No magic fix for housing, Airbnb says as housing report calls for reform

The leading short-stay accommodation website says Tasmania’s housing crisis is a complex problem, and there’s no single easy fix.

INCREASING restrictions on short-stay accommodation in Hobart would not solve the city’s housing crisis on its own, Airbnb says.

The House of Assembly Select Committee on Housing Affordability handed down its final report on Thursday.

The report recommended consideration be given to placing a freeze on short-stay accommodation in Hobart and consider imposing tougher standards on operators.

But it noted that evidence in support of particular policy positions was lacking.

“The Committee notes that while it received anecdotal evidence about the increase in short-stay accommodation listings in Tasmania, and specifically in tourist attracting areas and in Greater Hobart, that without comprehensive data to support this, it is difficult to develop a full understanding of the situation,” the report said.

It noted that rising house prices and low wage growth were among other factors to blame for the housing crisis.

Airbnb’s Head of Public Policy for Australia Derek Nolan said complex problems defied simple solutions.

Airbnb says Hobart’s housing crisis is a complex problem. Picture: LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP

“We note the Inquiry into Housing Affordability has found that housing affordability is a complex issue with a myriad of factors that include population growth, a lack of supply, a shortage of skills, increasing student numbers and lack of provision of public housing.

“Given the first tranche of accurate and reliable data on the number of short-term rentals has only just been collected and is yet to be thoroughly analysed or released, these recommendations are premature.

“The report itself acknowledges the evidence it considered was anecdotal and lacked comprehensive data.”

The Government says it will consider the 61 recommendations made in the committee’s final report.