A Wyndham councillor is keen to establish an Airbnb register to regulate the region’s short-stay rental market.
Cr Intaj Khan said a number of Wyndham property owners were turning residences into businesses and were making more money by renting out their vacant properties on Airbnb rather than the long-term private rental market.
Cr Khan said while he encouraged business and tourism in the area, it was important that the market be regulated.
Under his proposal, Wyndham Airbnb operators would pay the council a small annual fee and would have to comply with occupational health and safety standards.
“Legally, you’re using a property for a business use,” Cr Khan said.
“If you’re running a business, you have to maintain [certain] standards.”
Cr Khan said it was also important for neighbourhood safety that Airbnb properties were identified, and for prospective home buyers to know the character of an area populated by a number of Airbnb properties.
He said the idea was spawned following the trashing of an Airbnb house in Werribee on December 20, with four girls from Dandenong renting out the Attunga Grove property.
“People should know that next door is an Airbnb property,” Cr Khan said.
“A resident should have a right to know what’s going on in their street.”
In Tasmania, owners can rent out up to four rooms in a home without a permit, but must register with local government if renting out larger properties.
Cr Khan said he would ask Wyndham council to conduct a feasibility study into a local Airbnb register.
