Airbnb pushes to loosen restrictions on renting in NYC before potential Mamdani admin
Airbnb is seeking a change in New York City’s regulations to ease restrictions on its operations before a potential change in administration to Mamdani.
The company is urging the City Council to amend a 2023 law that has severely limited most Airbnb listings in the city.
Under the proposed legislation, owners of single-family homes would be permitted to offer rentals without the hosts’ presence for less than 30 days. Additionally, the city’s guest limit would be raised from two to four.
The new legislation aims to address Local Law 18, a law enacted two years ago that has negatively impacted Airbnb and the short-term rental market in New York City.
The proposed legislation stands to have the most impact on homeowners in Brooklyn and Queens, where hosts have expressed financial strain due to limitations on renting to families and guests who prefer privacy during their vacations.
A draft bill that would have relaxed Airbnb restrictions was withdrawn in February following opposition from the hotel industry and other groups.
Opponents of the current bill argue that Airbnb may eventually seek to deregulate all hosts, including apartments in Manhattan that have largely disappeared from Airbnb platforms.
Airbnb has allocated significant funds to support a political action committee backing City Council members willing to reconsider the strict requirements of Local Law 18, including Brooklyn Dem Mercedes Narcisse, the sponsor of the new bill.
Neither mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani nor independent Andrew Cuomo have publicly commented on the proposed changes to the city’s Airbnb law.
Airbnb has criticized the current law for failing to improve housing affordability as intended.
According to a source close to the company, Airbnb anticipates that the new bill will be voted on before the end of the year.
Next in the process is a Council Housing Committee hearing scheduled for Nov. 13.
The current regulations mandate hosts to register with the city and ensure their homes comply with strict building, zoning, and other codes, with penalties of up to $5,000 for non-compliance.
In June, the Office of Special Enforcement, responsible for regulating the home-sharing industry in the city, sent warning letters to 500 of the 3,000 registered short-term rental hosts, with five facing the possibility of having their licenses revoked.
