Have Airbnbs made Australia’s housing crisis worse? | The Business | ABC NEWS
The federal budget has shone a light on the housing market, and with it, how airbnbs could be crowding renters out of somewhere to live.
New data shows the number of Airbnbs, along with other short-term accommodation, hit record highs at the end of 2024, while rentals plummeted.
Lecturer in urban planning at the University of Sydney, Nicole Gurran says while the issue is Australia-wide, Tasmania has reporting requirements for short-term accommodation, which can accurately show the extent of the crisis.
She says in 2024, there were 36 short-term accommodation vacancies for every one long-term rental.
And ironically, she says, there’s been a scenario where many former hotels, motels and caravan parks are being turned into “inadequate, often very inappropriate, and not necessarily affordable” long-term housing stock.
She says there needs to be a housing policy response at every level of government.
“To get the policy settings right, you do need effective registration, and you do need local governments in particular to be able to respond to housing needs in their own communities,” she says.
“Regulation, registration, and platform accountability is the way to put that framework in place.”
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