Decision Maker: Council
Decision status: Recommendations Determined
Moved by Councillor Jess Miller, seconded by
the Chair (the Lord Mayor) -
It is resolved that:
(A)
Council
note:
(i)
according
to NSW Government data, in 2023, there were 2,468 active and registered
short-term rental accommodation (STRA) properties in the City of Sydney.
However, according to independent data, there were 5,454 active STRA properties
in the City of Sydney. We do not have sufficient data to understand how many
properties are the owners’ principal place of residence that are used for STRA;
(ii)
since
2017, the City has made 4 submissions in response to the NSW Department of
Planning, Housing and Infrastructure’s proposed changes to STRA. The City’s
submissions have recommended reduced caps for non-hosted short-term rentals;
(iii)
the NSW
Government’s planning framework for STRA came into effect in 2021;
(iv)
weaknesses
and loopholes in the government’s framework have led to the commercialisation
of the sector at scale, with professional STRA operators hosting multiple
properties and actively marketing known Sydney 'hotspots’ as ideal for absentee
owners to invest in and profit from;
(v)
enforcement
action is impossible due to the inaccuracy and unavailability of data on the
NSW Planning Portal’s short term accommodation register, such as verified
identification and financial records;
(vi)
STRA
registration should be linked to a Service NSW account to ensure accurate and
fulsome identification information;
(vii)
unless
the problem of accessing the records needed for enforcement action is resolved,
the day cap restriction on non-hosted STRA is unenforceable in practice;
(viii)
in
2023, Council resolved to commission a report to investigate the impacts STRA
is having on rental affordability and availability, and tourist accommodation
in our local area. The Lord Mayor provided a copy of our findings and
recommendations to the NSW Government to consider as part of its own review;
(ix)
the
report’s financial analysis found that STRA was more profitable than long term
rentals in many City of Sydney suburbs, despite the 180 day cap on non-hosted
rentals;
(x)
the
report identifies several recommendations, largely within the NSW Government’s
control, to improve the regulation of STRA and address its impact on housing
availability and affordability, including:
(a)
the
professional commercialisation of STRA must be reduced by introducing
restrictions that incentivise long-term leases over STRA;
(b)
STRA
regulation and enforcement must be improved by increasing requirements for
booking platforms, enhancing identity verification when registering a property
and improving data sharing between government and councils;
(c)
reduce
the existing 180-day cap according to financial modelling to deter ‘absentee
landlords’ and the exclusive use of dwellings for STRA; and
(d)
support
a state-wide levy on STRA and use funds for Affordable Housing;
(xi)
in
March 2024, the NSW Government consulted on a Discussion Paper, seeking
feedback on the policy and regulatory framework for STRA as well as options to
increase the supply of long-term rental accommodation;
(xii)
the NSW
Government has not yet reported on its review or responded to the City's
recommendations;
(xiii)
given
the housing affordability crisis it is essential the NSW Government urgently
reforms the STRA planning and regulatory framework to enable the potential
return of over a thousand homes to the long-term rental market; and
(xiv)
in
light of the worsening housing affordability crisis and shortage of long-term
rental accommodation and delay in acting on this issue, it is recommended that
the NSW Government take swift action that will immediately unlock housing
options; and
(B)
the
Lord Mayor be requested to write to:
(i)
the
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Paul Scully and the Minister for
Housing Rose Jackson, urging the NSW Government to:
(a)
commit
to incentivising long-term leases and disincentivising Sydney as a hotspot for
‘absentee landlords’ and operations that use dwellings exclusively to profit
from STRA;
(b)
urgently
report back on its STRA review including a response to the City's
recommendations; and
(c)
improve
the registration and identification process for short-term rental accommodation
registrations as a first step to enabling enforcement; and
(ii)
the
Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading, Anoulack Chanthivong,
encouraging the NSW Government to:
(a)
close
existing loopholes and weaknesses in the registration and enforcement process
through strengthening and consolidating data collection across the STRA
Registry, Service NSW and other relevant agencies;
(b)
consider
how the NSW Rental Commissioner might take responsibility for the coordination
and sharing of accurate data with councils to enable effective real-time short
and long-term rental information to better inform strategic planning decisions;
and
(c)
empower
and properly assign resources to the Office of Fair Trading to undertake
greater monitoring and enforcement of cap breaches based on better data and
registration processes; and that fines for breaches be issued with the intent
to unlock the commercial short-term rental market for long-term leases.
