Holiday rental platform Stayz has weighed in on the short-stay accommodation debate in Western Australia, calling on the WA Parliament to implement a series of state-wide reforms to holiday letting laws.
The recommended shakeup to letting laws was released in the holiday rental platform’s submission to the WA Parliamentary Inquiry into Short-Stay Accommodation, which begins hearings today, February 13.
The submission also revealed the total size of the holiday rental industry in WA for the first time.
Stayz Corporate Affairs Director Eacham Curry said that getting the rules of the holiday rental industry right will help the Government turbocharge the tourism economy.
“Across WA, the holiday rental industry drove $412.7 million dollars of economic growth and supported 2,430 jobs in 2017/18.
“With the right laws, holiday rentals could help bring the WA tourism economy out of the doldrums and back onto growth footing,” Mr Curry said.
“Stayz recognises the need for consistent ground rules across the entire holiday rental industry. Our proposals will ensure that local communities have certainty that complaints about noise, over-crowding or anti-social behaviour will be dealt with swiftly and decisively.
“Any regulatory solution for holiday rentals must be underpinned by a state-wide register of all short-term rental listings. Without this important component, governments and communities will remain in the dark about the boundaries of the burgeoning holiday rental sector.
“We believe this important step towards transparency will ensure governments, communities and our industry can work together on questions of amenity rules, urban planning and infrastructure.
“Our proposals recognise the fact that holiday homes have been an important tradition for countless families for many decades.
“Punitive regulation could see the end of this pastime and curtail the economic uplift associated with the tourism economy.
“Night caps, punitive rules or other use restrictions will make it hard for mum and dad investors to let out their own holiday homes to the detriment of the West’s tourism economy.
“They also fail to address the three most consistently cited concerns about the industry, namely; housing affordability, availability and the impact on amenity.”
