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The landscape of short-term rentals is diverse, with platforms like Airbnb dominating the market, offering a wide range of options for travellers seeking a home-like experience. With the rise in travel and tourism, there’s an inevitable surge of short-term rentals across strata, owners corporation, and body corporate properties.
Whether you’re a property owner thinking of using Airbnb or a manager looking to solve problems caused by hosts and guests, here’s what you should know about short-term letting:
The increasing popularity of short-term letting platforms like Stayz and Airbnb has sparked discussions on whether it contributes to the decreased availability and affordability of long-term accommodation for renters.
In a landmark move to tackle the rental shortage, Australia’s first short-term rental levy was introduced by the Victorian state government, declaring a 7.5% levy from 2025 on all revenue from short-stay accommodation platforms, such as Airbnb and Stayz.
As multiple Australian states consider various approaches to address the housing crisis, the Victorian-style Airbnb tax is emerging as a topic of interest and a potential solution for the housing crisis. This move has quickly become the central point of discussion across Australia, potentially leading to a paradigm shift in the movement to affordable housing for renters and the management and pricing strategies of the short-term rental market for owners.
Keep track of your state laws and proposed changes in legislation on the subject. In line with market trends, state governments are always making necessary amendments to have more robust regulations in place. So, make sure you’re informed and legally in the clear.
As of November 2021, most hosts must register their STRA premises on the Department of Planning before advertising or offering their property for short-term rental. Violations of the Code can result in disciplinary actions from NSW Fair Trading, including potential listings on an Exclusion Register. These adjustments balance the needs of strata property owners and residents with the evolving landscape of short-term rental accommodation.
In February 2019, amendments to the Owners Corporations Act 2006 were made to regulate short-term letting, primarily targeting short-stay leases or licenses for seven days and six nights. These changes aim to empower owners corporations, and residents to hold any liable owners and guests accountable for compensation, fines, and awards for damage to common property.
The regulations around short-term rentals in Queensland can differ depending on the council and location of the scheme. In a bid to boost the housing supply, the University of Queensland conducted a study that found that about 19,773 active short-term rentals in Q1 2023 were primarily concentrated in popular tourist locations. The Queensland Government now plans to consult with industry groups on these findings, mainly focusing on the potential implementation of a short-term rental registration system.
In the Northern Territory, there are no specific regulations for short-term letting laws. However, it’s possible to manage visitor behaviour and limit the number of guests per bedroom through the scheme’s by-laws.
If you’re considering hosting a short stay or visitor accommodation in Tasmania, you may need to apply for a permit from your local council. An exception to this rule is the ‘home-sharing’ exemption, where the property is your primary residence and is rented out either when you’re temporarily absent or when guests occupy no more than four bedrooms while you’re still present. Keep in mind planning requirements may vary between councils as the implementation of the single Tasmanian Planning Scheme is being rolled out.
Regardless of state laws on short-term rentals, you must still adhere to your by-laws and building rules to avoid causing disruption within your community. Disturbances from short-term lettings, such as noise or inconsiderate behaviour, may create an unpleasant environment and lead to disputes within your body corporate.
The state’s short-term holiday letting plan allows strata committees to enforce specific by-laws that address the impact on residents’ lives, such as problematic guests, noise levels, health and safety issues, and shared neighbourhood amenities. Also, this plan allows strata managers to oversee owners corporations to adopt by-laws to stop short-term letting in their block if the host does not live in the unit being let out. Additionally, changes to strata and tenancy laws in April 2020 now allow owners corporations to adopt by-laws restricting short-term rental accommodation in their strata scheme, particularly prohibiting it in lots that are not the host’s primary residence.
One of the proposals for protecting community-shared property allows owners corporations to charge apartment owners and hosts a higher fee for short-term letting. These fees are meant to cover any wear and tear to common areas from short-stay activities. Owners corporations can adopt rules to protect shared property and penalise the host and occupant for any damages to shared amenities.
QLD: The sunshine state does not allow body corporates to enforce restrictions through by-laws in short-term letting. This means that if you’re a property owner and you choose to let out your residential unit on Airbnb, the body corporate cannot stop you from doing so.
In the Northern Territory, establishing by-laws can help govern owners and renters from short-term leasing of their properties via home-sharing platforms. Body corporates may implement and enforce rules to restrict the number of guests per bedroom and the behaviour of residents to help minimise disruptions that short-term accommodation may cause within the community.
While a property owner has the right to lease their lot, the corporate body has the authority to establish by-laws to prohibit short-term leases but cannot ban leases for six months or longer.
Holidays or not, everyone has the right to a peaceful, safe and secure living in a shared property. If your neighbour’s short-term letting plans or their tenants’ activities are causing you problems, you can lodge a complaint to your committee or strata manager, and they will take the necessary actions on your behalf.
You may be fined for any damages if you’re the party causing trouble with your short-stay letting. In some cases, you may also be prohibited from letting out your apartment for short stays in the future for a certain period.
There are a lot of grey areas in legislation, and things are constantly in flux. The state governments continue to work towards updating regulations to protect the rights of property owners, tenants, managing committees and regulators. In the meantime, you can always contact your strata manager for information, advice and help.
Click here to read more about what you should know before being a host for short-term letting such as Airbnb. If you’d like to stay in touch with legislation updates and to access helpful resources, click here to visit our webpage to stay informed. Or ask a question at StrataFAQ.com.au.
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