Airbnb Report, February 18, 2020
From: Cold Spring Area Chamber of Commerce
To: Putnam County Legislature
Putnam County Economic and Energy Committee
Statement on Short-term Rentals, Airbnb, and Room Taxes
February 18, 2020
SUMMARY
The board of the Cold Spring Area Chamber of Commerce supports short-term rentals, such as Airbnbs, if they are clearly defined in applicable zoning codes, regulated to protect public health and safety and the environment, and fairly taxed so they contribute to the region’s economic growth. We are particularly concerned that steps must be taken to prevent the use of residential properties solely as short-term rentals. Such conversions deplete the residential building stock, erode neighborhoods, and compete unfairly with the hotel industry. Our position is based on a careful reading of current regulations in communities across New York State, data provided by Airbnb and state tourism officials, a community survey conducted by the Chamber, and comments from Philipstown residents and business owners at public meetings held by the Chamber and the Village of Cold Spring.
BACKGROUND
Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress* reported last year that tourism is the second fastest-growing economic sector in the mid-Hudson region. Visitors to the region spend more on lodging (20%–30% of their tourist expenditures) than on food services, transportation, retail, or recreation. In 2019 Airbnb ranked the Hudson Valley and the Catskill Mountains eleventh** out of the nineteen most popular destinations for guests around the world. Putnam County in 2018 had ninety Airbnb hosts***, who lodged 8,700 guests and each earned an average of $8,700 in Airbnb income.****
Putnam County has benefited from the rise in tourism: visitors have spent $63–$65 million annually in the county during the past few years. There is room for growth in this number. Of the six counties comprising the Hudson Valley region, Putnam generates the least in tourism dollars (Westchester produces the most), and it underperforms the others when they are compared on an equalized basis of size or population. Putnam’s recently established Department of Tourism will expand the number of visitors. Accommodating ever-more tourists in communities that are often historic, heavily residential, and averse to development requires a diverse range of solutions. Hotels can fill some of the demand, appealing to those who want full-service options
*Out of Alignment, An Abstract, Mid-Hudson Valley from the Great Recession to 2030 (October 2019), by Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress
**The Economic Impact of Tourism in New York (2018), by Tourism Economics, and Where Do Visitors Spend the Most (and Least) Money in New York’s 62 Counties? (Aug. 31, 2018), by Advanced Local NY.
*** https://news.airbnb.com/airbnb-reveals-the-19-destinations-to-visit-in-2019/
****“Hudson Valley Airbnb Hosts Earn $50M in 2018, Ulster Tops,” Lohud (https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/2019/01/29/hudson-valley-airbnb-hosts-earn-50-m-2018/252477 9002/).
in food, drink, and housekeeping. Airbnb offers an essential complementary solution, serving a broader range of budgets and locations. In historic village destinations, such as Cold Spring, there is little place for new hotel-style developments. Visitor accommodations in owner-occupied homes can meet market needs, while also giving residents supplemental income that may enable them to remain in their homes and maintain the buildings in good condition.
Historically, many middle-class households rented spare rooms to travelers, contract workers, and other short-term occupants. The only fundamental change created by online services like Airbnb is that they allow the practice to occur more easily. This greater ease means that sensible regulation is needed to prevent the harmful effects of excessive short-term renting, such as the following:
Speculation in short-term-rental properties can drive up real estate prices, causing a shortage of affordable housing stock for residents.
The conversion of homes to short-terms rentals not occupied by their owners deprives neighborhoods of residents, causing a drop in public school enrollment, a reduction in the pool of volunteers for government and other forms of service, and a general loss of community feeling.
Group vacation activities by renters can disturb quiet residential neighborhoods and place additional demands on local law enforcement.
If inadequately taxed, short-term rentals compete unfairly with hotels and profit from local amenities and services without contributing to them.
If inadequately regulated, short-term rentals can endanger public health and safety and the environment.
RECOMMENDATIONS
At the state level, we ask for new regulations requiring short-term rentals to be defined in codes as home-based hospitality businesses that must be registered with local authorities. Operators of short-term rentals must collect sales tax on transactions just as hotels do.
At the county level, we recommend the creation of a room tax for short-term rentals, hotels, and motels. A room tax would provide the county and its municipalities with funding for initiatives to better manage tourism (such as constructing and maintaining public restrooms, upgrading sidewalks, developing new parking facilities, collecting waste, creating and staffing visitors’ centers, and producing signage, maps, and other guides). Neighboring New York counties, such as Ulster, Orange, Dutchess, and Westchester, have imposed room taxes ranging from 2% to 6% without seeing any drop in tourism growth.
At the town and village levels, we recommend that short-term-rental businesses be defined in codes and permitted in residential districts. Common sense updates to zoning codes that recognize the potential benefits of short-term rentals will support local economic growth without detriment to the community. The Village of Irvington passed sensible short-term-rental legislation that we recommend as a model. These are its main points:
Short-term rentals are permitted only in one- and two-family homes that comply with zoning and building codes.
Short-term rentals are allowed only with an annual permit, which costs $250 in the first year and $150 if renewed for a subsequent year.
The property must be the owner’s primary residence and have been its present size for five years.
The rental is not available for parties or events.
The owner or a surrogate must be within thirty minutes to respond to complaints.
The owner is responsible for ensuring that all garbage, recycling, and snow-removal requirements are complied with at the property.
A property may be rented for no more than 180 days in a year. When the limit is reached, the owner must occupy the residence for 90 days before renting may resume after the start of the next annual cycle.
No more than fifty permits are approved at any one time.
In drafting these recommendations, the Cold Spring Area Chamber of Commerce has not favored the interests of any particular group. Rather, the Chamber has weighed all the available commentary from business owners and residents in the community and given first priority to the goal of supporting the area’s economic development while preventing the detrimental effects of development on business owners, residents, and the region’s natural resources.
Thank you for taking the time to read and consider our report and its recommendations.