for $67 events in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney.
Once there, according to a recent report in the Weekend Australian, McIntyre would reveal his secret: “How to make $5000-$10,000 per month in semi-passive income from anywhere in the world.”
McIntyre’s current play is with Airbnb. 
“Airbnb is paying out billions to clients and you can be getting this money for your clients and taking,” the email quoted Mc­Intyre as saying, according to the report in the Weekend Australian.
“Imagine a business that require­s no capital to get started. No ongoing overhead. Thanks to technology this is now possible.”
McIntyre was recently banned from corporate life for a decade by the Australian Securities &amp; Investments Commission following a lengthy Federal Court fight. 
The property spruiker was grilled by Senators Sam Dastyari and Nick Xenophon at a Senate hearing in 2015 over a stalled Shepparton land-banking scheme where many investors were duped of their money on the false promises of strong returns. 
McIntyre listed more than a dozen properties for short-term stays from Queensland’s tropical north to the mansionettes of Melbourne’s Toorak. 
Many of these, the report said, had first been leased by McIntyre and advertised without the knowledge or consent of the owners. 
Airbnb’s global head of policy Chris Lehane has said in a previous report it expects limits to be introduced on the number of listings a person is allowed to have.
McIntyre’s use of the website to build this property empire also raises questions that he is back in business despite the ASIC ban. 21st Century Education denies it.
The Australian report said Blair Harding, a business coach and now the chief executive of 21st Century, dismissed claims McIntyre was back in business.
“Mr McIntyre is no longer involved­ in the management of Australian companies,” Harding is said to have told The Australian in an email. 
“Like many people he uses an Airbnb management company to manage his Airbnb properties. He is also an educator who has educated his clients on the potential to profit from Airbnb and new emerging trends."
McIntyre’s so-called “education programs” first came to the corporate regulator’s attention in 2002, the report said. 
The email advertising the seminars with McIntyre offers a number of ways to make a fortune. You can pay for Mc­Intyre’s advice — one client who did this apparently “made over $4000 in his first month”. Or you can allow 21st Century to manage the service for you — where “we can generate you income almost instantly from accepting your home onto our system”.
An ASIC spokeswoman is cited by the report as saying the regulator is “aware of Mr McIntyre’s latest venture”, and will continue to monitor his conduct while another investigation into his previous ventures remains under way.
“The (Airbnb) service involved doesn’t involve financial advice in relation to a financ­ial product or involve the operation of a financial services business,” the spokeswoman says.
The report lists properties in Gold Coast and Surfers Paradise being advertised through Airbnb for rents such as $595 a night on weekends though they were advertised for weekly rent for much less earlier. The letting agents say they were unaware of McIntyre leasing those places.  
An Airbnb spokeswoman was cited in the report as not being able to explain how the website ensures landlords are made aware their property is being leased through the online platform, although she says “frankly, there’s no place for this sort of behaviou­r on Airbnb”.
The Gold Coast Bulletin has reported its is the neighbours who are annoyed at noisy guests. 
The mansion, owned by McIntyre family company Isle of Capri 2, was purchased for $4.75 million in 2009.
It is advertised at $791 a night if you want the master bedroom unlocked.
The rate for wedding events is not advertised but believed to be upwards of $1200 a night. The listing says the home can sleep up to 18 people in its five bedrooms and cinema room.
His 27m, four-bedroom yacht Livin II is also advertised on the site — at a minimum $1490 a night.
“The Isle of Capri is an exclusive area — we pay a lot of rates and taxes to live here and we don’t expect this,” one neighbour said.
“The council should be acting to close it down.”
</body></html>