Amendment. Moved by Councillor Ellsmore,
seconded by Councillor Thompson –
That the motion be amended by the addition of
a clause (C) –
(C)
the Chief
Executive Officer be requested to prepare advice for Council about:
(i)
amendments
that could be made through council planning instruments to reduce the current
cap on short term rental accommodation to 90 days or less; and
(ii)
other
opportunities to use council planning rules to limit or ban unhosted short term
rental accommodation in areas most impacted by a high percentage of short term
rental accommodation.
The
amendment was lost on the following show of hands –
Ayes (3) Councillors
Ellsmore, Thompson and Weldon
Noes (7) The Chair (the Lord Mayor), Councillors Wilson (Arkins),
Gannon, Kok, Maxwell, Miller and Worling.
Amendment lost.
Amendment. Moved by Councillor Ellsmore, seconded by
Councillor Thompson –
That the motion be amended such that (B)(i)
read as follows -
(B) the Lord
Mayor be requested to write to:
(i)
the
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, Paul Scully and the Minister for
Housing Rose Jackson, urging the NSW Government to:
(a)
commit to incentivising long-term leases and
disincentivising Sydney as a hotspot for ‘absentee landlords’ and operations
that use dwellings exclusively to profit from STRA, including through
legislative reform that empowers councils to:
i.
mandate
that non hosted short term rental accommodation can only be conducted in a
person’s principal place of residence; and
ii.
give
council’s the power to impose a vacant property levy or similar, to discourage
investors from leaving properties vacant for extended periods of time;
(b)
urgently
report back on its STRA review including a response to the City's
recommendations; and
(c)
improve
the registration and identification process for short-term rental accommodation
registrations as a first step to enabling enforcement; and
The amendment was lost on the following show of
hands –
Ayes (2) Councillors
Ellsmore and Thompson
Noes
(8) The Chair (the Lord Mayor), Councillors Gannon, Kok, Maxwell, Miller,
Weldon, Wilson (Arkins), and Worling.
Amendment
lost.
Variation. At the request of Councillor Wilson (Arkins), and by consent, the motion was varied, such that (B) read as follows –
(B)
the Lord Mayor be requested to write to:
(i)
the Minister
for Better Regulation and Fair Trading, Anoulack Chanthivong, requesting the
NSW Government to commit to incentivising long term leases and disincentivising
Sydney as a hotspot for “absentee landlords” and operations that use dwellings
exclusively to profit from STRA;
(ii)
the Minister
for Housing, Rose Jackson, to urgently report back on its STRA review including
a response to the City’s recommendations;
(iii) the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces,
Paul Scully and Minister for Customer Service, Jihad Dib, requesting to improve
the registration and identification process for short term rental accommodation
registrations as a first step to enabling enforcement;
(iv) the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces,
Paul Scully and Minister for Customer Service, Jihad Dib, encouraging the NSW
Government to close existing loopholes and weaknesses in the registration and
enforcement process through strengthening and consolidating data collection
across the STRA Registry, Service NSW and other relevant agencies;
(v)
the Minister
for Better Regulation and Fair Trading, Anoulack Chanthivong, requesting the
NSW Government to consider how the NSW Rental Commissioner might take
responsibility for the coordination and sharing of accurate data with councils
to enable effective real-time short and long term rental information to better
inform strategic planning decisions, and information to better inform strategic
planning decisions; and
(vi) the Minister
for Better Regulation and Fair Trading, Anoulack Chanthivong, requesting that
the NSW Government empower and properly assign resources to the Office of Fair
Trading to undertake greater monitoring and enforcement of cap breaches based
on better data and registration processes, and that fines for breaches be
issued with the intent to unlock the commercial short term rental market for
long term leases.
The motion, as varied by consent, was carried unanimously.
X113761
Report author: Erin Cashman
Publication date: 17/02/2025
Date of decision: 17/02/2025
Decided at meeting: 17/02/2025 - Council
Accompanying Documents: