As the City of Whitehorse asks residents to complete a short-term rental survey, Neighbourly North, Northern Canada’s leading short-term rental provider, would like to share its perspective on the industry’s impact in Whitehorse.
Let’s start with those in favor of regulating short-term rentals in Whitehorse and then work our way back. Over the past year, we’ve heard increasing calls for the City of Whitehorse to implement regulations aimed at converting some, but not all, Airbnbs into long-term rentals.
A popular argument, for example, is that only primary residences should be allowed for short-term rentals.
This means that you can rent out your bedroom or private home on Airbnb when you drive to Haines, Alaska for the weekend to pay for your gas, but you can’t rent out the investment property you just bought in the KFC Towers on Airbnb. The touted expected result of such regulations would be greater availability and affordability of traditional long-term housing in Whitehorse.
However, this argument is based on false assumptions. The most important of these is this: one less short-term rental means one more long-term rental or home.
This assumption is based on the totality of the living space, which consists of three possible uses: owner-occupied, long-term rental and short-term rental.
And if you prevent someone from renting out their property on a short-term basis, it becomes one of the others. But what the proponents failed to address is that a dwelling can have purposes other than these three.
So if it’s not a short-term or long-term rental and it’s not a home, then what is it?
It is empty.
Since 2016, Statistics Canada has reported data on dwellings that are neither rented long-term nor occupied by owners. These units are referred to as “dwellings not occupied by regular residents.”
This measure captures housing units that are either unoccupied or occupied but occupied by persons who have their primary residence elsewhere, including short-term rentals.
Of these categories, unoccupied dwellings actually make up the vast majority of the units counted.
Across the Yukon Territory, the number of non-occupied dwellings was 2,429 units in 2021. In 2016, this number was 2,670. In the Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) of the City of Whitehorse, this number was 935 in 2021 and 881 in 2016.
Readers can verify census data on dwellings not occupied by usual residents using this tool from www.censusmapper.ca: CensusMapper 2021 Unoccupied Dwellings.
So if, according to AirDNA, there were 935 properties in 2021 that were neither long-term rentals nor owner-occupied primary residences, but fewer than 100 Airbnb listings for the entire home at the time, that must mean there are a lot of potential homes unoccupied in Whitehorse.
But how can it be that during a housing crisis in Whitehorse, more than 800 apartments are vacant?
The logical answer is this: Despite today’s eye-watering long-term rental rates for passive income and the exceptional flexibility offered by Airbnb, there are many homeowners who simply do not want to offer housing: some want to rent long-term, some want to rent short-term, and some do not want to rent at all.
Consider this: In 2021, Statistics Canada reported more than 10,000 vacant guest rooms in the City of Whitehorse CMA. That equates to more than 4,000 vacant apartments, or $120 million in annual rent that homeowners are not paying, assuming a room rate of $1,000 per month.
So what does this mean for Whitehorse? One less short-term rental does not mean there are more long-term rentals or owner-occupied primary residences. There is not a one-to-one ratio between short-term and long-term use.
And if the government forces a housing provider to stop offering short-term rentals, I think in the vast majority of cases it will almost certainly become another vacant property. I believe this because many of the properties managed by Neighbourly North were already vacant before we brought them back online.
So if I’m right about that, why are we being inundated with anti-Airbnb stories and rhetoric from left-wing politicians, housing activists and journalists?
The reason is that, frankly, it’s a hugely effective political message to send to renters. That shouldn’t surprise anyone; it’s the job of politicians to address housing politically. And many renters want to hear that there are bad guys out there that our elected politicians can take action against – be they landlords, speculators, speculators or Airbnb hosts who are responsible for rising rents and making life less affordable for everyone else – not poor planning and rapid population growth.
We saw the culmination of this development late last year when the governing British Columbia NDP introduced Bill 35, which Short-term accommodation lawwhich replaced many municipalities in setting regulations for short-term rental activities.
The current rules, which took effect on May 1, 2024 and have been described by industry experts as one of the most comprehensive measures in North America, prohibit most short-term rentals unless they are the owner’s primary residence or a basement or garden apartment on the same property as their primary residence.
Initially, some remote and rural communities in northern British Columbia were able to opt out: Fort Saint John and Dawson Creek.
Some communities, such as Prince George and Penticton, attempted to opt out but were blocked by the BC NDP.
Since May 1, the legislation has become increasingly controversial, and we are now hearing more and more calls from government and industry leaders to repeal Bill 35. The leaders of BC’s other two major political parties have committed to doing so if elected in October 2024: John Rustad, Conservative Party of BC, and Kevin Falcon, BC United (formerly BC Liberals).
With this I want to say two things:
Whitehorse’s elected officials and top bureaucrats should learn from British Columbia’s mistakes and pay close attention to what is happening there this summer. And Whitehorse residents should think very carefully about the stories they hear about housing and the cost of living when they participate in our local government in October.
The issue of housing has become increasingly politicized in recent years. This has also created more platforms for people without strong academic or professional qualifications to offer political answers to economic problems such as the housing shortage.
We need to question the credibility and track record of those who advocate regulation.
When it comes to potential short-term rental regulations in Whitehorse, I believe there is potential for smart and elegant regulations to guide and elevate this industry that supports so many people.
As for the harsh government interventions aimed at forcing homeowners to provide long-term rental housing, this is not only bad policy, but dangerous for communities like ours. From what I understand, the City of Whitehorse wanted to reduce the number of unused lots, not create more of them.
Ben Pereira
Owner, Neighborly North
Whitehorse
