Landlords are increasingly using popular short term letting website Airbnb to advertise their properties as short-term holiday lets – thus avoiding their legal responsibilities. Research carried out by the Residential Landlords Association found that 61% of London property lets were for 90 days or more. These landlords are falling foul of the law as short-term lets can be no longer than 90 days per calendar year.
Airbnb No Longer Used as a Casual Letting Website
41% of landlords on Airbnb had multiple property listings, which indicates the website is maturing from a casual letting portal into a more commercialised venture used by professional landlords.
Landlords and Tenants Abuse System
As a result, the RLA fears many tenants renting properties advertised via Airbnb are not being protected. There is also a concern that tenants are using the website to sub-let properties without permission from their landlord.
“London more than anywhere else in the country is in desperate need of more homes to rent and to buy,” says David Smith, Policy Director at the RLA.
“Given the pressures faced in the capital it is important that properties advertised as being available for more than 90 days a year are genuine holiday lets with appropriate planning permission. Otherwise, as well as taking rental stock off the market for those looking for somewhere to live, they are also putting tenants in a vulnerable position without all the protections offered by a tenancy agreement.”
The RLA is calling on the government to improve the policing of such sites to ensure they are not being abused.
