Dive Brief:

• Home-sharing website Airbnb has rolled out a set of suggestions for city governments currently mulling the implementation of new laws to better regulate unlicensed, short-term rentals, modeled after policies recently approved in New Orleans, according to The New York Times.

• In its Policy Tool Chest document, the San Francisco-based company outlines proposals for the voluntary collection and remitting of taxes from Airbnb hosts. 

• It also offers suggestions for limiting the number of nights a home can be rented and includes proposals to establish a permitting system.

Dive Insight:

The move by Airbnb to launch its own set of recommendations for city governments comes amid mounting pressure on home-sharing websites as some authorities are concerned they are heaping additional pressure on housing shortages by allowing owners to rent their properties to tourists and visitors rather than to locals.

New Orleans’ recently passed legislation eases enforcement and directs some tax revenue from home-sharing sites to the construction of affordable housing. It also outlines a plan to create a registration system for short-term rentals using data provided by Airbnb.

Against the background of growing disquiet over home-sharing services in some cities, Airbnb now appears to be trying to work with authorities. Last month, it introduced measures to limit the amount of time homeowners in London and Amsterdam can rent their properties through the site to reflect local laws.

New York rolled out a new law in October that makes it illegal to use home-sharing services to advertise the leasing of an apartment in a building with three or more units for less than 30 days. The actual renting of the apartment is already prohibited under a separate 2010 rule.

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