prateek24-ezbwHMbNAk

Property spruiker Jamie McIntyre's Airbnb play under scrutiny

<html><body>
In June 2016 the Supreme Court of Victoria handed down its decision in the case of Swan v Uecker [2016] VSC 313.
The case is heralded as a victory for landlords after the Supreme Court held that, by allowing Airbnb guests short-term use of their rented apartment, the tenants had breached their lease by sub-letting the property.
The Landlord (Swan) leased her apartment to the Tenants (Uecker and Greaves) pursuant to a residential tenancies agreement (lease).
During the course of the lease the Landlord became aware that the Tenants were making the apartment available to guests via the Airbnb website.
The Landlord had not consented to the use of the property in that way.
The Landlord subsequently sought an order for possession from the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) on the basis that the Tenants breached their lease by sub-letting the property, without the Landlord’s consent, when making it available to Airbnb guests. VCAT dismissed the application.
The VCAT decision held that, despite offering the property to Airbnb guests, the Airbnb Agreement between the Airbnb guests and the Tenants as hosts did not entitle Airbnb guests to exclusive possession of the property and granted a mere licence to occupy. 
On this basis, the Tenants “had not sub-let their tenancy agreement” with the Landlord. The Landlord appealed to the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court held that the Airbnb Agreement between Uecker and Greaves and the Airbnb guests was characterised as a lease, rather than a mere licence.
Accordingly, the arrangement to allow Airbnb guests to occupy the property constituted a sub-lease and consequently the Tenants were in breach of their lease.
The case garnered a significant amount of public attention as Australian legislation grapples with the rise of the sharing economy such as Airbnb and Uber. The Judge also noted that, despite the public attention:
“This is not a case on the merits of Airbnb arrangements. Neither is it a case on whether or not Airbnb arrangements might be said to be ‘illegal’ – either in some particular or some general, non-legal, sense. Rather it is a case, on appeal, which raises for determination – directly or indirectly – the legal character of this particular Airbnb arrangement and any consequences this characterisation may have in the context of the terms of the lease of the apartment concerned.”
This decision was followed up by the subsequent Supreme Court decision in Owners Corporation PS 501391P v Balcombe [2016] VSC 384 where the court held that Owners Corporations could not make rules to ban landlords from renting their properties using the Airbnb website.
The article first appeared on TressCox Lawyer's <a href="https://www.tresscox.com.au/" target="_blank">website</a>.
</body></html>

j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Property 101: Airbnb guests breached tenants lease of property

<html><body>
There are Airbnb properties with some odd qualities. Property Observer looks at six of them:
1. The <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/7042427?guests=1&amp;adults=1&amp;children=0&amp;infants=0&amp;s=KJXy1ujm" target="_blank">Dollhouse</a> at Kingscote, South Australia is a historic cabin in the heart of town.
It features a loft bedroom with a queen bed, kitchen downstairs and lounge and other amenities.
It is available from $85 per night.
2. A one bedroom unit shaped like <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/1602856?guests=1&amp;adults=1&amp;children=0&amp;infants=0&amp;s=CFeeFIKz" target="_blank">an igloo</a> at Trinity Beach, Queensland is set around an octagonal swimming pool with Trinity Beach just a short walk away.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/01/23/Airbnb-2.jpg" alt="">
It is available for $115 per night
3. A one bedroom home called <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/999067?guests=1&amp;adults=1&amp;children=0&amp;infants=0&amp;s=CFeeFIKz" target="_blank">the Stable</a> at Richmond, Victoria is named because a stable had been renovated to become a home.
One guest stated, "The Stables were great. Close to public transport and close enough to the city to pop in and out.
The place was adorable and exactly what it looks like in the pictures"
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/01/23/Airbnb-3.jpg" alt="">
It is available for $101 per night.
4. A <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/4647524?guests=1&amp;adults=1&amp;children=0&amp;infants=0&amp;s=CFeeFIKz" target="_blank">1920s tram</a> has been converted into a four bedroom home at Lauriston, Victoria for $340 per night.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/01/23/Airbnb-4.jpg" alt="">
5. A small house in the shape of an <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/1483865?guests=1&amp;adults=1&amp;children=0&amp;infants=0&amp;s=CFeeFIKz" target="_blank">alpine tent</a> in an isolated area is available at Myrrhee, Victoria for $120 per night.
One guest stated, "Fantastic secluded, friendly atmosphere Views are breathtaking Glamping rocks Cant recommend enough."
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/01/23/Airbnb-5.jpg" alt="">
6. A four bedroom <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.airbnb.com.au/rooms/6565539?guests=1&amp;adults=1&amp;children=0&amp;infants=0&amp;s=8cnhUSXX" target="_blank">heritage-listed church</a> at Brisbane, Queensland is available for $290 per night.
One guest stated, "Our stay at the Old Church met and exceeded all expectations.
Such a great, historic site to accomodate us whilst enjoying our time in Brisbane."
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/01/23/Airbnb-6.jpg" alt="">
</body></html>

