Capping short-term rentals like Airbnb and Stayz would barely make a dent in the nation's shortage of homes to let, a property market analysis has shown.
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Short-term accommodation comprises just 1.2 per cent of the national total housing stock and removing all short-term listings would be "unlikely to make a meaningful impact of the housing market", the study by property research organisation PAR Group found.
One of the report's authors, Rob Ellis, said claims that capping short-term rentals like Airbnb would free up more homes for long-term rentals were not backed by the evidence.
"It's a cheap, easy target," Mr Ellis said.
"People are saying we could solve the [housing] problem by capping short-term accommodation, but when you dig into it, the evidence is not there."
Mr Ellis said banning or limiting short-term rentals would have the opposite effect that advocates were seeking, warning it would deter many from offering properties to rent altogether as well as potentially harming hospitality and tourism by limiting accommodation choices for visitors.
The property researcher said many landlords preferred the higher returns and flexibility of short-term rentals and if they were forced into letting to tenants for extended periods it was likely to a significant proportion would decline to lease altogether.
An analysis of five tourism "hot spots" in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia found short-term rentals could command a 73 per cent premium compared with hotels because they usually offered greater space and more amenities, Mr Ellis said.
Many landlords were unlikely to give that up for the lower returns and reduced flexibility of a long-term tenant, he warned.
Mr Ellis said that instead of short-term rentals, policymakers should look at the 10.1 per cent of homes - approximately 1.1 million - that on any given night were standing empty.
Ultimately, he said, the "long-term solution to the housing shortage and reducing the pressure on rental growth is increasing housing supply".
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The ACT Greens' Johnathan Davis, who has advocated for regulation of short-term rentals in the ACT, said the analysis was an unhelpful contribution to the debate and appeared to have been written "on behalf of the short-term rental industry".
"[What] the report fails to appreciate is that every single full property on the short-term rental market would otherwise be a permanent long-term home for a real person," Mr Davis said.
Mr Davis said regulation of short-term rentals would not greatly affect the tourism economy but would help alleviate shortages in housing.
"We're not in a tourism crisis, we're in a housing crisis," he said.
Mr Davis said he believed it was unsustainable that short-term rental owners were allowed to operate on a "all profit, no responsibility when you compare it to being a landlord or being a hotelier".
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