New Listing Type needed in New Orleans

[Emily-And-Avery0]

Hi airbnb,

I tried to email help@airbnb... to no avail.  So I'm posting this here.  Maybe other New Orleans hosts can chime in.

Given the New Orleans city council's recent vote and imminent legislation, I am seeing the need for a new type of listing in New Orleans.

My husband and I own our home, and we rent out two rooms + a bathroom on airbnb.  The guest suite, as we call it, has a separate entrance and no shared space with the rest of our home.  There is a door connecting the two sides that we keep closed and locked when guests are staying there.  

Currently my home is listed as an "entire place" because that more accurately describes it than "private room."  However, it's really less than an "entire place" and more of a "private suite" or "private apartment" with a separate entrance.

Under the pending legislation, "entire home" listings will be subject to a 90 day limit per year.  However, since my listing is not truly an entire home, I don't think that limit is intended for people like me, who also live on site.  

Could airbnb create a new listing type to accommodate people in my situation and help us account for the new regulations?

Thank you,

Emily

[David126]

I can see doing it for other reasons, but ABB operates workd wide and if you catered for for the needs of each location things could get very complicated.

[Shelley-And-Jeff0]

I have a similar quandry even though I am not in New Orleans and have no tax or regulation consequences.  If you want to advertise as more than one bedroom (as both we and the original poster require), the platform does not give you a choice other than "entire house" - so hosts in this situation have no correct choice.  It's not just a private room - in my case, it's two private bedrooms, a private family room and mini-kitchen/coffee station, a private bath, a separate entrance, and a huge deck and pool - all for the guests alone.  There are no shared spaces.  To categorize this as a "private room" is absurd.  I am sure there are many hosts in the same situation.  

Airbnb Support - could you please acknowledge this deficit and correct it?  The inaccuracy of your categories is unfair to hosts and guests alike.

[Emily-And-Avery0]

David, I hear what you're saying about catering to each location, but the issue with listing type isn't limited to only New Orleans, as Shelley and Jeff demonstrated.

Furthermore, airbnb does quite a bit already to help preserve short term rentals in NOLA, since it's a $320 million industry here.  They're doing similar things to work with the increasing regulation in other tourist hot spots like San Francisco and New York.

[Teresa160]

Here is another scenario for the addition of the category.  I have an apartment that can be rented as a 1 or 2 bedroom apartment or it can be rented as a bedroom only.  

[Valerie55]

Right. In New Orleans, if you rent two rooms, our zoning code only allows those two rooms to be used by a single guest party.  The cost of cleaning linens and spaces is greater for two rooms than one.  If a guest party of 2 opts to use two rooms, we have no way of increasing the cleaning fee accordingly.

So, I am listing only one of my two rooms right now until I can appropritely price the additional cost of offering two. 

[Dale39]

Your post is several months old but I will chime in for those that may not be aware and are going through the messages.

New Orleans allows for a property such as yours to apply for an Accessory STR permit if you live on premises and have a homestead exemption on the property.  With an Accessory STR you can then rent out 365 days a year.

In 2017 the Accessory STR License was $150.00. 

[Michele304]

Hey Dale! 

How did you get the Homestead Exemption? 

Do you own the house you have posted on Airbnb?? 

I want to get an accessory license but I don't own my home I rent it and I don't think I can get the Exemption. 

What do you reccomend?? 

[Steven268]

Sound to me like you could legitimately list it as a private room with no worries.  

[Maureen219]

I like reading your experiences in New Orleans.  We are being forced to sell

our beautiful condo in the French quartet St Louis St or try to find 3 month renters.  And recommendations for super neat freak cleaners.