The ruthless, haughty Cersei Lannister was forced to walk naked down a majestic staircase in the finale of the fifth season of Game of Thrones. That scene, which was filmed in 2014, established Dubrovnik a city of just 41,500 inhabitants that is known as the gem of the Adriatic Sea into an eternal vacation destination. Today, traversing its Jesuit Stairs and surrounding streets in mid-August can be a desperate endeavor. Crowds fill every nook, and prices are exorbitant.
As investors become more sophisticated and debt service coverage ratio (DSCR) lending continues to grow, the appraisal has moved from a back-office requirement to a central risk-control mechanism, especially for income-driven loans. STR income does not behave like traditional rental income; yet, it is often evaluated using tools and assumptions designed for long-term leases. When nightly pricing, seasonality, operational intensity and regulatory exposure enter the equation, the old appraisal playbook starts to break down.
The law that the council approved does not allow for short-term rentals of residences, like those listed on Airbnb or VRBO. The council also set penalties for people found to be listing their homes for short-term tenants. A first warning would cost $1,500, which would increase to $3,000 at the second warning, a third warning would incur a fine of $5,000. The law also allows the city to request data from websites for short-term rental listings for enforcement reasons.
According to data shared with SFGATE by AirDNA - an analytics firm focused on STR companies like Airbnb - this year there were roughly 500 more listings added in Santa Clara County for the week of Feb. 2 compared with last year. The county had about 3,200 available listing nights for that week in February last year, but that has jumped to roughly 3,700 this year for the week during the Super Bowl.
Homeowners would have to apply for a license to rent out their primary residence. When asked how the rules and tax collection would be enforced, community development director Bryan Swanson said that the city and consultants who work with travel booking websites would be in charge of making sure that revenue is collected appropriately and that visitors are following the rules.
Hospitality is supposed to be about comfort, leisure and service, not guests using words like stranded or homeless. Yet those were the terms popping up in headlines this week as Sonder's collapse rippled through buildings around the world. The short-term rental operator, once a proptech darling and a $2 billion public company, announced it's preparing to file for Chapter 7 liquidation in the U.S., with parallel insolvency proceedings abroad. Operations ceased almost immediately.
Tesla is now in the business of short-term car rentals, as the company tries to mitigate falling sales in the US following the expiry of federal tax credits for electric vehicles. Rentals are currently being offered in two California Tesla stores in San Diego and Costa Mesa, with plans to expand to more locations by the end of this year, Electrek reports.
We were stressed about Hurricane Melissa. Authorities told us it would be a Category Five hurricane. They said, "We've never had a hurricane like this before. It's going to wreck the place. Prepare, prepare, prepare." When it finally arrived, it wasn't the worst I've lived through, but it was rough. I sheltered at home with my wife, and the wind and rain were so strong that we couldn't see anything. Outside our window, it was all just white - a white spray of water everywhere.
The restaurants and hotels along the Riviera Maya's golden mile in Mexico have a few visitors, but nothing is crowded. It's the low season that's the mantra repeated by hoteliers, shopkeepers, and even the mayor. The situation would be typical for this time of year the end of hurricane and seaweed season were it not for the official tourism figures showing that hotel occupancy dropped by more than 10% in September.
He and his wife purchased a five-acre property with the intention of opening a campground-like retreat made up of four Airstream trailers that visitors could rent on Airbnb. After spending five years and over $250,000 preparing to open - a process that included restoring the vintage Airstream trailers by hand, connecting those trailers to utilities systems, moving through permitting processes and developing business and marketing plans - Troy's venture was up and running for about a week.
This covers any types of short-term (less than 90 days at a time) rentals to tourists - that would include renting out on Airbnb or similar online platforms, renting as a gite or rentals organised through other means. Any property listed as a maison secondaire (second home) that is rented out to tourists, even just for a couple of weeks of the year, now needs to be registered with local authorities as a meuble de tourisme.
The rationale behind the crackdown was twofold: First, it was meant to tame the influx of tourists who were impacting the quality of life of local residents who were left feeling crowded out of their own neighborhoods. The second objective was to boost housing inventory for locals, with the belief that the ban on short-term rentals would increase the housing stock as units that had been repurposed for tourism would revert back to long-term housing.
The surge in short-term rentals is altering the landscape of quiet neighborhoods, causing disruptions and raising concerns among long-term residents. Local governments, such as the town of Wells, ME, are grappling with the challenge of balancing the economic benefits of tourism with preserving the character and tranquility of residential areas affected by STRs. Maine's approach to regulating STRs primarily occurs at the local level, with varying requirements such as annual permits, adherence to safety standards, and zoning restrictions in different municipalities.
As Labor Day approaches, there is a surge in demand for short-term rentals in coastal areas of the U.S., indicating a strong desire among travelers for one last summer getaway. Despite economic uncertainties, Americans are indulging in travel, with July bookings reaching record levels, according to the latest data from AirDNA. The preference for larger and more expensive rental properties, especially in coastal regions, has been notable. While occupancy rates slightly dipped due to increased listings, total nights booked rose year over year.
When Olivier Baroin moved into an apartment in Montmartre about 15 years ago, it felt like he was living in a village in the heart of Paris. Not anymore.Stores for residents are disappearing, along with the friendly atmosphere, he says. In their place are hordes of people taking selfies, shops selling tourist trinkets, and cafés whose seating spills into the narrow, cobbled streets as overtourism takes its toll.
"As a Joshua Tree local, we all know the best entrance is the Twentynine Palms entrance. ... It's the part of the park that looks the most like it's a different planet," said Benjamin Uyeda, a co-founder and designer of the hotel who has lived in the area since 2017.
