NSW mulls levy on Airbnb rentals to fix housing crunch

Tourists could be hit with levies for Airbnb-style rentals to steer more homes towards  residential leases as NSW considers hardening its approach.

A short-term rental booking surcharge, already in place in Germany, France and the United States, is among the options being considered by the state to better balance tourism with housing affordability.

Property investors could also be incentivised to shift into the long-term rental market.

Non-hosted short-term rentals make up more than five per cent of homes in the council areas covering Byron Bay, the Alps and the NSW south coast, raising concerns they are compounding the decline in housing affordability and contributing to rising numbers of people sleeping rough.

Also up for discussion are more restrictive day caps for the state's 35,000 non-hosted short-term rentals, and revenue measures on all forms of short-term rental accommodation.

While wanting to protect the positive role short-term rentals play in the tourism economy, the NSW government said it wanted to balance that with impacts on housing affordability.

"One of the challenges that we have is our regulatory regime is still relatively new and quite light touch," Housing Minister Rose Jackson told reporters on Thursday.

"This is a good time to look at it.

"I'm not coming into this with any preconceived ideas."

Every option to tackle the homelessness crisis had to be on the table, Homelessness NSW said.

"Homelessness NSW strongly endorses using revenue from any short-term accommodation reform to increase funding for homelessness solutions," chief executive Dom Rowe said.

"Underfunded and overfull frontline services are forced to make heartbreaking choices about who to help, with one in every two people turned away."

For Lease sign outside a home.
NSW is looking at a levy on Airbnb-style rentals as a way to address the lack of housing options.

Airbnb appears supportive of the tourism levy approach, noting the taxes have raised $10 billion globally, ideally when set in the range of three to five per cent.

But it stressed non-hosted short-term rentals made up just one in every 100 NSW homes.

"It is important the review gets the balance right so the core issue of housing affordability is addressed, without jeopardising the economic benefits that flow from short-term rentals," said Airbnb local head of public policy Michael Crosby.

"Airbnb (is) contributing billions to the NSW economy and supporting tens of thousands of jobs."

From 2025, Western Australia will offer $10,000 to investors who lease their properties to long-term tenants.

Victoria, meanwhile, expects to raise $70 million a year by slugging tourists 7.5 per cent on all short-term rental accommodation bookings from 2025.

The state also levies a vacancy tax in inner and middle Melbourne as a way to open up housing options.

NSW has about 95,000 residential properties not used for long-term housing, including 35,000 used as non-hosted short-term rentals throughout the year.

The debate over the future of short-term rentals comes ahead of the cap on non-hosted short-term rentals in Byron Shire being lowered from September, to 60 days per year.

Exceptions exist for Byron Bay Town Centre and Brunswick Heads, as well as properties rented for longer than 21 days at a time.

License this article

What is AAPNews?

For the first time, Australian Associated Press is delivering news straight to the consumer.

No ads. No spin. News straight-up.

Not only do you get to enjoy high-quality news delivered straight to your desktop or device, you do so in the knowledge you are supporting media diversity in Australia.

AAP Is Australia’s only independent newswire service, free from political and commercial influence, producing fact-based public interest journalism across a range of topics including politics, courts, sport, finance and entertainment.

What is AAPNews?
The Morning Wire

Wake up to AAPNews’ morning news bulletin delivered straight to your inbox or mobile device, bringing you up to speed with all that has happened overnight at home and abroad, as well as setting you up what the day has in store.

AAPNews Morning Wire
AAPNews Breaking News
Breaking News

Be the first to know when major breaking news happens.


Notifications will be sent to your device whenever a big story breaks, ensuring you are never in the dark when the talking points happen.

Focused Content

Enjoy the best of AAP’s specialised Topics in Focus. AAP has reporters dedicated to bringing you hard news and feature content across a range of specialised topics including Environment, Agriculture, Future Economies, Arts and Refugee Issues.

AAPNews Focussed Content
Subscription Plans

Choose the plan that best fits your needs. AAPNews offers two basic subscriptions, all billed monthly.

Once you sign up, you will have seven days to test out the service before being billed.

AAPNews Full Access Plan
Full Access
AU$10
  • Enjoy all that AAPNews has to offer
  • Access to breaking news notifications and bulletins
  • Includes access to all AAPNews’ specialised topics
Join Now
AAPNews Student Access Plan
Student Access
AU$5
  • Gain access via a verified student email account
  • Enjoy all the benefits of the ‘Full Access’ plan at a reduced rate
  • Subscription renews each month
Join Now
AAPNews Annual Access Plan
Annual Access
AU$99
  • All the benefits of the 'Full Access' subscription at a discounted rate
  • Subscription automatically renews after 12 months
Join Now

AAPNews also offers enterprise deals for businesses so you can provide an AAPNews account for your team, organisation or customers. Click here to contact AAP to sign-up your business today.

SEVEN DAYS FREE
Download the app
Download AAPNews on the App StoreDownload AAPNews on the Google Play Store