Another blow to Airbnb: Florence bans short-term rentals in the historic center

Florence, one of the touristic destinations most popular in Italy, banned new short-term residential rentals on platforms such as Airbnb in its historic center, in the latest measure by local authorities to try to free up more housing for the local population.

The rules, approved by the Tuscan city late on Monday, also offer three years of tax breaks to owners of short-term rental properties if they change them to ordinary rentals.

The mayor of Florence, Dario Nardellaexplained that the city had decided to act at the local level because the Government’s plans to regulate the sector had been disappointing.

“In 2016 we had just under 6,000 apartments registered on Airbnb, today we have almost 14,378″he said, noting that during that time the average cost of ordinary monthly residential rentals had skyrocketed 42%.

This year, prices have increased 15.1%, he said Nardella.

“The 40,000 Florentines who live in the center complain of suddenly finding themselves living in aparthotels”he added.

Nardella He is a member of the center-left Democratic Party, which is part of the national opposition.

As in other European countries, a mix of low wages, property shortages, short-term holiday rentals and high inflation have fueled a housing crisis in Italy, with students and people on low incomes particularly affected. income.

The problems are similar in other cities further away, such as New York, where regulations on short-term rentals are being tightened.

Marco Stellaregional coordinator of the party Forza Italiawhich is part of the right-wing coalition in power, has declared that it will appeal Florence’s decision before the Administrative Court.

Lorenzo FagnoniPresident of Property Managers Italyan association of tourist rental entrepreneurs, said the rules were “a completely wrong choice that goes against market liberalism”.

Airbnb did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The central government is working on a bill that, according to the media, would require a minimum stay of two nights in homes located in historic city centers and in municipalities with a high density of tourists.

Each residential property rented to tourists would need a national identification code to help track and regulate rentals. Non-compliance would risk a penalty of up to 5,000 euros (US$5,500).