PROPOSAL TO CUT SHORT TERM RENTALS
The West Australian Government is considering a serious proposal to cut short term rentals to less than 60 days per year. In doing so, it will be harming a huge number of West Australians who need the extra income they derive from booking engines like AirBnB and HomeAway Stayz to survive. This smacks in the face of many people who’s incomes have been severely impacted by government enforced border closures.
The irony is that all bookings generated through these OBEs (online booking engines) actually generate tax revenue for the government, the employees of which never skip a pay cheque, on any day, because of COVID. West Australians are funding the very government departments that want to deny them an extra income.
Overview
What?
The WA government is seeking public comment on its policy proposals for regulating short-term rental accommodation (STRA) in the state.
When?
Public consultation commenced on 06 December 2021 and closes on 07 March 2022.
How?
The consultation is being conducted via two seperate processes. Both require a survey to be completed.
Survey 1: Proposed statewide registration scheme. This consists of 1 question asking for your views.
Survey 2: Planning policy proposals outline in the Planning for Tourism Position Statement and Guidelines. This consists of 21 questions including:
- Whether the 60-day cap on unhosted accommodation is appropriate;
- Whether hosted accommodation should be exempt from development approval: and
- Changes to planning definitions.
What is the government proposing?
In brief, the government is proposing:
• Allowing local councils to continue regulating short-term rentals under local planning schemes. In practice, this means 139 different sets of rules will continue across WA
• Concerningly, local councils have also been granted even more discretion to regulate short-term rentals, including imposing onerous rules at constant risk of changing.
• A 60 day cap on unhosted accommodation, which may significantly reduce the number of days Hosts can share their homes. It’s the most restrictive cap in Australia and a step backwards for WA. Currently, all forms of STRA are permitted to advertise and operate 365 days a year.
• An exemption for hosted accommodation is also proposed, meaning you can share your home while you are there without the need for development approval.
For those of you who are home owners and do place properties on AirBnb etc, we urge you to read this Airbnb guide to making a submission. You do have a voice and the ability to comment on these proposals. You should also follow the two-step submission process as guided in this linked document.
