When you have to tell the mayor's office if your boyfriend lives with you
When you have to tell the mayor's office if your boyfriend lives with you
An Airbnb lawsuit. And some music! #44
Screengrab: Inside Airbnb
At this moment, there are nearly 43,000 Airbnb listings in New York City. Most of them – 56.6% – are entire homes or apartments.
The proliferation of these listings was what led the City Council to introduce a bill in 2021 that would require people doing short-term rental listings to register with the city, under the Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement. The idea was to make it harder to short-term rent, thus opening more apartments for long-term rentals. The law has worried some in New York City who use Airbnb to rent their homes or apartments – and on Thursday, they, along with Airbnb, filed separate lawsuits to stop the continued enforcement of the rule.
For the tenants renting their places, they said the required disclosures – like letting them know when a romantic partner moves in or out of their house – invade their privacy. And that the paperwork is so complicated it creates a de facto ban.
Those who use the service say the flexibility of being able to rent their homes is the only way they can stay in New York City as things become more and more expensive. Some said short-term rentals were the only way they could afford the property taxes and water bills and all the other costs that add up to living in one of the most expensive cities in the world.
The mayor’s office said that the laws have been in place for a while and everyone should have their ducks in a row by now. Meanwhile, I’ve been having fun scrolling the Inside Airbnb map for all the listings by my apartment.
You can read the full story here.
🌟 Other interesting reads: 🌟
New York City’s sheriff at one point in recent history hawked a badge that claimed to protect the person wearing it from COVID. [THE CITY]
Early voting for City Council races starts in 15 days. We have a guide for your district!!! [THE CITY]
I know last week I told my readers not to pick up surfing. But I wanted to share my friend Paula’s reflections on her year as a surfer – including a story of being surrounded by a bunch of scary dolphins, an experience she ultimately found beautiful. I’ve enjoyed following her journey as a surfer. And now that I know folks are out in the water chatting and gossiping, I may join them, without ANY expectation of catching any waves. [THE WAVE]
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LISTEN
“My Time” by Roberto Cacciapaglia
”New York” by Roost.World
”South Carolina” by Helen Driesen (full disclosure, my cousin, but the song comes out today so show some love! Also on Spotify)
I hope you had a great long weekend last week. Here are some photos from my three days, which included a pig roast, lots of live music, and really nice wallpaper.
Thanks for reading!