The six oddest Airbnb homes to rent across Australia

<html><body>
Strata by-laws that impose restrictions on short-term letting, including Airbnb, in residential-only Sydney apartment blocks are invalid and only councils have the authority to take these steps, according to NSW Fair Trading.
The watchdog has modified its Strata Living handbook to warn strata committees and owners corporations that they can’t pass by-laws restricting holiday letting just weeks before a discussion paper on new holiday letting legislation is released. 
“Section 139 (2) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 states that no by-law can prohibit or restrict the devolution of a lot or a transfer, lease, mortgage or other dealing relating to a lot,” a Fair Trading spokesperson for Innovation and Better Regulation Minister Matthew Kean was quoted by Fairfax Media.
The statement was immediately welcomed by peer-to-peer letting platform Airbnb, which said it protected the rights of people to share their own homes.
“Strata laws prevent an owners corporation restricting an owner from letting their lot, including short-term letting,” says a recent amendment to Strata Living. 
“The only way short-term letting can be restricted is by council planning regulations,” it said.
A government spokesperson explained that this means by-laws telling owners that they must abide by local council zoning restrictions are invalid as only local councils can enforce their zoning.
By-laws supporting local zoning have been used by some strata schemes to work around the restrictions on by-laws directly banning short-term letting.
“The local council ‘owns’ the zoning regulation,” the spokesperson told Fairfax Media. “Only they can enforce it.”
Head of public policy ANZ at Airbnb, Brent Thomas added that it was unfair to “discriminate against apartment dwellers, and prevent them from participating in the sharing economy in the same way house dwellers can”. 
However, the ruling has not gone well with strata managements. Reports say local councils are receiving between zero complaints in a year to 10 a month in Sydney areas where short-term letting is most prevalent.
While the due process to turn a discussion paper into a Bill and then passed by Parliament could take a year, the ministry advised that owners can only pursue the issue of short-term letting through their local council.
A senior executive of Owners Corporation Network, which represents strata owners, Karen Stiles said the OCN was awaiting the NSW parliament amending laws to allow owners to effectively manage their communities or “we will see a summer of chaos in Sydney apartment blocks”.
“Local council engagement with this is patchy, to say the least.”
A spokesperson for City of Sydney Council – where residential letting is defined as three months or more – denied that they have backed off from pursuing non-compliant holiday lets but said they had very few complaints, two of which were currently being  pursued.
“The City carefully addresses all reports about short-term letting but has received complaints from only a small number of people,” said the spokesperson.
In contrast, Waverley Council – which covers Bondi Beach – receives about 10 complaints about holiday letting a month, while in Randwick there has been no council action against non-compliant short-term or holiday letting over the past summer.
A spokesperson for Woollahra Council said they had only had a handful of complaints in the past nine months but two of the properties concerned were now applying for official bed and breakfast permits.
They said the complaints were specific such as late-night noise or misuse of waste bins.
Other states have been facing similar issues as well. Last year, research by a <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/expert-insights/51953-queensland-strata-residents-concerned-about-airbnb-security-grant-mifsud" target="_blank">Queensland body corporate</a> company indicated that one in three Queensland strata residents were concerned about apartment security from Airbnb guests.
Commercial short-stay companies like Airbnb are expected to deprive the <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/expert-insights/72645-airbnb-escapes-tax-time-crackdown-but-mum-dad-hosts-left-with-a-bill-marshall-delves" target="_blank">Victorian Government of more than $14 million</a> in uncollected GST.
</body></html>

Airbnb

Editor's Picks

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News

Airbnb

Editor's Picks

Receive the latest news stories to your inbox

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News