Airbnb proposes new regulations to protect housing and fight over-tourism 

Airbnb today launched the Italian Cities Pledge – a series of commitments and proposals for simple regulations to protect housing, clampdown on speculators and support the sustainable growth of short-term rentals in Italy to the benefit of Italian people. 

The plan was launched by Giacomo Trovato, Airbnb Country Manager in Italy, at the Formiche-hosted New Tourism Frontiers roundtable in Rome, and comes as cities and regions across Italy consider new rules for local families who share their homes. While travel on the platform is dispersed – the popularity of rural stays has grown by more than 55 percent when comparing the first three quarters of 2019 to the same period in 2022 – Airbnb wants to be a good partner to cities and partner with policymakers on rules that work for everyone. 

Airbnb welcomes regulation and proposes a national approach to regulation to ensure that future rules are clear, simple and easy for regular people to follow – rather than varying in each city and region across the country. Earlier this month the EU Commission announced proposals for an EU-wide approach to short-term rental regulation and said that local rules across the bloc must be clear, simple and proportionate for everyday Hosts to follow.

1. A national Host register – Airbnb supports the introduction of a national Host register to ensure that governments get the data they need about hosting activity in their communities. Airbnb commits to ensuring that only Hosts with a registration number are able to publish listings on the platform.
2. Identifying critical neighbourhoods – As a national Host register provides local authorities with data on Hosting activity, we commit to supporting them to identify communities where additional measures – beyond a Host register – are needed to protect the integrity of communities.
3. Taking action to protect communities – Where Airbnb and local authorities identify a need to take additional steps to protect communities, we commit to partnering on measures that clampdown on speculators as drivers of housing and over-tourism concerns, while protecting the rights of everyday families to share their homes and rooms to boost their income and afford rising living costs.

“Home sharing has long been part of the Italian hospitality tradition that generates much-needed extra income for families. We also see the challenges facing historical cities across Italy and want Airbnb to be part of the solution. We welcome regulation and believe our proposals for clear, simple and national rules will work for everyone, making it easy for families to share their homes and follow the rules, while helping governments clampdown on speculators that drive housing and over-tourism concerns.”

Giacomo Trovato, Country Manager of Airbnb Italia

The proposal comes as new survey data released today by Quorum shows that overwhelming majority of Italians welcome the positive impacts of home sharing:

• 4 in 5 Italians support the right of regular people to rent their homes on platforms like Airbnb
• More than 4 in 5 Italians believe that home sharing has a positive economic impact on cities
• In Venice – a city with historic housing and over-tourism challenges – 3 in 5* respondents still recognise the positive economic impact home sharing.

The vast majority of Hosts on Airbnb are everyday people and 4 in 5 share just one listing. The typical Host earns 2.500 Euros – almost half of Hosts in Italy said the money they’ve earned through hosting has helped them stay in their home, 40 percent say they’ve used the extra money to pay for food and other items that have become more expensive.