It makes living in Ladner more affordable for her family.
That’s what the owner of multiple Airbnbs is telling city council in response to a recent article in the Optimist in which some residents raised concerns about the short term rentals including their impact on the longer term rental market.
In a recent letter to council, Olga Steel, who did not want comment in the original story, wrote she has been renting in Ladner since she moved to the community 12 years ago and a few years ago decided to rent an entire house which they were allowed to sublet. Last year they decided invest in furniture and décor for a suite to put it on Airbnb “to try help make living in Ladner more affordable for our family.”
She noted they were “pleasantly surprised at the demand. While many guests were travelers and tourist, others were local couples/families who needed something short term because of a renovation they were doing, while other guests were families from Korea whose children were part of the International Student exchange program. All of these guests had a need for something short term in Ladner. All of them were so thankful for the option to be able to stay in Ladner at our place whether it was for one night or for three months.”
Steel noted they decided to expand their business because of the demand.
“The other properties that we make available are rented by us off of owners who like the fact that we are stable tenants, we invest money/time/energy into making sure their home is in top shape for guests, and that their home gets cleaned regularly and has an active eye on it all all times,” Steel explained.
Outlining several reasons why short term rentals are positive for the community, Steel noted, “After hosting nearly 1,000 guests in Ladner alone since July 2017 I can tell you that the response to our service has been overwhelmingly positive from local residents.”
Clair Oates, owner of Clair’s Bed & Breakfast in Ladner Village, also wrote to mayor and council outlining several concerns about Airbnb and other short-term rental services, saying changes to Vancouver’s bylaws to deal with them has resulted in a huge influx to the Delta area.
Also speaking on behalf of the B.C. Bed and Breakfast Innkeepers Guild, Oates said her own bookings have dropped by 30 per cent since a year ago. She also noted her neighbours are frustrated about noise and parking issues from the short term renters.
“I am fully accepting of other legitimate accommodation providers if they follow the rules. I pay my municipal business licence and carry full liability insurance for the protection of my guests and my property. I have annual fire department inspections and am inspected by the municipality on the nature of business on my licence…I would like to request that Mayor and Council alter Delta bylaws to require that Airbnb’s operate within the rules set out Airbnb as well as the rules of our municipality,” she wrote.
A memo by civic staff to council explains that the current zoning bylaw allows a single detached dwelling to either be occupied by the owners or rented to a family or up to four unrelated people. Similarly, an approved secondary suite can also either be occupied by the owner or rented. If the dwelling does not contain a secondary suite, the zoning bylaw allows two boarders.
“Boarder means an individual renting and occupying a sleeping unit and the definition does not specify a minimum duration of stay. Short term rentals such as Airbnb and similar sites that offer tourist accommodation in residences for short stays is an emerging issue and requires review and formulation of regulations for consideration of Council. This item is included in staff’s list of Zoning Bylaw related items identified for future action. A Council Workshop will be scheduled in the future on this topic.”
Reports recently surfaced that hundreds of people are ignoring the City of Vancouver’s new regulations by operating short-term rental accommodation without the necessary business licence or by contravening licence conditions.
