[URBAN NOTE] "What is Vancouver doing with Airbnb, and what does it mean for Toronto?"

[rfmcdonald]

Metro's May Warren reports on Vancouver's measures to limit Airbnb's impact on the market for renters. What is Toronto doing, the article goes on to ask?

Vancouver’s quest to regulate sites like Airbnb could serve as a blueprint for Toronto as the city grapples with the effects of short-term rentals on the housing market, experts say.

The west coast city is proposing bylaws that would ban so-called ghost hotels -- short-term rentals that people aren’t living in -- and require business licences for anyone using Airbnb.

Vacancy rates in Vancouver are at historic lows, and the move is an attempt to bring 1,000 rental units back onto the market, Mayor Gregor Robertson told reporters Wednesday.

Thorben Wieditz, a researcher with Unite Here Local 75, which represents hospitality workers, applauded Vancouver’s proposal as a “great first step.”

Combined with their new vacancy tax, Wieditz, said Vancouver is “leading the charge” on making sure that rental units are not taken off the market for short-term stays.