Airbnb Jersey City Ban

Hector74
Level 2
Jersey City, NJ

Airbnb Jersey City Ban

I'm a super host in Jersey City, and I've been following the events of the potential ban of Airbnb in Jersey City.   I have seen nothing on this community website from the thousands of hosts in Jersey City.     Since 2015 Jersey City had approved Airbnb and made it possible for Airbnb to collect taxes on behalf of the city. This had worked well until late last year when the Hotel lobby got involved.   Now, things have changed and Jersey City has changed the Ordinance and it looks like Airbnb will be banned in a fashion very similar to NYC.   

Very few local hosts are involved, of the thousands that  I know operate in Jersey City.   I'm looking of other hosts to get involved and show up at the City Council meetings, as shown in the emails that Airbnb has sent me and I'm sure many of you.   

 

Here's an article on the situation:

https://www.nj.com/hudson/2019/04/a-closer-look-at-jersey-citys-crackdown-on-airbnb-and-other-short-...

 

The End of Airbnb in Jersey City:

https://www.nj.com/hudson/2019/04/the-end-of-airbnb-in-jersey-city-city-council-proposes-to-limit-sh...

 

Thanks

 

22 Replies 22
Sally221
Level 10
Berkeley, CA

Dear Hector,

there are several posts from hosts in cities around the country that are looking to regulate/ban airbnb platforms. I am nervously awaiting Berkeley's version as we have a very tight housing market and a strict rent control ordinance so many people who might otherwise rent to longer term tenants  prefer to do short term rentals.

It has been pretty unregulated so far and between the hotel lobby and the folks who have been badly impacted living in neighborhoods saturated with listings there's a head of resentful steam building up. Can hosts figure out a way to craft reasonable limits and regulations that work for the people who live (and vote) in Jersey city and all the other places considering these sweeping bans? How many hosts even know about this forum & how do you contact the ones who don't?  Getting the word out & organizing is the only way to make your case to your community.

I don't think having Airbnb the company represent you is going to sway the council in your favor.  Have local people who both spend their hard earned cash locally  and vote locally show up to council meetings and get their stories out to the community. What is the downside for neighbors of short term renters? What would improve things from their point of view?  Outreach to those folks would be helpful, you contribute to the local economy and aren't villains but fellow citizens trying to make a living. The best of luck to you & I hope you create a model template for how a city works with this part of our changing economy. ( I recently learned that your state puts the most $$into the federal budge, that's a lot of cabbage , Garden State ) Sally

I'm in a group that met on WhatsApp. We have organised and met with the city council and other members.  The issue is the lack of response from other hosts. 

We'll see what happens in the coming weeks. 

 

WE MUST ALL GO TO https://www.airbnbcitizen.com/ and protest the City Council's attempt to take away people's right to choose whether they stay at your place or at a hotel!

Helen427
Level 10
Auckland, New Zealand

@Hector74 @Sally221 

 

Hi Hector, have a scan of your area here in CC & you should be able to find others.

Have you considered sending an 'enquiry' through to those who have listings in your area via the listings page?

 

Unfortunately much of the information bandied about ABB users been a nusiance, causing housing shortages etc is merely hot air, the same issues happen everywhere.

Until people stop reproducing, immigrating, wrecking homes they are provided with,  natural disasters stop etc there will always be challenges with housing.

 

The propaganda that has been spun by a minority of 'academics' who multiple there research figures to come to the conclusions they do must be viewed with a grain of salt.

Those academics papers are not based on the real world but are a 'hypothesis' based on usually an original sample of less than 100 people's opinions, yet there are far more people out there in the world who have opinions. 

The research systems need to be put under the spotlight as do those who are the originators of the templates used.

 

Indocrinated rubbish research methodologies must cease to stop the quagmire we get thrust in our faces!!!

Mark116
Level 10
Jersey City, NJ

@Hector74   Hi, we're in Jersey City, and yes, it's a shame that the city is considering some strict new rules against airbnb.  We went to two city council meetings and I thought they had created a 'committee' to study the original proposed rules.  I'm not sure if the 60 day max would apply to in home hosts or not, but if it does, we would certainly have to try and find some other manner of renting a fully furnished unit, because our place is booked usually about 200 days a year.  60 days it wouldn't be worth it.

I'm a homeowner I have 2 apts on Airbnb and the rest are permanent rentals. The 60 day rule would kill Airbnb for me and I'm sure everyone else in Jersey City.   The gist of the issue for the council is the downtown rental buildings where many hosts are not running 30-50 apts at once in rental buildings.  This has lead to complaints and many issues that the existing residents brought to the city council and the now the hotel lobby.   

I don't see the support of the hosts in Jersey City.  I think without the numbers, Airbnb will be banned here.

@Hector74  The whole thing is really surprising, I had expected that JC would  have already become addicted to the skim tax they enacted, if they have a max rental of 60 days, anyone renting an entire apartment would have to be out of the market.  It's not a sustainable model to do it only 2 months of the year.  Even people who only host a room in their own home might feel the pinch as they are having significantly less $$ to defray rent or mortage costs.  Those millions they made from their airbnb tax will evaporate. And yes, it's definitely the hotel lobby.  I also read that they might grandfather in existing hosts so that you wouldn't be hit by the regs until 2021....which I guess gives some time to make alternative arrangements.

SO LET'S DO SOMETHING!

SO LET'S ORGANIZE!

RECRIMINATIONS WILL NOT HELP US.  WHAT CAN WE DO TO FIGHT THIS?

 

 

@Juliet58  It's a done deal for now, the city council passed the mayor's bill, which effectively shuts down all airbnb's where the owner is not on the property, and beginning next year mandates an inspection and a permit.  But I'm open to ideas.  I was very, very disappointed with the lackluster airbnb efforts here, considering they already effectively lost NYC to regulations and JC is their biggest market in NJ.

 

A “HIT PIECE” FLYER AGAINST AIRBNB HOSTING CAME IN MY MAIL YESTERDAY.  I contacted Airbnb but told that department could not provide help, or information, or guidance.  Airbnb said to post it on the Community Page.  So here I am.  Is anybody there?!  Are we going down without a fight?  The J City Council is being bought off by the hotel industry (just like what happened to Uber) and the Council is using scare tactics in commercials to give citizens the absolutely wrongheaded impression of our Airbnb guests and hosting.  When did Jersey City become an isolationist city?  The Statute of Liberty is on our city’s land, for God’s Sake.  VOTE NO ON ONE.  DO SOMETHING.

 

TAKE ACTION...WE MUST ALL GO TO https://www.airbnbcitizen.com/ and protest the City Council's attempt to take away people's right to choose whether they stay at your place or at a hotel!