Gold Coast council permits?

James507
Level 1
Queensland, Australia

Gold Coast council permits?

Hi if I'm going to host a private room and live in the residence as well do I still need to purchase that crazy $8000 permit from the council to avoid fines etc? I heard if you list it as a home based business you can avoid having to legally get one.

 

has anyone here got those permits or been fined for not having one?

36 Replies 36
Jaina0
Level 2
Pacific Pines, Australia

Hi, has anyone gone through the process of applying for a permit? Is it a lengthy process? Has anyone had their application denied? When I was notified by the council that I needed a permit, they said there was an application fee of $8000 and no guarantee that it would be approved and no refund. That's a lot of money for a potenial 'no' and for no reason! 😞

Susan1401
Level 2
Highland Park, Australia

Hi, I've been renting out part of our house via AirBNB since September and have just heard about the council permit at a cost of $8,100 therefore, we are wanting to know more about it.  Therefore, if we could have details of the Gold Coast meeting, we would be very interested in attending.  Please could we have details of the next meeting.  Thank you.

Leah184
Level 2
Queensland, Australia

Hi Guys, I have also just received a 'show cause' notice, however as I have been using the house as an airbnb since prior to the new rulings (2016) I understand that I am excempt from any future applications as 'prior usage' has been established. has anyone else gone through this yet? Also, has anyone had their rates increased due to the 'commercial' usage of their property yet? Sharing any advice/experience would be great!

Hi Leah, Anything further from your show cause notice issued? I too have been renting prior to the city plan change in 2016 and was told I was also excempt but I'm not facing GCCC at the Planning and Enviroment court. It's really the last thing i need.  let me know if you responded. I feel we have to get together to fight this.  Maybe Air bnb can help. Bullying fromt he GCCC as they want a cut of it. 

Melissa826
Level 2
Burleigh Heads, Australia

How did you prove prior usage?  Would you be able to tell us what the outcome was for the show cause? 

Daniel2433
Level 2
Brisbane, Australia

Hey everyone,

I am a qualified town planner and operate as a sole trader.  I regularly get asked by home owners if they can operate AirBnB or require Council planning approval.  The question usually arises because they have been caught out by Council through complaints and have either been issued with a show cause notice or enforcement notice.

 

It comes down to the use of the property.  Most residential properties are designed as dwellings for a single household to live in long term.  Once you start renting out rooms, or the whole dwelling, it changes the use from a dwelling to either short term accommodation, rooming accommodation or other uses.  These do require planning approval from Council depending on the land use zone you are in as well as building approval from a third party building certifier as in most cases you need to change the features of the building e.g. fire warning systems, exit signs etc etc.

 

For a home business, such as a bed and breakfast, you do need to reside in the dwelling while your guests are there.  If you leave the dwelling and let them use it, then it is not a bed and breakfast.  That is a general rule but some Council's are different.

 

If you are looking at renting out long term, getting Council planning approval might be beneficial as you will eventually recoupe the application costs.  And the post earlier is correct, there is no guarantee of approval being granted as it comes down to the assessment and impacts on the surrounding community.

 

I hope this information helps people out here.  If you would like any assistance with a town planning application or any town planning investigations I'd be happy to help out.

 

Daniel

Hey Daniel, Thanks for this! Any comment for those of us who were renting through Airbnb since before the new rulings? I know we technically have the right to continue without further approval, but information on this is virtually non existent on GCCC council website! 

Hi Leah, I agree - I read that we were excempt but trying to find where. Pretty sad all these people are receiving show cause notices but the GCCC aren't being clear about Air bnb. I need advice. 

Melissa826
Level 2
Burleigh Heads, Australia

Hi Leah How did you go with the show cause. Did the usage prior to Feb 2016 find you exempt and how did you go about that? 

Jack294
Level 2
Gold Coast, Australia

Hopefully, this goes without saying, but this is not legal advice and I may be wrong.

 

I spoke to Council on the phone about the difference between renting a room and renting out your entire place.

They basically say that having a 'Home based business' as a Bed and Breakfast under the city pan means that the home must be primarily used as a residence and the business part of the residence must not be the main role of the home. AKA, the business part (the bedroom(s) you rent out must be subordinate to the rest of the house). According to the Bed & breakfast code (9.3.1), the area rented out for private use cannot exceed 50m2. 

My understanding of that is that if you're renting out a room in your home, that is classified as a home based business as a Bed and Breakfast. Which is acceptable (Subject to requirements) for Low, medium and high density zones according to Tables 5.5.1, 5.5.2 & 5.5.3 of GCCC City Plan. 

 

The requirements for a home based business as a bed and breakfast can be found in section 9.3.1 of GCCC City plan Part A. There are a few things in there that you might not know about such as the limit of 4 guests at once and a maximum of 14 days fo a guest to stay in one go. I encourage you to have a read through this plan if you're renting out a room in your house to make sure you're doing it right.

Here is a link to the GCCC website where you can find the City plan, it's a bit of a nightmare to find things on there so send me a message if you need a hand finding things.
http://www.goldcoast.qld.gov.au/planning-and-building/city-plan-2015-19859.html

 

If you follow that link or google "GCCC City plan" and click the first option then click 'Access the City Plan' you will find the documents I refer to above.

That turned out to be a bit of an essay but I thought I would share what I found with the community. I hope it helps.

thankyou Jack 🙂 

Thank you Jack!

 

your "essay" is most helpful! I have some horrible neighbors who are having a huge go at me and who complained to council about my AirBnB. 


The Council came by today and demanded access but I refused and moved them on, they are coming back next week to have a look at my place. 

 

The info regarding the Home Based Business is gold as I comply with all rules :).

 

Is there still a Gold Coast AirBnB Host meeting / Facebook group? I would love to join.

Tracey104
Level 2
Surfers Paradise, Australia

Has anyone had any recent updates on these permits its now OCT 2020 

 

Any updates?  What is the facebook page please?  Thanks

Colin4
Level 4
Hamburg, Germany

Its about time GC hosts ALL join together to get the GCCC anti Airbnb restrictions changed.

Not only is the $8,1000 TAX not a fee recovery to pricess any apication, as its designed to prevent any application in the first place.

The GC needs as much income as possible.

Every effort needs to be made to prevent 'party houses' to assist a change in GCCC negative views. There are a LOT of methids to ensure hosts can abide by rules to reduce or prevent parties happening (Government ID for ALL guests for EVERY booking, max of 4 adults, max of 6 in total, NO visitors other than the booked guests, Smart locks with vdo at the front door that shows you in teal time who is entering, Noise monotors which you set the level of noise, say 80db, calling the police or private security, not taking any bookings from locals...say within a 300km radius, all set out in your house rules.

NOTE: Airbnb is STOPPING ALL parties and are actively suing any guests that breach these rules. 🙂

Smaller is better...1 or 2 bedrooms are best with a max of 4 guests.

If you have a 3 or 4 bedroom house, you need to lock off 1 or 2 bedrooms...50 to 65% is better than ZERO.