20 votes

Greece to ban thousands of Airbnb accommodations with new regulations

11 comments

  1. paris
    Link
    Good. This seems rational: banning non-home places as accommodations, locking down new places from being able to register, fees to benefit the local community, rules for extant properties in...

    Good. This seems rational: banning non-home places as accommodations, locking down new places from being able to register, fees to benefit the local community, rules for extant properties in regards to safety.

    17 votes
  2. [10]
    skybrian
    Link
    The justification is that this will "ease the country’s housing crisis," so I'm wondering whether there will be Greek residents living in these converted warehouses, storage rooms, industrial...

    The justification is that this will "ease the country’s housing crisis," so I'm wondering whether there will be Greek residents living in these converted warehouses, storage rooms, industrial spaces, cellars, etc?

    5 votes
    1. [9]
      MimicSquid
      Link Parent
      Why wouldn't there be?

      Why wouldn't there be?

      5 votes
      1. [8]
        skybrian
        Link Parent
        Housing regulations, perhaps?

        Housing regulations, perhaps?

        1 vote
        1. [7]
          regularmother
          Link Parent
          I hypothesize that the vast plurality of Greek AirBnBs are not converted warehouses but rather regular homes and apartments. If this is the case, we have every reason to believe that there will be...

          I hypothesize that the vast plurality of Greek AirBnBs are not converted warehouses but rather regular homes and apartments. If this is the case, we have every reason to believe that there will be a larger supply of homes which should improve the problem Greece is trying to solve.

          4 votes
          1. [6]
            skybrian
            Link Parent
            According to the article, renting out ordinary residences as AirBnb's isn't what was banned. There is a temporary ban in certain districts, though:

            According to the article, renting out ordinary residences as AirBnb's isn't what was banned.

            [...] the legislation bans from such platforms all properties that have not been characterized as a primary residence under Greek law or their owners have not arranged to become as such by July 2011.

            There is a temporary ban in certain districts, though:

            As of January 1st, Airbnb licenses are no longer being issued in several districts in downtown Athens for at least a year.

            2 votes
            1. [5]
              sparksbet
              Link Parent
              Not being the owner's primary residence doesn't entail that something is a converted warehouse. It's preventing people from buying up housing to rent out exclusively as Airbnbs.

              Not being the owner's primary residence doesn't entail that something is a converted warehouse. It's preventing people from buying up housing to rent out exclusively as Airbnbs.

              7 votes
              1. [4]
                skybrian
                Link Parent
                Could be. What do we really know about Greek housing regulations? They’re doing something, but the article is pretty light on details.

                Could be. What do we really know about Greek housing regulations? They’re doing something, but the article is pretty light on details.

                1. [2]
                  sparksbet
                  Link Parent
                  It's possible that the Greek housing regulations are wildly different from those of other EU countries, but since this is how "primary residence" works elsewhere I think it's a much safer...

                  It's possible that the Greek housing regulations are wildly different from those of other EU countries, but since this is how "primary residence" works elsewhere I think it's a much safer assumption to make than that it's referring to places that do not abide by current housing regulations, given the lack of evidence for the latter

                  2 votes
                  1. skybrian
                    Link Parent
                    If nobody's going to do any research then I don't think my question is going to be answered. (I never expect anyone to do any homework, particularly when I'm not doing any, but I was hoping...

                    If nobody's going to do any research then I don't think my question is going to be answered.

                    (I never expect anyone to do any homework, particularly when I'm not doing any, but I was hoping someone might know more or be curious enough to do some digging.)

                2. WeAreWaves
                  Link Parent
                  Isn’t that just the definition of “primary residence”? It’s where the owner lives most of the time / considers their home, in contrast to a secondary / vacation / holiday home. It’s been a common...

                  Isn’t that just the definition of “primary residence”? It’s where the owner lives most of the time / considers their home, in contrast to a secondary / vacation / holiday home. It’s been a common term with tax implications in both countries where I’ve lived and bought a house over the years. So this legislation makes it ok to rent out your own place where you live, but not buy up second or third or etc houses or apartments just to rent on Airbnb.

                  2 votes